N. Korean defector wins Moral Courage Award

Shin Dong-hyuk

By Kwon Ji-youn

A North Korean defector was named to receive a Moral Courage Award from the Geneva-based UN Watch on Tuesday in recognition of advocating the human rights of prisoners in his home country’s concentration camps.

“UN Watch has decided to grant the Moral Courage Award to Dong-hyuk Shin for bearing witness to atrocities and stirring the conscience of mankind to protect the fundamental human rights of the voiceless victims of North Korea,” said Hillel Neuer, the rights group’s executive director.

“No one would have blamed him for seeking a life of quiet and recuperation. Instead, Shin dedicates his life to speaking out for those left behind,” she said.

The award, according to deputy director Leon Saltiel, is an encouragement for those who fight against repressive regimes.

Shin was born in a concentration camp located in South Pyongan Province, North Korea. His parents were permitted to marry as a reward for being model prisoners.

When he was 13, he witnessed his mother and brother’s execution, after he informed officials they were attempting to escape the camp.

He also claimed to have jumped an electric fence to escape because he “wanted to eat meat.”

Shin escaped in 2005. He was, and is, the only person known to have escaped a “total-control zone” internment camp in the North. Since then he has worked hard to improve conditions in his home country, especially to help protect the human rights of North Koreans.

He published a book in October 2007, detailing his experiences and his life in the North Korean gulags. He is currently a human rights activist.

Former Washington Post journalist Blaine Harden also published a book titled “Escape from Camp 14” about Shin, which drew much attention and interest.

The ceremony is to be held in the original League of Nations Hall, Geneva, on June 5.