South Korea Hosts North Korean Defector

On January 17, South Korea’s National Assembly held a roundtable discussion with the former North Korean deputy ambassador to London, Thae Yong Ho, a recent defector. The talks centered on the the role of the National Assembly in inducing change in North Korea and bringing reunification.

Thae and his family defected to South Korea in August 2016 from London. Thae has been vocal in sharing his inside knowledge on North Korea and advocating for stronger political action against the North Korean regime.

During the roundtable discussion, Thae discussed several topics including Kim Jong-Un’s power and the current political climate in North Korea. He identified four fatal weaknesses of the Kim Jong-Un regime, including Kim Jong-Un’s lack of legitimacy, the influx of outside information, the absence of practical social policy, and the loss of elite support.

Regarding North Korea’s nuclear problem, Thae argued that the collapse of the North Korean regime would be the fastest way to denuclearize North Korea, given that nuclear weapons are  indispensable for North Korea’s survival. In order to facilitate the downfall of the regime, Thae suggested inducing defection through the demilitarized zone (DMZ), the border between North and South Korea. “Bribery works not only on the North Korea-China border but also on the inter-Korean border,” Thae said. He explained that the is easier to cross the DMZ because the guards are mostly from lower-income families and can be easily bribed.

With regards to policies on North Korea, Thae emphasized the importance of sending outside information to foster discontent against the regime among the North Korean people. He also stressed international cooperation and economic sanctions, disclosing human rights atrocities, and enhancing strategic civilian-level exchanges as instrumental to fomenting discontent.

Strategic civilian-level exchanges involve establishing rules that label products such as grain transferred from South Korea to North Korea as originating from South Korea. In this way, the North Korean people will see South Korea as a prosperous country.

Thae also remarked that there have recently been numerous North Korean high officials who have defected without making public appearances, with many more around the world waiting to defect. Thae shared his optimism for the weakening of the regime. “Provide me with the legal environment in which to bring about North Korea’s downfall. I will reciprocate with the reunification of the Korean peninsula within ten years,” Thae said.