Policy Press

North Korean Women and Defection

Human Rights Violations and Activism

By Hyun-Joo Lim

Presenting in-depth accounts of North Korean women defectors living in the UK, this book examines how the harrowing experiences they endured and their utopian dream of a better future for fellow North Korean women have become an impetus for their activism.

Recent North Korean diaspora has given rise to female refugee groups fighting for the protection of women’s rights.

Presenting in-depth accounts of North Korean women defectors living in the UK, this book examines how their harrowing experiences have become an impetus for their activism. The author also reveals how their utopian dream of a better future for fellow North Korean women is vital in their activism.

Unique in its focus on the intersections between gender, politics, activism and mobility, Lim's illuminating work will inform debates on activism and human rights internationally.

“This book masterfully narrates the traumatic account of human rights abuses experienced by North Korean women, and their collective political awakening and transformation from victims into activists after their defection. A must-read for anyone interested in North Korea, human rights activism and ethnographic research.” Andrew Yeo, Brookings Institution and The Catholic University of America

Hyun-Joo Lim is Principal Academic in Sociology at Bournemouth University.

1. Introduction

2. Researching North Korean Women’s Human Rights: Methodological Considerations

3. Cycle of Oppression: Violations of Human Rights Against North Korean Women

4. North Korean Women’s Human Rights Activism

5. Altruistic Political Imagination (API)

6. Conclusion