Twenty-four years ago, Kim Seongeun witnessed dozens of dead bodies floating down the Tumen River, which separates North Korea from China. Ever since, he has been committed to helping people escape Kim Jong-un’s totalitarian regime.
Pastor Kim, as he is known, organises these dangerous escapes from his base in Seoul, through a charity and church named Caleb Mission. They have rescued 1,012 people since it began in 2000, taking defectors on an ‘underground railroad’ through Southeast Asia to safety. The very first to be rescued was a woman named Park Esther, a lieutenant in the North Korean Army – who later became Kim’s wife.
‘We fell in love, so I wanted to save the love of my life,’ Kim shared in an interview with Channel 4. ‘I went and looked for every way to safely rescue her and I finally did. But she also had friends and family there, so I had to help them. That is how it started.’
