Inside North Korea's Inner Circle A Bodyguard's Secrets

Hi, I'm Kang. This man used to be Kim Jong-il's private bodyguard, and knows what happens inside North Korea's inner circle. If Kim Jong il likes a girl That woman completely becomes Kim Jong-il's own personal property. I can't begin to process how insane that is. Now we are here in his new home of Seoul, and I'm going to ask him all the burning questions that no one else can answer. You probably know Kim Jong Un, the country's current dictator who's obsessed with nuclear rockets. But his father, Kim Jong-il, was an even scarier leader.

Kang guarded his residence for more than thirteen years. And he's about to spill all the juicy secrets for the first time. We're on our way to my favorite spot in Seoul, the fish market, so I can break the ice. So, tell me a little bit about your childhood. Where exactly in North Korea are you from? And what are your very first memories of life there?

During my early childhood, I could never have imagined a world like this one. We lived in a city called Hyesan, in the Ryanggang Province of North Korea. Near the Chinese border. When you were really young, what do you remember about your childhood? What was your education like in elementary school? We really couldn't just go out and play around freely at all. We lived what's called a very organized life, a structured existence. From the age of eight, you'd wear a Children's Union necktie, almost like a uniform, and then you'd join an organization.

it was nearly impossible to see the wider world. You had to move exactly as the organization instructed, During our childhood, so it was very hard to see the wider world. there were always special gifts given by Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. During our childhood, there were always these gifts from Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. They would give us one kilogram of cookies and candies for our birthdays, Things like a whole kilogram of snacks or candy on your birthday, for example, and you'd receive them, crying tears of gratitude, truly thankful. and we'd hold them tightly and say thank you with tears in our eyes.

It's like a Boy Scout, I guess? Spilling it. So from an early age, Kim Jong-il was always like a god for you? He was a god, even greater than any god. By the time we were three, even before we could say 'Mom' or 'Dad', we learned to say, 'Thank you, Generalissimo Kim Il-sung,' and 'Thank you, Generalissimo Kim Jong-il.' They were a much greater presence than our own mom and dad. Your first words were. "Kim Jong-il is our supreme leader." Did you pray to his picture every morning in your house? Back then, we didn't know that was a prayer.

Coming here to South Korea, I realize we were truly praying to and praising the Kim family, living or dying just as they commanded. It feels so much like a dream now. North Koreans view Americans as evil. Walking here with an American, South Korean, and North Korean brings me joy. So, I'm American and he is North Korean. We can still be friends. Exactly. Great. Yeah. What do you think about this market? I've never seen anything like this before. First time in my life.

Yeah. Does anyone here know you're North Korean? Maybe from your accent? If they hear it, probably they will. Yeah. As a kid, what did you think of the outside world and South Korea? I really thought North Korea was the best-off country, and I had absolutely no idea that a whole world like this even existed. So you thought South Korea was a bad place? We were taught it was a rotten, diseased capitalist society. South Korea is a rotten capitalist society. Now look at us!

Did you grow up in the poor class or middle class? Or what was your, like, social status among your friends and family? I grew up in a rather wealthy family, so we never really went hungry. The socialist system in North Korea, you see, means that citizens survive solely on government rations. You simply can't run a business there. Whereas in capitalism, you actually have to do business to make a living. Without business, we subsisted on rice from Kim Il-sung and Jong-il.

It is finally lunchtime and I am getting quite hungry. I lived here for two years and would always visit this exact spot. I will treat you to lunch, but you must be the one to pick the fish. There is just so much food to eat here, I really don't even know which one to choose, but. but I'll pick one thing I want to eat. I have a video standing here where I took that and put it in my mouth in one bite. Could you do that? Oh! I'll try to do it.

Oh! He says he will if you do. No! Not now?! I don't think I can do it now. They just put a little bit of seawater in there so they stay alive. And then, upstairs at the restaurant, they prepare it for you. So we have sashimi, we have crab. Wow! Crab in a bag! And we have sashimi and live octopus here! Let's go upstairs! So the food is being served now. All of this raw fish sashimi that was just cut fresh. This is the live octopus. Look, it's still moving.

Take a look at that! Really good! It tastes good! I've never had anything this good before. First time eating live? Really? you never ate this in the North? No, never. So all they do is they chop it up and then they put sesame oil on it. And then that's it. You just eat it like it is. You want to try? Oh, yeah, sure, absolutely. Yeah. Yeah, go for it. Oh, sure. Wow, what a large bite. It's actually kind of a delicacy here.

People in my country would never eat this. It sticks to your tongue while eating. If I were to tell you when you were ten years old that you would be eating lunch with an American person, what would you have thought? I couldn't even imagine it. My being here today, experiencing this abundance, this freedom, and this world-it's only possible because I came to South Korea. In North Korea, it would just be a pipe dream. Beer?! He wants some beer, so we're ordering some. Look at the beer those guys are having. Did you actually drink much beer back in North Korea?

Beer? Beer. we barely had rice. Beer. So, in Korean culture, you always use two hands, especially with elders, when giving or receiving. So when he gives me the cup, I gotta use two hands. I'll pour for him now. We're friends. Cheers! He said, "Cheers!" Oh, sorry. He definitely loves beer. Was there any fear that you had, like, in your. childhood about anything? Or was it, like, a really happy, like, life, growing up?

We never really thought about happiness. We just pledged our loyalty, promising to live well and serve them, and that's how we lived. Did you have, like, TV or radio? Or any way to, like, communicate with anything? Television sets started appearing in the nineteen eighties, but there were certainly no food or eating shows on air in North Korea. It was strictly about Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il, and all. just propaganda of Kim. Literally. Now you know it was propaganda, but then it felt normal.

I never saw it as propaganda, not until South Korea showed me our life was truly hell. Ah! That's the point of propaganda. You're supposed to just think that it's real. True. When I sit at a table full of food like this, it really makes me think about my parents. it makes me think about my parents and home. It truly breaks my heart into pieces. It really breaks my heart. When I sit at a table full of food like this, are your parents alive?

Well, I have a son. He's twenty years old now. He's 20 years old, and my mother is also there. My mother, she's still with us too. My father, though, he passed away about three years ago. My father passed away about 3 years ago. I have a son. Are you in touch with your family? North Korea uses signal detectors to block any outside calls from coming in. Chinese phones can make international calls, so those phones are smuggled into North Korea, allowing people there to receive international calls like this.

I went to North Korea in twenty seventeen. I ran Pyongyang's marathon. So many people! My visit there was truly fascinating and very enjoyable. I was able to see the human side of things, where ordinary people are simply trying to live out their normal daily lives. Nice to meet you! Did you see how they lived or what they ate? mostly are starving? Did you realize that those people Wow, what a question. In Pyongyang, from my own eyes and my experience, it seemed to be normal.

People were, like, walking around, going to work, and the metro was busy. They had briefcases. It wasn't obvious to me that people were starving. It really felt like a slum, you know? It was a really poor place. I wasn't going to drink, but I can't say no to him. Did you have any childhood hobbies or play any sports? How exactly did you spend your free time? From a young age, I lived my life constantly thinking about how to be loyal to the Kim family, the dictator Marshal Kim Il-sung, and General Kim Jong-il.

How many hours a day. would you spend thinking about the leaders or praying to the leaders? It wasn't just a matter of a few hours, no. I spent every single moment, truly every breath of my life, constantly wondering, constantly contemplating exactly how I could truly bring profound joy to our Great Marshal, and, at the very same time, holding deep within my heart a burning desire to be fiercely loyal to the entire Kim family, always, always. I simply accepted this as my fate, my destiny, and indeed, my only true purpose in life.

actually, truly believe What percentage of people in North Korea that he's God? Or is there a small amount of people. that are like, nah, this is kind of crap? about eighty percent of the population now, In my opinion, know it's all a lie. Don't believe? Yes. I expected the reverse. 80%! No. And how about your experience growing up? Every child believes he is a god. But adults realize the truth of the state. After eating this tasty meal of freshly caught fish, I can't stop thinking about the contrast. The UN estimates that nearly forty percent of North Korea's population is malnourished. And right now, we're just thirty miles south of the border.

I want to dig a little deeper and find out how Kang first became a bodyguard. So I'm taking him for a walk through a traditional South Korean village. Before we learn more about Kang's incredible story, I want to quickly tell you about Revolut, a longtime partner of this channel. No matter how you live your life, managing money should not be complicated. Whether you're traveling, working remotely, or just handling everyday expenses, having complete control over your money matters!

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You can get a forty-dollar bonus by signing up through my link and meeting requirements. It takes minutes. Revolut is in over thirty-five countries; check the link for offers and eligibility. Back to the story! At what age did you join the military? I joined the military when I was seventeen years old and was discharged at thirty-one. Did you have any idea that you were going to become a bodyguard? Yes, Firstly, To even be considered for entry in the security unit, starting from the age of fifteen, the authorities constantly review your entire family background and

history for two or three years. They specifically select only children from the most loyal families to join the elite bodyguard unit. Tell me about your first moment where you saw Kim Jong-il with your eyes. What did he look like? What did he smell like? What was the atmosphere like in that moment? It truly felt like I had the whole world in my hand. I was incredibly moved by the thought that i was serving such a great leader. you know?

I was just so incredibly moved by the thought that I was actually serving such a truly great leader. There was no special aura, or a particular scent, There was no special aura, no particular scent, or anything like that, or anything like that but we were so brainwashed to believe that he was the but we were just so brainwashed to believe that he was, in fact, the greatest leader in the entire world. He was the absolute number one leader, you see! The number one leader! It truly felt like I had the whole entire world right there in my hand, And just being there to protect him made me feel as if I had achieved the absolute peak of my life,

as if I held the whole world in my hands. However, we could never actually meet him face-to-face. For his own safety, bodyguards were required to stand ten or twenty meters away, facing the opposite direction of the Kim family members. As sentries standing guard, if we were looking directly at Kim Jong-il, we wouldn't know when an enemy's bullet might come from behind, so we always stood facing away from him for defense. What was the day-to-day life like as Kim Jong-il's bodyguard? Yes, well, daily mornings are quite different in the summer and winter seasons. In the summer we wake at five a.m., and in the winter at six a.m.,

but do you know the very first thing we do after waking? We immediately get up, grab all of our cleaning tools, and head straight out to maintain the gardens at the special villa. We go inside and perfectly clean up the luxurious villa where Kim Jong-il lives, doing all the chores inside, and then. After. the cleaning, they have breakfast, they make their bed, and then immediately two hours of propaganda. education. Propaganda education? Like, saying, singing about his greatness? Like, what does that mean? Well, you know, In our terms, you could just call it a lecture.

Sitting in that auditorium, learning that he is the sun, and without the sun, victory in the revolution is unimaginable. And then, guns. clean the villa, then have propaganda education. You would clean, clean the houses, And after that, what did you do? We are now gearing up for practice. Shooting practice. And then? We would then eat our meals, and once we were done, they would then proceed to instruct us on the proper methods for they would teach us the proper methods for carrying out guard duties, and also the tactics for escort operations.

and also the various tactics for escort operations. And then, you know, once we had finished eating our meals, What kind of tactics did you. do to, like, practice to be Kim Jong-il's bodyguard? It sounds like such a surreal position. Whether we were alive or dead, we lived only for the General. I truly believed my entire life belonged only to him. The main focus is shooting practice. In North Korea there's a saying, well, Kim Jong-il actually said it. He claimed that human beings take priority over even the most advanced, high-tech electronic equipment, so even now,

the bodyguard unit doesn't use security cameras. They rely entirely on guns. That is why we do so much shooting practice, In training, the main focus was the five elements of marksmanship. It's about pulling the trigger precisely the moment you aim. but the real focus is this. If I don't take down the enemy, I'll die. I would simply fail to protect the General, that's for sure. With this kind of mental strength, I suppose that's how military training is conducted, you know, in our system, anyway.

Even during shooting practice, the most important thing they really, truly emphasize and focus on is mental fortitude. So, within this mental fortitude, if you lack loyalty to the supreme leader, you have to undergo an ideological review, and because of all that, we just accepted that we had, in fact, dedicated our entire destiny to that man, completely and utterly. We even dedicated this mental strength, and if that happened, it's unconditional. Would you take a bullet for Kim Jong-il?

Sure! from beginning we were taught, if that happened, we'd take it without any question. They didn't even give us any bulletproof vests. And the reason for that? Your own body, that's your bulletproof vest. Kang's stories are completely surreal. Imagining all of it while being here in safe, beautiful Seoul is truly wild. What he is saying to me is just insane. And I admire your incredible courage to be able to do these things. Because I feel like, honestly, only a very few people would ever be able to do that as a job.

Well, When I think about the twenty million compatriots, all of them, looking at just one leader, one single dictator in North Korea, my heart, it just breaks, you know? Kang, I want to ask you some, some juicy questions. What did you see behind the scenes. in Kim Jong-il's inner circle? What kind of parties went on? What kind of craziness that none of us know about did you witness? There's the villa inside, and outside the villa, there is another barrier where only the bodyguards are allowed to live. So you drive inside for thirteen minutes,

and you don't even know where you actually are within the villa itself. Since we couldn't go inside to see the parties, we didn't really know what was happening, but when we went out to our new posts, in the morning, all the leftover food from the villa would just be thrown out into the garbage area. Any prostitutes? They aren't called prostitutes, but the Pleasure Squad. They are pretty much all Kim Jong-il's women. and almost all of them are Kim Jong-il's women. They aren't called prostitutes, they are called the Pleasure Squad, Pleasure. Squads?

All of those young girls undergo testing for various sexually transmitted diseases at age seventeen, and once they enter the villa management system, they are forced to remain inside those grounds permanently, Pleasure squads? until they are twenty-five. From ages seventeen to twenty-five. Yes, that is absolutely true! What?! Yes! Wow, that's absolutely crazy! Wait, so just to make sure I'm understanding this correctly, just to recap here, Kim Jong-il would literally find. the most beautiful women, like, in all of North Korea. to be part of his personal Pleasure Squad. They would get tested for STDs when they're, like, just seventeen years old. And then they would enter his private villa,

and then they literally wouldn't be able to leave, like, at all, until they reached the age of twenty-five. Did I get that right, did I understand that correctly? That's. that's a full eight years of their lives. Even after eight years, they're married off to the guard officers. They're not allowed to leave. If he really likes a girl, she becomes Kim-Jong-Il's absolute property, They can never return to normal society. completely his own. They have absolutely no choice to go out into society. Truly, there is no other option. None at all. If he likes a woman, she becomes his personal property.

How many did he have? I can't point out exactly how many, but if he just saw someone and thought, 'Wow, she's pretty,' or something, he would invite her to attend his banquets. Inviting them to his very own personal banquets. No, wait a minute. essentially sold off to the bodyguards. And then the girls were then That's like really disgusting human trafficking. When you were there, did you feel bad for those girls, or not? We couldn't even dare to bring that up, because in our minds, we just thought, 'She's the General's woman.' We all had that perspective, that mindset, so we couldn't even speak about it at all.

Not even the bodyguards. how did you truly feel inside? I know you couldn't say anything publicly, of course, but tell me, Did you ever have any doubt that this wasn't right? We never once mentioned them. Since they were the General's women, we saw it as perfectly natural and never thought to question it. How did it work? Like, the girls were just sold off to the bodyguards, that they just, like, said, "Okay, these, here's for you, and here's for you." Like, what, what was that like?

The woman involved, they're called 'assigned goods'. These women, they have absolutely no choice. have absolutely no choice in the matter. The party is the one that handles marrying these women off. The Party is the one that organizes marriages for these women. The escort command is essentially an organization that acts like The guard unit is essentially The Party's own army. the Party's private army.

These are people who aren't even included in the North Korean census. These are people who aren't even included in North Korea's population census. So, when officers reach the age of 30, Therefore, when officers reach thirty years old, it's considered time for them to get married. they are considered ready for marriage. The women involved are referred to as so-called 'assigned items.' These women Then they have everyone gather at what's called the Central Party Cultural Center. They gather them up and lay photos face down on the desks, ten photos each. They keep them covered, and when it's my turn, if ten people went in, we each pick up one.

We draw them. You pick one and look, and if she's pretty, you say, 'Ah, I will live with her,' and then you have to sleep with her that very night. And if, after they had slept together, he found that she wasn't to his liking, they would tell her, 'You cannot marry for a whole year!' and then simply kick her out. Did you choose any girls? No, that's only for officers. They only arrange marriages for career officers, not those being discharged. We guarded the banquets from outside, watching cars move around until two or three in the morning.

Did you see any drugs? We couldn't go inside during the banquets. Since we were on guard duty outside, our Great General is truly working so tirelessly for us, cars were constantly moving around at two or three in the morning. day and night, without any rest at all,' but looking back at it all now, Back then, I thought, 'Wow, with a different perspective, our General truly dedicates himself to his work day and night,' but looking back, I realize there's simply no possible way he could have sustained that kind of intense schedule, you know, there's no way he could do that without doing drugs. without the help of some kind of illegal drugs.

Back in those days, we would often think to ourselves, 'Wow, You can't really go about your schedule like that in the early hours. So if you looked, Kim Jong-il was actually very sick back then. He'd be dragging his leg around, and according to some people on the inside who did drugs, there's even a rumor that Kim Jong-il died early because he used so many drugs. And another reason is that North Korea is where those things are produced the most. Opium, and marijuana, North Korea produces these things directly. How long were you Kim's bodyguard?

I was for thirteen years. That is an extremely long time. What were the best and worst parts of serving as his royal bodyguard? You know, now that I think about it. looking back on it now. There wasn't a single good thing. There wasn't a single good thing about it. Now that I think about it, But earlier, I had this immense pride, this. this sense of being a royal guard. That deep sense of honor? Yes, I had that one thing. But the worst part, the truly terrible part of it all, was trusting that dictator as if he were God. After my discharge, I realized my sacrificed youth makes my heart ache with deep resentment.

Did you get paid any money for your job? Or did you just do it for the greater good of the society? When you go inside, you can't make any money, and you have no idea how society is running. Then, after I was discharged, I finally received my pay, but the total wages I got for those thirteen years could only buy twenty-three kilos of rice. So you earned nothing for thirteen years? After all that work, you only received enough money to buy twenty-three kilos of rice. That's unbelievable. I can't. I can't even begin to process how insane that is, what you're telling me. I was devoted to my country, so I never expected pay.

I simply ignored the money entirely. I also truly hope that through this interview, my friend here can let the entire world know that a dictator like this actually exists, and that you all will pray very much for the truly pitiful people of North Korea. so that things can eventually get better for them. Are you not worried that someone in North Korea, even, in, in power, Kim Jong Un's government, is going to watch this video and something bad is going to happen to your family back home? I have already braced myself for all of that. Right now in North Korea, I'm classified as a missing person. If you escape to North Korea right now, what do you think they would say to you at the border?

Like, when you tried to get in the country? Not for even a single moment, have I ever entertained the thought of returning to that place to live again. I do feel a desperate longing to visit the sacred land where my ancestors' blood and sweat are buried, but I haven't spent even one second thinking about returning there to stay permanently. Do you foresee the Kim Dynasty being overthrown and replaced by a new system? Well, it might be different for everyone, but. the Kim family is on its third generation now.

It's the third generation, but I don't think they'll make it to a fourth. The North Korean people now fully realize that they are living like slaves. If the Kim Dynasty failed and there's a new regime and things are looking a lot better, would you consider going back to North Korea? Maybe not to live, but just to hang out and, like, relive some of the moments of your childhood. Of course. If that Kim regime collapses, even if someone tries to stop me, I want to go right away to catch up with my relatives and neighbors back in my hometown, and I want to tell them everything about this abundant, free world that we enjoy every single day.

Kim Jong-il died in twenty eleven. How did you feel then, while still living in North Korea? On the inside, I cheered. But if you expressed that outwardly, you instantly became a traitor. So, it wasn't just me, but the vast majority of North Koreans thought, 'Ah, now we are finally going to eat well and live comfortably.' People assumed there would be reform and opening up, so they actually had incredibly high hopes. Do you think Kim Jong Un is total crap? Or do you think he actually has, like, a strategy to run the country properly? He is just selfish. That land called North Korea, it's probably the only place in the whole world where people are

genuinely starving from hunger. And they know that, too. So why do you think they lock up the system even tighter with barbed wire and monitor the citizens? He is simply terrified that the system he has built up right now is going to collapse. That's why he binds the ankles of the twenty-three million North Korean citizens under his control, strictly to maintain his very own luxurious lifestyle all by himself! If Kim Jong Un. walked right into this. conversation. And you had five minutes to talk to him, what would you say to him?

I would want to tell him to just let the North Korean people live their lives, or at the very least, to feed them some proper meals so that they don't starve to death. Let the North Korean citizens. at the very least, eat something. Whoa, are you saying they're not eating anything? They go hungry. For North Koreans, today's meal is an incredible luxury. They might only get to eat food like this once every year. Aside from the top five percent of elites in North Korea, if someone can just eat white rice without skipping meals, that person is considered well-off.

It's tragic to picture North Korean families with nothing to eat while the regime's inner circle lives lavishly. Throwing massive parties behind closed doors. I'm dying to learn more about where the elites in North Korea gather and socialize. So we duck into a cafe, and I ask Kang to show me on the map. Show me where these private North Korean events happened. Walk me through the locations on the map. You can essentially think of the massive Wonsan villa as the primary home for the entire Kim family.

Dude, this is crazy. Like, when I zoom in, this is a massive, massive, massive house. It's a mansion. So, this area here, this is where the main family stays. And then, all these places that you see over here, these are essentially Kim Jong-il's party spots. And over here, this is the horse racing track, and it really stretches out quite a distance, like a full kilometer. And this particular part, this is what's called the equestrian center, which you can really think of as a kind of playground, specifically designed for the Pleasure Squad's performances. Look. So here, there are ten of those pavilions. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, and since it's a massive dining complex, the Pleasure Squad comes here to eat,

and Kim Jong-il has his own private area to play. This is the place where they perform. This is, like, crazy information. I feel like the American government, the CIA, wants to know this, because no one knows this stuff. Do you think Kim Jong Un is currently taking over these palaces for his parties? Yes, exactly. Twenty years later, the Jangsan villa still exists as an escape route to China. This emergency supreme command is where he actually hides.

He stays here during any crises. It is truly wild to think that the Koreas were once a single country. They speak the same language and share the same culture. But life on the ground in the two countries today could not be more different. Take Myeongdong, for example. Seoul's bustling K-pop district, packed with fancy malls, international brands, and cosmetic shops. I'm taking Kang there now to hear more about how he left Pyongyang, and what he really thinks about his new home. What made you want to escape North Korea and come down to South Korea? To put it simply, I was discharged after thirteen years,

and I opened the pot lid at home. and my parents were actually eating grass porridge. my parents in their seventies. Seeing that, I didn't think it was the regime's fault, because I was taught it was due to US imperialism and the South Korean puppet faction, so that's what I believed. And then, as I was starting my life in society, while I was actually attending college, I also got married, and we were living our married life together, but then my wife passed away after only four years. And so, it was at that precise moment that I truly realized the North Korean system offered absolutely no hope. How did you. do it?

Did you have to find a smuggler? How much money did you have to pay? The reason I. started smuggling was because I watched South Korean dramas, and I just couldn't believe all the things that the people in South Korea were eating, wearing, and using in their daily lives. Seeing such a prosperous and affluent way of life made me think, 'Man, if I could just go over there, wouldn't I be able to make a living for myself?' I kept having those kinds of thoughts, you know. But as I gradually felt more and more disillusioned with the North Korean regime and its system, I finally decided that I absolutely had to defect, so I made a call to someone I knew quite well in China,

and then, during the daytime, in the winter season, I ended up crossing the Yalu River. Uh. What was the hardest part about escaping? Have you heard that song called "The Tear soaked Tumen River"? The moment I stepped foot into the Yalu River, it was wintertime. The water was so cold it was completely frozen over. So as I was frantically breaking through the ice and making my way out, from behind me they yelled, "Hey, you son of a bitch, stop right there!" and fired their guns, shooting blank rounds.

From the moment you step foot into the water at the border, if they shoot from behind, that becomes an invasion of China. So that's why they fired blanks. just to scare me. Then I turned around and pumped my fist high in the air, yelling out loud, "You sons of bitches, eat well and live well!" and I made a very clear hand gesture at them. And as I was doing all of this, it was around 5 PM, like this? Yes, and since it was around five in the afternoon, the exact time when people were just getting off work for the day. it was the exact time when people were getting off work for the day.

There were so many people gathered, a huge crowd, A massive crowd of people had gathered and they all watched me escape, watching me defect right there in broad daylight, for everyone to witness. right there in broad daylight. Middle finger? So, I crossed over, and I just yelled, "You sons of bitches, eat this!" but as I was shouting there, at that very moment, a famous quote, you know, it just came to my mind: "A people without a country is worse off than a dog at a house of mourning." And with that, the thought of leaving the land, the very land where I used to live, the land where my ancestors' very umbilical cords are buried, that immense pain, that deep, deep feeling.

Because of the sorrow of wondering why I couldn't live on this land, on my own land, and having to leave it, I carried that sorrow with me, and I just cried, tears pouring down like rain. They were shooting, making noise, whether they fired or not, but even hearing that sound, that painful feeling, it just completely overwhelmed the sound of the gunfire. I never even once thought about dying, and I came here thinking to myself, whether I live or whether I die, I'll just go as far as I possibly can go.

We're stopping to get some street food here because that's one of the best things about Seoul. So we have to. We have to eat here over the board because it leaks on the ground. Make sure you, you leak it on the board. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, okay. Thank you! Yummy, yummy. Here, chicken, Chicken. Here, not too spicy. It's delicious. Salt. Oh, they even cut off the tip so you don't. Oh my God, this is amazing. So, Kang, now you live in Seoul. This place is so different from North Korea.

What is the adjustment like to life here? How has it been? There are still so many different things about this world I don't know yet. Especially when it comes to the local food culture, for example. This is my first time seeing this in Myeongdong. It's delicious. What do you think about living in South Korea? Is it, is it nice? Like, this is one of the best countries in the world. It is a great country. Like heaven, it's beyond anything I could imagine while living in North Korea.

Now that you have full access to the high-speed Internet and a smartphone, what do you think about all these technologies? I can only say it's like heaven. it's heaven. So he's from North Korea. And he used to work for Kim Jong-il. Hey! You better stay sharp! Yeah! I'm afraid I'm just not very good at it. Yeah. Thank you so very, very much, I truly do. Yeah, I really, really do appreciate it.

What do you think about that? Thank you! I think we need to reunify, very quickly. Thank you. I am very grateful. Thanks. Well, you know, I actually watch a lot of programs about Defectors. I actaully feel really pity for them. I feel really sorry for them. I watch TV. It's really sad, honestly. What was the most difficult transition in South Korean life? There is just so much, you know, so much to learn, especially since English terms are truly everywhere, in every aspect of our daily lives.

That is, without a doubt, the hardest part of it all, and my North Korean dialect, well, it makes it incredibly difficult to truly fit into the cultural and social norms that South Koreans accept. So, even if I want to ask something, I just can't bring myself to do it, I hesitate. Because my accent, you see, it just makes it far too obvious. How have people here treated you when they find out you're from North Korea? My first shock here was the protests and demonstrations. In North Korea, if you did that to Kim Jong-un even once, you'd all be shot. When someone finds out I'm a defector,

they end up judging all defectors just based on me alone. So first of all, I just don't say anything. Even at work, I don't say I'm a defector. But as soon as I say my first word, they know I'm a defector. Then from that specific point onward, how should I put it, I really felt that people become quite sensitive and tend to not want to talk very much. Even now, do you keep it low key? Or, are you okay telling people that you're from North Korea? No, now i do it proudly. To show that I am living a hardworking life, to show that a defector lives diligently in South Korea,

at first I held back a lot and was reluctant to step forward, but just like appearing on YouTube today, I now step up and speak proudly. Kang, if you can say any message to people in the world watching this video, what would you like to say to them? Everyone. Listen carefully! Everyone. Freedom is absolutely never free. Within the ordinary lives you all live, there is this noble spirit sacrificed by our ancestors and those who came before us. So in this ordinary and prosperous free world,

I truly hope you stay healthy and live well for a very long time. I asked that question to everybody my whole career of making videos, and that was one of the best answers that I've ever heard. Kang's dignity is striking. But he isn't the only defector here. We're taking the metro to meet another friend who escaped here. Kang, do you honestly think that the North and the South will ever reunify? Not right away, no, but maybe in about ten years or so?

Won't it finally happen, you know, by the early two thousand thirties? I would be very happy if that happened within the next ten years. I took the metro in Pyongyang. It was actually a really cool experience. On the metro! Have you ever rode that metro? Living rural, I never rode one. Because I lived in the countryside, so i never rode. There's this thought that everything in North Korea is staged. Like, people on their balconies put a fake garden. And the hotels are just there, but they're empty.

Do you think it's true that everything is, is fake? Coming out of North Korea The shows and movies on TV, and stuff like that, fifty percent of it is just pure propaganda and agitation. When I lived in Korea, I would come here every weekend and stay in Itaewon and party with my friends. I would drink like crazy! Then you must have met a lot of women there? you must have certainly met a whole lot of different women while you were there, Well, if that is truly the case then, wouldn't you say? Just look at the women in those really short skirts. You know, my legs are just start shaking and trembling.

You can never see stuff like that in North Korea. You'll go to prison, literal prison. Or they'd be sent to Kim Jong-il's private parties? Heading to a bar with Kang and his other friend, Kang, who's also a North Korean defector and was in the military there. And they met as they were escaping in Vietnam. What do you miss the most about, about North Korea? My parents, of course! Leaving his parents behind. When did you last talk to your parents?

10 years have passed. Ten years. I hope you get to see them again someday. what did he say? I asked him like. How does he feel. going to drink at a bar with an American? And he's just like, wow! I mean, we were always taught how Americans are so evil and bad that we're actually drinking with those evil people. I'm also honored to share a drink with you. Both of you. I've taken both Kangs to an American bar in Itaewon, my old stomping grounds in Seoul.

Yeah, really. It's cool just hanging out with them. Kang, Kang. Two Kangs! Kang and Kang! American. Jin. US. Ah. Kang jin. Hello, my name is Kang-Yun-Chol! Yeah. Got some rib platter. And I really wanted to show you some of the food in, in the USA. So this is Southern cuisine, which, in my opinion, is the best kind of food you can find in America. Thank you. This American barbecue pork; it's actually my very first time ever seeing this kind of food in person. So I really don't know how to eat it. So if you could just teach me a little bit here? That's awesome.

So you just take your hands, and you basically just grab a piece. And also, you can put some barbecue sauce. This is sweet, and this is tangy. So whichever one you like. I'm gonna take the tangy one. I'm just gonna put it on top. You can choose which one you like. Then you just. take a bite. Ready? Mmm-hmm. This is great barbecue. I've never had such good American BBQ in Asia. Trying that, it was really fascinating, and the meat itself.

I mean, I don't like fat either, but, you know, America, they just do this right. Ah, so that's why these people, they eat so much meat, and their portions are just so much bigger than ours, because, well, their physiques are a bit bigger than ours, aren't they? I was wondering, do they eat meat? I asked earlier, specifically if they've been eating it since they were young, and it turns out, they do eat it from a very young age. I also liked meat from a young age, you know, even though I couldn't really eat it because there wasn't any available, but even if they did give me meat, I just couldn't eat it all.

Especially if the meat had a big lump of fat, I'd eat just one piece and then I couldn't eat any more. you know what I was thinking? I ate one of these, and I just kept wanting to eat another one. I'm eating a meal together with an American? It's incredible! While eating this, This is so amazing! You should just sit back like this and talk, huh? It's really cool to hang out. Um. you know, like, by everyone's standard in the media, Americans and North Koreans are enemies.

They should hate each other. But when it comes down to it, we're just people. And we can hang out and be friends. The government is different than the people. And that's really how I feel. Let's have a toast and say cheers! One thing I know: North Koreans love drinking. Until today, I never knew spending the day with a North Korean bodyguard was on my bucket list. Let alone, two of them. It's been nothing short of fascinating to hear their stories and learn what life was like on the north side of the border. But more than anything, they reminded me, that sometimes, the people we are taught to fear are the ones who teach us the most

about what it means to be free.