I fled North Korea in hail of bullets – but real nightmare hadn’t begun… I was sold as sex slave & dragged back to hell

JI HYUN PARK escaped the cruel North Korean authorities doubly - fleeing crossed the borderline implicit a frozen stream with a hail of bullets flying astatine her back.

In an unthinkable communicative of quality resilience, Ji told the Sun however she was trafficked to an abusive hubby successful China, wherever she gave commencement to a son, earlier officials ripped him from her arms conscionable 5 years later.

She would aboriginal flight North Korea for the 2nd clip - making her mode each the backmost to China to prevention her young son.

Years aboriginal they made their mode to the UK alongside different brave defector who had saved Ji's beingness and would spell connected to go her husband.

Ji, present 56, endured a decennary of horrors successful her brave efforts to flight the authoritarian regime, present successful the grip of despot Kim Jong-Un.

She told however she was treated similar an "animal", beaten and raped by the antheral who bought her.

The triumphant subsister astir died respective times and aft a decennary of conflict yet made it to Manchester, wherever she lives with her hubby and 3 children.

Ji was raised successful a two-room location successful Chongjin City, successful the North Hamgyong region, sharing a chamber with her parents and siblings.

Brainwashed from commencement by the authorities - whose propaganda limb consisted of lone 1 TV transmission and 1 paper - she was raised to presumption the West and America arsenic evil.

Ji was taught to beryllium perpetually cautious of what she said aloud, arsenic concealed constabulary were "always watching and listening".

Those who criticised oregon broke the rules were thrown into "political prisons", wherever they and their families were forced to unrecorded retired their days.

Ji's household were cautious for years to play by the rules successful North Korea - arsenic they saw radical they knew vanish erstwhile they were thrown into prison.

But aft her beloved uncle Ilsub died of starvation successful 1997, during a play of brutal nationwide rationing, things changed.

Her younger member Jungho tried to permission the subject and was beaten bloody by his superiors successful beforehand of Ji and her dad.

Her dad, distraught, begged her to effort and fly and instrumentality Jungho with her.

She said: "The soldiers recovered my younger brother, and they bushed him him. So humor is each implicit his look and his body... [they] continued beating him until 5am successful beforehand of us.

"My begetter told maine 'you person to permission this state and prevention your younger brother'."

JI'S FIRST ESCAPE

In February 1998 Ji and Jungho hitchhiked to the Onsung borderline betwixt North Korea and China, paying motortruck drivers successful amerciable intoxicant to instrumentality them there.

They travelled crossed connected foot, trekking implicit the frozen Tumen stream astatine 2am.

North Korean soldiers fired astatine them from down arsenic they desperately ploughed on.

"We crossed the borderline astatine 2am, successful February", Ji said.

"The North Korean soldiers were shouting to america from behind, shooting astatine us.

"I couldn't move. My legs were shaking. And past my member said 'We person to go, we person to go', holding my hand."

Once crossed the border, a antheral successful a colony they arrived astatine took them successful and gave them food.

"Me and my member rapidly ate. And past helium told us... successful the aboriginal greeting Chinese constabulary are searching retired these areas," Ji recalled.

"So past we were truly scared. He contacted his friend, and past 2 hours later, his person came to us.

"His person mentioned that China is inactive repatriating North Koreans. So this is truly dangerous... and you person to wed the Chinese man.

"The archetypal clip I rejected it, denied it, and aft helium was truly aggravated and helium said, I privation to interaction the constabulary stations, archer them you are some here.

"So past I judge that marriage. I thought that if I joined the man, I could beryllium redeeming my younger brother."

Her member urged her to go, and not to interest astir him.

Tearing up, Ji said she inactive doesn't cognize if helium is live oregon dead, but that she is "still waiting", and hoping.

MARRIAGE FROM HELL

Only days aft escaping, Ji was sold successful matrimony to a Chinese antheral for astir 5,000 yuan - amounting to astir £500 GBP - oregon £870 successful today's terms.

Aged 29, she was sent to unrecorded with an abusive alcoholic, forced to bash manual labour, beaten and raped by her husband, earlier yet getting pregnant.

Her mother-in-law and hubby were cruel to her, she said: "We [North Koreans] are not human.

"We person got antithetic prices. Younger radical person precocious prices. And a idiosyncratic who was already joined is astatine a lesser price.

"We are benignant of animals."

Ji recovered retired wealth had changed hands lone erstwhile she arrived astatine her caller husbands home.

"I went to his location and past his parent told maine 'I borrowed a batch of wealth and bought you'. So you wage backmost this money."

Ji 'paid her back' by moving "all greeting and until dark".

Miserable and "degraded", a suicidal Ji said: "So 1 time I accidental that I privation to springiness up my beingness due to the fact that I didn't prevention my younger brother.

"That is my past decision. But aft I recovered retired that I was pregnant... I changed my mind.

"This kid is my past family. And helium gave maine a batch of anticipation and dreams. So I privation to alteration my mind, I privation to support my child."

Her gestation was long, lonely and hard. She said: "I ne'er went to the infirmary and I ne'er got immoderate vitamins."

Ji was made to labour unsocial for "14 hours", but said: "When I was holding my lad successful my arms, you know, my happiness... that's the infinitesimal I volition ne'er forget.

Speaking of her son, she said "it's a trauma due to the fact that his biologic begetter was a drunk and bushed maine successful beforehand of him."

Five years later, 10 plain clothed Chinese officers showed up connected her doorstep astatine 10pm to instrumentality her away.

Without due ID, and aft neighbours had reported her to them, Ji was thrown into prison.

PRISON ABUSE

After arriving unsocial astatine a situation for North Korean defectors, Ji was ordered to portion bare successful beforehand of antheral guards.

She told of the horrifying world inside, wherever situation officers would sexually battle the pistillate inmates successful bid to find wealth they believed were hidden successful their genitals.

The officers would adjacent teardrop done their utilized sanitary pads to find contraband.

Ji said she knew she had to permission down her beloved lad successful China, oregon other helium would starve successful North Korea, and aft weeks successful the situation she was repatriated backmost to the authoritarian regime.

Thrown into a labour campy successful North Korea, Ji was worked truthful hard she astir died.

Her limb was truthful severely injured by the clip they threw her retired that she could spot bone.

SECOND AND FINAL ESCAPE

In November 2004, arsenic the freezing wintertime acceptable in, Ji erstwhile again recovered herself with obscurity to go.

She explained however brokers - who forged quality trafficking deals to get North Koreans into China - were adjacent much commonplace past than erstwhile she had archetypal escaped six years earlier.

Ji sought 1 out, concealing her limb coiled arsenic champion she could and fundamentally selling herself for different matrimony successful China.

Alongside 2 different defectors - a young pistillate and an aged antheral - arsenic good arsenic the broker himself, Ji spent a time and a fractional trekking done frozen mountains to get backmost into China.

She was soon forced to uncover her existent program to the broker who had brought her across, showing him her mangled limb and telling him she had travel backmost to find her son.

Moved by her experiences, with sons of his own, the broker incredibly agreed to fto her go.

With lone 1 telephone fig etched successful her memory, Ji rang her son's grandmother's home.

To her daze and relief, helium was inactive surviving there.

Talking astir that archetypal "heart-racing" speech with him she teared up and said: "My bosom is beating quickly, and past my lad is connected the phone.

"He hangs up. So I called him again, often, and I accidental 'Son, it's mum'.

"And aft helium was truly silent. And past helium conscionable said lone 1 word, 'mom'. And past helium cried. And I cried.

"I was truthful sorry, due to the fact that helium didn't recognize the situation. He thought that his mummy abandoned him."

Speaking astir the infinitesimal they were reunited, she said: "I recovered my lad playing outside. When I caught up to him, I was shocked.

"They did not attraction astir my son. His tegument was dirty, his apparel were dirty. He was truly skinny."

They travelled to Beijing together, heading to the South Korean embassy.

But without ID pointing to their North Korean citizenship, they couldn't get the assistance they needed.

MOVE TO MONGOLIA

By Spring 2005, Ji's lad is six and the brace of them met 7 different North Korean defectors astatine the embassy successful Beiijng.

All of them determine to marque the trek implicit to Mongolia successful hunt of a amended beingness - cautious to effort and dodge Chinese constabulary who mightiness effort to repatriate them.

Ji and her lad couldn't tally similar the others - and erstwhile they reached the border, had to much dilatory locomotion manus successful hand.

Seeing what she thought was a Chinese constabulary car, Ji panicked.

Until it reached her and she realised it was 1 of the men from the radical of defectors she'd met successful China.

He had driven backmost to rescue her and her small boy, and contiguous is her husband. The brace would spell connected to person 2 children.

Ji said: "He's my hero. And besides my love."

BACK TO BEIIJING

After immoderate months successful Mongolia, with small nutrient oregon money, the 3 of them decided they should instrumentality to Beijing, wherever they soon had a babe boy.

They would unrecorded determination for 2 years, from 2006 to 2008, making wealth by selling nutrient and Korean delicacies similar Kimchi astatine marketplace stalls successful the city.

One of Ji's astir loyal customers was an American-Korean pastor.

Ji said: "They are looking for galore amerciable radical who unrecorded successful China... each repatriated oregon sent backmost to their countries, particularly North Korea.

"So I met with an American Korean pastor successful my marketplace due to the fact that helium was my customer. He told america helium already knew that we are North Korean."

He offered to assistance them permission China.

Ji said: "I was scared. But China's governmental system... it was a truly unsafe moment.

"So we said okay, we request your help. And past helium sent america to the United Nations exile bureau successful Beijing.

"They inquire america which state bash you privation to go? Me and my hubby decided connected England."

Now the household of 5 - Kim and her husband, their 2 sons, 26 and 18 and daughter, 15, unrecorded successful Bury successful Manchester.

She is simply a quality rights activistic and a section Tory councillor-hopeful, readying to basal again successful 2026.

Ji wrote a publication astir her harrowing and unthinkable journey, The Hard Road Out: One Woman's Escape from North Korea.