A global reflection on America’s founding ideals from leading voices living outside the United States in just 250 words.
Tae Yong-Ho is a North Korean-born South Korean politician and the former deputy ambassador of North Korea to the United Kingdom. He is one of the highest-ranking officials (or he is the highest-ranking diplomat) to have ever defected from North Korea, fleeing to the South with his wife and two children in 2016.
Following his defection, the North Korean regime accused him of a litany of ill-founded crimes, including embezzlement and rape of a minor, and unsuccessfully attempted to have him extradited. In 2020, he became the first North Korean defector to be directly elected into the South Korean parliament.
In North Korea, I was not a victim of poverty, but a beneficiary of the elite.
As a high-ranking diplomat, I lived within the “Socialist Paradise,” shielded by privilege. However, serving in Europe, I discovered a devastating truth: The regime did not just starve bodies; it murdered the human spirit.
For 40 years, I remained silent, trapped by the fear of Yeon-jwa-je – the collective punishment of my entire lineage.
The greatest agony for a father in Pyongyang is the inability to teach his children how to ask ”Why?” In a system where one question can destroy a family, silence is the only survival.
My breaking point came when I realized my sons would inherit this same spiritual cage. In 2014, through a miraculous turn of diplomatic circumstances, my eldest son joined us in London. That night, our family chose liberty. I realized that the greatest inheritance I could give my children was not wealth or status, but the right to speak their minds.
To the people of North Korea, America is the ultimate “alternative” idea. It represents a world where human dignity is an unalienable right.
For 250 years, the American idea has proven that a society can be loud, messy, and self-correcting – yet remain free. As we celebrate this anniversary, let us remember that for those still trapped in the dark, America remains a steadfast beacon.
Reunification between North and South Korea is the liberation of souls.
It is our responsibility to ensure that the “seeds of why” can finally sprout in the frozen soil of Pyongyang.
