Robert Park (activist)
Encyclopedia
Robert Park is a Korean-American missionary and human rights activist who went to North Korea
on December 25, 2009 in protest of North Korea's human rights atrocities.
Before his involvement with North Korea
-related work, Park was active as a missionary in Nogales, Mexico, where he had assisted in organizing humanitarian relief.
In 2008, Park had visited South Korea
, where he encountered the plight of North Korean refugees. In an interview conducted prior to his entry into North Korea, Park cited the murder and detainment of political dissidents in North Korea and high rates of starvation despite foreign aid as his reason for crossing over. Park brought with him a letter addressed to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, urging him to make major changes to the North Korean government. Park was reportedly severely beaten by border guards upon entry. Many South Korean demonstrators rallied in support of him.
On February 5, 2010, North Korea announced they would release Park, with the state-run Korean Central News Agency
stating, "The relevant organ of the DPRK decided to leniently forgive and release him, taking his admission and sincere repentance of his wrong doings into consideration." Park was quoted by the KCNA as saying, "What I have seen and heard in the DPRK convinced me that I misunderstood it. So I seriously repented of the wrong I committed, taken in by the West's false propaganda." Leniency for prisoners in North Korea is often contingent upon a public apology that embraces the regime. Park has since said that his "only regret is ... the false confession", which he says was forced from him by torture and unspecified sexual abuse.
On February 6, 2010, 43 days after he entered North Korea, Park returned home to Los Angeles.
Park was taken to a mental hospital in Long Beach, California
on February 27, 2010, classified as "gravely disabled" and a potential danger to himself by family and friends. After losing his first hearing at Community Hospital of Long Beach on March 3, Robert Park appealed to the Courts. But on March 5, a Superior Court judge decided in his favor after hearing Park's testimony. Park was released from the hospital a few hours later.
Later it was revealed that Robert Park suffers from Post traumatic stress disorder from his experiences while imprisoned in North Korea. The missionary attempted suicide shortly after his release from the Community Hospital. He was then re-hospitalized for an extended period of time. In a statement, Park said that he will never "be able to have a marriage or any kind of relationship".
In April of 2011, the Washington Post published an editorial by Park entitled, "When will we stop the genocide in North Korea?", where he called for mass action including increased financial support to North Korean refugees and unprecedented demonstrations.
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
on December 25, 2009 in protest of North Korea's human rights atrocities.
Before his involvement with North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
-related work, Park was active as a missionary in Nogales, Mexico, where he had assisted in organizing humanitarian relief.
In 2008, Park had visited South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, where he encountered the plight of North Korean refugees. In an interview conducted prior to his entry into North Korea, Park cited the murder and detainment of political dissidents in North Korea and high rates of starvation despite foreign aid as his reason for crossing over. Park brought with him a letter addressed to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, urging him to make major changes to the North Korean government. Park was reportedly severely beaten by border guards upon entry. Many South Korean demonstrators rallied in support of him.
On February 5, 2010, North Korea announced they would release Park, with the state-run Korean Central News Agency
Korean Central News Agency
The Korean Central News Agency is the state news agency of North Korea and has existed since December 5, 1946. KCNA is headquartered in the capital city of Pyongyang...
stating, "The relevant organ of the DPRK decided to leniently forgive and release him, taking his admission and sincere repentance of his wrong doings into consideration." Park was quoted by the KCNA as saying, "What I have seen and heard in the DPRK convinced me that I misunderstood it. So I seriously repented of the wrong I committed, taken in by the West's false propaganda." Leniency for prisoners in North Korea is often contingent upon a public apology that embraces the regime. Park has since said that his "only regret is ... the false confession", which he says was forced from him by torture and unspecified sexual abuse.
On February 6, 2010, 43 days after he entered North Korea, Park returned home to Los Angeles.
Park was taken to a mental hospital in Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
on February 27, 2010, classified as "gravely disabled" and a potential danger to himself by family and friends. After losing his first hearing at Community Hospital of Long Beach on March 3, Robert Park appealed to the Courts. But on March 5, a Superior Court judge decided in his favor after hearing Park's testimony. Park was released from the hospital a few hours later.
Later it was revealed that Robert Park suffers from Post traumatic stress disorder from his experiences while imprisoned in North Korea. The missionary attempted suicide shortly after his release from the Community Hospital. He was then re-hospitalized for an extended period of time. In a statement, Park said that he will never "be able to have a marriage or any kind of relationship".
In April of 2011, the Washington Post published an editorial by Park entitled, "When will we stop the genocide in North Korea?", where he called for mass action including increased financial support to North Korean refugees and unprecedented demonstrations.
Education
Robert Park attended John Woolman School in Nevada City, CA in the '97-'98 school year.See also
- Aijalon Mahli Gomes, a Boston-born English teacher in South Korea who entered North Korea