Tag Archives: Kot-jebi
Human Trafficking Victim – Lee Sun Ja
Name: Lee Sun Ja
(Female, Name changed for safety)
Date of Birth: 1981
Hometown: Hamgyong Bukto, North Korea
When I was three years old, my parents suddenly disappeared. Nobody knows if they died or if they were sent into a concentration camp for political prisoners. My step-parents treated me worse than a beast. I was hardly fed daily, so I grew up as a beggar. Since I remained a Kot-jebi (street child) until I escaped into China, I never had a chance to go to a school. In North Korea, while I was living the Kot-jebi life, I begged but I also broke into houses to steal from time to time.
Street Beggar’s Ambition: Start a Business
Street Child (Kot-Jebi) Tells His Story
Just as I was coming out of a North Korean restaurant, I noticed a small boy, who appeared to be a beggar, following me. I was in Yanbian on business, and it was May 15 of this year. The boy suddenly stepped in front of me and said, “I’m from North Korea. Please help me.”