skip to main content

Defecting From North Korea

51 minutes 47 seconds

Videos are generally available for preview to non-members as short clips. Limited full-length titles are also available. Log In to view the full length title.

Browse Full-length Non-member Titles

As is the case for an estimated 20,000 defectors who have built or are trying to build new lives in the South, Songgook is attempting to secure his entire family's freedom by arranging their defection. This phenomenon has been coined the "chain of escapes." His plan is a dangerous one; make a night time trek to the Tumen River, a border zone between China and North Korea and illegally smuggle his family out of China by boat into the international waters between China and Korea. It is in the safety of international waters where he plans to hand over his family to a South Korean registered boat. Once his family is safely transferred, Songgook plans to return to China where he will then legally re-enter South Korea by plane. Because of the extreme dangers associated with this journey, this kind of escape is very rare. This is the first ever to be documented on video.

Media Details

Runtime: 51 minutes 47 seconds

Request a DVD
Members Only - Apply Now
Group of young boys and girls standing together and looking at camera. Some of the boys are not wearing any clothes.
55 minutes 18 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
Asian people in lab coats, helmets, and suits stand in front of backdrop illustrated with lab equipment, technological devices, and financial symbols.
All About the Holidays
Episode 57
2 minutes 4 seconds
Grade Level: 4 - 8
Person wearing khaki hat and shirt holding a tool. Low building and vehicle in background. Caption: this is where Thao works -- clearing land mines.
The Soul Of Southeast Asia
Episode 5
49 minutes 29 seconds
Grade Level: 8 - 12
A C, G, I rendering of a large red wooden barge with no sails, 3 stories, and lots of oars.
Ancient Discoveries
Season 4 / Ep 5
45 minutes 6 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Ancient, decrepit white stone building covered in moss with the roots of a large tree coming down over 1 of the walls. Caption. "Angkor Wat is a legacy of the mighty King Suryavarman the Second."
Around the World
Episode 3
2 minutes 47 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Palms tree, grass, and other greenery surrounds a large, multi-story building with a gray pitched roof and many windows. The sky is blue with lots of clouds. Caption. "Sabah was known as British North Borneo."
Around the World
Episode 12
4 minutes 34 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Unavailable
Around the World
Episode 9
2 minutes 47 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Small statue in a pond in a park with a many modern skyscrapers in the background. Caption. "K, L considers itself a very forward-thinking."
Around the World
Episode 26
4 minutes 35 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Elaborate casket draped in gold and jewels is on display against a red curtain backdrop. Caption. "The casket holding the tooth is a bell-shaped stupa."
Around the World
Episode 43
2 minutes 45 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Aerial view of a segment of the Great Wall of China with brown foliage on either side. Caption. "Work began on the Great Wall of China around 220 B, C."
Around the World
Episode 5
2 minutes 45 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12