By Casey Lartigue Jr.
North Korean refugees went through seven stages during Donald Trump's first presidential administration. Stage 1, Trump shocked North Korean refugees with his "fire-and-fury" rhetoric, publicly threatening and mocking North Korea's dictator. Some North Korean refugees feared war, but others were heartened to see someone speaking with language Kim Jong-un could understand. As one refugee gleefully told me: "I bet Kim Jong-un can't sleep peacefully with Trump threatening him so directly."
Stage 2, Trump highlighted a North Korean refugee during his 2018 State of the Union address and met with several North Korean refugees in person. This visibility offered hope that Trump might truly care about the plight of North Koreans.
Then, Stage 3 raised expectations, as Trump’s “maximum pressure” approach led some refugees to speculate that Kim Jong-un’s regime might soon collapse.
But in Stage 4, disappointment set in with underwhelming summits, praise from Trump to the North Korean dictator, and news of letter exchanges between the two leaders. In Stage 5, reconciliation, some North Korean refugees publicly criticized Trump’s approach, but some whispered he may have a strategic alternative. Stage 6, acceptance, recognizing that little had changed despite Trump’s bold gestures, tough talk and direct engagement with Kim Jong-un. Then, Stage 7, nothing, and Trump was unelected in 2020.
There were some significant temporary achievements, as Kim Jong-un fired off fewer missiles and froze nuclear tests, but despite the meetings with Kim and North Korean refugees, were there any long-term concrete gains in terms of diplomacy, policy and human rights in North Korea during the Trump administration?
Trump is back after his defeat of Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump 2.0 has the opportunity to move beyond symbolic gestures and create lasting change. While international focus often highlights China’s role in the forced repatriation of North Korean escapees, Western countries and leaders, including Trump 1.0, should also be criticized. Before COVID-19, they limited North Koreans’ ability to resettle freely. During Trump 1.0, the U.S. admitted fewer than 20 North Korean refugees. From 2017 to 2019, only 12 North Korean refugees were admitted, and in 2020, that number dropped to just one.
Trump 1.0 met with North Korean refugees, which is significant, as I don’t recall any public meetings by previous presidents Barack Obama, Joe Biden, or Bill Clinton with North Korean refugees. But can Trump 2.0 go further — so more than 20 North Korean refugees can immigrate to the United States during Trump 2.0?
The current asylum process gives applicants only one shot to choose a safe country, with limited information about their options. Refugees escape from North Korea’s darkness into the unknown. With a six-month grace period before applying for special visas to the U.S., they can have time to learn about the world and their options. An executive order in Trump’s first month could turn these symbolic gestures into real action, welcoming their legal immigration to the United States.
Second, in the other direction, Trump 2.0 could lift the ban prohibiting Americans from traveling to North Korea. The ban was established after the tragic case of Otto Warmbier and is renewed annually. Having personally met Otto Warmbier’s family, I understand the devastating impact his story has had and the pain his loved ones continue to endure. However, that tragedy should not restrict the freedom of others who wish to make their own travel decisions. By lifting the travel ban, Trump could restore Americans’ freedom to make their own choices, respecting individual liberty even when those choices carry risks.
Banning Americans from visiting North Korea echoes the restrictive nature of North Korea’s policies and also creates an ironic situation: if a North Korean citizen escapes to the U.S. and becomes an American citizen, they would be prohibited by America from returning to North Korea.
Third, Trump 2.0 could pursue a direct and personal approach by meeting with North Korean refugees again. In particular, Trump 2.0 could host North Korean refugee authors who have documented their stories in print. This visibility could highlight human rights abuses while adding credibility to U.S. policy.
As an update, Ji Seong-ho, the North Korean refugee featured during Trump’s 2018 State of the Union address, is now studying English in my organization and preparing to become a public speaker in English.
Trump 1.0 was defined by high-level diplomacy that ended without lasting agreements, symbolic gestures toward North Korean refugees while accepting fewer as immigrants, and restricting the freedom of Americans to travel. Trump 2.0 can open the door for North Korean refugees to resettle in the U.S., restore the freedom of Americans to travel to North Korea and amplify the stories of refugees to highlight human rights abuses in North Korea.
Casey Lartigue Jr. ([email protected]) is the co-founder of Freedom Speakers International with Lee Eun-koo; and co-author with Han Song-mi of her memoir "Greenlight to Freedom: A North Korean Daughter’s Search for Her Mother and Herself.”
English (United States) ·