North Korea Freedom Week Comes to Seoul: April 25 – May 1, 2010

I was very excited when I learned a few months ago that the NK Freedom Coalition’s annual North Korea Freedom Week would be held in Seoul this year. The event was first held as North Korean Freedom Day in 2004.

I’ve offered to volunteer during the week, so I’m not sure how busy I’ll be or if I’ll be able to post much. But I hope at least to periodically upload photos from the various events. And there are many!! The schedule at first glance looks very, very good, but it seems that if you dig deeper, it gets even better.

You see, NK Freedom Week appears to be a somewhat decentralized series of events: coordinated centrally but ultimately put on and run by many different groups. So for the details of a given event, it looks like you have to find its schedule from the hosting organization.

For example, personal favorite PSCORE is on the schedule:

Friday, April 30th
1PM”“ North Korea Human Rights Act-related International Conference
Host: PSCORE People for Successful COrean REunification, Kim Young Il (youngilkim78 ‘at’ naver ‘dot’ com)
Location: Seoul Press Center, 19th Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station

Sounds interesting, but when I received an email from PSCORE, it contained a delightful surprise: there will be a special address by Vitit Muntarbhorn, the U.N.’s special rapporteur on human rights in North Korea. Full program here.

Also, were I not a member of Justice for North Korea, I wouldn’t know that Executive Director Peter Chung is speaking at this event:

Thursday, April 29th
1PM ““ Debate for Human Rights of North Korean Defectors: How Much Has Improved?
Host: Democracy Strategy Center, Kang Cheol Hwan
Location: Community Chest of Korea, Jung-Gu
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 3, 12; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station Exit 6

Now the hard-core blogger would do the research and bring together in one handy place links to all the events during NK Freedom Week. Alas, I don’t foresee being able to find the time to do that, but if you happen to come across any of them, by all means leave a comment below.

For general info, though, start here.
For Korean, the above link works or click here.

Please notify anyone you know living in Seoul — NKFW’s schedule is diverse enough that most people should be able to make at least one event during the week or on the weekend.

Finally, to any activists in town a day early, everyone’s invited to join Justice for North Korea’s weekly street awareness campaign in Insadong Saturday at 3 p.m. Contact rescuenorthkorea \at\ gmail |speck| com.

A copy of the schedule (as of 4/19) follows. See the NK Freedom Coalition for possible updates.

NORTH KOREA FREEDOM WEEK 2010 SEOUL, KOREA
Sunday, April 25 ““ Saturday, May 1

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

[Week-long event] Saturday, April 24th to Saturday, May 1st
ALL DAY EVENT ““ North Korea Human Rights Exhibit
Every Day — 10 AM – 5 PM North Korea “Ah, the Warm Country in the South!” (The North Korea Genocide Exhibit)
Host: North Korea Genocide Exhibit, Moon Gook Han (sgf2002 (at) hanmail (dot) net)
Location: Seoul Gallery, Seoul Press Center 1st Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station Exit 5

[Week-long event] Sunday, April 25th to Saturday, May 1st
ALL DAY EVENT ““ North Korea Human Rights Photo Exhibit
Host: NKHR Young Adult’s Coalition, Han Nam Soo/Strategy Center Youth Group, Choi Myoung Jin
Location: Various colleges/universities in Seoul

[Throughout the week during NKFW2010]
Sunday, April 25th
2PM ““ 4PM Prayer Service led by North Korean Defector churches
Hosts: North Korean Church Coalition, Pastor Kang Cheol Ho of Saetu Church (kangch214 (at) hanmail (dot) net); Pastor Lim Chang Ho of Jangdaehyun Church (limchangho “˜at’ gmail (dot) com); New Pyongyang Full Gospel Church
Location: Saeteo Church, Shinjung-Dong 337 Mokdong 2Cha Woosung APT B-sangga 4th Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 5, Mok Dong Station Exit 5; Line 2, Yangcheon-Gu Office Station and then Bus ““ no. 6617 Last Stop

3 PM – Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for North Korea Human Rights Exhibit
“Ah, the Warm Country in the South!” (The North Korea Genocide Exhibit)
Host: North Korea Geneocide Exhibit, Moon Gook Han
Location: Seoul Gallery, Seoul Press Center 1st Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station Exit 5

Monday, April 26th
10AM ““ NKFW2010 Opening Press Conference/Briefing (30min.) & NK Gulag Inmate List Press Release & Witness Testimony
Host: Crime Against Humanity Investigation Committee, Do Hee Yoon (dhy21c [at] hanmail [dot] net), NK Gulag, Kim Tae Jin, Jung Gwang Il, Jee Hae Lee (jhlee.nkgulag [at] gmail [dot] com)
Location: Seoul Press Center, 19th Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station

2PM ““ North Korean Human Rights Digital Screening
Host: Abductee & Defectors Human Rights Coalition, Crime Against Humanity Investigation Committee, Do Hee Yoon
Location: Seoul Metro Art Gallery, Hyehwa Metro Station
Transportation: Subway – Line 4, Hyehwa Station

Tuesday, April 27th
ALL DAY 10AM ““ POW/Abductee, Abduction-related Conference
Host: POW/Abductee Int’l Coalition, Lee Mi Il (milee625 [at] hanmail [dot] net), Professor Nishioka
Location: NK Democracy Committee Office, Gang-Nam-Gu Nonhyeon-Dong 216-2 Harim B/D 4TH Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 7, Hakdong station

3PM ““ Open Invitation Forum:
“Kim Jong Il Regime’s Inhumane & Savage Rule: Elite North Korean Defectors’ Testimonies”
Host: Crime Against Humanity Investigation Committee, NK Intellectuals Solidarity, Do Hee Yoon (dhy21c [at] hanmail [dot] net), Kim Heung Gwang
Location: Seoul Press Center, 20th Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station Exit 5

5PM ““ Suzanne Scholte’s Special Lecture at Sejong University
Host: Sejong University (w3 [at] sejong [dot] ac [dot] kr)
Location: Sejong University, Seoul
Transportation: Subway – Line 7, Children’s Grand Park Station

Wednesday, April 28th
1:30PM ““ North Korean Women Defectors Human Rights Seminar
Host: CNKWR Coalition for North Korean Women’s Rights, Kang Su Jin (frogreen79 [at] naver [dot] com)
Location: National Assembly Building, Yoido
Transportation: Subway ““ Line 9, National Assembly Station

2:30PM ““ National Rally for North Korea Freedom Week 2010
Host: International Forum for Foreign Policy & National Security, Dr. Kim Hyunwook
(khubosco [at] hanmail [dot] net), Abductee & Defectors Human Rights Coalition, Crime Against Humanity Investigation Committee, Do Hee Yoon, Free North Korea Radio
Location: Seoul Station
Transportation: Subway ““ Lines 1 & 4, Seoul Station

Thursday, April 29th to Sunday May 2nd
10:30AM ““ Reading the Names of 8,400 Abductee & POWs (Pep-Rally & Name Reading)
Host: Abductee & Defectors Human Rights Coalition, Crime Against Humanity Investigation Committee, Do Hee Yoon (dhy21c [at] hanmail [dot] net), Bae Jae Hyun (mission2china [at] hanmail [dot] net)
Location: Pagoda Park, Jongno-Gu
Transportation: Subway ““ Lines 1,3,5, Jongno-3-ga Station

Thursday, April 29th
7:30AM ““ North Korean Human Rights Forum (Guest Speaker: Suzanne)
Host: International Forum for Foreign Policy & National Security, Dr. Kim Hyunwook
(khubosco [at] hanmail [dot] net)
Location: Karak Hotel, 2nd Floor
Transportation: Subway ““ Lines 8, Karak Market Station Exit 3

1PM ““ Debate for Human Rights of North Korean Defectors: How Much Has Improved?
Host: Democracy Strategy Center, Kang Cheol Hwan
Location: Community Chest of Korea, Jung-Gu
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 3, 12; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station Exit 6

8PM ““ North Korean Human Rights Prayer Vigil
Host: International Forum for Foreign Policy & National Security, Crime Against Humanity Investigation
Committee (dhy21c [at] hanmail [dot] net)
Location: Balsandong Catholic Church
Transportation: Subway – Line 5, Ujangsan Station Exit 3

Friday, April 30th
10AM ““ Protest at the Embassy of China in Seoul
Host: NKFW2010 Planning Committee
Location: Chinese Embassy, 54, Hyoja-Dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Transportation: Subway ““ Line 3, Gyeonbokgung Station

1PM ““ North Korea Human Rights Act-related International Conference
Host: PSCORE People for Successful COrean REunification , Kim Young Il (youngilkim78 [at] naver [dot] com)
Location: Seoul Press Center, 19th Floor
Transportation: Subway – Line 1 or 2, City Hall Station Exit 4; Line 5, Gwanghwamun Station

4PM ““ Crossing Screening & Lecture of NK Defector
Host: Student Group of Yonsei University (yeahys [at] hanmail [dot] net, hyoju [at] defenseforum [dot] org)
Location: Yonsei University
Transportation: Subway, Line 2, Sinchon Station

6:30PM ““ Meeting with Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission of Korea, Byung-Chul HYUN
Participators: Suzanne and other 6 U.S. Delegation with Other 15 people
Location: President Hotel
Transportation: Subway, Line 1 City Hall Station Exit 5

8PM ““ North Korea Freedom Week 2010 Prayer Vigil
Host: Esther Prayer Movement for North Korea, Professor Lee Yong Hee (yhlee [at] kyungwon [dot] ac [dot] kr)
Location: Shinil Church, Joong-Gu Shin-Dang 4-Dong, 347-298, Seoul
Transportation: Subway ““ Line 3, 6, Yaksu Station; Line 5, Cheonggu Station

Saturday, May 1st
Afternoon [Exact Time TBD] ““ Balloon Launch into North Korea
Host: Fighters for Free North Korea FFNK, Park Sang Hak (berojapark [at] hanmail [dot] net)
Location: Freedom Bridge, Imjingak, Paju City, Kyonggi Province
Transportation: Gyeongui Rail Line, Imjingak Station