Seoul police are investigating how a North Korean defector who fled south ended up back in the North. Appearing tearful in a North Korean television interview, Lim Ji-hyeon told viewers she had escaped a capitalist hell.
She was a TV personality, of course she ate. Highlighting that south korea doesn’t actually have a lot of food is a really weird thing to say.
She appeared on a TV show because that's often the only job that a North Korean defector can get. They probably gave her a few hundred dollars at most. She's not a wealthy celebrity. Most North Koreans have a hard time landing a job in the south. Poor people in every capitalist country are food insecure. I find her statement 100% believable, especially given the recent documented case of a North Korean defector who starved to death in her apartment in Seoul.
And then there’s this
Lim - who described herself as “human trash”
That sounds to me like she's depressed. I figure most people who are motivated to flee a country which they consider a hell-hole would be depressed.
they all call her a “TV personality” and highlight her appearanceS on tv. (She was on reality shows, did interviews, was on talk shows, etc)
North Koreans are placed on TV in South Korea the same way that a boy who eats cockroaches is placed on Jerry Springer's studio in America, as freaks to gawk at. Do you think that every person who is interviewed on a daytime talk show is wealthy?
I feel like I am being gaslighted, or I don't undersdtand how a thread works.
TankieTanuki asked you "which quotes? how so?"
and then you quoted her and said "of course she ate." as if her statement was to imply South Korea lacks food, when that isn't what her statement mean't...or at the very least it's not clear from the quote that is what is mean't.
Please understand that people were engaging with you critically because we misunderstood your first comment to mean the opposite of what you meant. We were "attacking" you because we wanted to challenge what seemed like anti-communism, not for any personal reasons. I understand how frustrating it is to be misunderstood and I'm sorry I grilled you like I did in hindsight, but you should also cool down a little and accept part of the blame for not clearly communicating yourself.
Did you learn this stuff from a different article? This one just says she was "forced to appear on South Korean television to make the North appear more miserable than it actually was."
Maybe she was rich and famous; it's possible. All I'm saying is that it's not at all guaranteed given what I know about most defectors. If she was unable to find a job except for a couple token interviews, that would still make her a "TV personality", but she could still have trouble making rent in Seoul.
What she said doesn't necessarily mean that she was lacking food though, just that she went South imagining she would have a good life and eat well, but didn't anticipate the hardships she would encounter that were the price she had to pay to "make it" in the South, stuff she mentions like lying about her country and people, being told to read a script, and other things that are normal for lots of people that have to move away from their homes, like missing friends and family, feeling isolated, and getting culture shock. That's how I interpreted it.
She appeared on a TV show because that's often the only job that a North Korean defector can get. They probably gave her a few hundred dollars at most. She's not a wealthy celebrity. Most North Koreans have a hard time landing a job in the south. Poor people in every capitalist country are food insecure. I find her statement 100% believable, especially given the recent documented case of a North Korean defector who starved to death in her apartment in Seoul.
That sounds to me like she's depressed. I figure most people who are motivated to flee a country which they consider a hell-hole would be depressed.
deleted by creator
North Koreans are placed on TV in South Korea the same way that a boy who eats cockroaches is placed on Jerry Springer's studio in America, as freaks to gawk at. Do you think that every person who is interviewed on a daytime talk show is wealthy?
deleted by creator
Nothing in the article she said implies she was "starving".
Just that South Korea wasn't what she thought...which could mean anything.
deleted by creator
where?
I went back to the start of the thread and the first person to mention she said she was starving in SK was you.
I'm not even necessarily defending the video or whatever, I was just saying you were extrapolating from her statement something that's not evident.
I implied that she could be food insecure despite appearing on TV, because that is a distinct possibility.
yes but the first person to suggest she was claiming not to have ate was somedipshit.
deleted by creator
I feel like I am being gaslighted, or I don't undersdtand how a thread works.
TankieTanuki asked you "which quotes? how so?" and then you quoted her and said "of course she ate." as if her statement was to imply South Korea lacks food, when that isn't what her statement mean't...or at the very least it's not clear from the quote that is what is mean't.
deleted by creator
1 :meow-hug: to the posting trenches
Removed by mod
You should probably log off
Removed by mod
I wish you the best, but you may continue to encounter these situations elsewhere
Removed by mod
Please understand that people were engaging with you critically because we misunderstood your first comment to mean the opposite of what you meant. We were "attacking" you because we wanted to challenge what seemed like anti-communism, not for any personal reasons. I understand how frustrating it is to be misunderstood and I'm sorry I grilled you like I did in hindsight, but you should also cool down a little and accept part of the blame for not clearly communicating yourself.
Did you learn this stuff from a different article? This one just says she was "forced to appear on South Korean television to make the North appear more miserable than it actually was."
Maybe she was rich and famous; it's possible. All I'm saying is that it's not at all guaranteed given what I know about most defectors. If she was unable to find a job except for a couple token interviews, that would still make her a "TV personality", but she could still have trouble making rent in Seoul.
deleted by creator
Can you share the link, please?
deleted by creator
What she said doesn't necessarily mean that she was lacking food though, just that she went South imagining she would have a good life and eat well, but didn't anticipate the hardships she would encounter that were the price she had to pay to "make it" in the South, stuff she mentions like lying about her country and people, being told to read a script, and other things that are normal for lots of people that have to move away from their homes, like missing friends and family, feeling isolated, and getting culture shock. That's how I interpreted it.