Korean Party's First New Year Recruitments... Defector Activist Ji Seong-ho and Sports World's First MeToo Kim Eun-hee

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The Liberty Korea Party welcomes Ji Seong-ho, a human rights activist and representative of NAHU, who is a defector from North Korea, and Kim Eun-hee, a coach at Goyang Tennis Academy well known as the first Me Too case in the sports world, as their first new recruits of the year.

The Liberty Korea Party's Talent Recruitment Committee announced on the morning of the 8th that it will hold a welcoming ceremony and announce the first recruit of 2020 at a small conference room in the National Assembly Members' Office Building.

Representative Ji is a former "kkotjebi" (a slang term for North Korean street children who scavenge for food on the streets). At the age of 14, he lost his arms and legs after falling from a train while stealing coal due to food shortages. He defected in 2006 and in 2008 formed a volunteer group with other defectors to continue activities aimed at giving back to those in greater need in society.

He majored in law at university and currently, as a human rights activist, meets with domestic and international leaders to discuss and fulfill his role in improving North Korean human rights. In 2015, he was invited as one of 24 speakers at the Oslo Freedom Forum held in Oslo, Norway, and in January 2018, he attended the State of the Union address by U.S. President Donald Trump at the invitation of the U.S. government and witnessed the speech directly in the U.S. House of Representatives chamber.

When President Trump introduced him, Representative Ji raised his crutches and was introduced as a "symbol of freedom." He said, "After experiencing the forced repatriation incident involving two North Korean sailors and the starvation of North Korean defector children, I began to consider playing a role within the system as a human rights activist," adding, "There is no tomorrow for human rights issues. Only today and now exist."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Coach Kim was widely known as the first Me Too case in the sports world after filing a complaint in 2016 about sexual violence she suffered from a school tennis coach between 2001 and 2002. In 2018, the Supreme Court confirmed a 10-year prison sentence for the coach, and last year, Coach Kim won the first trial of a damages lawsuit. She is currently active as a tennis coach teaching children and working for athletes, women, and children who suffer human rights violations.

Coach Kim said, "I used to frown whenever I thought of the Liberty Korea Party, and I had many thoughts and concerns before standing here today. The first thought was that my beliefs did not align with the party's direction," but added, "However, the party's color does not matter when it comes to human rights issues. I am here because I confirmed the party's will to resolve human rights problems."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.