Timothy Cho was only nine years old when his parents escaped from North Korea, leaving him behind to fend for himself. He experienced life on the streets, witnessing public executions firsthand. With his parents being defectors, education was not an option, and instead of going to school, he faced forced labor.
Born in Onsong in the 1980s, Timothy’s early days were filled with the ritual of bowing to the ruling Kim family’s portraits before starting his day. Following his parents’ departure, his grandmother initially took him in, but due to the severe famine in the mid-1990s, she could not support him, leading him to homelessness.
Recalling his harsh childhood, Timothy, who recently ran in the Stockport local elections, shared stories of struggling for food and witnessing public executions becoming a norm. He described the desperation of homeless children resorting to stealing food, enduring beatings while trying to eat.
At just 11 years old, Timothy vividly remembered the chilling sight of prisoners being executed in front of the village, a traumatic experience etched in his memory. Despite multiple escape attempts from North Korea, he was eventually captured and imprisoned before finding his way to China, where he first encountered freedoms like wearing jeans and having diverse hairstyles.
After arriving in the UK in 2008, Timothy pursued an education in English and politics, eventually settling in Stockport with a family. Currently, in his mid to late 30s, he serves as the Secretariat for the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea. His revelations about the continued brutal executions in North Korea come amidst reports of escalating executions during the Covid-19 pandemic, with hundreds of cases documented, including public executions for trivial offenses like consuming South Korean media.
The Transitional Justice Working Group’s report highlighted the grim reality of executions in North Korea, with various methods employed, including firing squads and blunt weapons. Most executions were public, with some individuals facing capital punishment for merely enjoying South Korean entertainment.
