Search

North Korea’s Oppression with Timothy Cho

Timothy Cho, North Korean human rights activist and defector who was imprisoned four times in North Korea and China, addressed the U.N. Opening for the 18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on February 17th, 2026.

Key Quotes:

“Where is justice for the people of North Korea in the face of such dehumanizing crime and oppression? And where is the United Nations?”

“Arriving in freedom was not the end of our journey but the beginning of our good fight of the faith and our enduring hope.”

Speakers and Participants

Timothy Cho

North Korean human rights activist & defector, imprisoned 4 times in North Korea & China

Related

Authoritarianism

Escaping North Korea to Freedom with Kim Yumi

Kim Yumi, North Korean defector who escaped by boat to South Korea with her family in 2023, addressed the 18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on February 18, 2026.   Full Prepared Remarks: Hello. It is my honour to stand here today and meet all of you.

Authoritarianism

Defying the Kremlin’s Propaganda Machine with Marina Ovsyannikova

Marina Ovsyannikova, Russian journalist who famously interrupted a live state TV news broadcast with a sign protesting Putin’s war on Ukraine, addressed the 18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on February 18, 2026.   Full Prepared Remarks: I am a journalist from Russia. For more than twenty

Authoritarianism

North Korea: Escape from Starvation and Oppression with Songmi Han

North Korean escapee and survivor of extreme poverty, oppression, and abandonment, Songmi Han, addresses the 15th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy – see below for her remarks. Full Remarks My mom gave me two lives. First, when she gave birth to me in 1993. Second, when she rescued me from North

Political Prisoners

North Korea: Escape from Starvation, Torture, Persecution with Jihyun Park

Jihyun Park, two-time North Korean escapee and human rights activist who survived a North Korean forced labor camp, addresses the 13th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy – see quotes below, followed by full prepared remarks. On life in North Korea: “North Koreans are stripped of their individuality