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South Korean national Choi Yong-Hun, known by guards and cell-mates as ‘Mr. Missionary’, has been released from prison in The People's Republic of China after four years behind bars.
He was arrested in 2003 after helping several groups of North Korean refugees to find safe asylum in South Korea, like a modern day Harriet ‘Moses’ Tubman, who operated an Underground Railroad in the slave states of USA.
After his arrest, Choi defended his activities, saying, “All humans in the world are born to be loved. North Korean refugees cross the border to China to escape hunger. There, they become targets for human traffickers, or they are forced to steal simply to stay alive. The Chinese authorities hunt them down like animals, to collect the bounty paid for every captured escapee. The bounty has recently been increased, to give more incentive to Chinese people to turn them in rather than shelter them. I am committed to helping these people to find the safety and freedom that is every person’s right.”
Choi described how he was subjected to beatings and torture at the hands of the Chinese police. Despite suffering from asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure, he was denied medical care during his four years of incarceration. Pray for Brother Choi and his family as he deals with the considerable mental and physical trauma resulting from his imprisonment.
2007 the 100 year anniversary of the Great Revival of Pyongyang, which was known as ‘The Jerusalem of the East’. This great movement is considered to be the beginning of the remarkably vital Korean church of today. The church of South Korea has declared 2007 as the Year of Prayer for North Korea. In the Seoul Olympic Gymnastic Stadium, before a crowd of 15,000, this proclamation was read:
“As we mark this centenary of the outbreak of the 1907 Pyongyang Great Revival, we pray that we will see love, freedom and peace restored to all of Korea. We call on Christians around the world to join the South Korean Church in earnestly, steadfastly praying for North Korea this year.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has repeatedly listed North Korea high on its list of ‘countries of particular concern’ for its severe and systematic human rights violations”, including brutal suppression of the Christian faith.
On a recent reconnaissance near the North Korean border, an Autumn Rain International intercessory team said they could see across the border people under great duress. “There was one group labouring in the fields. We couldn’t tell if they were prisoners or not, but they looked really oppressed. Their clothes were nearly black from dirt. A man who seemed to be their foreman was supervising them. We heard the most heart-wrenching wails from a woman – we don’t know why she was crying but the cries were terrible to hear. We could see hardly any trees and the people were cultivating very steep slopes – even slopes on a 45 degree angle. Surely when it rains, all the soil will wash away no wonder they have no food. Their situation seems so desperate. China seems lush by comparison with what we saw.”
Autumn Rain International is committed to praying that the people living in thick darkness in North Korea will see the light of Gospel rise in their land. Through prayer and practical support, we stand in solidarity with the people of North Korea. |