North Korea (MNN)–North Korea’s methods of intimidating those who want to flee the harsh regime is bringing focus to its dismal human rights record.
Open Doors USA Advocacy coordinator Lindsay Vessey says that’s why they’re joining their voice to an international protest on December 2nd. “Until they feel pressure, they’re not going to change. So that’s why we’re asking Christians and supporters on North Korea all around the world, to join us in this protest.”
Many refugees head over the border into China, only to be detained and tortured there. Then they’re often handed back to North Korea to await a fate that is likely to be three times worse than what they endured in China.
As a result of this treatment, the North Korea Freedom Coalition is planning an International Protest Against China’s Violent Repatriation of North Korean Refugees.
Vessey says, “If enough people take action, they will feel pressure, and they will eventually have to take action when there’s enough pressure.”
On Saturday, December 2, protests and prayer vigils will be held at Chinese consulates in major cities around the world.
In the U-S, protests, slated for noon local time, will take place in:
–Los Angeles, 443 Shatto Place
–Houston, 3417 Montrose Boulevard
–Chicago, 100 West Erie Street
–Washington DC, 2300 Connecticut Avenue
Other protests are scheduled in Australia, Canada, Belgium, France, Germany, Holland, Japan, Norway, Poland, South Korea and in the United Kingdom.
Open Doors encourages local believers to take part. For four years in a row, North Korea has taken the No. 1 spot on their World Watch List for countires with severest persecution.
That means evangelical work has gone underground, and Christians have taken the brunt of the abuse. “There is absolutely no religious freedom in North Korea. That’s the reason Open Doors is so involved on North Korea, not just for humanitarian and human rights reasons, but Christians there aren’t able to practice their faith. If they’re even heard saying the word ‘God’, or caught with a Bible, or with any type of religious literature, then they will instantly be imprisoned or executed.”
Click here if you want more information on how you can be a part of supporting the body of Christ in North Korea.
