Timothy Cho was only nine years old when his parents escaped from North Korea, leaving him behind to fend for himself. As a result, he ended up living on the streets, witnessing public executions firsthand. Education was no longer an option for Timothy, as his parents, who were both teachers, had become defectors, and he was left to face a future of forced labor.
Born in the 1980s in Onsong, a town in the northern part of North Korea, Timothy’s early memories revolve around the daily ritual of bowing to portraits of the ruling Kim family before heading to school. However, following his parents’ departure, he initially sought refuge with his grandmother. Due to the severe famine in the mid-1990s, she could not afford to care for him, leading Timothy to homelessness.
Sharing his harrowing childhood experiences, Timothy, who recently ran in the local elections in Stockport, recounted the struggles for food and the normalization of witnessing public executions. Reflecting on his past, he expressed gratitude for surviving among homeless children who resorted to stealing food to survive.
Recounting the gruesome scenes he witnessed, Timothy described seeing prisoners being executed in front of crowds, with the graphic details etched into his memory from a young age. At the age of 17, he attempted his first escape from North Korea during Kim Jong Il’s reign, managing to cross the border into China, where he experienced a stark contrast in freedom and lifestyle.
Despite being captured and sent back home, Timothy’s determination led him to make multiple escape attempts, eventually finding his way to the UK in 2008. He pursued his education, studying English in Bolton, obtaining a degree in politics from Salford University, and a master’s degree from Liverpool University.
Now in his mid to late thirties, Timothy resides in Heaton Norris, Stockport, with his wife and two children. Recently, he ran unsuccessfully as the Conservative candidate for the Heatons North councillor position. Presently, Timothy serves as the Secretariat for the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea, shedding light on the ongoing executions and extreme punishments in the reclusive nation.
His revelations come in the wake of a report by the Transitional Justice Working Group, which highlighted a surge in executions in North Korea during the Covid-19 pandemic. The report detailed numerous cases of execution and death sentences, with many being carried out in public, including for offenses as trivial as consuming South Korean music and films.
The findings underscore the grim reality of human rights abuses in North Korea, shedding light on the brutal enforcement of capital punishment and the challenging journey of survivors like Timothy Cho.