North Korea is probably the most isolated country in the world, and its regime probably the most totalitarian. While it stubbornly defends the Juche ideology, which is the name of the official ideology of the country and outlaws the worship of anyone other than Kim Jong Il and his father, Kim Il Sung, most citizens face a desperate living situation.
The border with North Korea is heavily guarded. A sick North Korean without medicine therefore finds himself in a dilemma. Should you stay in North Korea, where you can't get the medicine you need to survive, or should you, at the risk of your life, cross the heavily guarded border to a foreign country where medicine is available? (Image: public domain)
Terrible health conditions
The health situation is catastrophic and life-threatening infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, malaria and hepatitis B are widespread. For example, it is estimated that 5 % of the population suffers from tuberculosis. At the same time, the public health system lacks medication and equipment is often outdated. An example of this can be seen in the treatment of tuberculosis patients, where the bacteria have become multi-resistant if the treatment is not completed or the medicine is not taken as prescribed. The only way to treat this type of tuberculosis is to use even more drugs than before, intravenously if necessary. However, North Korean hospitals often have a shortage of needles for intravenous medication, and the needles that do exist are reused so often that they become blunt. It is extremely painful for the patient when such a blunt needle is inserted into a vein, which sometimes has to be done with forceps.
Due to the inadequate treatment offered by the public healthcare system, sufferers are forced to purchase vital medicines on the black market at inflated prices. The alternative is to make an extremely dangerous journey to neighboring China to find it.
A matter of life and death
If North Korean Christians fall ill, it can be a matter of life and death whether they get access to life-saving medicine, which is also the case for the rest of the population. However, a sick Christian is in a particularly vulnerable situation. Christians live under a constant threat of imprisonment, torture or public execution if the authorities find out they are Christians. This is because worshipping anyone other than Kim Jong Il and his father, Kim Il Sung, is inconsistent with the official ideology, and being a Christian is considered one of the worst crimes in North Korea. Of North Korea's estimated 400,000 Christians, it is estimated that at least 40,000 and up to 60,000 are in political prison camps. 49-year-old Kim Tae Jin Kim says that in these camps you have to forget that you are human. He talks about his stay in a camp: "I kept a close eye on a dog so I could steal its food. I ate snakes, frogs, rats and anything that could be a source of nutrition."
The crucial medicine
To help the persecuted and sick North Korean Christians, the Danish European Mission has chosen to collaborate with couriers who secretly bring medicine to sick and persecuted Christians in North Korea. The medicine can cure a number of diseases that are prevalent in the country. Getting this medicine to the seriously ill can be crucial in preventing them from losing their lives. This was the experience of a mature Christian leader who bears great responsibility in the persecuted North Korean underground church. He had suffered a heart attack, was partially paralyzed and the situation was very serious. It was determined what medicine he needed and he sent a distress call to the Danish European Mission's partner outside North Korea. It was possible to produce the necessary medicine for the Christian leader and send it to him through secret channels. With this medicine, his condition improved over a period of three months. He has been able to resume his leadership responsibilities and he gives God all the credit for the healing and for enabling him to return to ministry.
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This example illustrates that medicine not only benefits the sick person, but also the people they are responsible for. In this case, many North Korean Christians benefited as a key person was able to resume important leadership responsibilities in the underground church. Similarly, in a country where the regime holds the starving population in an inhuman iron grip, North Korean Christians who have been rescued from life-threatening illnesses are empowered to care for their fellow human beings and share with them the hope and life of faith in Jesus Christ.
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The article is based on information from Danish European Mission partners and data from articles in Washington Post and The Christian Post.
