I recommend everyone go and read the article in this month’s National Geographic written by Tom O’neill and photographed by Chien-chi Chang, that shows in great detail the plight of North Korean refugees in China.  Here is part of the article in regards to the sex trafficking of North Korean women, which is something I have been covering here on the ROK Drop:

China In the border city of Yanji a missionary cautiously looks for North Koreans needing help on their long journey to freedom.

For Red, whose family lived within sight of the border, China appeared a seductive paradise. “I could see so many lights from apartment blocks and a power plant. China looked so rich.” She had been raised on a collective farm in the province of North Hamgyong, the poorest part of North Korea and the source of most border crossers. “I grew up seeing people getting sick and dying from eating grass,” she said. Lately she also noticed that entire housing blocks in a nearby city had been nearly emptied of women. They had all escaped across the border. As recently as 2003 the ratio of men to women fleeing North Korea was roughly equal; now women make up more than three-quarters of the traffic, a gender imbalance unusual in the world’s refugee movements. With most men either in the military or working on farms or in factories, women can slip away from homes and jobs more easily, and once in China they more readily find work, though increasingly, like Red and White, they’re caught up in the sex industry or are trafficked as brides to Chinese farmers.  [National Geographic]

According to the article 80% of North Korean refugees are now women, which makes sense considering the demand for these women in the Chinese sex trade.

It is a great read that I recommend everyone read in its entirety that fellow K-blogger One Free Korea played a part in making possible.  Along with reading the article make sure to check out the accompanying photo essay as well.