The border between North and South Korea is essentially impossible to cross. The Tumen River, bordering North Korea and China, is virtually the only way to escape North Korea. This border is patrolled by both North Korean and Chinese guards. People who attempt to cross are highly likely to get caught, so they must bribe guards. One defector, named Jo-Eun, tried crossing with her 4-year old daughter, but was dragged out of the river by guards who then beat her and her daughter. She was sent to a camp where prisoners face extreme brutality and are forced to do hard labor on a starvation diet. If those who are caught admit to wanting to defect to South Korea, they are killed.

If defectors reach China, they are in danger of deportation. Chinese citizens get money from the government for reporting defectors. Defectors must travel 3000 miles through China to reach a country in Southeast Asia, such as Laos, Vietnam, or Cambodia where they can access a South Korean embassy. For a brief period around 2000, defectors in China were able to go to the South Korean or American embassy in Beijing. Now, this is illegal due to China’s diplomatic relationship with North Korea. 

When Kim Jong-Un took power in 2011, he heavily increased border security at the Tumen River. By the end of his predecessor’s regime, there were nearly 3000 recorded defections each year. Kim’s regime caused the number of defectors to drop to less than half of what it was. Border security increased even more due to the Covid-19 pandemic because both countries wanted to stop the flow. Until the pandemic, hiring a broker to help is nearly the only way to escape. Due to the extreme danger and difficulty of escaping, brokers were enormously expensive. Very few people in North Korea had enough money. North Koreans could only escape if they had escaped family members who could afford brokers. South Korea reports that only two North Korean defectors arrived in the last six months of 2021 due to the pandemic causing heightened border security.