Charles Ryu

Charles Ryu (born Cheol W. Ryu; October 1, 1994) is a North Korean defector to the United States. He runs the YouTube channel Charles North Korea, where he speaks about the North Korean experience. An associate of Liberty in North Korea and Free Joseon, he was involved in the North Korean Embassy in Madrid incident, for which an international warrant for his arrest was issued.

Life in North Korea Ryu was born on October 1, 1994, in North Korea. He described North Koreans as "so isolated that they believe even absurd propaganda" and that "Kim Jong Il was taught about as some sort of God". His father was a Chinese man who returned to China when Charles was five. He said that at age 11, his mother starved to death and that he became a homeless orphan. In 2008, he fled to China and lived there for some time, but was later sent back to North Korea by the Chinese government. After returning to North Korea, he was put in a prison camp, and according to him, was "beaten, fed only 150 kernels of corn per day, and worked eighteen-hour shifts" in a coal mine. He also said he once ate grains of rice from dried vomit. He was released from the prison after serving a nine-month sentence, after which he again fled to China, via the Yalu River. He then fled to Thailand, where the United Nations gave him asylum status before transporting him to the United States.

Life as a defector In the United States, Ryu created the YouTube channel Charles North Korea, where he primarily speaks of his experience in North Korea. His videos include man on the street interviews, in which he wears a sign that reads "ask a North Korean". and lives in Rancho Palos Verdes, California as of 2017.

Ryu is anti-communist.