Song Byeok, 48, poses for a photograph in Seoul, South Korea, September 27, 2017. Byeok was a propaganda artist. His father drowned trying to cross the Tumen river, in 2000. When the artist finally left North Korea in 2001, he brought photos of his family with him. "We left that August to find food," Byeok recalled, describing the first attempt. "We were from a town further inland, and we weren't sure where the river was high and where it was low. I didn't know at the time but the river was swollen because of the rainy season. I thought we had to cross it anyway. All I could think about was getting to China to buy food. I took off my clothes and tied them into a rope to strap us together. I told my father not to let go. As we approached the middle of the river, the strap felt lighter. I looked back and saw my father drifting away. I was devastated. He was going under the water and couldn't get out. I rushed up to the (North Korean) border guards and asked them to save him but they just said why did I come out, why didn't I die too. They handcuffed me and took me away. It was Aug. 28. I was tortured by the "bowibu" (North Korean secret police) in Hoeryong, then jailed for four months in Chongjin prison camp. But after I was released from the camp I felt like I needed to survive and carry on living. Right before I tried to defect again, I went back home and grabbed my family photos. Even if I died trying, I thought, at least I would have this picture with me. I never found my father. After I came to South Korea, I went back to China in 2004 and held a memorial service for him by the river. My heart still aches." REUTERS/Kim Hong-ji SEARCH "DEFECTORS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. 

A caretaker holds a malnourished infant at an orphanage in Chongjin city, North Korea, June 20, 2008 in this photo released by World Food Programme. Parts of North Korea are experiencing their worst levels of hunger in nearly a decade, the U.N. World Food Programme said on Wednesday, as it called on donors to provide urgent assistance over the next few months. Picture taken June 20, 2008. REUTERS/Anette Kirkeboe/WFP handout (NORTH KOREA). FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS 

A nutritional expert assesses the health of a malnourished boy at an orphanage in Chongjin city, North Korea, June 20, 2008 in this photo released by World Food Programme. Parts of North Korea are experiencing their worst levels of hunger in nearly a decade, the U.N. World Food Programme said on Wednesday, as it called on donors to provide urgent assistance over the next few months. Picture taken June 20, 2008. REUTERS/Anette Kirkeboe/WFP handout (NORTH KOREA). FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS 

Malnourished children are seen at an orphanage in Chongjin city, North Korea, June 20, 2008 in this photo released by World Food Programme. Parts of North Korea are experiencing their worst levels of hunger in nearly a decade, the U.N. World Food Programme said on Wednesday, as it called on donors to provide urgent assistance over the next few months. Picture taken June 20, 2008. REUTERS/Anette Kirkeboe/WFP handout (NORTH KOREA). FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS 

-PHOTO TAKEN 23APR04-
Tony Banbury, the United Nations World Food Programme Regional Director for Asia, watches North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. (CREDIT : REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke)
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-PHOTO TAKEN 23APR04-
A North Korean worker hangs micronutrient-enriched noodles on a drying rack at a UN World Food Programme-supported factory in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. (CREDIT : REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke)
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-PHOTO TAKEN 23APR04-
North Korean infants stay at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. (CREDIT : REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke)
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-PHOTO TAKEN 23APR04-
North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage
in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. (CREDIT : REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke)
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-PHOTO TAKEN 23APR04-
North Koreans workers deepen the bed of a river and reinforce its embankments in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The anti-flooding operation is supported by the United Nations World Food Programme, which provides each worker with a daily 2kg cereal ration. Falling donations for its North Korea programme have forced a substantial reduction in the WFP's food-for-work activities. (CREDIT : REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke)
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A North Korean worker hangs micronutrient-enriched noodles on a drying rack at a UN World Food Programme-supported factory in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW/CP 

North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke 

Tony Banbury, the United Nations World Food Programme Regional Director for Asia, watches North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW/CP 

Anette Kirkeboe of the United Nations World Food Programme embraces a North Korean baby at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW 

A North Korean worker hangs micronutrient-enriched noodles on a drying rack at a UN World Food Programme-supported factory in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The WFP is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW/CP 

North Korean infants stay at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW 

North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke 

North Korean toddlers eat lunch at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke 

North Korean boys stay at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke 

North Korean boys stay at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke 

A North Korean boy stays at a government-run orphanage in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The United Nations World Food Programme is seeking to feed 6.5 million hungry North Koreans but has had to stop distributions to many of the most vulnerable owing to a downturn in donations. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW/CP 

North Korean workers clear silt from a sewage drain in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The clean-up operation is supported by the United Nations World Food Programme, which provides each worker with a daily 2kg cereal ration. Falling donations for its North Korea operation have forced a substantial reduction in the WFP's food-for-work activities. Picture taken April 23, 2004. REUTERS/World Food Programme/GeraldBourke ASW/CP 

North Koreans workers deepen the bed of a river and reinforce its embankments in Chongjin city April 23, 2004. The anti-flooding operation is supported by the United Nations World Food Programme, which provides each worker with a daily 2kg cereal ration. Falling donations for its North Korea programme have forced a substantial reduction in the WFP's food-for-work activities. REUTERS/World Food Programme/Gerald Bourke ASW/CP 

A child suffering from malnutrition sits on the floor of Sunam nursery in Chongjin, North Korea's third largest city, May 6. Local doctors estimate that over 50 percent of children at the nursery are underweight and stunted, and many of them may grow up physically and mentally retarded. North Korea has been suffering from famine since 1995, and is entering some of the leanest months of the year, as the country waits for the summer harvest. Industrial cities in the northeastern parts of the country, which have to sustain large populations on little arable land, are some of the worst-hit areas.

ASW/CV/TAN 

A state plant in North Korea's northeastern city of Chongjin May 6 produce "alternative food," the only kind of food distributed by the state Public Distribution System to the general population in May and June - the leanest months of the year. Officials said the "alternative food" consisted of 50 percent wheat, 20 percent corn cobs, 20 percent tree leaves and 10 percent grass. The U.N. World Food Programme says "alternative food" is simply a stomach filler that can cause severe digestive problems for the elderly and young.

ASW/TAN 

Three children, at least two of them suffering from malnutrition, play at a nursery in the northeastern North Korean city of Chongjin May 6. North Korean officials said since the United Nation World Food Programme started supplying the nursery with food in July 1997 the health of many children had improved although some youngsters remained malnourished or stunted by five years of famine.

ASW/TAN