The Girl with Seven Names

Hyeonseo spends her first night in Seoul in a general detention room with 30 other North Korean women. Violence occurs often, even though poor behavior can hurt their chances for South Korean citizenship, and one of the women even tries to steal Hyeonseo’s clothes. There is much talk of lesbians at the center, and everything happens there, including sex. Hyeonseo has previously had no idea that there are actually homosexual North Koreans. Until now, she thought homosexuality was a foreign phenomenon or a plotline from television devised for drama.

Two weeks later, Hyeonseo is moved to a solitary room, where she meets her interrogator. He is a kind man and tells her to write down as much of her story as she can, using as much detail as she can remember. After several days, the interrogator smiles and says he believes she is North Korean. He has been vetting people for over 14 years, he says, and can always spot a liar. Still, he claims Hyeonseo is part of the one percent. She arrived in Seoul, direct on a two-hour flight, without paying a broker. He asks if boarding the plane was her own idea. Hyeonseo tells him it was. “Then you’re a genius,” the interrogator says. The next morning, Hyeonseo wakes up relieved. It is the first night she hasn’t had a nightmare in over 11 years.