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Can the Hometown Also Be the Ideology? : Exploring the Narrative of a North Korean Student Studying in Hungary
ID Kim, Bogook (Author)

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Abstract
This article chronicles the life of Choi Inhwan, focusing on his movements across North Korea, Hungary, Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia, and Switzerland in the 1950s. Choi’s North Korean background is traced, with scant details available after his return in 1960. Born in 1934 to ordinary farmers, Choi’s early education spanned from primary school to high school in Uiju, North Pyongan Province. His academic journey continued in Hungary (1953‒1957), where he faced language challenges but excelled in Hungarian and biology at Budapest Medical University. His involvement in the 1956 Hungarian Revolution is highlighted by multiple sources, confirming his active participation and subsequent escape to Yugoslavia, followed by relocation to Switzerland as a political refugee in 1957. In Switzerland, Choi’s ideological stance fluctuated dramatically. Initially supported by local and international refugee aid organizations, he displayed anti-socialist sentiments. However, by late 1959 Choi approached both Chinese and Hungarian embassies, expressing a desire to return to North Korea via Hungary, showcasing a sudden ideological shift towards anti-capitalism. His eventual repatriation to North Korea in 1960 is documented through Hungarian diplomatic channels, marking the culmination of his complex and politically charged journey. The article underscores Choi’s multifaceted ideological evolution and his strategic navigations through the geopolitical landscapes of the Cold War era, reflecting broader patterns of defection and political realignment among North Korean students and intellectuals abroad during that period.

Language:English
Keywords:diaspora, defector, National Archives of Hungary, Diplomatic Archives of the Republic of Korea, North Korea, South Korea, Hungary, Eastern Europe
Work type:Article
Typology:1.01 - Original Scientific Article
Organization:FF - Faculty of Arts
Publication status:Published
Publication version:Version of Record
Publication date:17.03.2025
Number of pages:Str. 135-152
Numbering:Vol. 13, no. suppl.
PID:20.500.12556/RUL-178235 This link opens in a new window
ISSN:2232-5131
eISSN:2350-4226
DOI:https://doi.org/10.4312/as.2025.13.sup.135-152 This link opens in a new window
Publication date in RUL:21.01.2026
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Downloads:189
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Record is a part of a journal

Title:Asian studies
Publisher:Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete, Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete, Založba Univerze v Ljubljani
ISSN:2232-5131
COBISS.SI-ID:265206272 This link opens in a new window

Licences

License:CC BY-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
Link:http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Description:This Creative Commons license is very similar to the regular Attribution license, but requires the release of all derivative works under this same license.

Secondary language

Language:Slovenian
Title:Ali je lahko domači kraj tudi ideologija? : Raziskovanje pripovedi severnokorejskega študenta, ki je študiral na Madžarskem
Abstract:
Članek opisuje življenje Choi Inhwana, pri čemer se osredotoča na njegovo gibanje po Severni Koreji, Madžarski, Federativni ljudski republiki Jugoslaviji in Švici v petdesetih letih 20. stoletja. Zasledimo Choijevo severnokorejsko poreklo, po njegovi vrnitvi leta 1960 pa je na voljo le malo podrobnosti. Choi se je rodil leta 1934 v navadni kmečki družini ter se je šolal v osnovni in srednji šoli v mestu Uiju v pokrajini Severni Pjongan. Študijsko pot je nadaljeval na Madžarskem (1953–1957), kjer se je soočal z jezikovnimi težavami, vendar se je izkazal pri madžarščini in biologiji na Medicinski univerzi v Budimpešti. Več virov izpostavlja njegovo sodelovanje v madžarski revoluciji leta 1956 ter potrjujejo njegovo aktivno udeležbo in poznejši pobeg v Jugoslavijo, ki mu je leta 1957 sledila selitev v Švico s statusom političnega begunca. V Švici je Choijeva ideološka drža močno nihala. Sprva so ga podpirale lokalne in mednarodne organizacije za pomoč beguncem, izražal pa je protisocialistična čustva. Konec leta 1959 pa se je Choi obrnil na kitajsko in madžarsko veleposlaništvo ter izrazil željo, da bi se prek Madžarske vrnil v Severno Korejo, s čimer je pokazal nenaden ideološki premik k protikapitalizmu. Njegova končna repatriacija v Severno Korejo leta 1960 je bila dokumentirana po madžarskih diplomatskih kanalih in je pomenila vrhunec njegovega zapletenega in politično obarvanega potovanja. Članek poudarja Choijev večplastni ideološki razvoj in njegovo strateško krmarjenje po geopolitičnih pokrajinah obdobja hladne vojne, kar odraža širše vzorce prestopov ter političnih sprememb med severnokorejskimi študenti in študentkami ter intelektualkami in intelektualci v tujini v tem obdobju.

Keywords:diaspora, prebežnik, Madžarski narodni arhiv, diplomatski arhiv Republike Koreje, Severna Koreja, Južna Koreja, Madžarska, Vzhodna Evropa

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