Page 3 of
3 Joseph White's walk
in the dark By Robert Neff
had a clean military record, but
allegedly he had problems with his first sergeant.
But even if there was a problem, it is doubtful
that this would have provoked his defection.
There is another theory. One American
soldier claims that White fell in love with a
North Korean agent in a club in the village of
Bongilchon and that she disappeared on the same
day White did. Allegedly she either guided him to
the North Korean positions or
she
met him in the North.
Giving credence to
this theory is White's infatuation with Korean
women whom he described as the "perfect man's
mate", who "know how to treat their man". He
boasted to his mother that he had several female
Korean friends who were "more beautiful than any
girlfriend" he had had in the US. These Korean
girls were not only attractive, but they were
hard-working and lived simply.
There were
other indications that White's feelings were
changing. He became fixated on defections. In a
tape to his parents, he mentioned defection six
times, mostly about the large number of North
Koreans who defected to the South. "In South
Korean newspapers you read all the time of North
Koreans who defect south," but then he noted
ominously in a disembodied voice, "But it's not
all one-way traffic." In fact there were several
defections to the North, including a front-line
South Korean commander.
Life after
defection In the months following his
defection, White was used by the North Koreans in
their propaganda efforts directed at the United
States. In January 1983, leaflets, written in
English and titled "Full of Happiness and Hope",
were found in the DMZ. They depicted White's
"contented life" in North Korea. Ironically, one
soldier who found one of these leaflets in a
Korean graveyard described it as White "standing
with Chinese and Soviet officers; his hands looked
like they were handcuffed behind his back".
White's parents were determined to return
to a normal life with their four other children.
They had already packed away the posters that had
adorned his walls and the pictures of a girlfriend
he had once had. Outwardly he was dead to them,
but in their hearts he was still there - a lost
son who they prayed would return, or at least
contact them.
In February 1983, they were
surprised to receive a letter bearing North Korean
stamps - it was from their son. In his letter he
informed them that he was well and had helped
harvest crops the previous autumn. He said he was
working as an English teacher for two North Korean
students. He expressed his love and concern for
his family and, as an afterthought, expressed his
wish for an almanac and dictionary.
Unsurprisingly, the letter made no comment or
explanation of what had happened at the DMZ the
previous year. Unbeknownst to them at the time, it
would be their only letter from him.
The final letter While White's
reasons for defecting are elusive and
controversial, his death is even more so.
November 5, 1985, is a day that the White
family will never forget. It was the day they
received another letter bearing North Korean
stamps, and it was Joseph's 24th birthday. Norval
White described the letter as "a cruel twist of
fate", because instead of happy tidings from their
son, it brought only the news of his unexpected
death.
The letter was dated August 22,
1985, and written by "Joe's best friend and a
student of English", Li Gun-ho. Apparently on
August 17, White had suggested to three of his
Korean friends (including Li) to go on a picnic on
the banks of the Chongchon River. There they had
spent a leisurely time drinking red wine and
talking.
At some point White decided to
swim across the river. He was described as a
"fearless adventurer" but had been warned it was
dangerous to swim in such a swollen and fast
stream. Li went on to explain that "when he
[White] reached the middle of the river, he
suddenly dipped his body in the water and tossed
his head and then began wriggling. It seemed that
he had been caught in a swirl of fast water."
One of White's Korean companions jumped
into the river to help rescue him, but he failed,
and both men drowned. According to Li, the bodies
were never recovered.
Li spoke of the
"happy days we [Joseph and his Korean friends] had
running and mountaineering in the morning and
strolling in the evening while learning English
from him". However, the rosy picture that Li
presented may have not been quite accurate.
In numerous interviews, Robert Jenkins, an
earlier American defector, mentioned the severe
punishment and beatings he and other defectors
received. It is possible that at some point White
realized that, like Jenkins, he "longed to leave
that place [North Korea] every day". Perhaps, as
many American soldiers feel, White was too
troublesome and resisted as his father hoped and
dreaded that he would, and the North Koreans did
away with the troublesome defector.
There
are many troubling questions. The two American
defectors still living, James F Dresnok and
Jenkins, have never mentioned White in any of
their interviews, so it is likely they never met
him or even knew he existed.
The timing of
White's death - almost exactly three years after
his defection - and the letter informing his
parents of his death arriving on his birthday may
be nothing more than a coincidence, but seem
suspect. Even the name of his "best friend" - Li
Gun-ho - sounds very similar to the phrase his
mother had used to describe her son. She had
insisted that he was "gung-ho".
Despite
the family's pleas, the body of America's last
defector to North Korea, Joseph White, still has
not been returned to his family for the Roman
Catholic burial they desire. Apparently, when you
cross that line, you are gone forever - even in
death.
Robert Neff is a former
columnist with the Korea Times. He is currently
doing research for several books dealing with
early Korean-Western relations from 1880-1910 and
also on the Western gold mines in Korea
(1882-1939). He has been based in Korea for about
20 years - first with the military and now as an
independent researcher.
(Copyright
2007 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved.
Please contact us about sales, syndication and republishing.)
Head
Office: Unit B, 16/F, Li Dong Building, No. 9 Li Yuen Street East,
Central, Hong Kong Thailand Bureau:
11/13 Petchkasem Road, Hua Hin, Prachuab Kirikhan, Thailand 77110
