Summary

After his debriefings, Shin reported to Hanawon or “House of Unity,” a government run resettlement center. The center was staffed with a medical staff, psychologists, counselors and teachers in a wide range of subjects. After defectors learn their rights, they are sent on field trips to shopping centers, banks and subway stations, a kind of hands-on training. Shin was given certification of his South Korean citizenship. He was also offered a free apartment, an eight-hundred monthly stipend for two years, and as much as $18,000 if he saw the transition through successfully. It was during his stay in Hanawon that he began to have nightmares about his mother and became very depressed.

The doctors at Hanawon determined that Shin’s mental condition was deteriorating and had him transferred to a psychiatric ward at a nearby hospital. He was treated there for two months. He...