He enjoyed playing tennis and dining on Indian curry, activities only available to a tiny elite in North Korea, one of the world’s most isolated countries. The North Koreans had been working at one of the many restaurants North Korea operates abroad, mostly in Asia, where young waitresses dressed in traditional attire serve traditional North Korean food and drinks, while also providing live musical entertainment. Shortly before the group’s defection, the South Korean government had called on its citizens traveling abroad to avoid North Korean restaurants, saying the money they spent there went to funding North Korea’s weapons programs. These higher-profile defections have taken place alongside a general rise in the number of North Koreans making it to South Korea. Madden didn’t expect much reaction from the North Korean state to Thae’s defection.

Source: Los Angeles Times August 17, 2016 10:48 UTC