Charles Robert Jenkins is a former United States Army soldier who lived in
North Korea from 1965 to 2004 after deserting from his unit and crossing the
Korean Demilitarized Zone. Military service and desertion
Jenkins was born in Rich Square, North Carolina. He joined the National Guard
in 1955, aged 15, well below the minimum enlistment age. He joined the regular
army in 1958 and was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division. He served in South
Korea from 1960 to 1961, in Europe from 1962 to 1964, and in South Korea again.
In South Korea, Jenkins was assigned to night patrols. He subsequently crossed
into North Korea and surrendered to forces there, in hopes of being sent to
the USSR and then, through prisoner exchange, eventually returned to
America. Shortly thereafter, North Korean propaganda declared that a U.S.
sergeant had defected, and broadcast statements allegedly made by the
defector, reportedly in stilted English. The U.S. Army claimed Jenkins wrote four
letters stating his intention to defect; however, the original letters are
reportedly lost. His relatives maintained throughout his absence that
he was abducted. Life in North Korea
Information about Jenkins' status was unavailable outside North Korea for many
years. Jenkins says he almost immediately regretted his desertion. He
says that he and three other U.S. servicemen, Larry Abshier, Jerry Parrish
and James Dresnok, were quarantined in a one-room house with no running water for
seven years until 1972, where they were made to study the Juche philosophy of
Kim Il-sung daily. They were forced to memorize large passages of Kim's in
Korean, and beaten frequently by their guards.
He says that at one point in 1966, he found his way to the Soviet embassy in
Pyongyang and requested asylum, which was denied. Eventually, Jenkins was
placed in separate housing and began teaching English at the Pyongyang
University of Foreign Studies. In 1980, Jenkins was introduced to
Hitomi Soga, a 21-year-old Japanese nursing student who had been abducted by
North Korean agents in 1978, along with her mother, during a search for Japanese
citizens who could train future spies in Japanese language and culture. Soga's
mother was never heard from again, and Soga was "given to" Jenkins.
Thirty-eight days after meeting, they were married. They had two daughters,
Roberta Mika Jenkins and Brinda Carol Jenkins. In 1982, Jenkins appeared in
the North Korean film Unsung Heroes, which provided the first evidence to the
Western world that he was alive. The U.S. government did not publicly reveal
this information until 1996. Confirmation and return
Jenkins drew international interest again in 2002, when North Korean leader
Kim Jong-il confirmed that North Korea had abducted Japanese citizens. In an
effort at détente, surviving abductees were allowed to travel to Japan,
including Jenkins' wife. The visit was intended to last for a week, but the
Japanese government chose not to return them on schedule and instead negotiated
for their families to join them in Japan. Most of the families did
ultimately travel to Japan, but Jenkins and his daughters stayed behind out of
fear that the North Korean government was testing his loyalty.
After assurances of protection from the Japanese government, he traveled with
his daughters to Japan by way of Indonesia for medical treatment,
arriving in Japan on July 18, 2004. Japan formally requested a pardon for
Jenkins, which the U.S. declined to grant. After expressing a desire to put
his conscience at rest, Jenkins reported on September 11, 2004 to Camp Zama in
Japan. He reported in respectful military form, saluting the receiving
military police officer. On November 3, Jenkins pled guilty to
charges of desertion and aiding the enemy, but denied making disloyal or
seditious statements – the latter charges were dropped. He was sentenced
to 30 days' confinement, received a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of
all pay and benefits and was reduced in rank to E-1 private. He was released six
days early, on November 27, 2004, for good behavior.
Jenkins and his family settled on Sado Island in Japan, which is Soga's home.
On June 14, 2005, Jenkins, his wife, and two daughters traveled to the United
States to visit his 91-year-old mother in North Carolina, returning later in
the month. He found work as a greeter in a shop.
There were three other American deserters who remained in North Korea as
well: James Joseph Dresnok, Private Larry Allen Abshier, and Specialist
Jerry Wayne Parrish. The former two defected in 1962, while the latter
defected in 1963. As of 2007, Dresnok is living in North Korea and says he does
not regret his defection. According to North Korean official reports, Abshier
and Parrish died of natural causes while living in that country.
On July 15, 2008, Jenkins obtained permanent residency status in Japan,
just half a month after he applied for the status. Jenkins commented that he
wanted to stay in Japan for the rest of his life, and would also like to obtain
Japanese nationality. = Military awards=
Although dishonorably discharged from military service, Jenkins' years of
status as a deserter technically qualified him for several automatic
military decorations which he displayed at the time of his court martial.
During his active duty service in the 1960s, Jenkins was presented one award
of the Good Conduct Medal, this being the only award he was ever formally
presented by the military. During his years as a deserter, however, Jenkins
was "carried on the rolls" of the U.S. Army in a desertion status meaning that
he was not discharged but classified as an active duty soldier under "Time Lost"
due to his AWOL status. In 2004, when Jenkins surrendered
himself as a deserter, the U.S. Army placed him back on the active duty rolls
as a "deserter returned to military control". He was credited with 14,494
days time lost as a deserter and, by default, became eligible for all
automatic service medals which had been created during his long period of
absence. This included all automatic awards created for soldiers serving in
Korea as well as active duty awards for service after the September 11 attacks
in 2001. At his court martial in November 2004,
Jenkins appeared wearing the following awards on his Army uniform.
Army Good Conduct Medal National Defense Service Medal
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Korea Defense Service Medal
Army Service Ribbon Overseas Service Ribbon
Jenkins further displayed the North Carolina Service Ribbon to denote his
status as a Guardsman transferred to the Regular Army during his original tour in
the 1950s and 60s. His one authorized Army badge is the Marksmanship Badge
with Rifle bar. Memoirs
Jenkins published a book in Japanese in October 2005, titled To Tell the Truth,
about his experiences in North Korea. A Korean-language edition was also
released in June 2006 by Mulpure Publishing of South Korea.
An English-language version, titled The Reluctant Communist: My Desertion,
Court-Martial, and Forty-Year Imprisonment in North Korea, co-authored
with journalist Jim Frederick, was published by the University of
California Press on March 1, 2008. See also
List of American and British defectors in the Korean War: the 21 Americans and
1 Briton who refused repatriation during Operation Big Switch in 1953
Larry Allen Abshier of Urbana, Illinois, deserted in May 1962 at age 19
James Joseph Dresnok of Richmond, Virginia, deserted on August 15, 1962 at
age 21 Jerry Wayne Parrish of Morganfield,
Kentucky, deserted in December 1963 at age 19
Roy Chung, deserted in June 1979 Joseph T. White of St Louis, Missouri,
deserted in August 1982 at age 20 References
External links FEER interview with Jenkins, September
1, 2004 Asia Times - The strange saga of Charles
Robert Jenkins BBC News - North Korea's mystery guest
TIME Asia Magazine - The Long Mistake US deserter reunited with mother
"Last Surviving US defector to North Korea speaks out", from the Korea Times,
August 19, 2004 "Deserter Recalls N. Korean Hell" -
Interview of Jenkins by Scott Pelley of CBS's 60 Minutes
"Kokuhaku: Pictures", "Kokuhaku: Pictures 2" - Photos and translations
from Jenkins' book published in Japan. "The Reluctant North Korean Film Star" -
Interview with Charles Jenkins about film work and collaborating with the US
government by Alex Hoban