At 21 years old, a girl robbed of her youth, innocence and freedom has finally spoken out against her native North Korea - the 'unimaginable country' she was fortunate enough to have escaped from.

In an emotionally charged speech, Yeonmi Park tells a harrowing tale about what life was like for her family and friends under Kim Jong-il's barbaric and oppressive regime.

Calling for a global movement to shed light on 'the darkest place in the world', she describes a country like no other, a place where the internet is banned, along with songs, books, international phone-calls and voicing basic opinions.

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Crying need: Yeonmi Park, 21, escaped from North Korea when she was a little girl and used her newfound freedom of speech to open up about the plight her people face under its brutal regime

Speaking at the One Young World Summit 2014 in Dublin on Saturday about the reality of life in North Korea, Yeonmi explained that people live their lives in constant fear of the brutal consequences awaiting them if they dare to step out of line.

Born on October 4 1993 in Hyesan - a notoriously cold river port along North Korea’s 850-mile northern border with China - she said:

'I was abducted at birth, even before I knew the words freedom or human rights.'

She added: 'No humans deserve to be oppressed just because of their birth place.'

Kim Jong-il leader of North Korea from 1994 to 2011 - the year of his death

'No humans deserve to be oppressed just because of their birth place' - The escapee called for action against such human rights violators

Freedom of speech: Yeonmi spoke at the One Young World Summit 2014 in Dublin on Saturday

Yeonmi revealed that only one channel is aired on TV in the closed-off country which, like films, can only be used there as a tool for propaganda.

'North Koreans are being terrorised today. When I was growing up, I never saw anything about love stories between men and women...there is no Romeo and Juliet.'

At 9 years old, she recalls being invited to watch the mother of her friend be publicly shot for a freedom exercised everyday in the Western world:

'Her crime? Watching a Hollywood movie.'

'North Koreans are being terrorised today' - She tried to hold it together as she relived some horrific past experiences

'We were prepared to kill ourselves' - While escaping with her parents, Yeonmi recalls they would have committed suicide before returning to North Korea

Learning a vital life lesson at the age of four - to not even dare to whisper - the brave escapee recalls a childhood of paranoia as she feared the regime could ‘read my mind’.

She goes on to explain that the repercussions of criticising the dictatorship could result in three generations of a family being locked up in prison, tortured or even killed.

Meanwhile, her road to freedom was equally traumatising, as she describes escaping through the Gobi Desert by following a compass and then ‘the stars to freedom’ when it broke.

Thankful: Yeomni expressed gratitude for the opportunity to raise awareness and tell the story about the closed-off country where all forms of communication are controlled to the highest degree

'We were prepared to kill ourselves,' Yeonmi explained in relation to what would happen if her family were caught escaping and sent back to North Korea. 'We wanted to leave as humans.'

North Korea exposed: In 1948, the country emerged amid the chaos following the end of World War II A family dynasty leads North Korea's secretive, communist regime and tolerates no dissent Kim Jong-un is currently the supreme leader, following the death of his father Kim Jong-il, who ruled North Korea for 17 years, in 2011 Every element of everyday life is controlled, including what people can say, do, read, wear, style their hair and pursue as a career Anyone attempting to assert their rights faces brutal punishment including torture or public execution 100,000 people, including children, are detained in political prison camps and other detention facilities North Korea is also suffering from a food crisis and there is mass malnourishment and reports of people starving to death are common. Source: Amnesty International Advertisement

At one point, she recalled her father dying and how she was forced to bury him in secret at 3am: 'I couldn't even cry, I was so afraid I'd be sent back to North Korea.'

She also remembers the horror of watching her mother allowing herself to be raped instead of her, when she was just 13 years old.

As she walked through the desert 'scared of dying', Yeonmi burst into tears remembering how alone she felt: 'I thought no body in this world cared and only the stars were with me.'

Appearing alongside figures including Kofi Annan, Sir Bob Geldof, the former Mexican president Vicente Fox, and Dame Ellen MacArthur, the world record-breaking sailor, Yeonmi expressed her sincere gratitude for the opportunity to use the stage to finally share her story.

'But you have now listened to my story and you have cared. Thank you very much.

'We need to focus less on the regime and more on the people who are being forgotten... we are the ones who can make them visible.'