Jerome A. Cohen - Korea

Korea

Cohen was the first American academic to visit North Korea in 1972.

In South Korea, Cohen was able to intervene in the kidnapping of Kim Dae-jung (김대중), who would later become president and receive the Nobel Peace Prize. In August, 1973, Cohen received an urgent call from Kim's aide, telling him that Kim had been kidnapped by Korean intelligence officials in Tokyo and imploring Cohen to request Henry Kissinger's help. Cohen did and Kim's life was saved, although Kim later reported that he had been bound and blindfolded aboard a boat with weights tied to his wrists, before the execution was suddenly called off.