North Korean survivors left horrified by Singapore's selfie-taking welcome of Kim Jong-un

For those who have survived the brutal regimes of his family, it is horrifying to see Kim Jong-un smiling, savouring the attention and taking selfies in Singapore.

There has been little mention of the public executions he has staged, the family members he has had assassinated, the 200,000 North Koreans languishing in gulags and the fact that almost half of the population is undernourished.

Compared to where we were this time last year when North Korea had just fired another volley of missiles towards Japan, it is of course to be welcomed that diplomacy has replaced potential disaster on the Korean peninsula.

A peace treaty and denuclearisation are whole heartedly endorsed by a majority here but one former North Korean prisoner we spoke to today said it would be a lie to say Kim Jong-un has, or will, change.

Kang Chol-hwan was sent to a concentration camp when he was just nine years old. His grandfather was accused of treason and by law the rest of the family were implicated. For 10 years he was starved, abused and forced into hard labour.

A member of Seoul's Anglican cathedral praying for peace and unity. Credit: ITV News

He now lives in Seoul and campaigns for the rights of North Koreans, including the family members he left behind when he escaped.

He told us that in the North there are still camps and prisons where people are being tortured and killed and that Kim Jong-un was paralysing the souls of his people, destroying lives and restricting their freedoms.

In the hype of the summit he fears the suffering of millions of people is being forgotten.

North Korean state television only reported on the historic summit today morning, an indication of the extent of Kim Jong-un's restrictions on the nation.

It is easy to get caught up in the spectacle of this summit in Singapore but the fact North Korean State Television only this morning reported the meeting with President Trump acted as a small reminder of the huge restrictions Kim Jong-un places on his people.

Information, food, water, speech and movement are all controlled by the young dictator.

He has even introduced harsher punishments for those caught with South Korean music, films or TV shows.

South Korea's President Moon Jae-in has described Tuesday as the first step in a long process.

There are millions of North Koreans who don’t even know the process of peace has begun.