Sisters separated at birth and raised worlds apart meet after 39 years
Darragh Hannan and Jee Won Ha were adopted in Minnesota in the US and Belgium respectively and have since faced vastly different life journeys
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Two South Korean sisters, separated at birth and adopted into different countries, have reunited for the first time after discovering their connection through DNA testing.
Darragh Hannan and Jee Won Ha were adopted in Minnesota in the US and Belgium respectively and have since faced vastly different life journeys. The two uncovered their sibling bond through a MyHeritage DNA test, leading to this lifechanging reunion.
While Ms Ha, born in 1985, endured abuse and instability, she has now built a stable life with her family in Belgium, The Korea Herald reported. Their reunion, initiated by a simple email from Ms Ha to Ms Hannan, brought up complex emotions alongside joy, with both sisters reflecting on the missing pieces of their shared past.
A video shot by The Korea Herald showed them running towards each other and hugging at the airport.
First adopted by a Korean family, Ms Ha’s life changed drastically after her adoptive parents divorced, resulting in her adoption by a Belgian family in 1987. This family later adopted seven Cambodian children under questionable circumstances, using falsified documents.
“Identity theft, child smuggling, child trafficking... It seems like my parents were [a] big role in it, so they organised it, and they did it themselves,” Ms Ha said.
The sisters’ path to reunion started in 2018 when Ms Hannan took a DNA test to trace her ancestry. Although it initially revealed only distant relatives, her search resumed unexpectedly in early 2024.
Earlier in 2024, Ms Ha took a DNA test alongside her brother, who suggested it. While his results were uneventful, Ms Ha was shocked to discover she had a full sister.
“I was completely in shock. I drank a little bit before I could write an email,” Ms Ha said.
“We’ve seen reunions happen on TV, and we hear stories of reunions and how happy they are,” Ms Hannan said. “We always see that part, but we never see the confusion and the questioning and all of the big feelings that happen after the big moment. What comes next? What’s ‘our’ after the big moment? What does that look like for us?”
Ms Ha added: “Finding each other is not only the one big happy thought. It’s also the confusion and the sadness of all the things that you missed together.”
They plan to spend time together in Korea, hoping to find their birth parents and come to terms with their identities.
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