Dr. Chanil An is President of the North Korea Research Center in Seoul,Korea. He received his B.A. in Political Science and Diplomacy from KoreaUniveristy. He also graduated with an M.A. in Political Science from KoreaUniversity. Having escaped North Korea in 1979, he became the first NorthKorean defector ever to receive his Ph.D. from South Korea (political science, Konkuk University).

Dr. An worked at the National Intelligence Service. He also served as a member of the Political Advisory Committee on the Ministry of National Defense. He is Adjunct Professor in the Department of Political Science at Chung-Ang University, and has served as President of the World Federation of North KoreanRefugees (WINK). Dr. An has also served as Vice-Chairman of the North Korean Human Rights & Abductees Committee of the Saenuri Party, South Korea.

Dr. An serves on the Advisory Committee of the National Unification Advisory Council, as a member of the Advisory Committee on the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, and as a member of the Advisory Committee of the International Law Enforcement Coalition.