 Chon's four brothers were participants in the 1959–1984 repatriation program sponsored by Chongryon in the late 1960s, and fell victim to purges of Zainichi Koreans by Kim Il-sung.Her second brother died in a concentration camp in 1970; the other three were released in 1978.The three surviving brothers met Chon during the 1985 Pyongyang performance, but as a result of the stress placed on them during the meeting, she refused further performances in the communist nation.