Everyone dreams of a future where the two
Koreas are finally one again. It’s time now for “Unification Table Talk,” where
we sit down with experts in various fields working toward one common goal:
unification.
Nearly 30,000 North Korean defectors
currently reside here in South Korea. One could even say that their settlement
into Korean society is a small reunification in and of itself. However, it
seems that government policies of defector settlement are not totally meeting
expectations. It is essential that policies successfully integrate defectors
into society especially when considering eventual reunification.
Today, we’ll have a look at South Korea’s existing government
policies regarding resettlement of North Korean defectors and what direction we
can hope to see them take in the future.
Here to shed light on this topic is Ahn Chan Il, director of the Center
for World North Korean Studies.
1. You
are known by many to be the first defector to receive a Ph.D. I believe that
you first came to South Korea by crossing the Military Demarcation Line on the
western side in 1979. I’m curious about your first impressions about South
Korea at that time.
At that time, there were perhaps one or two
defections yearly, by way of the DMZ or following along the east or west coast.
Nearly no one escaped by crossing the border, and subsequently traveled into
third countries to reach South Korea. However, despite the infrequency of defections,
the South Korean government and citizens provided a great deal of support to
defectors. Though I defected without much knowledge about South Korea, the
treatment I received made me believe that I made the right choice.
2. You’ve lived in South Korea for nearly
40 years. There must have been times when the title as the first defector with
a Ph.D must have been burdensome. What kind of attitude should defectors adopt while
living in South Korean society?
When I first came to South Korea, I associated
defectors with deserting soldiers. Honestly, I began to
study in order to avoid this image. I studied 14 years, from my first year as
an undergraduate, earning a bachelor’s, master’s, and eventually a doctorate
degree. I stopped seeing myself as a defector the day I received my doctorate
degree.
However, the media gave me the title of the
first defector professor. It’s been over ten years since I’ve had the title as
the first defector professor, and I’m finally used to it. Despite the term ‘defector’
still having negative connotations to this day, I chose to be indifferent, and rather
am unashamedly working for and broadcasting about North Korean human rights.
3. I hope that the South Korean government
helps defectors adopt this mindset that you have spoken about. You must have
observed the government policies dealing with defectors for a long time. Please
speak concisely about how these policies are changing.
When there were a small number of defections,
the government used to give substantial financial support, such as houses. Now there
are more than 27,000 defectors in Korea. This is equivalent to the whole of Gangwon
Province’s Inje County defecting. As expected, it
is incredibly difficult to grant free housing like before. Yet the government
must still help to address the attitude that Koreans have towards defectors. The
government yearly provides more than 260 billion won to the Korea Hana
Foundation [the North Korean Refugees Foundation], which is an enormous amount.
However, some refugees believe that it would be preferable for them to have
complete control over the allocation of governmental social assistance
themselves.
4. You must have a lot to say about the
government’s policies for defectors. Of the policies, which do you consider to
be the best one?
Of the successful policies, one is the Hanawon
(government resettlement center for defectors) and another is the Hangyeore
High School, which assists students who cannot adapt to South Korean society. Additionally,
various volunteer groups have created alternative schools, which is also good.
In truth, these were successful policies which helped to relieve a great amount
of anxiety for defectors. Nevertheless I would think that there would not be a
settlement problem if the government’s yearly budget for defectors only
supported policies which directly influenced the 27,000 people.
5. Some contend that support must help
defectors become valuable members of society, instead of just financial support.
What do you think about this?
Of course. Receiving a house, or entering
university are great benefits given by the government. However, it makes all
the difference how these benefits are used and how graduating from university
translates over into entering the workplace.
After 2000, entire families began to
defect. These families can get by if just one member is able to find proper employment.
The Small and Medium Business Administration is actively helping these defectors
with business ideas such as food trucks selling North Korean food. This is not
just simply to provide for their financial wellbeing. When reunification
occurs, I believe these defectors will play an enormous part in integrating
North Korean society into a democracy.
6. Having heard about North Korean defector
policy, there is a lot I want to ask. Seeing the statistics on defection,
nearly 80% of defectors are female. Is there a reason as to why?
Around 1995, during North Korea’s famine,
the North Korean economy collapsed along with state-run factories. As heads of the
family, husbands had previously singlehandedly provided for their families. Yet
when their husbands lost their employment, wives emerged and sold merchandise.
As marketplace life is tough, these women
crossed over to China to earn money in order to take care of their families. Gathering
courage, many of those in China ventured further to South Korea, which is why
the ratio of female defectors is rising. Often these women come to South Korea
with the help of missionaries in China.
7. I think that the South Korean government
should systematically support these women. What kind of policies does the
government have towards these female defectors?
Though policies towards women defectors are
being introduced, the number of defectors who are between the ages of 40 and 50
is far higher than that in the 20-30 age range. Therefore, it is
difficult to provide these people with employment. These women did not receive
any occupational training nor any special trades. Currently, various defector
groups are creating opportunities for this
contingent like cooking traditional North Korean food; however, I believe that
if the government were to actively help these women in the 40-50 age range,
there would be no issues with them becoming gainfully employed.
Even among
those in their 20s or 30s who are attending university, there are a lot of cases
where these women just give up, so, ultimately, I think there should be
greater respect toward women in general.
8. Many defectors, not just the women,
suffer psychological distress during their settlement into South Korean society.
What kind of support should the South Korean government provide to the
defectors who experience this?
These people have risked their lives in
crossing the border. In some instances, they are victims of human trafficking
and suffer post-traumatic stress from pain experienced abroad. There has to be
emotional healing before entering society. Public health and medicine must
address this reality so to foster a less painful integration so that these
women may eventually even have families of their own.
9. I believe that most of the support
addressing mental and emotional health from government policies to institutions
is concentrated in Seoul. Why is this?
These days, once defectors finish their education
and leave Hanawon, they are
placed equally among various regions. They are sent to Busan and I even believe
that around 200 North Korean defectors are living on Jeju Island. Though they
are fairly distributed among the regions, a majority of defectors want to
settle in Seoul. Most often these are people who are first placed near Gyeonggi
Province and prepare to move.
This is not an impulsive move. People,
regardless of where they are placed, desire secure employment and higher
standards of living. For these reasons, defectors are concentrated around
Seoul. The local government must create a variety of programs, considering that
one day these defectors will become valuable workers when they return home.
10. A major issue is that defectors living
in rural areas lack support. What kind of government policy is needed to help
these defectors?
We can learn a lot from policies targeting
multicultural families in South Korea. Multicultural families and defector
families are fundamentally different. While multicultural families had a solid footing
through their husbands, defector families are not any different from refugees. This
is why I believe policies should make defectors feel like they belong. For
example, when defectors are sent to Haenam, South Cholla Province, the
administrative agencies and women volunteer groups should make them feel at
home.
11. It’s apparent that it is not merely
governmental policies that are preventing the defectors from successfully
transitioning into South Korean society. I want to get into briefly South Korean society’s hidden
prejudices and bias. What types of policies are needed in order to resolve
them?
Presently, the National Unification
Advisory Council’s mentor program or one defector per family program and other
policies are being introduced. On the other hand, these organizations and regional
groups do not genuinely consider defectors to be their neighbors. The primary
action must be to fix these prejudices against defectors. It must be reinforced
that defectors need sincere, heartfelt care and treatment.
12. In order for these prejudices to be
resolved, what can we, the citizens, do to help?
Mentor and one defector per family programs,
as well as individual efforts and other such actions are needed. When defectors
enter our society, there are many difficulties that make it very hard for them to
adapt. They are often victims of fraud. Receiving proper and full education at Hanawon
will enable defectors to begin life in South Korean society. Continuity, which
we must absolutely strive to ensure, is crucial for these defectors to enter
and thrive in society.
13. You said at one press conference that
“I haven’t succeeded. I am merely headed for success”. I must say that that
mindset is something that should be emulated by the many people listening to
this broadcast. I am curious on what your life goal is.
Even when I defected, I held the firm
belief from the beginning to the end that I would one day return. In addition
to reasons of having my birthplace and family in the North, I also want to be a
force for reunification. I believe that we are still making progress towards
this goal. Defectors will play an important role in making the North like South
Korea. It is a regrettable reality that many, be it on a government of societal
level, fail to view defectors in this way.
