DIFFICULTIES SETTLING IN
For first-year high school student Ro Jin Hae, studying is much harder in the South.
The 17-year-old, her parents, sister and grandmother escaped North Korea in 2018, managing to leave before borders with China were shut due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The easiest and safest strategy for many defectors is to cross the border into China, making it the most common escape route.
“It is difficult here because it is so competitive. I lack confidence and my grades drop. I sometimes think of my friends back in North Korea and I want to see them,” she said.
“But the good thing is that I have freedom here. I like clothes and I can wear whatever I want, and there are so many good-looking celebrities.”
Out of more than 34,000 North Korean defectors who are known to have entered the South since the Korean peninsula was divided more than seven decades ago, about 6,400 – including Jin Hae – live in the high-tech capital of Seoul.
Another defector, Seo Hak Choel, said that the events to commemorate North Korean Defectors’ Day fostered a sense of belonging among defectors like himself.
“It is a day we can be proud of ourselves and say that we are proud citizens of the Republic of Korea,” added Mr Seo, who defected more than a decade ago in 2008.
“Going forward, when we come across this day again, I hope people can take a bit more interest in us, and give support and encouragement to us defectors.”
When defectors first arrive in South Korea, they have to go to a “re-education centre” called Hanawon for three months. It helps them adjust to life in South Korea.
After completing the programme, defectors receive government benefits to help them live their new lives, including an initial subsidy, housing support and healthcare.
