Story About North Korean Defectors As Seen On Kdrama!
In this article we will share to you the story about north korean defectors, history behind north and south korea, how it happened and why many people defect from the north to the south korea, based on crash landing on you korean drama. Let’s dive right to it.
North Korean children like to watch K-dramas
In Crash Landing on You, Yoon Se ri (Son Ye jin) accidentally ends up in North Korea after storm hit and blow her paraglider over the border of the North Korea before later on she meet Ri Jeong Hyeok (Hyun Bin).
Even though the reality is not as in drama, in this movie we can see how tough the life is in the North Korea, and also the risk of defecting out or in to North Korea.
North Korea and South Korea
Credit to korea summit press/pool/epa-efe//EPA/Shutterstock
It was actually only One Korea before the it separated and divided with some influence outside of this country. Here are some reasons why korean become divided into two, north and south korea.
End of World War II
Credit to Paul Popper/Popperfoto/Getty Images)
For decades, Korea was under Japanese rule even though there is always a rebellion and strong anti japanese movement throughout all region in korea. After Japan lost it’s power and lose in world war II, Korea gain their independence on august 15, 1945.
However, foreign powers like USA and Soviet Union at that time interfere and ended up divided Korea into two parts in which the USA hold large influence on the South while Soviet hold influence on the North.
Democracy, Communism and Korean War
Credit to KCNA
Not long after being divided into north and south with both different ideology and influence, USA and Soviet, they formed a separate governments for both South and North. Not long after that, Korean war broke out on June 25, 1950 and which just establish the separation of North and South Korea.
North Koreans Defectors
Credit to Chosun
According to statistics, there were more than 30,000 defectors in South Korea as of March 2017. The question is why there are so many north korean defectors that flee to South Korea.
Life in North Korea is tough
We can see from watching Crash Landing on You that North Korea is far from being an affluent country. The failure of Soviet union and socialism fail in early 1990s drag north korean together into poverty and people starving.
Influence through Kdrama
South Korean dramas and music were introduced to the North in the 1990s through smuggling. The more north korean see the freedom, health and wealth in their neigborhood country, the more they desire to leave and move into south korea. For your information, waching south korean dramas is an offense action and if known, they are going to be punished.
Influence through Kpop
South Korean speakers regularly blast popular music over the border to entice North Korean soldiers into surrender, this is a soft and effective propaganda to change their mind, especially those young soldiers working at DMZ (Demilitarized zone).
Can't adapt after study overseas
Most elite in the north korea go overseas to study, however, usually when they realize the difference between the country they went to and their home country, they no longer able to adapt to restricted life where they no longer can freely express themselves.
Corruption at the highest level
Former North Korean deputy ambassador to the UK who defected
Kim Jong-un not only had his uncle executed, he also purged several politicians and officers loyal to the ruling party. With this in mind, it’s no wonder that a number of high ranking officials and soldiers have fled to the South.
Military defectors receive generous rewards
Oh Chong-song who defected to South Korea in 2017
Military defectors who have and share urgent and important information about north korea military will receive a huge rewards up to a billion won. This is actually South Korean strategy to encourage the high rank north korean official to defect and surrender to South Korea.
Risk To Be North Korean Defectors
North Korean defectors wave after arriving in South Korea by boat in January 1997. Picture AP
Here are some risk they need to face before they decide to be a north korean defectors
DMZ are Super Fortified
Credit to AFP
The demilitarized zone between North and South Korea is the most heavily fortified border you can find. So, the defectors usually try to cross over to reach china before moving on to South korea or another country.
Shot and Killed
Once their journey is known, or spotted by military officers, then their life is ended. Most people are shot and killed if spotted trying to cross the river.
Sold out as slave by Brokers
Even though there are some broker promise to help them succeed in crossing the borders, many of them are actually sold the north korean defectors as sex slave or prostitute under their rules.
Leaving Family in prejudice
While many of us might think that it must be hard and lonely for the defectors to not being able to see their family again, the truth is the opposite. It’s much worse for the family member of the defector, they are more likely to be punished for what their son / daughter / family member had done. Some say that living in the north as family member of defector is worse than death itself.
Problem with North Korean Defectors
While many people celebrate and congratulate the successful north korean defector to be able to leave their country and find a new life abroad, yet here are some problems they need to face after they successfully defect to another country.
Most Defectors don't get enough financial support
South korean government do give some money to the defectors, yet it’s not enough for them to settle and jump start their life. There was a story in 2019, where we found a defector and her six year old son starved to death in Seoul apartment.
Defectors hardly fit into society
Most North Korean having hard times to fit into south korean society, as they came from a total different ideology and culture, and this things makes it hard for them to get a new community.
Hard to get a job
Most North Korean having hard times to get a job in south korea because often times, north korean defectors are lack in academic or professional qualifications. This led to higher unemployment rate among the defectors.
Even though there are a lot of successful defectors living in South Korea and other country in the world, yet it’s clear that life is still a struggle for them. Here is information we can share to you about the story, the good and the down side of being a North Korea defectors.
How do you think about North Korea defectors? If you are living in North Korea, will you be one of the defectors? let us know in the comment sections below!
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