The Impact of Group Membership: Integration of North Korean Defectors in South Korea

Abstract

Anyone aware of the realities regarding life in North Korea will mostly likely agree that defection to the South offers a higher quality lifestyle than the North. However, after arriving in South Korea, North Koreans face various social, economic and emotional hardships. Socially, North Koreans find difficulty in communicating with South Koreans due to the disparities between the two Korean languages, a consequence of decades of division. Economically, South Korea boasts a highly developed society with a severely competitive nature. In terms of educational and employment opportunity, most North Koreans do not finish secondary schooling, where the curriculum is majorly aligned with North Korean ideology. Therefore, many North Koreans find themselves lacking the professional experience and skills crucial for most high-level employment opportunities in South Korea, despite reeducation classes and welfare granted to them. It is common for North Koreans to feel like lower class citizens, although the South Korean government calls the North Korean defectors the "new settlers". However, the prejudice they face because of their lack of South Korean nationhood does not help to assuage this. The mutual distrust between North Korean resettlers, often referred to as "saeteomin", result in South Koreans considering defectors as outsiders. These sentiments cause feelings of alienation, isolation among North Koreans. Defectors who lack comfort in their new communities are less likely to reach out networks of people for help in navigating the unfamiliar world of South Korea. Consequently, North Korean defectors lack access to health, education and employment opportunities. Although many North Korean defectors face these obstacles in their effort to integrate, there are defectors who have a made a name of themselves and/or are financially stable. In this thesis we will explore what causes the disparity between the defectors who integrate well and those who do not. I aim to define the cause as an issue of sense of belonging, which can be found in community and religious organizations. I hypothesize that the successful integration of North Koreans calls for the increased funding and creation of community programs made available for North Korean defectors, particularly after they leave the Hanawon reeducation center. In proving this hypothesis, I hope to gain insight as how to improve the current method of re-education and assimilation courses for North Koreans. Ideally, defectors will be able to enter into welcoming communities once they fully resettle into South Korean society.