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Every day for Kim Ji Young and her loved ones since fleeing to South Korea in March 2013 has turned into a day of challenge.
“There were many cultural differences, we had to start over,” says the girl.
She is one of thousands who have managed to escape North Korea successfully. However, Koreans who have escaped from a closed regime need to learn new basics of life, from the use of advanced technology and the fundamentals of democracy to payments with bank cards or an understanding of the representative system of government.
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What awaits the refugees from North Korea?
Initially a special investigation is underway and the refugees are being questioned by intelligence agents. This is followed by a complex adaptation phase.
The Hanawon refugees spend three months in the so-called resettlement center in South Korea. During this period, they try to get to know South Korean society and life in it, the country’s transportation infrastructure, learn how to get a job, use a bank card. Here they are trying to understand what it means to be a South Korean citizen, what democracy is, citizenship.
Various community centers help refugees shop and learn to use mobile phones, open bank accounts, and meet other community members.
Three months later, the South Korean government provides housing for the refugees to live.
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Challenges of psychological problems
Each refugee is assigned a South Korean official who monitors and assists him. They are usually high officials. Sometimes they collaborate with ecclesial communities and other associations to help refugees adapt.
One of the main difficulties faced by those fleeing North Korea is psychological problems. Refugees can receive certain counseling services, but this area has shortcomings. According to the BBC, this was highlighted after the 2019 incident, when a fugitive Han Sung Ok and his son were found dead in an apartment in Seoul. It is said that they starved. Neighbors described the woman as racked with anxiety and constantly distracted.
AFP / Scanpix Photo / North Korea
Many refugees face psychological trauma but do not know where to seek help.
The BBC reports that, according to a survey conducted in South Korea, up to 15 percent of refugees have suicidal thoughts, 10 percentage points higher than the average for South Korean citizens.
North Korean analyst Fyodor Tertitsky says that many refugees are separated from those around them in South Korea, not only because they have entered a society that is unfamiliar and completely different to them, but also because many of those around them see them as different.
“Not only can they go home, because there will be traitors, but at the same time they are separated from family, friends, the environment they know. It is a traumatic experience, “says T. Tertitsky.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / Flying propaganda messages
The problem of job search and education
Finding a job in South Korea can also be challenging.
The education systems of South Korea and North Korea are radically different. Refugees haven’t heard about things like part-time work, for example. Also, they had never looked for work before.
There are some jobs where refugees work primarily in South Korea, writes the BBC.
Young women often work as waitresses in restaurants, older women as kitchen helpers. Male refugees often work in the construction industry or pack and prepare ordered products for delivery online.
By the way, South Korean businessmen can reap the benefits by hiring refugees from North Korea.
Other refugees who want to study can do so for free: South Korea provides them with an undergraduate study grant. And if people under 35 can finish school for free.
There are also several scholarships available for refugees.
Reuters / Photo by Scanpix / South Korea
How do children adjust?
Refugee children attend regular schools, but only for them. Education here is limited as the children have no contact with the local communities.
On the other hand, entering South Korean schools would not be easier for refugee children: they are seen from above. It is notable, as the BBC writes, that North Korean students lag behind their South Korean peers in terms of academic performance.
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