Arduous Journeys: The Transnational Migration of North Korean Refugees
(Room Golden West)
30 Jun 16
1:30 PM
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2:45 PM
The plight of North Korean refugees has garnered increasing attention due to the findings of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on North Korean Human Rights. North Koreans first began leaving the country during the famine of the mid-1990s, with the vast majority settling in South Korea or living surreptitiously in China. While some have also made it to third countries such as Canada and the United States, the automatic extension of South Korean citizenship to North Korean refugees complicates the asylum claims of those individuals who wish to settle beyond South Korea. This presentation will provide an overview of the varying challenges facing North Korean refugees as they seek to build new lives outside the DPRK. It will also touch on related issues with the aim of providing a comprehensive understanding of the subject. These include the reliability of refugee accounts, controversy over the politicization of the North Korean human rights movement, and the current state of the COI process.