NHCRK (Chairperson Hyun Byung Chul) has made a following recommendation to the Ministry of Unification (MoU, Minister Ryu Gil-Jae) for effective resettlement of North Korean escapees and protection of their human rights.
△Design methods to enhance connectivity between professional training and employment in order to ensure that professional training offered to North Korean escapees leads to substantial self-reliance and self-support.
△Strengthen awareness project on North Korean escapees and, where appropriate, seek revision of relevant legislations to include provisions on raising public awareness about North Korean escapees.
△Seek revision of Article 9 of the Act on the Protection and Settlement Support of Residents Escaping from North Korea which includes a provision that excludes escapees from protection if they apply for protection after exceeding one year since entering South Korea.
NHRCK has reviewed current status and challenges after recognizing the need to alleviate the difficulties faced by North Korean escapees in the process of resettlement in Korea, who are struggling under a different political system and relative poverty, social stereotypes and discrimination, because of which many choose to enter a third country or even re-enter North Korea.
The government currently establishes and operates North Korean Refugees Foundation (NKRF), along with various institutions including the Consultative Council to Deal with Dislocated North Koreans, Settlement Protection Officers, Employment Protection Officers, Security Police Officers, and Local Adjustment Centers to assist resettlement process of North Korean refugees.
Also, the government provides support through various institutions and systems including social adjustment training for North Korean refugees, provision of resettlement subsidies, assisting employment, social security, education and consultation for effective resettlement of the refugees.
However, it has been observed that there is a need to strengthen policies on expanding employment for North Korean escapees and strengthening connectivity between professional training and employment by offering training subsidies and bonuses when the refugees complete pre-set hours of training and obtain certificates, regardless of their employment status or type of work, so that those job trainings may indeed assist employment and economic stability.
Also, the Commission has decided that public awareness and relevant public relations on the refugees should be enhanced, based on the 'Analysis on the Current Status of Human Rights Violations on North Korean Refugees' (2012 Gyeonggido Family & Women Research Institute Survey on 400 North Korean escapees in Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon area) which shows that the refugees are struggling from various unfair treatment based on social stereotypes and discrimination against their place of origin, not to mention economic difficulties.
Moreover, it has been recommended to revise relevant legislation that excludes escapees from protection if they fail to apply for protection within one year after entering South Korea, considering the fact that some escapees refrain from application during their stay in third countries such as China due to fear of survival; some are reluctant to apply even after entering Korea due to fear of exposing their identity which may affect employment and stereotype; and others struggle from difficulties adjusting to the unfamiliar Korean system.
