President Yoon Suk Yeol promised on the inaugural North Korean Defectors’ Day to protect North Korean escapees abroad from being forcibly repatriated.
Yoon also pledged to expand support for North Korean defectors here, including more financial aid for initial settlement, employment assistance and child care services.
Those pledges were made, Sunday, the first North Korean Defectors’ Day, which was designated in January to encourage the successful settlement of North Korean defectors in the South. July 14 marks the anniversary of the enactment of the North Korean Defectors Protection and Settlement Support Act in 1997.
“North Korean residents are constitutionally recognized as citizens of the Republic of Korea, and safeguarding its citizens is a country’s most fundamental duty,” Yoon said during a ceremony marking the day at Cheong Wa Dae, Seoul.
“We will never return a single North Korean escapee who comes to South Korea. We will also make every diplomatic effort to prevent any forced repatriation of North Korean refugees overseas.”
Yoon’s remarks are believed to refer to a 2019 case during the previous Moon Jae-in administration when two North Korean fishermen, who sought asylum in South Korea, were sent back to the North via Panmunjom. The administration had claimed that the fishermen decided to defect only after killing 16 coworkers and repatriated them to prevent a threat to the safety of South Koreans.
Additionally, the president stressed that the central and local governments will work in close partnership to establish a comprehensive safety net designed to ensure North Korean refugees’ stability in employment, health care, and welfare.
“The government will substantially increase the amount of settlement support for North Korean defectors, which has remained unchanged since 2005,” Yoon said, highlighting that the government will facilitate their asset formation by supporting specialized banking accounts.
In addition, the president pledged to institutionalize comprehensive support for child care and education for defectors, with about 75 percent of 토토 them being women. He also vowed to offer assistance to children born to North Korean defectors, whether in North Korea, other countries, or South Korea.
He acknowledged the generally poor job opportunities for North Korean defectors and promised that the government will take proactive steps to create more employment opportunities by working together with local governments and public institutions. Additionally, Yoon announced incentives like tax deductions for companies that employ North Korean defectors to boost the number of quality jobs available in the private sector.
Currently, about 34,000 North Korean defectors reside in South Korea.
child porn
child porn