Statistics from South Korea

[davidpdx]

I thought I'd just share this if anyone was interested. It is a paragraph from a paper I'm writing that compiles some statistics on multicultural families in South Korea:

Immigration to South Korea by foreigners has increased from 110,000 in 1995 when the immigration rules were relaxed, to 1.2 million in 2010 (Kim, 2010). By 2020, estimates are that 2.53 million immigrants will live in South Korea and that number will increase to over 4 million by 2050 (Kim, 2010). Multinational marriages, a marriage between a Korean and a foreigner of non-Korean descent, have increased from 24,776 in 2005 to 34,235 in 2010 (Statistics Korea, 2010). The number of children born into multicultural families, a family consisting of a parent from one or more cultures, has also grown from 44,258 in 2007 to 151,154 in 2010 (Korean Ministry of Public Administration and Security, 2013).

[marybourg]

1. How are North Korean refugees classified? What nationality(s)

most commonly immigrate to S.Korea? Thanks.

[davidpdx]

2. I believe as refugees

In terms of immigrants that marry, I believe Chinese women are actually the most common immigrants. My wife's uncle is married to a Chinese woman. For males it is Japanese. There are also a lot of Vietnamese, Filipino, Cambodian, and Thai woman who marry Korean men.

The US ranks 6th in the number of women who marry Korean men and 3rd in the number of men who marry Korean women.

[marybourg]

3. Very interesting, thank you. What I meant about N. Koreans

is: are they considered Koreans or foreigners for the purpose of deciding whether there is out-marriage or not.

[davidpdx]

4. I believe they do eventually get citizenship in South Korea

But they are looked at as somewhat foreign given that they grew up in the north. Many refugees have difficulties adjusting and feeling like they fit in. Refugees often spend a large amount of time at centers where they can slowly integrate into South Korean culture.

One of my good friends just finished her PhD and the topic was on the educational system in North Korea. She would be a much better source than I would.

[Baobab]

6. You could ask North Korean-Americans directly at http://nkinusa.org

Our newest citizens.

Quite a difficult journey for some of them.

http://nkinusa.org

[Baobab]

5. They are considered to be "korean" and welcomed - in the sense that they have a special school

to teach them how to live in the modern world, and then when they graduate they get quite generous support from the South Korean government for quite some time. A great many of them have been through major difficulties.

There are also sizable communities of north korean refugees in a number of other countries, of course the largest number are in China where they lead a stressed, covert existence, there are less North Korean refugees in the South than you would expect given their proximity-maybe a few thousand defect every year, recently the number has been going down because the border is increasingly fortified to prevent escapes.

I have a friend who is a minister who has spent quite a bit of time in the border region. Also, many years ago I worked for a while with a guy who had grown up in Dandong literally right across the river from North Korea. He was the first person who told me how horrible things were there. At that time the US media wasnt really aware of it.

The situation in North Korea is beyond description. Its like nothing else in the world, its a really really horrible place. Whenever I get depressed about my own life, I read about the things North Koreans have had to go through and I immediately realize that whatever it is, its nothing compared to what they have had to deal with so I count my blessings.

If anything, the US media soft pedals the situation there. Its worse than the US media would have you think.