McClatchy has a pretty good article out about the plight of North Korean refugees entering South Korea and the discrimination they face. The article includes some good quotes from Dr. Andrei Lankov and author Kang Cheol-hwan::

“South Korean authorities do everything possible to minimize the arrival of refugees,” said Andrei Lankov , a North Korea expert at Seoul’s Kookmin University .

In principle, Seoul says it will accept any North Korean who wants to resettle. But Lankov said the reality was that immigration officials tried to push the door closed for common people, such as farmers.

“The government wants the story to filter back to North Korea that life is hard here,” added Kang Cheol -hwan, a journalist in Seoul and the author of “Aquariums of Pyongyang ,” an account of his youth in a labor camp in North Korea. [Tim Johnson, McClatchy Newspapers]

Make sure to read the whole thing, especially if you are not familiar with the North Korean refugee issue and the discrimination they face once they arrive in South Korea. If you think being a foreigner and living in South Korea is tough, just imagine what it must be like for the North Korean defectors.

Finally, here is a quote from Dr. Lankov that he has expressed before but it seems to continue to fall on deaf ears:

Lankov, the scholar, said defectors who learned the mechanics of capitalism and democracy might prove indispensable one day in erecting a post-Kim Jong Il government in North Korea .

“I believe the (refugee) policy is myopic,” Lankov said. “If the North Korean system collapses, who will form the post- North Korea elite? . . . When change happens, they will be vital for reconstruction.”

The US government has the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 can be used as the tool to train a post-North Korea elite. However, since its inception only six people have been admitted to the United States. These defectors can be trained to be the future teachers, doctors, water treatment specialists, government administrators, etc. that North Korea would need if the regime collapses. Instead they are languishing in South Korea as second class citizens being laughed at.

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