“North Korean refugees are a trial-run, a test for eventual unification,” said President Park Geun-hye, speaking to her government on Oct. 11. “When a North Korean refugee successfully finds their place in our society, it means they have found happiness for themselves and their family. This example can, in turn, offer hope to North Koreans oppressed by tyranny.”
During the cabinet meeting, the president said, “While the defections by North Korean elites and regular citizens are on the rise, the types of defectors and their motivations for defecting have become varied in recent years. Some are fleeing the North with a sense of despair about the future, while others are leaving for the sake of their children.”
“Government bodies need to work together closely to build the country’s capacity to accommodate and support the resettlement of North Korean refugees, a process that will give them back their freedom and their human rights,” said the president.
During a cabinet meeting on Oct. 11, President Park Geun-hye says, ‘North Korean refugees are a test for eventual unification,’ and asks her government to, ‘Build the capacity to accommodate and support the resettlement of North Korean refugees into our society.’
“North Korea continues to ignore the laws and standards of the international community, to the point that even countries that had friendly relations with the North are now turning their backs,” she said. “It is important that North Koreans get a better grasp of the link between the astronomical costs of Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons and missile programs and their poverty, and to get them to see how the Northern regime is perceived by the world at large.”
“We need to make North Korea realize that if it does not halt its development of nuclear weapons, stronger sanctions will be put in place. This will make even basic diplomatic relations with the outside world difficult,” said the president.
“South Korea, the U.S., the EU and many other countries are making concerted efforts to adopt a new U.N. Security Council resolution that will ensure complete, effective sanctions against the North. It’s imperative that our government take the lead in putting an end to provocations by the North, through sanctions and added pressure. Moreover, we need to expand cooperation with more countries to increase support for our efforts.”
By Wi Tack-whan, Lee Hana
Korea.net Staff Writers
Photo: Cheong Wa Dae
whan23@korea.kr
