‘Stateless’ Chinese-North Korean defectors face hardship in South Korea

An estimated 3,000-5,000 ethnic Chinese live in North Korea, where their ethnic background often makes them the subject of greater state surveillance

While ethnically Korean defectors are entitled by law to a package of benefits designed to help their resettlement in South Korea, ethnic Chinese are not

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A Chinese-North Korean refugee who wished to be identified only as Yoon pictured in front of a map of the Korean peninsula. Photo: AP

Associated Pressin Gwangyang, South Korea

Published: 7:00am, 20 Oct 2021

Abandoned, he feels, by three countries, Cho Guk-gyeong shows a visitor his South Korean alien registration card, which describes him as “stateless”. It is an apt description for what his life is like in South Korea, 15 years after he fled the North.

Most North Korean defectors to the South are ethnically Korean, but Cho, 53, is a third-generation Chinese immigrant.

While ethnically Korean defectors are entitled by law to a package of benefits designed to help their resettlement in South Korea, Cho cannot receive that support because he maintained his Chinese nationality in North Korea, even though his family has lived there for generations.

Cho Guk-gyeong is classed as ‘stateless’ in South Korea, making it difficult for him to find work or access basic rights and services. Photo: AP

“I don’t need a state subsidy or other assistance. I just want South Korean citizenship so I can work diligently until I die,” Cho said during an interview in the southern port city of Gwangyang, where he recently worked as a temporary manual labourer, his first job in eight years.

It is unclear how many Chinese-North Koreans have come to South Korea over the years. Activists say about 30 have been designated as “stateless”, after unsuccessful attempts to pose as North Korean nationals landed them in prison or detention facilities in South Korea.