Female North Korean defector’s decomposed body found in Seoul home
- Authorities believe nearly a year has passed since the woman died, given the fact that she was found wearing winter clothes
- A government official expressed regret over the case and vowed to improve the system to check on defectors who may need extra attention
A North Korean defector who was once hailed by the media as a successful resettlement case has been found dead in her home in Seoul. Authorities believe nearly a year has passed since she died, given how much her corpse had decomposed and the fact that she was found wearing winter clothes. She was 49.
According to police in Yangcheon district on Tuesday, her body was discovered on October 19 by an official of the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporations, the city-owned public rental house provider, which had tried to contact her about renewing her housing rental contract.
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But her former colleagues said they lost contact with her after she had left the job in 2017.
Speaking to reporters, an official at the ministry expressed regret over the case and vowed to improve the system to check on those who may need extra attention.
According to rules, the ministry only monitors North Korean defectors who are not included on the welfare programme list of local governments, and she was not on the ministry’s watch list, the official said.
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Also, up until last year, the ministry was responsible for checking the living conditions of all North Korean defectors. But the ministry complied with a request by the National Assembly last year to reduce the number of duplicate studies done also by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
In general, North Korean defectors report living healthier and more satisfactory lives in South Korea. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Unification in 2021, over 76 per cent of respondents said they were either “very satisfied” or “satisfied” with their lives here.
However, those who were “unsatisfied” picked “living without family” as the biggest reason (29.8 per cent) for their dissatisfaction.
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In many cases, North Korean defectors stay in touch with ― and even financially help ― their families in their hometowns. In another survey conducted recently by the Database Centre for North Korean Human Rights, 21.8 per cent of respondents said they communicated with their families or friends in the North this year, while 17.8 per cent said they sent their money to them.
Unification Minister Kwon Young-se has promised to improve human rights for all North Koreans, including those who are struggling to adjust to South Korean society.
