The South Korean government announced that 196 North Korean defectors entered South Korea in 2023, three times as many as the previous year.
The younger generation now accounts for more than half, and the number of people in the elite class has also increased.
According to the South Korean Ministry of Unification, the number of North Korean defectors who entered South Korea in 2023 was 196, about three times as many as in 2021 and 2022, when the number was around 60.
Most of the cases came to South Korea after spending a long period of time in a third country such as China, and the reason for the increase was the relaxation of travel restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic in China, which is a transit point.
In addition, more than half of the 99 people were in their 20s and 30s, and a Ministry of Unification official said, ``The rationing system has long since ended in the North, and only controls remain, so people in their 20s and 30s are receiving benefits from the government.'' "I have never received one. The sense of trust I feel in the system is different from that of older generations."
Furthermore, the Ministry of Unification revealed that the number of elite North Korean defectors was around 10, the highest number since 2017.
South Korean media has said that North Korea's elite class refers to diplomats and employees stationed overseas, and as restrictions on travel were eased and people started returning to their home countries, those who felt this was a burden fled North Korea. I am conveying my view that this may be the case.