Yoon Seok-yeol Promises to Strengthen Support for North Korean Defectors... "Investment for Unification"

"North Korean Defectors Are the First Unification"
Significant Expansion of Employment, Start-up, and Farming Support

Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, is shaking hands with supporters during a campaign rally held on the afternoon of the 18th at Daesil Station intersection in Dalseong-gun, Daegu. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Geum Bo-ryeong] Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, has announced support pledges for North Korean defectors, focusing on establishing an integrated management system for families in crisis and treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

On the 19th, through his "Support Pledge for North Korean Defectors," Candidate Yoon stated, "North Korean defectors are a 'pre-unification.' If we neglect the pre-unification, we cannot promise the unification that will come in the future."

The campaign headquarters of Candidate Yoon pointed out that 56% of all North Korean defectors belong to socially vulnerable groups, and that the support system for North Korean defector families in crisis, such as the 2019 case of the late Han Seong-ok mother and child starvation incident, is inadequate. A campaign official explained, "The trauma experienced during the defection process is the biggest difficulty in settlement, but there is also a lack of a systematic treatment system to manage mental health problems caused by social and cultural differences during the settlement process."

Accordingly, Candidate Yoon plans to create a system that focuses on early-stage support by significantly expanding employment, start-up, and farming support for North Korean defectors. He also promised to establish an integrated management system for North Korean defector families in crisis and to strengthen support for PTSD treatment for defectors.

Additionally, considering that 90% of North Korean defectors have never received legal education and may become involved in civil and criminal cases such as fraud during their settlement process, plans are in place to strengthen legal assistance, including legal counseling and litigation representation for them.

Candidate Yoon emphasized, "Support for North Korean defectors is not simply an expansion of welfare but an investment for unification."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.