Yoon: "We Will Not Send Back a Single North Korean Fellow" ... Tears and Cheers from Defectors (Comprehensive)

1st North Korean Defectors Day Attended by Yoon
"North Korean Residents Are Also South Korean Citizens, Will Protect Them"
Defectors at Ceremony Cheer with Tears
Increase Settlement Support Funds and Tax Credits for Hiring Companies

President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a commemorative speech at the '1st Day of North Korean Defectors' Ceremony' held at the Blue House's Yeongbingwan on the 14th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon Suk-yeol emphasized on the 14th, "We will not send back a single North Korean compatriot who has come to the Republic of Korea, no matter what happens," and added, "We will also make every diplomatic effort to ensure that compatriots who have escaped from North Korea and are overseas are not forcibly repatriated."

President Yoon made these remarks while attending the 1st North Korean Defectors' Day ceremony held at the Blue House State Guest House that morning, stating, "North Korean residents are citizens of the Republic of Korea under the Constitution, and protecting citizens is the most fundamental duty of the state."

He said, "How happily North Korean defectors live on this land speaks volumes about what kind of country the Republic of Korea is," and added, "I believe the first North Korean Defectors' Day will bring forward the day of freedom and unification for all of us."

As President Yoon emphasized protecting North Korean defectors both domestically and abroad, some defectors attending the ceremony were moved to tears. Throughout his speech, continuous applause and cheers followed.

President Yoon explained, "The North Korean regime is erecting barriers and electric barbed wire fences along border areas and even planting landmines to prevent defections," calling it "an inhumane act that blocks the desperate cries to live with dignity. The Republic of Korea will never forget the suffering of those who sacrificed their lives during the defection process."

He reiterated, "We will do everything possible to ensure that compatriots who have escaped North Korea can safely embrace the Republic of Korea."

On this day, President Yoon presented three promises?settlement, capability, and harmony?to make the Republic of Korea a hopeful haven for North Korean defectors.

First, President Yoon pledged to significantly improve the initial settlement funds, which have remained at the 2005 level, to help defectors settle stably, and to support asset formation through the ‘Future Happiness Account.’

He also committed to actively providing ‘childcare’ services so that defector women, who make up three-quarters of all North Korean defectors, can safely balance work and childcare. Support for raising and educating children born in third countries or domestically will be institutionalized, and a comprehensive safety net including medical care, welfare, and counseling will be established.

President Yoon emphasized, "The government, local governments, and public institutions will take the lead in expanding employment opportunities for North Korean defectors," and added, "Incentives such as tax credits will be provided to companies that employ North Korean defectors."

In particular, President Yoon stated, "We will ensure that North Korean defectors can enjoy freedom and happiness without discrimination," and announced that starting this year, a ‘Mentor Program’ for North Korean defectors has begun, centered on the National Unification Advisory Council.

He explained that North Korean defectors from various regions and fields will serve as mentors to help new defectors settle successfully, and those mentees will, after a few years, become mentors for other defectors, establishing a sustainable system.

President Yoon said, "We will ensure that earlier defectors care for later defectors, forming a self-reliant community," and added, "It is important that defectors settle as members of our society’s local communities in the process."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, President Yoon instructed the establishment of North Korean Defectors' Day at the Cabinet meeting in January. Following this, the government, after gathering opinions from defectors, designated July 14?the date when the ‘Act on the Protection and Settlement Support of North Korean Defectors’ was enacted in 1997?as North Korean Defectors' Day.

On this day, President Yoon awarded commendations to recognize contributions to supporting North Korean defectors: Kim Sung-min, CEO of Free North Korea Radio (Order of Civil Merit, Dongbaek Medal), Im Hyun-soo, Chairman of Global Union Mission Training Center (Presidential Citation), Ma Soon-hee, head of Hakmaeul Self-Help Group (Presidential Citation), and the ‘With Volunteer Group’ composed of residents from both North and South Korea (Presidential Citation).

During the ceremony, a video depicting the reality of defectors was screened, and President Yoon was seen wiping away tears along with the attendees.

About 200 people attended the ceremony, including the first North Korean defector with family, young defectors, cultural artists, government advisory members, as well as Minister of Unification Kim Young-ho, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yeol, Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jeong-sik, Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong, Presidential Office National Security Office Chief Jang Ho-jin, First Deputy Director of National Security Kim Tae-hyo, and Senior Secretary for Civil Society Jeon Gwang-sam.

After the ceremony, President Yoon attended the send-off ceremony for the ‘Challengers,’ a youth baseball team of North Korean defectors, held at the Blue House State Guest House, to encourage them.

The Challengers, founded in 2018 as the first youth baseball team for North Korean defectors in Korea, will visit the United States from the 18th to the 29th, where they will watch Major League Baseball games in New York and Washington and participate in friendly matches with local youth baseball teams.

President Yoon greeted each of the Challengers youth, who are learning challenge and hope through baseball, and presented baseballs signed by him with encouraging messages. He also congratulated them on their departure to the United States, the birthplace of baseball, as future national representatives of freedom and a unified Korea.

President Yoon Suk-yeol is taking a commemorative photo with a choir of South Korean youth and North Korean defector youth at the '1st North Korean Defectors Day Ceremony' held on the 14th at the Blue House State Guesthouse.
[Image source=Yonhap News]