By Kim Se-jeong, Kim Young-jin
The Ministry of Unification said Wednesday that its New Year plan will highlight three main policies — bring about fundamental change in North Korea, advocate human rights there and lay a meaningful foundation for unification.
The ministry said in its briefing to President Lee Myung-bak that this will entail changing the North through denuclearization, opening the country up and improving the lives of North Koreans. It also put forth a “grand bargain” of providing economic assistance — together with the international community— if the North gives up its nuclear program.
The ministry said that it will foremost “prioritize North Korean citizens.” In its defense white paper, South Korea specifically defined the North Korean regime and the military as an “enemy,” in a policy aimed to deal separately with the North Korean people.To that end, the government will seek to pass North Korean human rights legislation. It will also give support to private organizations that advocate the enhancement of human rights; run extensive research on conditions in North Korea; and support domestic and international groups.
The government said it would ensure the transparent distribution of humanitarian assistance from South Korea to ordinary North Koreans, but fell short of specifying how it would do so.
Humanitarian aid to North Korea is often questioned and criticized due to obscure lines of distribution. It is believed that the regime gives the aid to the military, instead of regular citizens.
To prepare for unification that could happen abruptly, the ministry will come up with a detailed action plan to secure funding in the first half of 2011.
It will also publicly debate the issue of unification, begin to train human resources; and revamp its support programs for North Korean defectors living in the South.
The ministry said it would expand services to help them find jobs after resettling by opening more employment consultation centers as well as microfinance programs to assist those opening businesses.
It will also open a second Hanawon resettlement center in Gangwon Province in addition to the one in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province. Newly-arrived defectors are required to complete a 12-week course at the center, where they are debriefed and given a crash-course on life in the capitalist South.
The center is slated for completion in 2012.
Mental health, homeless and women’s services for defectors will also be expanded nationwide.
Programs targeting youth defectors will also be increased, including the opening of more schools catering to their needs and group homes for those without families.
The number of defectors has spiked in recent years, surpassing the 20,000 mark earlier this year.
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