Northern Europe popular for young Korean emigrants

/ Screen capture from YouTube

By Lee Min-hyung

Northern European countries are becoming more popular migration destinations for young Koreans.

Foreign ministry data shows the number of Koreans living in Denmark and Norway sharply increased from 767 in 2009 to 1,148 in 2013.

“Northern European countries have a lot better social welfare system than that of Korea,” said Kim Seok-ho, a sociology professor at Seoul National University.

“Most young people in their 20s and 30s feel hopeless about their futures because of the nation’s limited social safety nets.”

Northern Europe has become increasingly popular after Korea signed a working holiday pact with Denmark in 2010 and Sweden in 2011, allowing people under 30 to live and work in the countries for a year.

Before the pact was signed, young people moved to Australia, Canada or New Zealand where anyone was eligible for a working-holiday visa. But the countries have become less appealing because of safety issues. Last week, a Korean man who stayed in Sydney was found dead five days after he went missing.

Kim said the Northern European trend was natural given the dismal outlook for Korea.

“Back in the 1970s and 1980s, people lived with hope that they could be rich if they worked hard,” he said. “But this is no longer the case today.”

The tragic sinking of the Sewol ferry last year, which left more than 300 people dead or missing, revealed that the country had almost lost its ability to support the people, Kim said.

“Many young people have been disappointed over the government’s botched response to the disaster,” he said. “It has left more people considering moving abroad.”

Kim said young people found it appealing to move to Northern European countries because they guarantee citizens’ fundamental rights and offer a well-organized child-rearing system and family-oriented social structure.

Kim said globalization led more people to consider migration.

“The younger generation is more open to globalization,” he said. “They can access information about migration more easily than the previous generation.”