Statistics from South Korea

[Baobab]

5. They are considered to be "korean" and welcomed - in the sense that they have a special school

to teach them how to live in the modern world, and then when they graduate they get quite generous support from the South Korean government for quite some time. A great many of them have been through major difficulties.

There are also sizable communities of north korean refugees in a number of other countries, of course the largest number are in China where they lead a stressed, covert existence, there are less North Korean refugees in the South than you would expect given their proximity-maybe a few thousand defect every year, recently the number has been going down because the border is increasingly fortified to prevent escapes.

I have a friend who is a minister who has spent quite a bit of time in the border region. Also, many years ago I worked for a while with a guy who had grown up in Dandong literally right across the river from North Korea. He was the first person who told me how horrible things were there. At that time the US media wasnt really aware of it.

The situation in North Korea is beyond description. Its like nothing else in the world, its a really really horrible place. Whenever I get depressed about my own life, I read about the things North Koreans have had to go through and I immediately realize that whatever it is, its nothing compared to what they have had to deal with so I count my blessings.

If anything, the US media soft pedals the situation there. Its worse than the US media would have you think.