4 North Koreans cross maritime border, say want to defect
Korea HeraldOct 31, 2023
Seoul: North Korean Defectors to South Tripled in 2023
Image copyright: Pool/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
The Ministry of Unification in Seoul has revealed that at least 196 North Koreans defected to South Korea in 2023, nearly three times the previous year.
The sharp uptick from just 67 defectors in 2022 is partly attributed to the loosening of COVID border restrictions in North Korea and transit countries, such as China.
The Spin
Anti-North Korea Narrative
As the economic situation worsens and internal controls strengthen in Kim Jong Un's regime, younger North Koreans are left with no choice but to take a perilous journey to the liberal democratic South to escape their repressive homeland's dire human rights and impoverished conditions.
Pro-North Korea narrative
Just like the US, North Korea has the right to live without external limitations or interventions. However, due to the prevalence of disinformation about Kim's regime, misconceptions about North Korea are perpetuated in the public consciousness to further Western interests. People defecting to South Korea are economic migrants, nothing more.