This image, provided by the presidential office, shows a choir comprising students from South and North Korea singing to celebrate the day for North Korean defectors on July 14, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea has increased funding for North Korean defectors to support their early settlement as part of its budget proposal for next year, in line with its new unification blueprint.
The unification ministry’s budget proposal, which was approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday, came to 1.55 trillion won (US$1.17 billion), down 3.7 percent from this year.
Despite the overall decrease, the ministry has boosted the basic settlement grant for North Korean defectors by 50 percent, raising it from 10 million won to 15 million won. The ministry’s budget proposal is subject to parliamentary approval.
“Next year’s budget proposal reflects the government’s commitment to sound fiscal management while ensuring that the seven key initiatives outlined by President Yoon Suk Yeol in the ‘Aug. 15 unification doctrine’ are implemented without disruption,” a ministry official said on the condition of anonymity.
During his Liberation Day speech on Aug. 15, Yoon presented a vision for unification, which includes increased support for North Korean defectors in South Korea.
South Korea has a longstanding policy of accepting any North Korean defectors who wish to live in the South. Currently, South Korea is home to more than 34,000 North Korean defectors. The flow of defectors continues amid chronic food shortages and harsh political oppression in North Korea.
The basic settlement grant is the initial financial aid provided to North Korean defectors to assist them with their early settlement in South Korea. Additional allowances are provided to vulnerable groups, such as those with disabilities.
The grant was set at 8 million won until 2022 before increasing to 9 million won last year and 10 million won this year.
If the budget proposal passes through the parliament, the settlement grant will have increased by 88 percent in just three years under the Yoon administration.
Additionally, the budget for humanitarian aid to North Korea through a fund intended to boost cooperation with North Korea has been increased by 15.92 billion won, and the budget for livelihood support has been increased by 5.7 billion won.
“The government reaffirms that humanitarian aid to ensure the survival of North Korean residents will proceed regardless of the political and military situation,” the official added.
North Korea has not yet responded to South Korea’s proposal to provide humanitarian aid to North Korea for the damage caused by recent downpours in its northern border areas.
South Korea’s last direct aid to North Korea occurred in 2010, consisting of 5,000 tons of rice and 300,000 cups of instant noodles for flood relief. South Korea also provided food worth 19 billion won to North Korea through the World Food Program in 2017, marking Seoul’s last indirect aid to the North.
The budget for enhancing unification education in schools is also set to increase, with plans to expand the number of leading universities offering unification education from eight this year to 12 next year.
In contrast, the ministry has proposed a 21.3 percent on-year reduction in spending for inter-Korean economic projects, including support for the now-defunct Kaesong Industrial Complex in the North’s border city of the same name.
Since taking office, Yoon has adopted a hard-line stance against North Korea’s provocative actions and emphasized the importance of raising international awareness about the dire human rights situation in the North.
(Yonhap)
