Clash over NK defector label fuels debate over identity
A bill to change South Korea’s legal term for North Korean defectors set off a shouting match at the National Assembly Thursday after an opposition lawmaker challenged Unification Minister Chung Dong-young over the proposed name. “Minister Buk Dong-young, why is it OK to call me ‘bukhyangmin?’” asked Rep. Park Choong-kwon of the main opposition People Power Party, who fled North Korea in 2009. He…
A heated debate erupted in South Korea's National Assembly on Thursday after an opposition lawmaker contested a proposed name for North Korean defectors. Unification Minister Chung Dong-young faced questions from Rep. Park Choong-kwon, who fled the North in 2009, who objected to the term "bukhyangmin," which translates to "north person."
Rep. Lee Ki-heon of the ruling Democratic Party countered with a reference to another term, "talbukmin," meaning "escape," and challenged Park to call him "Tal Choong-kwon" instead. The dispute intensified when Chung demanded an apology from Park, who obliged before the meeting continued. The Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee was deliberating a bill introduced by Rep. Kim Jae-won of the Rebuilding Korea Party to replace the current legal term for North Korean defectors with "bukhyangmin."
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- Clash over NK defector label puts identity, integration in spotlight koreatimes.co.kr
