South Korea Breaks the Record for Lowest Fertility Rate, Again

nytimes.com

2 points·khaled_ismaeel··2 comments

A somewhat recent trend has been the previously unfathomable decision by many escaped North Koreans to return. I used to think that the term "late stage capitalism" was a coping mechanism by those who couldn't handle what a fallen Soviet Union meant for the future of communism as an ideology. Now I wonder if the West's individualism as religion, and the complete lack of social bonds and cohesion that it gives rise to, might lend some credibility to it.

I don't know it first-hand but from conversations I had with a deflector and friends in South Korea it's hard to overstate how devastating the feeling of a North Korean in the "free world" must be when he/she discovers that there is actually no purpose provided to him/her.

South Korea helps deflectors with "integration" and initial funding. But your prior education is of little value, you have no network and are stuck in a alien world without knowledge how it works. If you can't find a sustainable way to make money for yourself, noone cares. You will lose everything and end up on the streets.

With such a prospect it's not surprising that some want to return to North Korea, mostly when their money is gone. It doesn't necessarily mean North Korea is better or more social, it's just more familiar and predictable to people who grew up there.

Good read on that matter, albeit ~10 yrs old now: Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea

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