Millennial women make up majority of N. Korean defectors in Q1

A notable demographic reality is taking shape with regard to the age and gender of North Korean defectors arriving in South Korea in recent times.

According to the Unification Ministry on this Thursday most of the new arrivals are women in their 20s and 30s who spent a few years in third countries before seeking to settle in South Korea.

Between January and March this year 38 North Korean defectors entered South Korea SLIGHTLY down from 43 during the same period last year and only one was male.

Most were younger women who had spent more than five years in third countries after fleeing North Korea before its COVID-19 border closure.

At present over 34-thousand North Korean defectors reside here in South Korea.