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This article is translated from the Hankyoreh, one of representative daily newspapers in Korea, on January 5. Chosunjok in this article is ethnic Koreans living in China. Chosunjok is one of the 54 minority groups in China. We translate this article to help you understand the situation of Chosunjoks. Chosunjok is the biggest group among migrant workers in Korea; Ed.

Ms. Lee from Jilin, a Chosunjok nurse in her late 30’s living in Beijing, has been separated from her family for two years. Her husband who worked with her in Beijing left for Korea to work at construction sites a year ago, and her daughter, Sohwa, is being raised by Lee’s parents in Liaoning.
She paid half of the brokerage fee, 60,000 Yuan (9.4 million won), for her husband to be able to work in Korea, but had to borrow the difference from her neighbors. Although Lee has paid off the debt from the money she earned and her husband's remittance, the pain of separation was unbearable. Crossing her fingers to meet again her daughter who lives as if an orphan, Lee is sharing a five pyong-room (15 square meter -room) with four other Chosunjok nurses.
In a way Ms. Lee’s case is better than the ordinary. There are many Chosunjoks who couldn’t get a job in spite of spending much money to go to Korea as their brokers swindled them. Kim, a sixth grade student of Hepingxiang Primary School in Mishan City, Heilongjiang Province, wrote in her article sent to the ‘Kkottongsan (Flower Garden)’ a children magazine, “I can’t stand my father's behavior when he beats my mother after drinking everyday since he is indebted for 100,000 Yuan (1.2 million won) when he tried to go to Korea.”
Since the opening of China, and the establishment of a friendly relationship between Korea and China in 1992, the rural area in China has changed rapidly. Chosunjoks’ visit to Korean relatives, which started in the mid-1980’s, has plagued Chosunjok communities as it emerged as the most certain way of earning money. According to the result of a survey upon 1 860 Chosunjok students at Mudanjiang High School in Heilongjiang Province two years ago, at least one parent of 75% were working in Korea, and 20 % had both parents working in Korea.
In addition, as the population of Han Chinese farming in the north east China has been increasing recently, the price of rice per 500 g plunged down to less than 1 Yuan, Chosunjok group’s exodus from farms and influx into cities has been accelerating. This phenomenon of leaving farms with the Korean boom causes a chain reaction.
The primary schools in every village can’t conduct ordinary classes as the students are in decrease. As the birth rate plunges, some schools have less than 10 students in the first grade. Moreover, as many qualified teachers go abroad to study or take the ships to work in Korea, the students suffer debased education and mental shock.
Accordingly, the farmlands are abandoned and devastated, or sometimes they hand over the right to cultivate to Han Chinese by receiving money. As the workforces in the farms are scarce, they generally hire Han Chinese in the busy farming season.
However, the ‘development theory’ is getting persuadable that urbanization is an unavoidable trouble in the revolutionary transition period of the market economy. Woo Chol-hee, vice chairman of the executive committee of the Liaoning Province Korean Chinese Economic Relationship Association insisted to resettle the communities in the cities stating, “it has a historical background that Koreans originally settled in the farmlands; they were refugees when they escaped from Korea colonized by Japan, and the farmlands were the bases of independent movement.”
Kim Kang, a teacher of Chosunjok Middle School in Hailin City, Heilongjiang Province gave a countermeasure at his study paper issued recently, “Let’s develop the racial enterprises with the capital we earned from working in Korea, develop the farming enterprises in the farmlands, and construct Korean villages in the cities for keeping racial identity.” Practically, Shenyang in Liaoning Province has 5~6 Chosunjok boarding schools including kindergarten courses.

[Hope Easier Provision of Staying in Korea]

Interviewee; Kim Jong-guk

“Chosunjok meets crisis and opportunity,” Kim Jong-guk, chief of the Social Science Institute at Yenben Chosunjok Autonomy Province said. Mr. Kim, graduated from the Philosophy Department of the Central National Institute, once worked as a journalist and then has been the head of the institute. He authored seven books including ‘Chosunjok on the prospect of transition of centuries’.
- What is the crisis of Chosunjoks?
= Chosunjok is facing the crisis to survive. The crisis is the worry on how long the group will exist as their number is decreasing. Particularly, the decreasing tendency of Chosunjok population has paced since 1995. Recently, the youngsters don’t like to bear children as they are burdened financially for raising them. A policy granting advantages if a spouse has more than two children is needed. For survival of Chosunjok group, they should be wealthy. If the racial economy collapses, their culture is absorbed by the stronger culture. The Koreans in the USA and Japan show the examples.
- How much are Koreans assimilated into the Chinese society?
= Serious. Chosunjoks had been superior to the Han Chinese in the fields of education and culture before, but now the balance is deterred. The young generations in Beijing are losing their mother toungue.
- Isn’t their educational level high?
= The assessment points of Chosunjoks at the middle and high schools are higher than Han Chinese. But the reality is that Chosunjoks are given an additional twenty points they take the qualification exam to colleges as they can apply for the exam in the Korean language. Also there are premium points upon the minority groups in China. The actual ability of Chosunjoks is lower than Han Chinese.
- What is the status of Chosunjoks?
= As we have concentrated on culture and education, we don’t have enough people for the market economy. The ratio of Chosunjok senior members in Yenben Autonomy Area authority has decreased to 40 percent now from 70 percent in the 1950’s. Once stated as the best race by Jeu En Lai in that period, now Chosunjok is one of the worst races followed by Shinjiang Autonomy Area, having the highest rates of divorce and crime.
- Is there any way to solve the illegal staying in Korea?
= Because relative visits allowed by the Korean government is very restrictive, 99 percent of visits are illegal. First, the Korean government should ease the stipulation of working conditions. The youngest age of 60 allowed to visit Korea should be lowered. The fee for entering Korea must be lowered, and staying legally two to three years should be granted. The salary of trainees, 200~300 dollars per month should be raised.