Escape from North Korea: Economic and Cultural Determinants of Female Refugee Migration Patterns Into China

Abstract

North Korea faces a unique migration trend in that nearly 80 percent of those migrating to China are female. This paper synthesized existing scholarship to present a more holistic picture of the driving factors that cause this phenomenon. The food crisis of the 1990s initiated the first great waves of migration out of North Korea into China and it continues to be the greatest economic factor. In addition various economic ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors within North Korea and China specifically target women. The cultural factors however stem from deeply rooted ideological beliefs that merge ancient Confucianism with North Korea’s unique communist Juche ideology. The inherent belief that men are more valuable made men targets of strict government control, ironically leaving women with more liberty to seek other opportunities to ensure not only their own survival, but that of their family as well which translated in this case to finding work in China. Although some may argue women’s mobility and dominance of the marketplace lent itself to more equality in a traditionally hierarchal society, however I argue that women’s freedom was motivated not out of a sense of equality, but the failure of the government system in conjunction with the food crisis. Consequently, women seeking work in China can be seen as an extension of their domestic duties reinforced by North Korea’s ideological beliefs.