Many of the defectors from North Korea to South Korea are elite people, who had privileged lives in North Korea. Many of these were North Koreans studying in Eastern Europe around the time of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, and who defected at that time. These people, marked out as high flyers by the North Korean regime, have high levels of social and cultural capital, and have risen to positions of leadership and authority in South Korea. This book, which presents detailed case studies of individual North Korean defectors, explores the reasons for their defection, examines how they have adjusted to life in South Korea, and discusses the implications in all this for national reunification.

Author Biography

Sheena Choi is an Associate Professor in the College of Education and Public Policy at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, Indiana