Korean Job Discussion Forums

[KoreanLifer]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040204.wriri0204/BNStory/National/

"In the past seven years, 35 North Koreans have applied for refugee status in Canada and just two have been granted asylum".

this is ridiculous! let the poor man stay! i am embarrased to say i am Canadian

[dogbert]

Is there a crack epidemic in Canada?

The man's wife was executed when she decided to return to North Korea after the family defected.

Canada blames the man for not escaping North Korea earlier, saying this makes him complicit in Kim Jong-il's crimes. Yes, it's very easy to just pick up and leave any time.

However, schizophrenically, Canada does recognize the man as a "dissident" (albeit it a complicit one), so they generously allow the man's six-year old son to stay.

Who will soon be an orphan, BTW.

[diver]

And people back home ask me why I don't want to return to live in Canada...

[Cthulhu]

This guy is refused a chance to stay and we have enough troubles with criminals, terrorists and assorted lowlife who, once allowed in, fight tooth and nail to stay. And we let them. Nuts.

If he defected to South Korea he would have received a wad of cash and adulation...at least until the North Korean agents found him.

[tsgarp]

One only hopes he can argue for being sent to S. Korea.

[Gord]

Isn't he the guy that went on a drinking binge, said some very uncool things about everyone's favorite Kim, then skipped the country because the thought police were coming to kick down his door?

It's not like he woke up one day and said "crap, what am I doing being part of a team that oppresses millions of people? I want to make a difference! Canada, here I come!" but instead supported the system until he got drunk and started spouting off against the system he was part of.

It's the very example of irony.

[tsgarp]

[Mr. Pink]

Why was his wife stupid enough to return home? Kinda makes me think "because she was Korean". DO you think a westerner would do that?

Does the guy deserve to die? NO. Should the burden be on Canada and the Canadian tax payer to bail this guy out? NO. Should Canada give the man another option of where to go? YES.

Lately I feel Koreans are ticking me off left and right. Common sense seems to be absent from the Korean mindset. If the example of a Korean woman RETURNING BACK to a PRISON state KNOWING she would die isn't a good enough example, well take a taxi sometime and notice how they drive!

[candu]

Outside of the article in the Globe, I can't say that I know any of the details in this guy's case. I'm not about to make any sweeping generalizations of our immigration system - either to claim the system is too harsh or too lenient - based on on a single article about a single case.

I'm mildly amused to read dogbert's theory of Canada suffering from a "crack epidemic". (A Canadian weed epidemic, although not terribly accurate either, would have been a little closer to the truth.) Just as confused by diver giving this story as a good reason not to return to Canada. (Presumably to stay in South Korea, which in spite of its many fine qualities, is hardly a melting pot of nationalities, and even less of a haven for refugees fleeing for their lives, except if they happen to be North Korean, and even then...)

We have accepted over the years - and continue to accept - countless thousands of refugees, of various ethnicities, political persuasions, religions, etc. Does every candidate qualify? No. Should every candidate qualify? Probably not. Are there sometimes questionable decisions or mistakes? Probably so. Does this therefore mean that Canada has become - or always was - a heartless and closed society, possibly one with a huge collective rock smoking habit? No, far from it.

Our record isn't perfect - and how favorably we compare to virtually any other country on the planet should not be an excuse for complacency - but without knowing a lot of the details behind this case - one of thousands that will be handled in 2004 - I think the some of the criticism is premature, not to mention kind of silly.

[ohahakehte]

[Hank Scorpio]

He must have forgotten to scream "Allahu Akhbar!" when being interviewed by immigration. I've heard they fast track you then.

[On the other hand]

Perhaps the Canadian immigration authorities are worried about precedent. This is a man who was complicit in the activities of a violent dictatorship. Suppose that we let him in on the grounds that if he goes back to North Korea, he'll be shot by his former bosses. Now, suppose also that in a few months, a faction of the North Korean military decides that they've had enough of Kim Jong-Il's lunacy, and toss him from office while leaving the rest of the regime more-or-less intact. Old Kim shows up at a Canadian embassy somewhere, saying "look, I know I'm a bad guy, but if I go back to Korea, they'll kill me. Come on, you let that other guy in". How could the Canadian government refuse him admission after having admitted one of his former partners?

[Cthulhu]

[The King of Kwangju]

[candu]

Again, we really can't claim to know a lot about this case. On the surface, the decision may appear unfair, but from what little information we have, this case seems pretty odd. Before we start accusing Canada of ruthlessly deporting him back to North Korea, remember that Ri's final fate has yet to be determined - and I think the fact he has a son will help - and remember that so many details about this case remain a mystery. It is pure speculation on my part, but I wonder if there could have been some serious inconsistencies in his claim. I'm all for letting him stay until things are clarified, which I hope will happen.