Refugees in Search of Heaven
The Koreans suffered and lost the most in the Korean war, not only in terms of
the number of casualties but also in terms of the pain, suffering, and fear the
Korean survivors experienced. Husbands and wives were separated. Children became
separated from their parents during the flight southward, doomed to live in
destitution and homelessness as orphans.
And family members who managed to escaped
south became permanently separated from other family members who remained in North Korea.
Refugees, if they were lucky, found their ways into refugee camps. However, many had
relied on the charity of others for food and shelter. The three years of war for
the Koreans were in essence a time of sacrifice and pain.
It has been argued that the main reason many North Koreans fled south , both before and during the war, was because of their opposition to communism. Many North Korean Christians fled south, in fact, to escape Communist rule. They were often persecuted because they were associated with anti-communism. The student uprising in Shinuiju November 1945 and anti-Communist uprising at Chonju were linked to Korean Christians. By 1950, the Korean Communist regime began series of attacks on the Christian community that continued throughout the war. Christians were also associated with pro-American sentiments since the Americans were the ones who initiated the Korean Christian movement. Therefore, to escape the persecution, North Korean Christians sought refuge in the south. In addition, many upper-class North Koreans were discriminated and targeted. Thus, they too, left all their possessions and security and fled south. Some also fled south for the fear of reprisals from the returning Communist regime. When the Communist retook Northern Korea around later October 1950, they became wary and suspicious of the population who had been occupied by the U.N forces and South Korean rule. So many people were executed, imprisioned and persecuted on the basis of suspicion alone. Nonetheless, being anti-Communist was not the only reason people migrated and sought refuge in the south. The migration to the south before the war in 1945-1946 could have been due to the fact that many Koreans were returning from Manchuria and North Korea to their homes in the south. Furthermore, times of bad agriculture could have motivated North Koreas to move south in hope for better times. During the war, choosing a place of haven was not always due to anti-Communist feelings either. But rather, many times, it was a matter of life and death. Food was scarce and security unguaranteed. The constant aerial bombing in North Korea depleted food supply. For instance, the attacks on Taksan dam above Pyongyang on May 13, 1953 and Chasan dam on May 15-16, 1953 destroyed rice crops, the major Korean staple. Moreover, many North Koreans feared for their lives; the possibility of the use of atomic weapons lead many to flee south, where it was seemingly more safe. Others fled south because their homes and villages were destroyed. When U.S forces were retreating south at the end of 1950, they destroyed villages and blew up cities such as Inchon. The villages were burned and destroyed under the "Operation Ratkiller", aimed to prevent guerilla infiltrations. Hence, many were left homeless. It is misleading to assume that all North Koreans who fled south were anti-communist. Some North Koreans did flee south because of their opposition to communism. But at the same time, there were those who did not have any choice but to flee from their hometown. In war time conditions, people's first concern is the issue about survival. And for refugees who lost their parents, children, sisters, brothers, families, relatives, friends, and security, the lost they experienced was not worth the fight between the two regions. Both political and apolitical reasons should be taken into account to understand the plights of Koreans during the war and the cause of the migration of millions of North Koreans in search for haven in the south.
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History of Korea