Promised land? The Zainichi Korean exodus to North Korea

Great emigration driven by discrimination in Japan and belief in communism - but they were deceived

Andrei Lankov October 24, 2016

Promised land? The Zainichi Korean exodus to North Korea

Image: Wonsan by Clay Gilliland on 2014-06-26 13:09:15

This is the second part of a three-part series by Andrei Lankov on how Zainichi Koreans shaped the history of the DPRK. You can read part one here.

In 1959 thousands of ethnic Koreans from Japan (often known as ‘Zainichi Koreans’) began to migrate to North Korea in large numbers. A total of 93,300 people moved between 1959-1984, but the vast majority boarded the ships in the early 1960s.

About the Author

Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov is a Director at NK News and writes exclusively for the site as one of the world's leading authorities on North Korea. A graduate of Leningrad State University, he attended Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung University from 1984-5 - an experience you can read about here. In addition to his writing, he is also a Professor at Kookmin University.

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