북한 내 “사람값” 담론과 소수자 유형 분류 시도 (Minorities in North Korea: Who are They and Why are They Classified as Minorities?)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 고려대학교 아세아문제연구원
· 수록지 정보 : 아세아연구 / 58권 / 1호 / 7 ~ 37페이지
· 저자명 : 김석향

초록

오늘날 북한과 소수자라는 두 단어의 조합은 북한이탈주민이 한국사회에 정착하는 과정에서 각종 차별이나 불이익을 경험하는 현상을 의미하는 경우가 많다. 이 논문은 기존의 연구관행과 달리 북한 내 소수자 문제에 주목하고자 한다.
결국 북한도 사람 사는 세상인 만큼 당연히 소수자가 있을 것이고 또 “있어야 마땅한” 일이다. 그런데 북한 내부에서는 무엇을 기준으로 소수자를 구분하고 있을까? 이 문제의 답을 찾아보고자 한다.
이 논문은 기본적으로 한국에 거주하는 북한이탈주민과 면담한 내용을 토대로 북한 내 소수자 집단은 누구이며 그 분류의 기준은 무엇인지, 또 이들은 어떤 특성을 지니고 있는지 분석하였다. 그 결과, 북한 내 소수자 구분의 기준은 “사람값” 담론으로 나타났다. “사람값” 담론에 따라 성별과 장애 및 토대⋅성분⋅입당 여부 등 세 가지 유형으로 북한 내 소수자 유형을 구분할 수 있었던 것이다.
그런데 19990년 이후 고난의 행군기를 거치고 2009년 화폐개혁을 경험하면서 북한주민의 소수자 구분의 기준에 미세한 균열이 발생하기 시작하는 것으로 파악된다. 비록 그 영향이 아직 크지 않지만 앞으로 북한 내 소수자 구분의 기준이 예전과 달라질 가능성을 가늠해 볼 수 있을 것이다.

영어초록

It is quite natural to see minorities in communities where people gather and live together. North Korea is no exception. This paper aims to classify the types of minorities in North Korea and identify why they are considered minorities. The basic materials used in proceeding the research are interviews with the North Korean defectors since September 2010 to the present.
There are various types of minorities in North Korea. One of the main criteria to distinguish who is minority and who is not in North Korea is “the concept of pricing human being.” The majority of interviewees used the concept of “a person of no value” when they referred to a particular type of person. For instance, compared to men, women “somehow (somewhat)” have lower (or no) value, and disabled person indeed has far lower value than non-disabled. Out of the disabled, only the disabled veterans (honored soldiers) are “sort of valuable.” Other types have absolutely “no value.” If one accidently or mistakenly injured by oneself, or if one is a congenital defect from birth, he or she could not be “a valuable person.” The majority of interviewees showed firm stand without the slightest hesitation when evaluating members of a particular group with no value.
This paper primarily aimed at examining how North Korean defectors describe the types of minorities and their everyday lives within North Korea. In the process of interview, however, it it clearly revealed their everyday experiences with those minorities within North Korea. It can be seen from the interviews that although the North Korean defectors are aware of the equality that the society aims, they experienced discrimination against minorities without realizing it in daily life.
In fact, the researcher’s fundamental interest was about how to understand the class conflict of the North Korean defectors. In the process of the research, it was found that this problem does not simply fall under the category of the social class, but acts as the main factor that affects the overall settlement process of the people. North Korean defectors will inevitably go through the process of building personal relationships by linking themselves to their school alumni and colleagues at work. and look for potential friends and/or co-workers as they settle in the unfamiliar Korean society. However, individuals’ experiences of the social classes appear to be a matter of their own when the North Korean defectors are unable to clearly express what they want while their supporters do not know how to guide them. With regard to the experiences of the social class, it is necessary to first accurately determine the trajectory of life that these people have experienced in North Korea in order to guide them in finding a way on their own. At this point this paper holds the significance.

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