Seungmock Oh

South Korea’s Ministry of Justice announced that it is granting most of the over 500 asylum seekers temporary stay permits, allowing them to leave the island, but denied them refugee status.

Koh is hoping the renewed relations between the North and the South would make it possible for him to visit his relatives in the North frequently.

South Korea’s birth rates hit record lows this year, with only seven newborn babies per one thousand people.