【雙魚之論】
This is an interesting piece of news. Taiwan uses the concepts of "household
registration" and "jurisdiction" to sidestep the contradiction
of whether it and the People’s Republic of China constitute "one country."
Similarly, South Korea previously used the term "departure" (defection)
as a definition to avoid the same "one country" dilemma.
Now, South Korea is changing the terminology for "North Korean defectors" to "Buk-hyang-min" (literally, "people whose hometown is in the North") and has officially set the English translation as "North Korean-born citizens." This reclassification emphasizes that they are equal citizens protected under the South Korean Constitution and law, and underscores that their citizenship remains intact even if they reside in a third country outside of South Korea.
The crux lies in the word "citizens"—is this a concept tied to a "State" or a "Constitution" (jurisdiction)? If it is a single state, then (at least according to the South Korean Constitution) North Korean citizens equal South Korean citizens. If they are two separate states, then North Korean citizens do not equal South Korean citizens. Currently, the two sides of the Korean Peninsula hold diverging concepts of themselves and each other: South Korea views it as "one state, two governments," while North Korea has shifted to the doctrine of "two hostile states."[1]
這條消息,有趣。台灣是以「戶籍」與「法域」來迴避與中華人民共和國是否為「一國」的矛盾。韓國過去是以「脫離」來定義,也是迴避「一國」的矛盾。現在,韓國要將「脫北者」用語改為「北鄉民」,並正式將英文翻譯定為North Korean-born
citizens(北韓出生公民),並依據南韓憲法與法律受到保護的平等公民,並凸顯即使居住在南韓以外的第三國,其公民身分仍然維持。
關鍵是citizens,是國家或憲法(法域)下的概念?若是一國家,則(至少依據韓國憲法)朝鮮公民=韓國公民。若是兩國家,則朝鮮公民≠韓國公民。而朝鮮半島上韓朝對於自己和對方抱持不同概念——韓國:一國兩府;朝鮮:兩敵對國。
南韓擬將脫北者改稱「北鄉民」 英文官方翻譯出爐 中央社 20260305