Repatriation

Repatriation is the process of returning a person to their place of origin or citizenship. This includes the process of returning refugees or military personnel to their place of origin following a war. It also applies to diplomatic envoys and international officials in time of international crisis as well as expatriates and migrants. The term may also refer to the process of converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country. The forced return of people to countries where they would face persecution is more specifically known as refoulement.

Unlike expulsion and deportation, which are actions of sovereign states, repatriation is defined as a personal right under specific conditions described in various international instruments, such as the Geneva Conventions and Protocols, as well as customary international law. Repatriation may be voluntary or involuntary. Voluntary repatriation is the return of eligible persons to the country of origin or citizenship on the basis of freely expressed willingness to such return. Involuntary repatriation is the return of refugees, prisoners of war and civil detainees to their country of origin under circumstances which do not leave any other alternative. According to contemporary international law, prisoners of war, civil detainees or refugees refusing repatriation, particularly if motivated by fears of political persecution in their own country, should be protected from refoulement and given, if possible, temporary or permanent asylum.

Repatriation (film)

Repatriation (Hangul: 송환; hanja: 送還; RR: Songhwan) is a 2004 South Korean documentary film that documents the lives of North Korean spies who were captured and imprisoned in the South for more than 30 years. They were finally set free in the 1990s when inter-Korean relations improved, and repatriated to the North.

It was presented with the Freedom of Expression Award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, the first time a Korean film has ever been presented with an award at the prestigious U.S. festival. It also won Best Documentary Award at the 19th Fribourg International Film Festival in 2005.

Production

When the "unconverted" North Korean spies, captured and imprisoned in South Korea, were released after more than 30 years, they moved to Bongchun-dong, filmmaker Kim Dong-won's village. Kim developed a close relationship with them which eventually led him to the Repatriation film project, which spanned 12 years and 800 hours of videotaping. The film documents their views on Korea's partition, their daily hardships as they attempt to adjust to South Korean society as well as their struggle for repatriation. Through this intimate portrayal, Kim offers a penetrating insight into the tragic consequences of the Cold War that still persist in Korea.