Residents in the Five West Sea Islands near the northwestern maritime boundary of North and South Korea appear less likely to choose to live in their original addresses, data showed Sunday.
The number of residents in the islands reached some 4,900, a drop by 400 compared to that of 2012, according to the data by the office of Ongjin County in Incheon, which administrates the islands.
The office estimated the number of residents in the islands -- where armed forces are dispatched for defense against North Korea -- by examining the number of the government subsidy recipients. A year after the naval battle between North and South Korea in November 2010 that claimed four South Koreans’ lives, the government began to extend subsidies amounting to 50,000 won ($43) per month to each resident on the islands.
The number of recipients has seen a rise by 9.5 percent, from 4,840 in 2011 to 5,300 in 2012. However, after peaking in 2012, it had seen a steady decline, 5,010 in 2013, 5,040 in 2014 and 4,900 in 2015 and 2016.
To be eligible for the government subsidies, a resident has to prove that he or she has moved to one of the islands six months before and lived on the island for at least 15 days in the month.
The Five West Sea Islands refer to Yeonpyeong Island, Baengnyeongdo, Daecheongdo, Socheongdo and U Island.
A source from the county office told Yonhap News Agency Sunday that some of the residents in the islands “choose to live with family members or relatives on land.”
By Son Ji-hyoung ()
koreaherald@heraldcorp.com
