KOREANS IN ETHNIC-NATIONAL POPULATION STRUCTURE OF

UKRAINE: THE PROBLEMS OF ETHNIC RENAISSANCE

In this article I propose to analyze several aspects that characterize the current

stage and prospects of the Korean ethnic community development in Ukraine. This

analysis will be conducted in the context of two, in my opinion, the determining

factors of modern social development of our country in the field of interethnic

relations: 1) dynamic changes in the ethno-national structure of Ukrainian society, 2)

ethno-political renaissance, characteristic of virtually all components of this structure.

So, nowadays the ethno-national structure of Ukraine’s population consists of 130

ethnic groups. As for the types of ethnic communities, in the ethno-national structure

of our country today we can distinguish the Ukrainian nation and ethnic minorities.

However, the Constitution of Ukraine the thing is also about indigenous peoples. In

our opinion, the concept of "indigenous people" unreasonably got in legal documents

of Ukraine, as it is not defined and according to the traditional perception of

indigenous peoples in international practice, it can not be applied in the Ukrainian

context. Some differences are observed also in the perception of the concept "ethnic

(national) minority". Unlike many multi-ethnic European countries, the legal

framework of our country makes possible to enroll as minority almost all ethnic

groups’ representatives, now living in Ukraine. In particular, according to the Law of

Ukraine "On National Minorities in Ukraine", "to the national minorities appertain

the groups of citizens of Ukraine who are not Ukrainian by nationality, exhibit a

sense of national self-awareness and affinity" [1]. The discussions in recent years (at

the theoretical and practical levels), the analysis of national minorities’ rights

realization in other multiethnic countries (e. g. Hungary, Slovakia) stimulates to more

clear definition of the criteria that could point us whom among the representatives of

one or another ethnic groups of Ukraine we can enroll to the national minorities. In

particular, it concerns their quantitative complement, duration of their residence in

this area and so on. Talking about the ethnic structure elements, today we have

proposed to define them as follows: Ukrainian ethnos (Ukrainian ethnonation); ethnic

groups – among them, with uncertain status (indigenous peoples / national minorities)

and the national minorities; the representatives of certain ethnic groups. Hereby we

should make some comments. Ukrainian ethnos – the most numerous ethnic

community of Ukraine. As for the ethnic groups with uncertain status, the Gagauz,

Karaites, Crimean Tatars, Krymchaks can be referred to them.

In the absence of clear criteria for the definition of "national minority" in the

Ukrainian political and legal framework and official practice (ethnopolitics) we offer

as part of this analysis to use the criteria, that were laid in the base of the concept

"national minority" definition by the parties to a joint working group of the Council

of Europe and Ukraine while working on a pilot project "Education Policy and

Minorities. Ukraine." In passing, we note that they are based on the F. Kapotorti’s

famous definition of the concept "national minority" [2]:

the group of population, which differs from the basic group of population in its

ethnic origin or its nationality, or its language, or its religion; by its number is inferior

to the basic group; does not occupy a dominant position in the country; demonstrates

the desire to preserve its identity and its culture, traditions, religion or language; does

not consist of recent immigrants or refugees; has the deep roots in the country of

residence (usually the citizens of this country).

I will add to this, the group of people which has a sufficient number of

individuals, who perceive themselves as members of this group and are able to

reproduce their identity through participation in the activities of ethnic organizations,

artistic groups, the creation of conditions to preserve and develop their language and

so on. That is to have the internal reserves to achieve, by R. Breton, "the Institutional

fullness" of the national minority structures [3].

Let's consider the Korean ethnic community of Ukraine in the context of such a

structure. For this recall, that Koreans are not the indigenous population of our

country, they are the community, that has formed in Ukraine through immigration. It

is known, that Koreans came to Ukraine from the former Soviet Union; they lived

mostly in the Far East and later in Central Asia. The organized migration of Koreans

to the North Crimea occurs at the beginning of 1960. The motivation of this process

was the economic motive – the introduction in Ukraine of such agricultural crop as

rice. The comparison of the three censuses indicates a certain dynamics of the Korean

component in the ethno-national structure of Ukrainian society: 1 341 (1959), the 4

480 (1970), the 6 061 (1979), the 8 669 (1989), the 12,711 (2001). The Koreans now

occupy the 115th place among the ethnic communities and minority groups of other

ethnicities’ representatives.

On this characteristic Koreans can be referred to such component of ethno-

national structure of Ukrainian society as the national (ethnic) minority. However, in

the previous classification of this structure components, proposed by me, Koreans are

not represented [4]. But the development of Korean ethnic community at the turn of

the last and present centuries gives some reason to reflect about the place of Koreans

exactly in this category of mentioned classification. To confirm these thoughts I turn

to the criteria of the "national minority" concept definition, which was discussed

above. Today, all those whom we name the Koreans, by their ethnic origin differ

from the basic group of population (Ukrainians), they certainly yield in numbers to

this basic group; they do not occupy the dominant position not only in country, but

also in places of their compact settlement; they have to some degree deep roots in the

country of residence and, according to preliminary calculations, the overwhelming

majority is the citizens of Ukraine. It is worth adding, that in favor of the thesis

concerning the inclusion of Koreans of Ukraine to the category of "national minority"

indicates the type of settling structure – they are settled mainly in several regions and

cities of Ukraine, that is, we can speak about their relatively compact settlement.

Thus, in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, according to Census 2001, reside 2877

people, in Mykolaiv region – 1 751, in the Kherson region – 1253, in Odessa – 773,

in Kiev – 384. This factor contributes to the internal consolidation of ethnic

community, that helps its reproduction as the specific social community of Ukrainian

society and sustainable component of its ethno-national structure.

Another group of criteria by which Koreans can be attributed to national

minorities, is associated with those that determine the nature of ethno-political

renaissance. This is the efforts to preserve and develop their ethnic identity, their

ethnic culture, ethnic traditions and so on. In this context it is important to note that

the term "ethnic renaissance" is used to denote the phenomenon of dynamic changes

inside the ethnic communities. This term is more appropriate to use while talking

about the revival of ethnicity (ethnic minorities) in the framework of multi-ethnic

countries, where the political nations emerged with the clearly defined dominant

majority and the other ethnic components of the ethno-national structure are

integrated in these nations. In the frame of the integrative processes of ethnic

movements in such countries from time to time the activation of minorities ethno-

cultural life is observed, sometimes the relations between the latter and the dominant

majority are exacerbated (usually in the context of power structures’ ethno-politics

practice). Two motives are the most characteristic for the following processes: 1) the

desire of minorities, generally stimulated by the leaders of their organizations, to take

a good niche in the social life of one or another country, 2) dissatisfaction with the

state of ethnic and cultural rights of minority groups and ethnic policy of the state.

As for ethno-political renaissance among national minorities, here we should

pay attention to two things: 1) intense "awakening" of ethnic self-consciousness and

the desire to revive the ethnic identity, 2) finding the ways to participate effectively in

social and political processes, to self-assertion as effective factors state creation with

occupation the respective niches in the economic and political life of the new state. In

the first aspect at least two features are fixed:

a) the particular revival character of that national minorities, which also before

the independence demonstrated the quite high level of internal cohesion (this

phenomenon we call "ethnic solidarity") [5], that allowed to store and to some extent

develop their ethnic identity (Bulgarians, Moldavians, Poles, Romanians,

Hungarians). Here the process of ethnic revival had the sufficient ground for its

intensification and the question is more in terms of establishing themselves as acting

factors of state-creative processes and strengthening their influence on decision

making, at least, at local and regional levels;

b) in separate group we can distinguish those national minorities, where the

recovery process occurs too fast, but they had not such basis as, say, the minorities

mentioned above. This group could include Azerbaijanians, Belarusians, Armenians,

Greeks, Germans, Roma, Tatars, Slovaks, Czechs, Koreans and some others. Among

these minorities the intensive formation of their ethnic organizations eventuated, as

well as opening of schools or classes with ethnic teaching languages took place, also

the periodic or episodic releases were founded, etc. We can say, that the system of

"institutional fullness" was being formed. However, they actively started to take part

in social and political processes and to seek the status of effective factor (as distinct

ethnic groups) in official policy forming, at least in the field of ethnic-national

development.

Among the typical and most characteristic features of national minorities’

ethnic revival we can name the following: 1) the formation of organizations with

predominant membership of one ethnicity; 2) the activities of art groups that gather,

reconstitute and promote the folklore, traditions and customs of their ethnic groups;

3) functioning of state schools with full, partial or episodic teaching in ethnic

languages; 4) the presence of secondary special and higher educational institutions

that train specialists in ethnic minorities languages, or in which the special courses

are taught (mainly concerning the philology cycle and ethnology character); 5) press

issues in ethnic languages or for ethnic minorities – they appear with different

intervals and in different editions; 6) television and radio broadcasting for national

minorities; 7) publication of literature (not just textbooks) in national minorities

languages.

As for Koreans in Ukraine, the significant number of these ethnic revival

features is peculiar to them. Thus, the researches of the Center of Etnosociological

and Ethnopolitical Researches of Institute of Sociology of NAS of Ukraine recorded

the energetic activity of national-cultural societies in Luhansk, Kharkiv, Mykolayiv,

Donetsk, Cherkassy, Kherson regions and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. It

concernes also such cities as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Odessa. I note, that the

first Korean societies emerged in the early 1990s, just when the active processes of

Ukrainian independent state formation started. It is somewhat symbolic – the revival

of Koreans as an organized community in the ethno-national structure of Ukraine

coincides with the revival of Ukrainian ethnicity within the framework of the

independent state. The Association of Koreans in Ukraine was registered in 1992.

Today, the Kyiv Association of Koreans, the Koreans regional organization (Luhansk

region), the Association of Korean culture (Kharkiv region.), the Korean culture

Society (Mykolaiv region), the Korean culture Society (Cherkasy region), the

Koreans Organization "Kore" (Kherson region) are functioning. Speaking about the

activity of Korean organizations, we should bear in mind two things: 1) their intra-

organizational activity, as I observed, is fairly high; 2) in quantitative terms, they are

small amount; according to researchers only the small part of Koreans participate in

the activities of ethnic organizations [6]. However, due to the fact, that before the

independence of Ukraine such organizations did not exist, we can affirm, that their

activity today is adequate to the tempos of ethnic revival.

Actually, this is the evidence of Koreans ethnic revival process, as well as one

of the conditions to classify them as the national minority. Because the presence and

activities of ethnic organizations are the sign of "institutional fullness" of ethnic

community, which under these conditions may have become the actor of ethno-

national processes of the country of residence.

Another typical feature of ethnic revival – the activities of art groups, that

reconstitute and promote the folklore, traditions and customs of their ethnic groups –

certainly characteristic of Koreans in Ukraine. The investigations of the formation of

ethno-cultural space of Ukraine confirm their active participation in this process.

Since Ukraine's first Korean Culture Festival (1995), the presence of this

community’s culture is appreciable not only regionally but also at the national level.

For example, the celebrated decade of the Kyiv Association of Koreans (2002), the

Korean ensembles participation in the TV program "Pleyada" ("Not so bad in our

house", January 2004) and other art content actions show, that the Korean ethno-

cultural component is tangible, or at least becomes such, in the cultural life of the

whole Ukraine.

However, in other aspects, that indicate the "turbulence" of ethnic revival,

Koreans do not take such strong positions. So far, there are no public high schools,

wherever studied the Korean language. Instead, the Sunday schools appear in the

places of compact settlement, particularly in the Crimea, Kharkiv, Kyiv. It is

predictable, that in the process of Koreans ethnic revival in Ukraine, the need to learn

the Korean language will increase because, for the census in 2001 the following

language situation was recorded: 2223 (17.5%) persons spoke Korean language, 9662

(76.0%) – Russian language and 700 (5.5%) – Ukrainian language.

At first glance it may be noted, that among Koreans in Ukraine is the very low

percentage of those, who speak the language of their nationality. However, taking to

consideration the total russification in the former Soviet Union and especially in the

environment of small amount ethnic communities, these figures are good prospects of

Koreans returning to their language and its more active use in everyday and social

life. This has certain favorable conditions linked primarily with the legislature for its

process. We mean the Law of Ukraine "On National Minorities in Ukraine" (1992),

under which the national minorities have the right to preserve and develop their

identity in all its manifestations.

In my opinion, to the ethnolingual renaissance of Koreans in Ukraine can

contribute the fact, that the Korean language is studied at Kyiv National Taras

Shevchenko University, National Linguistic University; the functioning of Korean

firms in Ukraine, the exchange in the sphere of culture, education and information

between Ukraine and Korea also contribute to this. As for other features of ethnic

revival (the presence of the press, television and radio broadcasts, publication of

literature in Korean), it is evident, that the language environment is still insufficient

for these ethnic renaissance attributes functioning.

Thus, Koreans in Ukraine are stable component of its ethnic-national structure;

they function in the ethnic-national area of our country as the ethnic community,

which is able to reproduce itself in demographic and cultural context. One of the most

pressing problems in the process of ethnic renaissance of Koreans in Ukraine is to

return to their ethnicity via the revival of language, culture, traditions and customs.

Another important problem (noting, not only for Koreans, but also for all national

minorities, being at the ethnic renaissance point) is the problem of integration into

Ukrainian society. The question is not the resistance to this integration, but some

contradiction between the content of the two most obvious trends of modern ethnic-

national development of Ukraine. The first of them is the desire to build the national

state. It is personified the most concentrated by the representatives of Ukrainian

ethnos, the majority of national minorities members. The debate is waged largely

around the question how to implement this longing. It is obvious, that under the

Constitution of Ukraine our state is unitarian [7]. This can create the impression, that

the trunk priority of the ethno-political revival in Ukraine is the ethnically

homogeneous state, the assimilation of other components in the Ukrainian ethnic

background and the ethnic homogenization of society. The second trend – ethnic

identity revival of the other elements of ethnic-national structure is accompanied by

the growth of ethnic solidarity, internal group unity and the intensification of

minority rights ethnic movements.

Analyzing the interaction of these two trends and the impact on this interaction

of both objective and subjective various factors, we should bear in mind several

circumstances: 1) the historical continuity of many ethnic groups representatives

conflict-free (with rare exceptions) coexistence in the territory of modern Ukraine; 2)

the subordination factor, and even to some extent, the national oppression, the ethno-

social Ukrainians community and representatives of other ethnic groups development

opportunities restrictions; 3) the future identity development of the Ukrainian society

ethnic-national structure elements due to Ukraine's independence declaration; 4) the

principles of ethnic-national policy of the Ukrainian state and its implementation

mechanisms, 5) the positions of ethnic fatherland states concerning parts of their

ethnic groups, which are situated within the frame of Ukrainian ethno-political

organism, 6) the interaction possibilities of ethnic groups different parts, including

Ukrainian, 7) the foreign policy priorities and orientation of Ukraine.

On condition of the skilful ethno-political management, which should be based

on sturdy legal framework and knowledge of poly-ethnic society rules and

development features, these factors can certainly have the positive impact on the

contradiction between integration and the desire to preserve ethnic identity

overcoming. For Koreans in Ukraine, then in my opinion, in this case to resolve this

seemingly contradictory is not too difficult. The basis for this assertion is the high

level of tolerance in relations between Koreans and ethnic majority (Ukrainian) and

between Koreans and the members of other ethnic communities of Ukraine, the

positive image of Koreans due to their qualities such as diligence, absence of conflict

and the disposition to integration.

Talking about the ethnic renaissance among Koreans in Ukraine and the issue

of their ethnocultural requests satisfaction in the context of Korean ethnic community

organizational and legal functioning, then in my opinion, the most adaptable form for

them would be the national-personal autonomy. Exactly within the frame of such

autonomy, which expects the inclusion of all the representatives of any nationality in

its sphere of influence, regardless their settlement nature in the Ukrainian territory,

arises the possibility of their unity and ethno-cultural development needs satisfaction.

References:

1. Law of Ukraine "On National Minorities in Ukraine". – K., 1993. – P. 4.

2. Capotorti F. Study on the Rights of Persons Belonging to Ethnic, Religious

and Linguistic Minorities. – New York, 1979 (UN Doc. E/CN/4/Sub/2/384/Rev. 1,

UN Sales No. E. 78 1V1). – P. 96.

3. Breton R. Institutional Completeness of Ethnic Communities and the

Personal Relations of Immigrants // American Journal of Sociology. – 1964. – Vol.

70 . – № 2.

4. Yevtukh V. Tendenciyi etnonacionalnogo rozvytku ukrayins’kogo suspilstva

// Etnichni spilnoty Ukrayiny. – Kyiv: Feniks, 2001. – S. 6. (Yevtukh V. Trends in

ethnic-national development of Ukrainian society // Ethnic community of Ukraine. –

Kyiv: Phoenix, 2001. – P. 6).

5. Jewtuch W. Ethnischer Antagonismus und ethnische Solidaritaet in den

Laendern Nordamerikas // Migrationsforschung. – 1989. – Heft 22.

6. Im Jon San, Pan Il Kvon. Proekt stvorennya kompyuternoyi merezhi dlya

spilnoty ukrayins’kykh koreyciv, yaki prozhyvayut’ na pivdni krayiny // Suchasnyy

stan ta perspektyvy naukovo-kulturnogo obminu mizh Ukrayinoyu i Koreyeyu. – K.,

2001. – S. 127. (Im Jon San, Mr. Il Kvon. The project of computerized network

creation for the community of Ukrainian Koreans living in the South of the country //

Current state and prospects of scientific and cultural exchange between Ukraine and

Korea. – K., 2001. – P. 127).

7. Constitution of Ukraine. – K., 1996. – P. 4.