Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) said on the 19th that it provided rental housing in 22 complexes nationwide, including "Ansan Hometown Village," to 226 people from 138 households of Sakhalin Koreans selected this year as eligible for permanent return to Korea.
LH carried out contracts for them over two days on the 18th and 19th at locations including the Incheon Regional Headquarters. Considering the convenience of the Sakhalin Koreans, it plans to conduct contracts in cooperation with the Korean Red Cross with 50 households of Sakhalin Koreans and also onboard the return voyage.
LH has continued to provide rental housing support to aid the permanent return and settlement of Sakhalin Koreans and accompanying family members who moved to Russia's Sakhalin due to forced mobilization during the Japanese colonial period but were unable to return to their homeland after liberation. Starting in 2000 with the move-in of a total of 489 households (960 people) at "Ansan Hometown Village," it has supported rental housing for a total of 2,437 households to date. Ansan Hometown Village is an apartment complex exclusively for Sakhalin Koreans, built by LH as a pilot project for their permanent return, and it is operated as a 50-year public rental.
Cho Kyung-suk, head of the Housing Welfare Division at LH, said, "We are working to help Sakhalin Koreans settle stably in Korea in cooperation with the Korean Red Cross and the Office of Overseas Koreans," and added, "Along with rental housing support, we will actively implement institutional improvements that reflect the opinions of Koreans residing in Korea to promote tailored housing stability."