The House Owners in Squatting Area in Seoul ( Ⅰ ) - A Socio-Economic Survey of Oksoo #3 -

Abstract

It is well-k own fact that the Republic of Korea ranks high among world countries in population density. In particular, the population density of Seoul far exceeds the usual degree. Moreover, the population inflow into Seoul from rural areas and provincial cities in the past decade or so has sharply increased to an extent probably unparalleled in the world. Such a rapid growth of population in Seoul has been curbed to some extent since the early 1970's, when the government's policy to restrain the city's population concentration and provincial and rural development projects, particularly Saemaul(New Community) projects, went into full swing. The exploding population of Seoul, a city which had been in a defenseless state of city planning, brought about innumerable problems, such as traffic, education, waterworks and sewer systems, health, communications, squatting areas with wooden-roofed illegal houses, and so forth. Such problems arose long ago and have long persisted. Some of these problems may even be too late to solve and some problems seem to be hard to settle by the administrative power of Seoul City alone.