Consider this strange case of xenophobia and clan mentality that has arisen in Switzerland. If the People’s Party has their way, “Under the plan, entire families would be expelled if their children are convicted of a violent crime, drug offenses or benefits fraud.”
. . . ”We believe that parents are responsible for bringing up their children. If they can’t do it properly, they will have to bear the consequences,”
According to Ueli Maurer, president of the People’s Party.
The party claims foreigners — who make up about 20 percent of the population — are four times more likely to commit crimes than Swiss nationals.
Sounds awfully familiar, doesn’t it?
This sort of reasoning sounds uncomfortably familiar, to many readers here, as being more along the lines of family responsibility in North Korea (South?) or the idea of immigrants or foreigners as being the most likely vectors of crime, as one could easily infer from the South Korean media reports. Needless to say, statistics have shown this notion to be false, in Korea.
Please go here for more of this unusual article.
58 Comments
I get so tired of hearing about Korean racism. It really gets boring, since most of you can only claim some Korean kid staring at you as an example of Korean xenophobia.
BTW, may I ask you? Has your being a minority in Korea made you more understanding of minorities here in the us? I’ll bet it hasn’t because you don’t see the parallel.
pawi, congratulations on missing the point entirely. This article is perfect fodder for your tu quoque arguments about how other people besides Koreans engage in race-baiting. Hell, it’s a stated policy aim of the majority party in Switzerland. Yet all you can manage is “I get so tired of hearing about korean racism”? Weak.
I’d rather be an Indian in South Korea, than an Indian in the former East Germany.
I must say that although yes there is racism in Korea it does not get so ugly as to get very violent as we sometimes see in Western countries.
However the big difference between Korea and many Western countries, is that in the West, governments actively try to stamp out racism.
In Korea the government either promotes it or turns a blind eye to it.
Also Foreigners in Korea have no political clout to force change, and for most Koreans, this is not an issue.
Exactly “UT”, this thread is more about this sort of phenomena in Switzerland and how it could/should make one ask “is this different from what one encounters Korea and why.”
This sort of thing happens in other countries, thus it is interesting to see how it is dealt with in Switzerland. One should notice, from the article, that this issue is a very sensitive one since it invokes some of the racist policies of Nazi Germany.
As per the title of this thread, I intended this to be more a discussion of the “us vs. them” meme that occurs throughout the world, with some comparison to what one encounters here in Korea. I would have to agree with Austin in that, in the West, there is an violent edge that is rarely seen here. I would also add that everyone discriminates, only for different reasons. Despite this, some still recognize the humanity of others, whereas some do not see the person, only the difference.
I also notice the similarity in the People’s Party idea that a family should take responsibility for their children and social responsibility in Korea. This is very similar to attitudes here in Korea, but is more so an extension of “Kongja”. Perhaps there are some good attributes to this, for a society, but I also note the more negative part of this fault that results in several generations being punished for thought crime in North Korea or the idea that descendants of “Japanese collaborators” in Korea should bear some accountability for their ancestor’s deeds.
How does a society deal with the inclusion or exclusion of “outsiders” and who are the outsiders and why?
Are the true outsiders those who do not actively contribute to a society or is it just people that look different and have different cultural backgrounds?
I wonder if that is exactly the problem in the West? -that Western governments actively fight racism, thus encouraging the “us vs. them” mentality of some groups. Certainly the idea that something is banned merely encourages those types of people to go more hardcore. I mean c’mon, if the (evil) government doesn’t want you to say something, then the government must be trying to cover up the truth…
Sometimes I wish the US government would allow neo-nazis to start a race war… they’d finally get a well-deserved ass-kicking. In the current reality, they walk the fine line between hate crime and free speech.
I wish I could remember the actual quote that I’m about to change… “The first amendment protects my right to say what I want. It does not protect me from my neighbor kicking my ass.”
familiar in the sense that it’s a political trick in the upcoming elections.
The political trick… There was a Canadian woman living in Korea who went by the name of osangirl who was very good at this type of thing. She was very tricky, and she actually helped put the current Korean president into office.
“How does a society deal with the inclusion or exclusion of “outsiders” and who are the outsiders and why?
Are the true outsiders those who do not actively contribute to a society or is it just people that look different and have different cultural backgrounds?”
If a country has a long history of “immigrant families and their children growing up in schools among native children” in its midsts, then “outsider” would have to be defined as “expat who is in country temporarily and who has come to country as worker tourist, is usually without family,” etc..
I don’t know about Switzerland, but the USA has a small margin of folk within its borders that it can consider “true outsiders.” Korea on the other hand — I take it none of you grew up there?
There ought to be an “us vs them” mentality in Korea concerning its Western expats. The very fact that this is a point of criticism for many of you - whereas, as I believe, it’s totally natural for a country such as Korea- indicates to me that the mentality is justified. I have no inclination to give equity to those who are incapable of objectivity and cannot see things away from their Western lens and who insist on chastising Koreans for everything they do or believe even when these are natural.
I will gladly concede and shut up in 30 years or so, if you are still around, this “us vs them” mentality is still a central part of Korea, and you are still whining about it on the internetz.
I wonder if the difference can be explained by the fact that the non-ethnic Korean population of Korea has not reached critical mass or tipping point.
Small margin? Let me acquaint you with some statistics. Last year alone 1.3 MILLION people came to the US as legal landed immigrants. When temporary workers and undocumented residents are added, the five-year average number of people coming to the US to live and work is 1.8 MILLION people per YEAR. (http://www.migrationpolicy.org/pubs/FS16_USImmigration_051807.pdf) 1.8 million is less than one percent of America’s 300 million people, but that 1.8 million is PER YEAR.
Not all these folks rush out, learn English, and assimilate into American culture. Last Thursday night our school held its annual back-to-school open house. I spoke a lot of Spanish and even had my first extended conversation in Chinese since leaving China. Many of these parents I translated for have lived in the US for several years. The number of people who come here as adults and never become fluent in English or develop a diverse network of American friends are no “small margin.”
This statement betrays ignorance of Korean visa laws. Expats married to Koreans or doing missionary work could still conceivably be in Korea 30 years from now. Anybody else in Korea on an employment visa will be long gone, for most of the visas that bring foreigners to Korea have renewal limits that ensure these foreigners never become permanent residents.
What R. Elgin does not note is that statistics show that along with the geometric expansion of immigration into German-speaking and Nordic nations in Europe comes an exponential increase in violent crimes such as rape and murder. Hence, there is cause for alarm in Switzerland and elsewhere.
The same is not true in Korea.
whitey the great pretender.
I love other races, says whitey.
We have laws against discrimination, says whitey. Korea doesn’t, says whitey.
In reality, in whitey world, laws to revive discrimination are quietly being passed. Birth in the land does not guaranttee citizenship in whitey’s historic land anymore. Ie, Ireland and many others.
Whitey claims people from Africa and the Middle East are immigrating and criming, rioting, raping and murdering in Europe.
Meanwhile, the reality is that the same is not true in Korea.
How ironic.
whitey should wear a t shirt.
“Does not play well with others.”
I’m pretty sure that except for Cho Seung Hui and a few others, Koreans have been well behaving immigrants.
how do you put up with living in Korea, with the Heil Koguryo Youth?
have a nice Labor Day. If you are able to
#6 Certainly. A real cheap trick. The Republicans raised the gay marriage issue a fortnight before the US Presidential elections, and, although the impact of this on the Dems is hard to measure, it most definetely hurt their cause, especially in states like Ohio. An increasingly alarming tendency among nations that have democratic electorial systems in place is that parties that learn to play off of peoples’ fears seem to garnish lots of votes.
baduk jr.
Your reading comprehension is quite poor.
Why do kyopos _always_ bring the U.S. into the discussion?
Well, at least you’re not stooping to ‘cracker’… Nice to know some people still show discernment and class in using their racial slurs.
Presumably, a law that repealed the jus soli mode of granting citizenship would treat white children of foreigners the same as children of foreigners from any other descent… It might be a bad idea, but it certainly isn’t ‘discriminatory’ in and of itself…
There’s always some assholes anywhere you go. Luckily, not everyone (or even most people) in the world paints the different races and cultures with quite as broad a brush as you seem to.
#12:
Dogbertt,
although I object to your use of the term “Nordic” (because of its misuse during those infamous twelve years of German history) I substantially agree with your statement. The problem with immigration in Europe is not the sheer numbers but the fact that the intellectual and moral quality of the immigrants here is so damn low - this means that most of them end up as welfare beneficiaries. For those who are aspiring to a more well-endowed life style than the welfare payments can afford them, crime, not hard work, is the obvious solution.
And yes, a recent investigation, conducted at the verge of legality, brought to light that 91 pc of rapes in Germany are being committed by immigrants of the first or second generation, a fact that had long been known even to the female foreign students of whatever race or colour (who generally have a strong tendency towards shying away from contact with the immigrant residents here, and this for good reason).
I want to add, however, that Gyopo are hardly ever involved in this - they really represent the proverbial “model minorities” in most European countries…
“I’d rather be an Indian in South Korea, than an Indian in the former East Germany.”
Well, I am not sure whether I would wish to subscribe to this point of view - as I said before on several occasions I am an Indian-looking German who used to live in the ROK for some time. Racism and Xenophobia in Germany are largely the realm of the fringes of society, those who are unable to hold on to any job at all - the problem is that, with growing unemployment and lack of perspectives, these lunatic fringes seem to be infecting the lower classes in their entirety, particularly in the East of the country…
Middle class Germans like myself are longing for the arrival of well-qualified immigrants who are willing to work for a living instead of merely skimming of the generous welfare benefits - alas, these people do not seem to be in the immigration market or do not seem to consider Germany an option…
I guess that this has got something to do with the unpopularity of the German language which is, for a non-native speaker, not much easier to master than e.g. Korean…
It may also have something to do with German citizenship laws and those generous welfare benefits themselves. I recall reading a news article about advanced nations competing for international IT talent and how the US was still the top choice for Indian and other foreign skilled workers. Two reasons were given: America’s incredibly diverse population with its large Indian community facilitated acculturation; and the green card path to citizenship. Japan and Germany want the workers but won’t make it easy for them to get citizenship is what the article claimed.
As you seem to have observed, generous welfare benefits discourage self-reliance. Several years ago, the US federal government tightened eligibility rules on public assistance for landed immigrants. A minimum residency of five years is now required with exceptions for refugees and a few other cases. Some state governments, however, have stepped in and offer food and housing aid to immigrants who don’t meet federal guidelines.
WJK, you want to bellow tu quoque about jus soli? My son was born here in Korea (my wife and I are non-Koreans) and he does not qualify for Korean citizenship, nor any of the assistance given to Korean newborns, in spite of the fact I have paid tax here for a damn long time. Not that we care though, but glass houses man, glass houses. Oh yeah, anchor babies in Guam and Saipan, anyone?
Fair enough aaronm, but Korea never changed its laws on citizenship in reaction to rising crime, rape, dependence on welfare, did it?
That is exactly what has taken place in Europe.
They changed existing laws and looked for a way to stop immigration from Africa and the Middle East. And do it in a politically round about way.
Oddly enough, the JoongAng Ilbo has a feature article on a fellow from Bangladesh that became a Korean citizen and the discrimination that he now encounters.
It is not a pretty tale.
Why would you want South Korean citizenship anyway, unless you aren’t from a western country?
Men have duties they historically love to dodge that comes with the citizenship.
Until the Uri Party’s recent action, hojuk tied women to men for many, many things.
Korean citizens buy Hyundais at higher prices and at lower quality and performance.
Even though I don’t like Uri Party, they did some changes in society that were unthinkable under the old regime.
Not that I can blame them about the American “culture” bit, but the question is rather, do any of those folks rush out, learn English, and assimilate into American culture?
Sonagi,
Neither of your comments (10, 11) even comes close to addressing the point I was going for.
For one, I didn’t say that the group of people who don’t speak English or are not assimilated in American culture are marginal.
And the information you bring up in 11 is nothing new - and not even relevant since it doesn’t contradict.
I’d elaborate but I’ll just cut this comment short for now.
WJK, European countries simply closed a loophole. Many still allow immigration.
It seems that this mass-immigration thing has about run her course this time around. After a fairly wild 20 years, the damage is quite hard to ignore (and the benefits very easy to forget).
In the case of Switzerland, I read that more than 95% of all rapes were being done by immigrants or their kids. Those were police statistics. You just can’t ignore stuff like this forever, unless a race-war is exactly what you are trying to create.
A similar situation is underway in Sweden. The Netherlands is having oodles of problems as well.
There is a bearded pink elephant in this room.
My adopted country of Singapore does a very good job in ensuring that those who come here to stay, are productive and at a very low risk of criminality or vagrancy. The Western world ought to emulate the Singaporean immigration model.
Clueless posting, poor reading comprehension, a lot of clueless comments (except the guy who mentioned the beard and one or two others).
The integrity-challenged New York Times hooks the gullible with its Nazi and Stalin references in the first couple of paragraphs. I’m astonished anyone fell for it.
People who pay attention to current events, however, realize that the immigrants are Muslim–not white English teachers–and the NY Times can’t bring itself to mention that. It also can’t bring itself to mention the stratospheric crime rates among Muslim immigrants and their families throughout Europe–many of them sex crimes, for obvious reasons.
It also can’t bring itself to mention the severe cultural clashes underway on the Continent right now. Or what would happen to immigrants from Western countries in the countries the Swiss immigrants come from.
Some people really need to do some homework.
You might start at the site of Bruce Bawer. Credibility? He has written books severely critical of American Christian fundamentalists. He is a self-described liberal. And he moved to Europe so he could marry his gay lover.
So he sees it all first hand.
http://www.brucebawer.com/
Fact: In fewer than 20 years, more Muslim children will be born annually in The Netherlands than native Dutch children. This is already causing the Dutch who can to emigrate.
However, that’s not to say the Europeans are going to come up with politically sensitive solutions to this problem–they haven’t got the best track record when it comes to ethnic minorities.
Don’t any of you people READ? Unless you want to start living under Sharia, you better start.
Unless, of course, you figure you can preach in safety from the Korean Peninsula while other people have to live with the reality of it.
I whole-heartedly agree with WJS. While I am myself non-white (and a staunch supporter of interracial marriages in ALL directions ! ) I am nevertheless quite intimidated by the threat which is posed to the European Way of Life by the continued and excessive immigration of Muslims into practically all countries in Northern, Western and Southern Europe. Staunch adherents to the Islamic way of life (which is not the same thing as to say “all Turks, Arabs, Iranians, Pakistanis etc.”) are well-nigh impossible to integrate into Western societies, and, due to their high birth rates and their dogged determination, there is the serious risk of their taking over this continent within 20 years or so and of the subsequent eradication of its indigenous culture. Unless the Europeans find a way of dealing with this problem effectively the end of the open and liberal liberal societies that have become so characteritic of the societies based in the Western half of this fine continent after 1945 will come within our own life-span.
A very frightening prospect, indeed…
Please don’t use the word “meme”. It’s an ugly little neologism used by lowbrows to make their foreheads seem taller.
I apologise on Richard Dawkins’ behalf for having brought it into popular use.
Yes, OK, of course he is a very entertaining reader… but he simply made an error of judgement. We all make mistakes. And one of his was “meme”, the intellectual equivalent of pubic lice. Something for teenagers only.
The Europeans are not permitted to admit publicly that there is a problem, unless they are ok with being called a racist/nazi and others.
I really don’t know how the Europeans are going to fix this problem. It is not OK to encourage the death of your own culture and way of life for no reason other than the inherent value of “diversity”.
have more babies.
start living more industriously like the United States. Cut back social programs for everyone.
“all Americans do is work, work, work, and eat at McDonald’s.”
–French person misplaced in America.
Yeah, that ain’t gonna happen. They have to restrict Islamic immigration and put in a solid effort to assimilate those who are already there. Which won’t happen either.
Pytor, I do not know who “Richard Dawkins” is without looking him up. I only know that:
Meme n : a cultural unit (an idea or value or pattern of behavior) that is passed from one generation to another by non-genetic means (as by imitation); “memes are the cultural counterpart of genes” (wordnet)
I think this word describes this “us vs. them” mentality described in this thread. If there is a better way to describe this without coining new terminology (social template?), then I will use it but there is no point in not using a word just because someone else has used it or abused it.
deleted (inflammatory comment)
The point I was going for is this. America is a country that is familiar with its 1, 1.5 and 2nd generation immigrants, people (of widely varying ages) who come here to start new lives, who come with family, raise families, hope to achieve dreams, yada yada. This country has a long history of exactly this type of person, which is to say that immigrants make up an invariable feature of American life. They’re changing but constantly renewing themselves as a class.
The problem then is how do we identify the “outsider” in a country where the immigrants (even those who may not “rush out, learn English, and assimilate into American culture”) are a familiar and integral part of its social landscape? I suggested that we define the outsider as the modern “expat” who comes to America as a tourist (as opposed to the immigrant seeking a new home). (We of course can also reduce this issue to a matter of law; ie an outsider is anyone who is in America illegally.)
The reason I refer to America’s example is that it provides a useful framework for understanding Korea by contrast. Korea is not a country that ideologically celebrates its immigrant “tired and poor,” and has no substantial history of dealing with them. It would be easy to define the outsider in the Korean context. But I find it particularly meaningful that many of the people who comment in K blogs would be considered outsiders even by the criteria of a country like America.
Sure, some expats in Korea won’t be around in 30 years for whatever reason. Sure, lots of people in America are not fluent in English. These two issues have little to do with anything I wrote, and I hope that’s obvious now. Fair enough?
Just because you don’t have a statue in the middle of the Han River inscripted with, “Give me you hungry…etc.”, doesn’t mean it’s not implied. I was invited here, many others are doing the triple D’s which Koreans aren’t exactly falling over one-another to tackle. Their bosses certainly like them being here cause they can pretty much pay them and treat them as they see fit without the employees having much recourse. It’s a very similar situation to the illegal farm worker in the States who is well underappreciated.
The difference is I see it in the States and I see it here and I condemn them both vehemently and equally. You see it in the States and decide that it’s an opportunity to rationalize it in Korea.
By you stating how much we ex-pats whine on the internet I’m assuming you wish us to stop. I have given it careful consideration and with much sadness I have decided that…no, I’m not gonna stop.
Well said, Maddlew. You are taking the words right out of my mouth…
Well, at least Maddlew gets the gist and is writing something that’s actually on point.
I disagree, of course. I think expats who whine do so as expats- as outsiders - who forget they’re no longer in Kansas, constantly compare themselves to kyopo (whose situations in America are quite disanalogous to theirs in Korea), and complain in English no less, behind a computer screen.
When I was in Korea (as an Indian-looking German with a Korean wife) I frequently had reason to complain, and did so even without the protection provided by the anonymity of the Internet…
Fantasy,
To backtrack a little, Maddlew wrote:
You see it in the States and decide that it’s an opportunity to rationalize it in Korea.
^ I have not done such a thing, in fact. Maddlew seems to be referring to South Asian worker immigrants. Whereas my posts have been about “Western expats”… with respect to a specific issue (their whining and complaining about the “us vs them” mentality in Korea).
I have not claimed that such immigrants should not complaining or that you, a Western expat, should have no reason to ever complain.
# 29 Cigar time for you! What this all about is failed de-colonization. When the Europeans beat feet out of the counties they were plundering, they made the mistake of offering homecoming to all of their new countrymen. The French built ghettos for their new citizens, g-d bless their souls. A unqualified success for sure!
Sorry for the typo.
I tend to agree with what you wrote in #38. Why didn’t you say that before?
#38 Korea does not have Chinese crossing the border in search of welfare and government cheese. Expats come to Korea with the intention of making a buck then getting out save for the odd Bangladeshi. America offers land and opportunity and land. America offers Korea town like enclaves where non-English speakers can flourish, forever. America offers credit cards and driver licenses for illegal aliens. What happens in Korea if you are one day late renewing your visa? You did mention the differences but I think your distinctions were a bit soft. I do agree that a statue of Han Liberty will not be erected out in the harbor while I am alive. You see, Korea will never be available to non-Koreans. The people have lost their penchant for kibble.
My observation says US Koreatowns are not meant to be habitats for more than a generation.
Unless the person is aged more than 40 years of age, virtually all Koreans in the US profess some degree of English. Children born in the US predominantly break in successfully on their own into the English speaking society.
Korea is not ready to be available for non-Koreans. The thought never occurred to anyone seriously until post 1980.
But, with foreign brides and hubbies resulting in children, it is inevitable that laws will be passed to incorporate non-Koreans into society.
And the irony is that lawmakers who will probably lead that is not the Han Nara folk. It’s more likely the Uri folk, who are going thru a change of name only.
Objectively, the last 10 years, the left in Korea has done much more for the underrepresented way more than Han Nara has done for 40 years of rule.
Still, the time is ripe for Lee Myung Bak to take his throne.
But, with foreign brides and hubbies resulting in children, it is inevitable that laws will be passed to incorporate non-Koreans into society.
So waygook brides will get more attention than Korean women? We will be debating this one during commercial breaks of the Lawrence Welk show.
But, abcdefg, the article is not even _about_ the U.S. Even accepting your argument that “Korea is for Koreans” and “the U.S. is for Koreans”, nations like Denmark, Switzerland, and Sweden do not have that tired and misunderstood “give us your tired and poor” meme (apologies, пётр).
They should be allowed to have immigration and social policies more akin to Korea than to the U.S. and so preserve their cultures and social cohesion in the face of a criminal onslaught.
I don’t care about Sweden, Switzerland, or Denmark and haven’t been writing about them, obviously. But I agree with the 2nd paragraph of your comment. Switzerland _should_ do what it must in order to protect its integrity. Although that brings up another topic which I haven’t been writing about; namely, the issue of how a government _should_ operate towards the minorities or immigrants in a country. All this time, I’ve been merely describing two countries, comparing them, and noting what their respective histories, heritage, or experiences with certain issues entails for how their minorities are going to be perceived within the general purview of each respective society. Again, that’s not a matter of _ought_ or how a government _ought_ to function towards it minorities. That’s just denotation that follows from what a society is.
Again, I totally agree. Switzerland ought to act in a way that protects its long term interests. The USA ought to act in a way that protects its long term interests too — for which reason, I’m actually for walling up our border to the south. South Korea too ought to do what it can to protect its long term interests. - It’s presumed that all cases here government function within reason or within parameters that are justifiable and that are moral. These beliefs conflict with none of my other comments in case you’re wondering.
I’m not saying you’re contradicting yourself; simply pointing out that the original post here had nothing to do with the U.S. — it was (falsely) comparing Switzerland and Korea.
“Our”?
Thanks for pointing out the obvious.
“Korea is not ready to be available for non-Koreans. The thought never occurred to anyone seriously until post 1980.”
So the Germans thought about their country, as well. But they have learned better and nowadays bend over backwards to encourage the immigration of those who are willing to work for a living and to integrate into German society in a reasonable manner. Maybe an attitude the Koreans could copy ?
The original article was dealing with the specific problem of immigrants who do not come to a country (Switzerland or any other) in search of opportunities to work their way up in society but rather in search of opportunities to take advantage of their host country and its citizens.
It is obvious to me that no country whatever can remain passive for long when confronted with such a situation. Nor should Korea remain passive if those who came to the ROK as immigrants were behaving that way. But this is clearly not the case…
What do I suggest to the governments of all host countries, anywhere ?
Kick out the criminals, the troublemakers and those unwilling to work for their living - but be fair to those immigrants who come to your place in good faith and with honest intentions.
“I also notice the similarity in the People’s Party idea that a family should take responsibility for their children and social responsibility in Korea. This is very similar to attitudes here in Korea, but is more so an extension of “Kongja”.”
Well, while there SEEMS to be a parallel I do not believe it really exists - one of the problems with immigrants in Europe is that, in some immigrant groups, parents have a nasty habit of effectively charging their children with the task of stealing, burgling, sometimes even robbing, safe in the knowledge that over here nobody can be held responsible for ANY crime (yes, that’s right, not even for rape or murder) they commit before attaining the age of 14…
For those trying to drag the U.S. into this thread : trying to analyze Korean immigration laws and assimilation of foreigners with the same in the U.S. is pointless - the countries have vastly different histories, cultures, and geographies (large vs. small, for instance).
As for the Switzerland case, there is a very fine line between:
1) controlling crime
2) restricting immigration in an already crowded country
-and-
3) being racist or otherwise unfairly discriminatory
The first two are fine as general goals. However, when they cross over too much into the 3rd, that’s when problems occur.
In Korea, there is indeed some crossing over into the 3rd, but I don’t believe I’ve seen it quite as bad as the Switzerland case.
Indeed, the family registry system was finally and recently changed so a child can be registered under his or her mother. So, I expect more - not less - foreigner-friendly legislation and social change to take place over the coming years and decades in Korea.
It will liekly be too slow for some (the minority of foreigners and non-ethnic Koreans), yet too fast for many (the likely largely number of conservative Koreans).
Apologies, I’m very tired and full of typos. The last paragraph should instead read:
It will likely be too slow for some (the minority of foreigners and non-ethnic Koreans), yet too fast for many (the likely larger number of conservative Koreans).
Good luck to the Schweizerische Volkspartei or Union Démocratique du Centre or Unione Democratica di Centro or Partida Populara Svizra. We’re cheering you from abroad.