The JoongAng looks at the woe that has befallen some of the Korean women who have married men from Pakistan and Bangladesh:
As the number of international marriages continues to rise, there is no shortage of stories painting multiculturalism in a positive light. But one such marriage has left a woman fighting for custody of her son in a trend of marital deception that appears to be growing.
The woman, who asked to be identified only as Oh, 38, is part of an Internet group with thousands of members who have suffered as a result of marriages with Pakistani and Bangladeshi men. The Korean women writing there have shared stories of being tricked into marriages with migrant workers from the two countries as well as verbal and physical abuse.
Needless to say, it’s all TV’s fault:
“There are so many women who have similar stories as mine. Most of us were hesitant to marry a migrant worker, but all of the TV shows and news stories beautifying multiculturalism and the stories of multicultural families living happily in Korea comforted us,” Oh said. “But now, all of us are suffering from broken marriages. I just don’t want to see any more victims like myself.”
Your Uncle Marmot is not going to touch this.
And don’t blame me. Blame Gypsy Scholar. I read it on his blog first.
Moving on…
Earlier in the month, online daily eToday looked at how even as Korean society grows more multicultural, Korean women married to foreign dudes are still being ostracized (great graphic, BTW). They talked to one woman who just broke up with her American boyfriend: the relationship was fine, but she got tired of people around her asking her questions (“How could you go out when you can’t communicate? How’s he in bed?) and thinking she’s a slut. They also talked to another woman who married a Thai man she met while she was studying abroad. He’s an educated man, good-looking and capable, but people still think he’s a guest worker. Moreover, because he’s neither a “marriage immigrant” or a Korean national, they can’t can’t the government support offered other multicultural families.
The paper notes that while attitudes towards international marriages and relationships are turning towards the better due to globalization, women stll avoid making public relationships with foreign men due to lingering social prejudices.
They asked women with foreign husbands or boyfriends why it seemed only Korean women still faced difficulties with international relationships. Their responses?
- The stigma of the yang gongju—the Korean women who went about with American servicemen in the 1960s and 1970s—continues to live on. The woman who just broke up with her American boyfriend cited this as the reason, saying that people carefully but continuously kept asking her questions about their sex life, questions that nobody would ask if her boyfriend were Korean. The paper noted you could easily find hateful comments or posts about women dating foreigners on portal sites.
- Pure blood and parental opposition. The parents of Mrs. A, who is married to a Canadian of Chinese descent, wouldn’t meet her husband while they were still going out. Only after he proposed did they relent and meet him. In Korea, where ideas about “pure blood” still run strong, women who date foreigners are branded. Strong parental opposition to their daughters dating foreigners is connected to this. Moreover, foreign husbands without Korean blood are thoroughly relegated to non-mainstreem status in Korean society. In the case of the woman who married the Thai dude, they left Korea to live in Thailand due to the discrimination she witnessed her then-boyfriend take. He spoke perfect English, and spoke Chinese, Thai and Korean, but could find no work in Korea, and was sometimes treated unkindly because he was Thai.
- Cultural tensions. Mr. B, a university English instructor who married a Korean women, said he felt when he was dating his wife in Korea, Koreans they met would force Korean culture on him. For example, in America, squid is rarely eaten, and there are few dishes with fish with heads still attached. When they went out to eat in Korea, however, Koreans would not respect these cultural differences and forced him to eat unfamiliar dishes, telling him they were good for him and delicious. He wanted to actively learn and exerience the culture of Korea, the land of the woman he loved. He was perplexed, however, at being forced to chose between his tastes and cultural sensibilities and those of Korea. Korean women with foreign boyfriends are apparently sick of this, too, having to hear people bitch about “Korean identity” when they try to protect their boyfriends from this.
- Only Korean men are supposed to marry foreigners.
The problem is, according to the paper, that these attitudes are deeply rooted in society. You can easily see this in the Multicultural Family Support Law, which defines multicultural families as “marriage immigrants and family members who have acquired Korean citizenship.” Korean women who marry foreign men resident in Korea are not included.
{ 204 comments… read them below or add one }
It’s telling that they can present such a diversity of stories, and yet still basically cast the conceptual divide as monocultural vs. multicultural.
Also telling about yours truly, that where Ms. Oh sees a problem with “guest workers” taking children away from their mothers, I can’t help but suspect that it’s a problem with “Muslims”, who are inculcated with the backward belief that a father has sole control over his children. Would a Filipino or Vietnamese man have been as likely to do this? Religious bigot I well may be, but I fucking doubt it.
Cockblocking masquerading as journalism. Media stories citing websites usually include a link or at least the name of the website, yet the online forum where Korean spouses of migrant workers commiserate was not named or linked. I guess we’ll just have to trust the professional integrity of the reporter.
A “marriage immigrant” may be offered government support? Am I missing out on something here? What support is being offered, and what requirements exist in order to receive it?
Here you go:
http://oneclick.law.go.kr/CSM/OvCnpRetrieveP.laf?csmSeq=502&ccfNo=3&cciNo=5&cnpClsNo=1
BTW, I enjoyed all kinds of Korean food that my gf wouldn’t touch (홍어회, 막창, 육회), and she couldn’t even stand black olives. So take that, ajummas.
I didn’t see any cockblocking in the article.
I am white and all my Korean associates and Korean friends and Korean coworkers are always telling me to “please” hurry up and “please” marry a Korean girl.
Why do they want me to marry a “Korean girl” so much if they don’t like Korean girls marrying “white guys”?
“Oh” really is a stupid lady along with the “1000′s on her website” who are stupid enough to marry a 3D worker from India/Bangladesh just to get them a visa and permanent residency, afterall she did fly to Pakistan to marry him and bring him back to Korea.
Mr. B is also stupid complaining that Koreans are “forcing Korean culture on him” simply because they are telling him that squid and fish with heads still attached are good for his health, how is that so bad?
what an idiot, what did he expect when HE CHOSE to marry a Korean girl.
Did he really think that all the Korean friends and Korean family they hang out with were going to encourage them to eat hamburgers, pizza and hotdogs every day?
When people choose to do things, they shouldn’t complain about things afterwards, nobody forced them to get married.
Thanks, Robert – that’s a great website (even if, through it, I learned that I qualify for bupkis). It also provided a link to another interesting resource: Korea Legislation Research Institute’s English version of the Statutes of the ROK.
Free childcare, healthcare, and education that are available for multicultural families are not available for Korean-Korean families. It must be so tough for a multicultural family to be treated preferentially.
1) You seem to be a happy and content guy. Perhaps it is their way to put an end to that? Misery loves company!
2) Seriously, there is a division between
(a) everyday people in your world who may wish for your happiness. Even if they denounce such marriages in general or in theory, they can make a distinction between you and the scary people they see on TV
(b) busybodies (mainly, experts, journalists, intellectuals, activists) who have insecurities they want to project onto others and/or need something to write or talk about. Their misery really does love company.
Reread the final paragraph.
“They talked to one woman who just broke up with her American boyfriend: the relationship was fine, but she got tired of people around her asking her questions”
So you break up with your loved one because of what other people say? That doesn’t make any sense. But it is a good ideal to use this as an excuse to break up with someone you want to get rid of.
Never had any problems like that. My wife’s family was quite open and they’ve never really pushed me to try anything very unusual. in fact they’ve often been overly accommodating. Last summer we went for a visit during the peak heat period and they didn’t have an air conditioner. Before we went I said it wouldn’t be a problem, we wouldn’t in the house too much, but they went out and spent about 1.5 million on putting in a new system before we got there, just for the 3 days we’d be there.
That’s not to say some people don’t get flack for it, but I’ve never gotten any rude stares from older men or women in all the years we’ve been together.
Though from the article it does sound as if some people are rather clueless.
Honestly, when I first came to Korea, you wouldn’t even think to hold hands with a Korean woman (or a woman who looked Korean) in public.
Now nobody says jack shit.
At the risk of sounding like an apologist, it seems to me things have gotten much better in this regard, although I admit my own experience must also take into account location (countryside vs. city) and the fact that my wife is not in fact Korean.
how many of these foreifn men have been lynched? in some parts of the world, murder was the reaction when a colored man dared to plough the snow. keep that in mind.
Too many women cited. Let’s get a Korean male’s perspective on this. This is from JejuIslander over at Korean Sentry in the “Mixed-race children face new obstacles” thread.
Robert may be repressing the memories, but we used to hold hands across our cubicle dividers until the Korea Overseas Information Service gave him a phone call about it.
Some binoculars they must have in those government buildings.
Happy [s]Han Chinese[/s] New Year to you too.
For me it’s been co-workers pushing to eat food I don’t want to eat. What’s amusing to me is how they insist I must eat Korean food, yet when outside Korea they all huddle together in Korean eateries. Five Yulchon partners and I are off to India next week — I’m giddy with anticipation for the food — yet I just know we’ll be in a Korean restaurant at least twice. I hope I can sneak away to McDonald’s.
I really don’t see the benefit of multicultural society in countries like Korea and Japan.
I just don’t.
Co-workers pushing you to eat Korean food.
ask them why so many Koreans frequent foreign restaurants in Seoul (Outback, Everest, Nepal kebap, etc etc) if Korean food is the staple?
Multiculturalism seems fine is some countries – http://tiny.cc/ioi02
Japanese and Koreans just like blaming their problems on foreigners.
They have always been afraid of foreigners.
(Turkey kebap – not Nepal) my mind was too busy thinking about the Everest menu.
enomoseki,
maybe it is because there is still some ghetto, separation of foreigners from Koreans. There is also an issue of people from poorer countries and the general stigma associated with that image.
Year of the Dragon,
It seems to me that Koreans and Japanese have a long way to go to get used to dealing with foreigners. They’ve been so insular with 99.99% Korean of Japanese historically in their respective countries. Then the government policies of the last 1/2 centuries don’t help politically and economically with their mercantalist approach.
Oh, I might add about Yang Gongju, also people may assume that they are prostitutes or worked as bargirls.
“Cultural tensions. Mr. B, a university English instructor who married a Korean women, said he felt when he was dating his wife in Korea, Koreans they met would force Korean culture on him. For example, in America, squid is rarely eaten, and there are few dishes with fish with heads still attached. When they went out to eat in Korea, however, Koreans would not respect these cultural differences and forced him to eat unfamiliar dishes, telling him they were good for him and delicious. He wanted to actively learn and exerience the culture of Korea, the land of the woman he loved. He was perplexed, however, at being forced to chose between his tastes and cultural sensibilities and those of Korea. ”
Imagine that, Koreans wanting him to try Korean food in Korea. The nerve of them.
Did they hold the guy down and use a stick to force the food down his throat? LOL
My in-laws know there is some Korean food that I love and some that I don’t like as much. They always pick a restaurant that serves some of my favorite food.
#2,
Yes, I was wonder why they would print such a ridiculous story. The anecdotes seem like BS to me.
#5,
Yes, I have an Irish friend who’s like you. He’ll eat dishes most younger Koreans would never eat.
And 홍어회 is something everyone must try at least once in their life.
#17,
Ever been on a tour with Koreans? They complain about the food the whole time, especially the old ladies…and there’s always a stop at a Korean restaurant, or two (better yet, the last tour we took, we stayed at a hotel owned by a Korean. Every meal was Korean food). It drives my wife and I up the wall because one of the main reasons we travel is to try the local food.
#18,
Who is going to keep this country going in 20 years with the birthrate being so low? Multiculturalism is not only a reality, it’s a necessity for South Korea.
#26,
That’s true.
Multiculturalism may be necessary for Korea’s survival as a nation.
I sometimes get the impression that a multiethnic but monocultural society is more the aim (of official policy) than actual multiculturalism.
Multiethnic but monocultural was successful in America through the 1980s.
And it might work here- most of the policies seem well meaning/designed to help the socially marginalised.
I just meant the term ‘multicultural’ seems a bit misleading when I would guess people prefer foreigners to understand and conform to Korean culture, rather than to incorporate diversity.
Isn’t being multicultural a fundamental part of American culture/identity btw? Which 80′s policies were you referring to? I am guessing education policy and the like.
In the Confucian sense the bloodline is passed on through the semen…
Liz—Those KOIS guys can be pretty nosy, can’t they?
More like two separate, unequal cultures until the 1960s.
Australia has pretty much gone through the same meaningless assimilation v multiculturalism debate, with multiculti winning out over the last 20 years or so, at least as a label to bandy about.
Personally I see the benefits of both, but I don’t see first generation assimilation as being realistic in countries with high immigration rates. People don’t migrate to buy into a particular way of life or culture – they do so for economic reasons, and they almost always try to preserve their old way of life. White people are no different – look at the expat enclaves in the East. How many English teachers immerse themselves in the local culture and language?
Brendon: you speak highly of assimilation, but how assimilated are you in the ROK? Do you think you’ll ever forgo western food, or love Korea more than you do your birthplace? Should you expect immigrant families in the US to do so? There’s no rush; their kids will take that path, so long as they’re not victimized, excluded (by locals) or isolated (by their own clan). At the end of the day whether the government endorses multi-culti or assimilation doesn’t really make any difference.
“Who is going to keep this country going in 20 years with the birthrate being so low? Multiculturalism is not only a reality, it’s a necessity for South Korea.”
No it’s not. Only Bangladesh and Taiwan have higher population density than S.Korea. S.Korea doesn’t need more people when you have North Korea almost about to collapse. Then you have large Korean disporas in China, Japan, and former Russian Republics, who are perfect candidates for immigration back to Korea, while everyone waits for the north to collapse. This is not about racialism, but it’s fact that the more similar you are, the easier the transition to assimilation, than say, people from Pakistan or Bangladesh or Vietnam.
I actually agree with those women who complain that there’s been too many feel good TV shows on multiculturalism. South Korea has been bombarded by it in the media, but no-one have any tolerance to allow a debate on this – it’s as if this is being forced upon South Koreans without a choice.
Public schools are the primary means of transmitting citizenship in the sense of membership in the community. Our immigrant population is mostly Spanish-speaking from Mexico and Central America. The kids mix easily with non-Hispanic peers at the elementary level and tend to segregate themselves at the secondary level owing to a preference by older immigrant children to speak Spanish in the hallways and at lunch. The parents speak little English but encourage their children to behave and learn at school. Many give their American-born children English names to denote their legal status as US citizens. The general attitude of Hispanic immigrant parents in our community and perhaps others comprised mostly of immigrant adults and their children is illustrated by a student’s hand-embroidered bracelet bearing his name and the flags of Mexico and the US. Greater self-segregation would be expected in communities with a large ethno-linguistic group anchored by second and third generation hyphenated Americans whose ancestral ties are maintained through a steady stream of new immigrants.
As Hoju noted, another factor is the degree of acceptance by the mainstream culture. The war on illegal immigration has fueled expressions of hatred against Hispanics, including acts of violence. The kids I teach understand the concept of “having papers” but are thankfully not yet aware of the vitriol hurled at people like their parents or older siblings. I’m not talking about reasonable statements like “Our immigration laws should be enforced,” but rather hateful spewing about “illegals” who should be rounded up en masse and jailed, or better yet, shot at the border.
I haven’t seen any country get this multiculturalism and immigrantion thing right. I agree with people who say it’s a necessity since rural people have a hard time finding mates. I’m beginning to think the only way to get Koreans to snap out of their insular habits is to flood the country with immigrants.
What about foreign wives?
This beautiful family has popped straight out of the Moominland
enomoseki #18 wrote: “I really don’t see the benefit of multicultural society in countries like Korea and Japan. I just don’t.”
When people make such a “I’m just saying” kind of statement, I wonder if there is a particular policy idea you had in mind, such as a quota on the number of international marriages/people into the country/or another policy?
SomeguyinKorea #24 wrote: “Yes, I was wonder why they would print such a ridiculous story. The anecdotes seem like BS to me.”
Believe it!
1) Some people have interesting and common-sense “dog-bites-man”
observations, analysis, anecdotes.
2) More more people have the opposite.
3) It is the job of reporters to find a mix of 1 and 2, with an emphasis on “man-bites-dog” observations and anecdotes.
KoreanSentryRacism #15 quoted some idiot calling for taxes on interracial couples.
So many people see or hear about a problem and they want the government to punish people. Most of the political fights in this world are caused by rabble-rousers and busybodies who don’t know how to leave other people alone.
If you look at the current trends in interracial marriages in South Korea the trend has decreased by more than 100% from 10.5% in 2010 to 4.3% in 2011. I see this as a positive trend.
There is no way that immigration and interracial marriage is going to be sustainable in Korea. Immigration actually has a negative effect on the economy because the government needs to support them. Korea is spending too much tax money on welfare for multicultural families and it’s getting ridiculous.
I support a homogeneous Korea. Korea is not America or Australia. Korea’s population is nowhere near as aged as Japan’s and immigration will actually worsen the Korean economy because most immigrants from Southeast Asia and South Asia are lazy (due to cultural differences) and can’t be efficient as Koreans. It’s true.
I know there are anti-multicultural movements in Germany where many Turkish immigrants are being murdered by Germans. There have been anti-multicultural riots in London and many British YouTubers are posting anti-multicultural videos.
Korea is the most homogeneous nation in the world and this is its strength: a strength which increases its efficiency and promotes stability and that is what I like about Korea and I think it makes it more unique and peaceful.
People like redwhitedude are the reason why many Koreans have negative perceptions of foreigners. People like redwhitedude are destroying the reputation of foreigners in Korea.
Oh and sorry if I made multiple comments.
H.Schmidt #41 wrote: “Immigration actually has a negative effect on the economy because the government needs to support them. Korea is spending too much tax money on welfare for multicultural families and it’s getting ridiculous.”
(ears perking up)
1) How much is being spent on welfare for multicultural families? Not doubting, just wondering what the numbers are.
2) How much is the government spending on immigration?
3) And could you define a little more precisely by what you mean the government is spending money on immigration?
And after considering those statistics and that clarification:
4) If the government cut or even eliminated spending on immigration and welfare for multicultural families, what’s the policy you would support? Don’t mean to lead you in a particular direction on this, but are you suggesting a quota or some other restrictions in case people keep wanting to come to Korea even if handouts aren’t waiting for them?
to nayaCasey: (#43)
Good question. That is the kind of information that I would imagine a thinktank like this organization to have. Perhaps contact them for details.
Sorry, I messed up that link. Try this one here.
Korea offers welfare for immigrants and multicultural families regardless of their income. So rich multicultural families receive welfae from the Korean government whereas poor Korean families don’t. If you don’t believe me then you need to read more often.
Korean families don’t get the benefits which multicultural families get. It really shows how Korean politics fails to meet the needs of poor Korean households and yet they spend all that money on welfare for multicultural families. Koreans are experiencing reverse discriminatio. This is why there are so many illegal immigrants forging citizenship papers in South Korea because they know they can exploit the system and get all the welfare. This is why I don’t understand Korea. Why give foreigners all this welfare, whereas poor Korean households continue to suffer. You don’t see rich Scandinavian countries like Sweden handing out welfare mindlessly to immigrants and multicultural families. So why are Koreans (who don’t even earn half as much income than the average Swede) forced to have their tax money be spent on non-Koreans? It’s ridiculous.
H.Schmidt #46,
Concerning Sweden, a member of the parliament of Sweden will be speaking at an event organized by Hamel’s favorite think tank.
Hamel 44 and 45, as always, thanks for your support and interest. But in the future, please kindly link here.
nayaCasey: You are welcome. Sorry that I linked to the home page of your site. I thought that perhaps the Korean side of your org might have gathered that kind of data but not have passed it on to your section.
Seriously though, are you really asking us busy blog commenters to do the work of your staff? You wrote that you are good at delegating, but to delegate to outsiders?
Hamel #50, I hate to interrupt your ride on your latest hobby-horse, but…
How about using your brain power on something more constructive? I asked the other day which term is more appropriate for those who have successfully run away from North Korea–”defector,” “refugee,” “ex-Korean” or a different term. You are one of the folks who has been here long term, apparently have a lot of knowledge about the Koreas. Do you have a suggestion? As I said, “defector” seems like the wrong term, even if it was concocted by the lawyers. If you have an answer then you can answer on this thread, thread 231, or the “Finally something worth protesting about.
#42- “If you look at the current trends in interracial marriages in South Korea the trend has decreased by more than 100% from 10.5% in 2010 to 4.3% in 2011. I see this as a positive trend.”
Is going from 10.5% to 4.3% a decrease of more than 100%? Your assertions that follow your show of mathematic brilliance are equally suspect.
In the tradition of Ambrose Bierce
hobby horse (n., fig.) something silly that only other people ever ride on.
#52- “Is going from 10.5% to 4.3% a decrease of more than 100%? Your assertions that follow your mathematical brilliance are equally suspect.”
I meant 50%.
Quick note:
H. Schmidt is NOT related to an H.E. Schmidt who happens to live in Korea, married to a Korean wife and with a Korean son.
Just remember Korea doesn’t need a huge population. It is smaller than all the Scandinavian countries but it has a much larger population than all of them combined. Korea is not as aged as Japan. North Korea has a higher proportion of younger people (aged 0-14) which means Korea will have a significant young population to balance aging South Korea.
Multiculturalism has proven to be a failure in the UK and Germany. Germans are murdering Turkish immigrants. A few years ago, Swedish women decided to wear anti-rape belts due to many rapes by immigrants.
Yet Korea’s GDP/capita is only about $20,000/capita. Korea is in no position to use tax money to provide welfare benefits such as free childcare, healthcare and welfare money. Koreans don’t get these benefits and this is unfair and wrong. I know plenty of Korean couples who want 2 or more children however can’t because they don’t have enough money. If you’ve read the news in the past few weeks there was an article which reported that a survey showed the average number of children wanted to be born by couples was approximately 2 babies however the fertility rate is only 1.23 children born per woman. If more tax money is spent on giving more welfare to middle to low income Korean households then we would most likely see an increase in the indigenous Korean birthrate. Korea should not waste its tax money to provide welfare for immigrants and multicultural families.
Multicultural families don’t even make up 1% of South Korea’s population and yet so many resources are being spent on welfare for them while Koreans don’t receive any welfare. That is disguising.
Why should Koreans have to suffer in their own nation. Korea is the only country I know which provides welfare only for immigrants but none for the country’s native people. What is going on in Korea is reverse discrimination.
Korea is the most homogenous nation in the world ands this is what makes Korean society stable and efficient. Korea should remain homogeneous and I will always support a homogeneous Korea.
H.Schmidt: Not that I disagree—funamentally, I don’t, even if I have questions about some of the details you’ve provided—but I do find it odd that a man with such pride in Korea’s ethnic homogeneity would post under a white man’s name. Be proud of being Korean and use a more appropriate ID.
Methinks he’s a gun fan!
#57- “Korea is the most homogenous nation in the world ands this is what makes Korean society stable and efficient. Korea should remain homogeneous and I will always support a homogeneous Korea.”
Korea is one of the most region-/academic-/class-/sex- (as in discrimination against women) conscious societies anywhere, where people discriminate against their fellow countrymen for the stupidest reasons. Before you decry any miniscule amount of multiculturalism — although I agree, it could get out of hand when leftists in the West run amok in singing its praises — that’s present in Korea, let’s condemn the unfair treatment that goes on among native Koreans.
I do agree the degree of social programs to help out multicultural families are clear violation of fairness and is discrimination against native Korean families. Some of these programs are universal, meaning they get them whether they really need them or not. It’s a clear case of reverse discrimination against the majority, yet very few Koreans have complained, which I think is amazing. Pretty soon, what’s next.. we’re going to start seeing affirmative actions on jobs and education, of the kind that we see in the West. I’m against all free hand outs to anyone – multicultural families and native Koreans – unless they are utterly destitute. There should be equal opportunities for everyone.
re # 42, 43, 47, 50, 54, 56 & 57
Instead of just saying things, how about writing REAL statements with links to back-up what you are saying.
Swedish women wearing anti-rape belts due to being raped by immigrants is due to multiculturalism?
Let’s seriously take a look at WHO is raping Swedish women…
so couldn’t we just say it’s those damn Africans who are doing all the raping in Sweden?
Therefore, couldn’t we just say that it’s NOT the western immigrants but those damn Muslims who are doing all the raping?
so, instead of saying that “multiculturalism” has cause Swedish women to wear rape belts due to the increase in rapes, shouldn’t you just say that the increase in AFRICAN and MUSLIM immigrants have caused the increase in rape.
So, multiculturalism CAN work, however the countries allowing immigrants to flood in, should be more “selective” as to what countries and ethnic/religious groups they allow the immigrants to come from.
(example – LESS African and Muslim immigrants).
soource – http://majorityrights.com/weblog/comments/muslim_rape_wave_in_sweden/
I have seen multiculturalism work in Australia, but I would also like to see LESS muslims allowed to immigrate to Australia, because they are the ones who seemed to have more “messed-up-minds”.
A group of Swedish teenage girls has designed a belt that requires two hands to remove and which they hope will deter would-be rapists,
http://www.thelocal.se/2546/20051122/
Mr. # 42, 43, 47, 50, 54, 56 & 57 please do tell us (with sources/links as evidence) what “many resources are being spent on welfare for Korean multicultural families”…
as far as I always knew, multiculturalist families in Korea are the most discriminated against, lacking in resources and shunned by Koreans.
Please do give evidence to show how they have so many resources spent on them, and how that is causing “pain and suffering” to Korean persons.
and from the sounds of it, if you ARE Koreans using the “H.Schmidt” name how about I change my user name to Lee, HyunSik or Park, DongJoon ?
Actually, just went back into the archive. Maybe H.Schmidt isn’t Korean after all:
http://www.rjkoehler.com/2011/08/01/no-dokdo-or-ulleungdo-for-you/#comment-426548
Ok, I won’t change my name then.
Being German explains where he got his info on Germans killing Turks and Sweden etc..
“as far as I always knew, multiculturalist families in Korea are the most discriminated against, lacking in resources and shunned by Koreans.”
Somewhere I hear the violin playing in the background….
That’s the old Korea of circa 1998.
Except for the language education for the kids and the parents, I don’t see the needs of any of these special programs – they seem like total waste of tax payer’s money.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ou6JVlCXlJw
Universal free daycare for multicultural families, free universal education for multicultural families, fee universal healthcare for multicultural families, free free free… The Korean politicians are promising all kinds of free programs for the Koreans electorate, as the fight and debate is on. Yet here we have, multicultural families already getting what so many Koreans are clamoring for. Korea has already started turning into a socialist paradise. Hey, don’t get me wrong, I also like free stuff.
My comment in moderation again..
The Korean government is in danger of sparking resentment towards reverse discrimination. Welfare for multicultural families only. What happened to equality for all?
http://www.koreaherald.com/lifestyle/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20110301000137
#64(Robert). I’m not Korean but I’m one of the few people who care about Korea’s future. All these idiots suggesting Koreans are racist have either never been there or hold some kind of prejudice against Koreans.
Yes I think Korea being homogeneous is a good thing although it doesn’t mean there should be racism. Korea can not benefit if it continues to provide so much welfare to immigrants and multicultural families. What the Korean government is doing now is basically giving so many benefits to multicultural families (regardless of their income) while poor Korean households continue to suffer and this basically limits the native Korean birthrate.
I think Korea should really start focusing on its own people first before it even thinks about helping immigrants, multicultural families and illegal residents.
Korea should deport illegal immigrants. It’s needed in such an overcrowded place like South Korea.
As a foreigner when I asked Korean couples (friends and acquaintances) why they only have one son/daughter they always say it’s because they don’t have enough money. So the tax money should be going to these native Korean couples who face so much economic difficulty. Korea needs to focus on providing welfare benefits like free childcare, child healthcare and baby bonuses for its own people first.
Korean provides all of those things for its Korean citizens already.
(The political mood is for increased welfare for the general population, rather than for reduced benefits for minorities. Many Koreans argue that multicultural families are generally disadvantaged, and need extra support.
According to the Gender Ministry, 70 percent of childbearing households in Korea are eligible for free child care.)
+ the healthcare + the free school lunches + the baby bonuses etc etc
http://tiny.cc/2585a
What do you suggest we do with these “immigrants” round them up, put them in gulags and concentration camps?
One of the few, eh?
“Korean provides all of those things for its Korean citizens already.”
No they don’t. At least it’s not universal yet, unlike for the multicultural families. Korean families must prove that they are below the require minimum, while multicultural families don’t (and doesn’t matter whether they really need the help or not).
“The political mood is for increased welfare for the general population, rather than for reduced benefits for minorities.”
Just because that’s the political mood, doesn’t mean that’s OK. Korea will go bankrupt with all this free stuff for everyone. Where’s the money coming from?
Look at this impressive handbook put out by the Immigration and Naturalization office.
http://www.129.go.kr/upload/english/hapeng.pdf
Impressive! Not even Canada has such impressive programs for the newcomers that matches them.
Without the immigrants Korea would also go bankrupt.
Who is doing the 3D (Dirty, Dangerous and Demeaning (often Dirty, Dangerous and Demanding or Dirty, Dangerous and Difficult) jobs in Korea that help run the economy.
We all know Korea doesn’t have enough “females” for all its male citizens.
Korea needs immigrants, and needs to help them as we also know they are shunned, demeaned and not accepted in society.
where is the money coming from?
Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education will dismiss all its foreign teachers during the next 12 months.
Cigarettes have just increased in price again recently.
Subway and bus fares have just increased in price recently.
The government knows where to get money from, and the government also knows how to give it away in aid to North Korea, whilst North Korea keeps threatening to wipe South Korea off the map.
#72 – what’s that got to do with showering them with special programs at the expense of the majority who don’t get those same benefits? Are you arguing for reverse discrimination and inequality? Korea should be aiming for equality, showering the newcomers with special priviledges will only breed future problems. Social welfare programs that go overboard, is not the answer to every problems.
“Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education will dismiss all its foreign teachers during the next 12 months.”
So Korean families will lose out on their English education, so that they can support the free programs for multicultural families. That’s totally fair.
“Subway and bus fares have just increased in price recently.”
Yes, for the majority, they have to shell out, so that they can support a free program for special discounts and free fares for the multicultural families who qualify for the special transport subsidies.
Brilliant! Way to go to promote inequality and discrimination.
It worked in my homecountry, and citizens of my homecountry are happy that the government shells out money on immigrants.
That way citizens of my homecountry are sure that immigrants are being taken care off and don’t have to become criminals to survive.
Koreans always look at things rather selfishly, “Why should they get that when we don’t get it”..
instead of
“Well, if they get that, it will help them to fit in and become productive citizens within our society”
selfish, selfish, selfish as usual…
#76 – where’s your home country?
“Koreans always look at things rather selfishly, “Why should they get that when we don’t get it”..”
I don’t think that’s particularly a Korean trait. It’s a universal trait. Everyone wants fairness and equal treatment. I doubt that even in your own country, people who see the immigrants getting all the welfare programs but very few programs for the native families, will just sit and watch and say/do nothing. I highly doubt that, knowing very well how much of an issue immigration and welfare is in the west right now. Interestingly, there’s far less controversy regarding multicultralism in Korea, than in the West. So your charges of Koreans being typically selfish
in this case, is totally unwarranted and baseless.
My home country seems to consist of un-selfish people then…
that makes me proud then, if you are saying even western countries are selfish like in Korea.
#78 – how can it be a selfish country when they’re practically sparing nothing giving free stuff out like no tomorrow? Does your home country have universal welfare programs for multicultural families only but none to little for natives, like Korea does? I do not believe the welfare gap is that large in the West, as it is in Korea.
I’m sorry, my country has universal welfare programs for everyone, and it makes the citizens proud when they can say “I don’t need it, I would rather not accept it, as I am doing fine without it”.
But they don’t complain about the people taking welfare, because they realize the people taking welfare need it, and are happy that those people are getting assistance in order to fit well into society.
Year of the Dragon, Korean households are disadvantaged when it comes to welfare. All multicultural families get all the welfare benefits whereas Korean families don’t. All this money is contributed by hard-working Koreans, and yet Koreans don’t get any benefits from it.
Do you see Sweden spending all their tax money on welfare for immigrants and multicultural families? Korea.s GDP/capita is far less than Sweden’s and yet Korea spends more tax money on welfare for immigrants and multicultural families. This is wrong and unfair to Koreans. Koreans should be the ones who get first preference for welfare benefits, not non-Koreans.
I suppose one could view that as selfish. Others might view it as expectation of equal treatment.
Don’t bother arguing with The Year of the Dragon. He obviously isn’t reading what we have explained.
“I’m sorry, my country has universal welfare programs for everyone”
That’s right, your home country (wherever that is), has universal programs for all – not the same thing as in Korea where the native Koreans are being left out of these programs. You’re telling me none of your country’s people will complain if this was the case in your country? Come on. I’m an equal opportunist, everyone should be treated equally. Discriminating against immigrants is wrong, but so is reverse discriminating against the natives is wrong as well. Affirmative action in the west is a form of discrimination against whites, something Korea should never follow. In fact, I’m against all forms of welfare unless people are destitute and really need help as the last option.
I read and understand what you are saying “equal treatment!” “equal rights”
but I see things differently, I see things in a viewpoint, that the people who are the MOST disadvantaged, need those extra things to help them fit into society.
in the end, that helps all of society, as it helps everyone become equal.
yeah… I guess my country is a “welfare” country, but nobody in my country seems to mind.
We pay HIGH taxes and are proud of helping those who need help.
“Subway and bus fares have just increased in price recently .£
And whocontributes to raising the government revenue for these increased costs? Koreans. Koreans are the ones who contribute 90.9% of the revenue raised and yet all this money is being spent on welfare for non-Koreans. This money should go to welfare benefits for native Koreans, not immigrants and multicultural families.
*99.9% of the revenue raised
“We pay HIGH taxes and are proud of helping those who need help.”
Precisely the reason why Korea should never follow your advice or your country’s policies.
in the meantime, just so you know, I have lived in Korea for 11 years, and I do give a lot of my money away to Koreans who need it.
It started when I was here in 2001, (one year before the 2002 FIFA world cup) and saw all the orphaned, homeless children living and begging in Seoul station.
From that time on, I stayed in Korea, work and earn a living and give most of my money helping the needy people in Korea, especially homeless people living in subway stations and on the street.
and I don’t live in luxury myself, after I give my money away each month helping Korean people, often I can only just afford to pay my utilities and bills myself.
when I see people complaining about “immigrants” being given more “special treatment” and how unfair that it, it makes me sick, knowing how they are also shunned and demeaned in Korean society.
@#90 – how are they demeaned and shunned? Are you even aware that in 2009 – three years ago which is ages ago in Korea, only about 30% of multicultural brides said they were discriminated at least once? I do agree they’re getting demeaned though, through constant over sympathy that they’re living in poverty. They’re people just like you and I, with pride too.
I hope I havent missed something, but can anyone tell me how much money is spent on these benefits, the percentage of GDP or the tax burden on the average korean family? Also, if these benefits were means tested properly, how many immigrants would qualify anyway?
The idea that the tax burden of supporting foreigners is the cause of the declining birth rate doesn’t seem very plausible. And since alot of these people are going to (be allowed to) stay and settle in Korea, helping to socialise them and even keep them healthy would have some tangible benefits.
#91 Why do you think that 99% of children from multicultural families drop out of school by mid-middle school.
They need more help, and it is in Koreans best interests (as #92 said) to help them and stop being so selfish by complaining about it.
H.Schmidt if only your country (Germany) had spent more money on the Turkish immigrants, they would have fitted into society better and there would be no reason for Germans to run around shooting them as you stated in #42.
The Turkish immigrants in Germany obviously didn’t get the support to fit into society that they needed.
Give the immigrants the support and assistance they need (without being selfish) and these problems in society would be avoided.
#93 – Racism sensitivity training in schools are required, and I agree they need help with certain things like language and job trainings – the minimum that is required to be fully functional in the new society. But what’s giving out free subsidies to weddings, free cooking classes, and free trips back to their homelands, and free subsidies for subway rides, etc etc, got to do with helping them being fully functional members of the society? You are advocating an economic segregation where multiethnic families are given special economic rights where virtually everything is provided free of charge, encouraging them to not to work hard and just be happy with what they’re given by the government. That’s a recipe for a social disaster that’s waiting to happen later on. You can’t just throw money at a problem and expect things to improve.
This is when I stop reading this thread, stop making replies on this thread, and forever will view you as a selfish Xenophobic person.
My question is although it might not be fair (and some of the benefits are clearly silly), is it having a significant economic impact? Also, if these people are allowed to settle here and are genuinely poor and socially marginalised, aren’t there clear social benefits to providing education and healthcare? Alternatively, you could just kick them all out and rely solely on decent hardworking korean families etc.
BTW – are you going to take out your Xenophobic selfish attitude on my cat…
during the time of her life, she has been with me to many countries, where upon entering those countries she became a “permanent resident” of those countries and was given all the freedom under the laws of those countries.
Living in Korea she has been shunned and demeaned, simply because she is a cat and “Koreans hate cats” which she has been told again and again.
Lucky for her, in 6 months I am sending her on a one-way journey to the USA where she will be cared for by my American friend, and upon arrival will become a “permanent resident” of the USA.
any Americans who encounter her whilst she is living in the USA will stop to say “What a lovely cat” “so cute” “so adorable”
If only the immigrants here in Korea were treated as nicely and were helped by Koreans so that they could fit into Korean society, without being criticised on websites such as this one, for being a “thistle in the sides of Koreans”.
Go ahead, have your way, block off all the assistance that is being given to them, and see what happens in the future.
They will still come here, because Korea needs them, but without the assistance currently being given them, will need to resort to other means to make a survival in this society.
Your thinking is totally wrong, you are looking at the assistance being given to them, and crying “Oh, we want that too – how unfair, how unequal!”
I dare you to cut it off, no more assistance to immigrants – and then lets see how Korea is in 20 years time.
Well, cats are better integrated into Korean society these days than in the past…
http://www.rjkoehler.com/2008/01/09/korean-scaredy-cats/
Uhm, many of those are the same as for locals, and many of them are clearly stated to be for those in need, not universal.
I think this idiot lives in a rose tinted bubble and has never been out amongst the common man in korea.
During the 1950 ~ 1953 KOREAN war, apparently 16 foreign countries came and fought and died to help South Koreans….
during the “next” Korean war… do you want to see MORE countries come and help or LESS countries…
after reading so many selfish comments today, I wouldn’t care if there were LESS.
It has been pointed out above that “[s]ubway and bus fares have just increased in price recently,” and Schmidt (#87) suggested that “these increased costs” are due to “money . . . being spent on welfare for non-Koreans . . . . immigrants and multicultural families.”
Technically, I’m part of a ‘multicultural’ family – though I think “multiethnic” more accurate – but I’m not especially enthusiastic about multiculturalism. Moderate forms of multiculturalism are no problem (e.g., Indian restaurants), but the ideology of multiculturalism seems to gravitate toward extreme forms in which groups demand cultural autonomy.
The issue of multiculturalism aside, however, I believe that the increase in subway fares is a consequence of senior citizens having the privilege of riding free. Media reports over the past year have shown the huge cost that is ballooning year by year as the number of Koreans over 65 rises. The solution should be to require all Koreans to pay.
Well, maybe not the unborn . . .
Jeffery Hodges
* * *
YOTD @#102,
Please, don’t even hint at another “Korean war”.
No one wants that.
“during the “next” Korean war… do you want to see MORE countries come and help or LESS countries…
after reading so many selfish comments today, I wouldn’t care if there were LESS.”
You need to be studying English, not teaching it.
I’m not exactly sure if multi-culturalism will be a good or bad thing for Korea.
But the fact is that the Korean economy is growing pretty well right now, and a lot of foreigners are coming to Korea in search of work.
The thing is that a lot of the foreigners are from poor countries and are not very well educated.
If these foreigners decide to get married and have families in Korea, then their children will have to go to Korean schools just like Korean children.
The problem is that the Korean education system is notoriously hellish, and even Korean children must go to numerous “hagwon’s” starting at a young age, in order to have a chance at doing well at school and making it into a good university. It’s an extremely competitive system, and Korean parents (who are able to) spend huge amounts of money to give their children as much advantages as possible.
Obviously, children of multi-ethnic families will be at a disadvantage. And it’s frankly not surprising that so many of them drop out of school.
So the Korean govt should help these children do better in school.
But I don’t think the govt should be giving multiethnic families aid regardless of their income. I think that’s a very bad idea.
It’s really not fair for Korean-Korean families, many of whom are poor and need help too.
Besides, universal aid for multiethnic families will be a magnet for excessive immigration and fraud and whatnot.
The Korean govt has been significantly increasing the budget for multiethnic families aid.
(In 2010, it was 59.4 billion won (594억). In 2011, it was 86 billion won (860억). In 2012, it will be 99.6 billion won (996억).)
As for the total amount, I guess it’s small, or large, depending on how you look at it. But I think it has the potential to balloon out of control in the future.
(Personally, I have no idea why they are giving universal aid. I think this is crazy. I think aid should be limited to those families who truly need it.)
I understand why some Europeans are concerned for Korea’s future.
In recent years, with the worsening economic situation in Europe, slums of poor immigrants have been growing. Poor immigrants (mostly blacks and Muslims?) have rioted on occasion, and are probably committing more crimes.
(Perhaps this is part of the reason why right-wing extremism has been growing in Europe and immigrants are being targeted in hate crimes.)
I think multiculturalism may be seen as a good thing when the economy is good and everyone is doing well.
But when the economy goes downhill, I think tolerance toward racial minorities tends to diminish as well.
Korea is in uncharted territory right now. Who knows what will happen in the future.
As a free society, it should not discriminate against minorities.
But I don’t think it should be encouraging excessive immigration with freebies, either.
Korea should try to learn as much as possible, from Europe’s experience with immigration.
Korean government’s 2012 budget is 325.4 trillion won.
It will be spending 99.6 billion won on multiethnic families aid.
So that’s 1/3,254 of the budget.
jk6411,
you bring up some good points. I think the society and culture in Korea has a whole has not been very accommodating to foreigners especially with its education system as you pointed out being historically very insular. The education system is not only hellish as in competitive but also very inflexible people with kids who have lived in other countries can’t just matriculate their kids and expect to catch up with the other kids, not to mention that they are from poorer social economic background. The issue I think might be with the fact that the effort might be misdirected just giving multicutural families benefits isn’t going to work. I think reforming the educational system and being more flexible towards immigrants will go a long way. Regardless it is still tough towards immigrants and I certainly expect them to cause trouble.
Currently the dropout rate for multi-ethnic children in school is 20% middle school, and 40% high school. There are 150,000 mixed children in Korea, but that number is expected go up more than ten fold to 1.6 million, by 2020 – only eight years from now. Which means the current budget that gives their families all the subsidies will need to increase ten fold as well, by 2020, just to keep up. Is this sustainable in the long run? And once North Korea collapses, it will be up to South Korea to rebuild North Korea and take in all its people. What will happen to multiculturalism then, when the money (or what’s left of it) will have to be spent on integrating North Koreans?
cm this year of the dragon is from australia. ask him how the koori are doing.
I’ve got a better idea; let’s hear some suggestions on how you would improve the lot of aborigines in Australia, Pawi. I’m sure you’ll have some answers, since you seem to be very passionate about the topic.
As far as social benefits are concerned, since that seems to be the trending topic, Australian Aborigines receive the most generous financial benefits of any indigenous people in the world. They get unemployment benefits, free health care, pharmaceutical allowance, remote area allowance, rent assistance (or free government housing, depending on the area) and CPED ($13,000 a year), which is paid to employers of indigenous people.
Where education is concerned, assistance is even more generous. Aboriginal students receive Abstudy ($300 a week), Rent Assistance, Relocation Allowance, School Fees Allowance ($9000 a year), School Term Allowance, Fares Allowance and Incidentals Allowance, Masters and Doctorate Allowance ($900 a fortnight), Free government-paid tutors under the Aboriginal tutorial Assistance Scheme, etc etc etc. On top of this, the actual education costs are government-subsidized, and most universities offer aboriginal scholarships.
Thanks for the figures. A third of the total ‘budget’ seems an amazingly high proportion. Do you mean just the welfare budget or total government spending?
I think there clearly needs to be some joined up thinking about whether Korea needs poor immigrants or not and the subsequent effect this will have on welfare spending.
However, getting in a rage because welfare is going to foriegners seems a bit OTT and unpleasant. The allocation of funding by central government is often politically biased/motivated, unfair and inefficient. I mean, would you rather they built another airport instead? Perhaps social infrastructure is a better investment.
A modest proposal to allay any misgivings about the favoritism shown multicultural families:
Revoke all special privileges, but widely publicize the availability of free onions, relish, mustard and ketchup at Costco. Then immigrants can partake of heaping plates of such delights on a completely equal basis with native Koreans. And the extra added benefit is that it’s all on someone else’s nickel, thereby also taking back some of those unconscionable profits earned by foreign firms who aren’t satisfied with the privilege of providing goods and srvices to korea at a loss, after making their “contributions” to the korean political circles’ full employment fund.
#110 The Koori and the Murrays are doing quite fine pawi – as #111 pointed out. I knows Koori’s are doing fine, because I am Koori, as are all my family and relatives and we are all doing fine!
The government cadet-ship program that many Kooris’ and Murrays are offered, which I was also offered and took, paid my way through university and gave me a Federal government job on completion of university.
The government assisted home loans offered to Koori’s and Murrays by the Australian government, helped both my older brother and sister to purchase their first homes.
We seem to be doing fine.
I thought this article in National Geographic, April 2011, might prove interesting:
http://blogs.ngm.com/blog_central/2011/04/marrying-out.html
And especially the graphs
http://blogs.ngm.com/.a/6a00e0098226918833014e87c6720a970d-pi
Note the comment: “Black women are least likely to intermarry; Asian men are second.”
untold @#112,
Um, it’s 99.6 billion won out of a total budget of 325.4 trillion won.
So it’s one-three thousandth, not one-third.
Oh. Right. I think I need some free math classes.
Supreme pwnage
But what about the Kumars!
The reason why multicultural children drop out of high school is not because the government isn’t helping them. The Korean government is giving multicultural families too much welfare. It seems Year of the Dragon has no idea about how much welfare the Korean government is already providing multicultural families with. The Korean government is spending too much money on welfare for multicultural families.
The reason why multicultural children drop out of high school is because of the mother’s culture. Mail order brides are bought for a cheap price by Korean men. Mail order brides are therefore (most of the time) like prostitutes. How do you expect children of prostitutes to do well at school? It’s irrational how people think that this problem can be solved by the government. The only way to solve this problem is for the multicultural family to move to the mother’s home country because Southeast Asian countries are less competitive so multicultural children will have more freedom and opportunities in their mother’s home country.
Remember Korea’s GDP/capita is not even half of Germany’s. Korea should focus on feeding its own native Koreans first. Korea is the most homogeneous country in the world and should remain that way to ensure social stability.
so what you’re saying then is,
any male foreigner on this site who married a Korean lady and started a multicultural family, the male foreigner is a cheap prostitutes and his children are prostitutes kids.
and any Korean man who fell in love with a Canadian, British or American girl and married, the Canadian, British and American girls are cheap prostitutes?
and any Korean farmer who married a Vietnam or Cambodian wife, she should be regarded as a prostitute and her children should be forced back to their mothers homeland, even though Koreans believe the “bloodline” of the children comes from the father (not mother).
I am sure many people will disagree with your argument.
I’m not trying to encourage the troll here, but there’s a certain element of truth in its message. The women who come from South East Asian brides trade are mostly uneducated women from their countries, from poor villages in remote provinces desperate to get out of their poverty stricken situations at home – they are not the creme of the crop. Higher educated women of these countries would not lower and avail themselves to being sold on the meat market. I would not be surprised that many of them are probably also illiterates in their own languages. It doesn’t help the children when their mom’s are less educated people (not because they are genetically inferior, but because they were never given the opportunity when they were growing up). In Korea, the role of the mom’s to do all the work of ensuring their children get educated, is very important. The Korean husbands are not going to be doing that. Without that mother’s guidance putting importance on education, these children are lost.
I’m really not clear how being illiterate stops you from making your kids go to school.
Is there a problem with starving koreans I haven’t heard about!
Yeah… apparently Koreans are all starving, unable to afford “North face” jackets, unable to afford expensive Hagwons, unable to put rice on the table three times a day, unable to afford mokoli and soju, unable to afford to give large offerings at church on Sundays, unable to take those vacations to Europe and Thailand each year, unable to purchase expensive Chuseok and Seolnar gifts, unable to spend 80,000won at Outback Steakhouse, all because those damn immigrants are getting support from the government!
selfish… selfish… selfish….
Ah, that explains why there are so many skinny half fed looking girls in kangnam hanging out for hours sheltering from the cold over nutritious caffe machiaato handouts in homeless shelters like Starbucks and Cafe Bene.
“I’m really not clear how being illiterate stops you from making your kids go to school.”
Making your kids go to school isn’t nearly enough in Korea. Mothers are the ones who do all the work, to support their children, driving them to succeed. Without that support, those kids will inevitably fall behind.
“selfish… selfish… selfish….”
What are you going on about? S.Korea’s welfare budget for these people have been exponentially increasing the last few years, without any kind of public debate on welfare. Where’s the selfishness you see, other then the few comments here that you have deemed ‘selfish’?
Is that an incontestable fact? I’m not denying it, just asking. Are you just counting money that is only available to Aborigines and not to other Australian citizens? Australia is pretty flush with cash at the moment and the Aussie dollar is very high, but places like Norway are also quite flush and well known for their social welfare. The Sami in Norway have their own parliament to distribute funds. Denmark sends somewhere in the region of US$600 million per year to Greenland, which isn’t too bad for a population of around 60,000 who also get all the benefits of being EU citizens without being part of the EU. They even signed an agreement giving Greenland ownership of the 50 billion barrels of oil that are allegedly up there, something like a million barrels for every man, woman and child. My understanding is that the Crown owns all minerals in most Australian states and Aboriginal landowners only have the right to say yes or no to mining on their land, but not profit directly form the extraction.
Total Treaty of Waitangi settlements in New Zealand add up to about NZ$1billion. Ngai Tahu alone in the South Island have property holdings of around NZ$500 million, including the lion’s share of the South Island tourist infrastructure and an annual profit of $100 million, a lot of which ends up in generous scholarships and social assistance not available to non-Maori. The other advantage the Maori and Greenlanders have is their languages are recognized at an official level.
I’ve seen the Aborigine flag flying from public buildings in Australia and thought they were getting a rump deal, but maybe that’s not true.
The idea that there is no public debate on welfare in Korea might be the dumbest thing you ever said.
#129 – obviously I meant welfare for immigrants. But then you probably knew that.
“Multicultural” families will always have it tough. Even if the government gave them benefits it is still a tough existance. However just to say that these sometimes marginilized people who are probably more prone to show up in crime statistics therefore they should be kicked out of the country or have benefits taken away is not the solution. Korea is experiencing the same time of problems as other developed countries. It has become a magnet for poorer immigrants. The fact is that in the long run Korea will need this people to support the population levels given the fertility rate has dropped like a rock within the last 50 years. Just encouraging Koreans to have more kids won’t cut it. Korea also needs to change because it has historically been very insular and foreigners have complained about regulations influenced by this attitude. This ultimately affects all aspect of korean society political and economic. Just picking on foreigners who have adjustments issues is not the correct way to go. If people really care about Korea take this as a reflection of what needs to be done. A more open society to foreigners will have huge benefits economically, politically and socially. However I can’t think of any country that has got this thing right.
^ Korea attracting the least educated, and the poorest from these countries, is not the answer to the birthing problem. At least in the West, the types of immigrants are screened and the highest educated and middle/high income families are allowed in. Korea on the other hand, only attracts the least educated and lowest class of laborers and desperately poor brides from remote villages, since all the good immigrants to the West. These are not a good recipe for a healthy immigrant population. It will only create a whole new under class of people who can never adapt to a highly competitive society.
Correction: “since all the better candidate immigrants immigrate to the West, not Korea”
So again, what exactly prevents an illiterate mother from doing so?
cm,
the problem with high educated and affluent immigrants is that they also have low birthrate too. Korea needs both. Skilled and unskilled. Former to enhance competitiveness and the latter to fill 3D jobs that nobody wants to do. Poorer immigrants tend to have higher fertility rate too to help boost the birthrate. The downside is as you mentioned problems adapting, and overrepresentation in crime stats but that is no different than other countries that attract immigrants. People over there just need to be more open minded instead of picking on immigrants due to troublemakers among them. It can also be a drain to society but again it’s better than having a shrinking population in the longrun.
Also lets not forget that the poor immigrants can eventually become productive members of society, and a significant number of them do become just that. This can be done as long as people don’t pigeon hole them into 3D jobs all the time because of discrimination.
“So again, what exactly prevents an illiterate mother from doing so?”
Do you really expect a 23 year old housewife from a village with no toilets in Cambodia for instance, to act like a housewife from Gangnam? It’s not only cultural differences, but it’s the matter of language. They are busy enough as it is, trying to pick up Korean themselves and trying to culturally adjust, never mind worrying about helping their kids with homework in Korean.
Cm, wow, so now
poor and uneducated = bad people who can’t have babies.
“Korea needs both. Skilled and unskilled.”
No. If you look at the immigration pattern in the West, most of the immigrants are skilled immigrants who take up mostly unskilled jobs. Immigrants tend to start from bottom up (manual, unskilled work), and then go upwards as they gain language and cultural skills. Rarely do the skilled immigrants get to pick up with their careers where they had left it before they immigrated. It’s nonsense that you need both skilled and unskilled workers.
“Cm, wow, so now
poor and uneducated = bad people who can’t have babies.”
You come on, how do you come up with that one? Where did I say that?
No cm, but then I had no idea a mother had to be like a housewife in kangnam to be a good mother. You can be sure that I will immediately send a missive to my mother asking for compensation for poor parenting as she wasn’t a kangnam housewife.
And duh, what a surprise illiterates can’t be of much help to their children writing homework in korean. Really, who knew!!!
How o. earth this stops them pushing their children to go to school, pushing them to do their homework, providing a loving caring surrounding where they are encouraged to do their best, when it is obviously such a huge disabilty they shouldn’t be allowed to have kids.
I know weshould stop people with physical handicaps, the stupid and poor from having having children as they will obviously be such ppor parents that their kids will never have a chance.
The larger problem is the attitude of people like you, who consider these kids the offspring of whores.
Nope, entirely contestable. I hadn’t considered the Sami, and am largely ignorant of Maori issues.
I was only really referring to welfare benefits, since that was the trending topic. As far as language is concerned, the Koori, Murri, Nyungar and Yolngu people all have different languages (about 200), so it’s not quite as straightforward as elsewhere.
Also, the Maori make up a far higher percentage of the Kiwi population than the Aboriginals, who I think represent about 1% of the Australian diaspora. Having said that, the Aboriginals have been ceded (given back is probably a better way to put it) 11% of the Australian landmass, an area which is 9 times larger than Korea) via Native Title.
Aghaeri, can you stop putting words in my mouth? Who said only good mothers are Gangnam mothers? I really wish it wasn’t so, but Korea is a highly competitive society especially when it comes to education. Again, I wish it wasn’t so, but a Cambodian housewife with a cultural and language handicap, or a Korean housewife with a physical handicap is going to be competing in a cut throat environment where every parents are doing whatever they can to give their kids an upper advantage however the method they can find. Unless the system changes (which will probably never happen), that is the reality.
You inferred it here, combined with your implication that thay can’t be proper mothers in korea
cm,
if the person immigrates and has to start as unskilled labor then it is counted as unskilled labor. Skilled labor is if the person immigrates and get started working in a blue collar or white collar job. Regardless of how they start a significant number of people who started as unskilled labor become skilled labor as they adapt and are either able to assume previous career or their kids through education are able to get a skilled job. Which brings up another issue since education is a path to being a skilled labor and being able to adapt to new surroundings a country like Korea definately needs to reform the educational system to be more accomodating since we are seeing that kids entering schools are going to diminish in numbers.
Here, is where you inferred such,
Do you really expect a 23 year old housewife from a village with no toilets in Cambodia for instance, to act like a housewife from Gangnam?
No I don’t expect her too, but then as I said I didn’t realise not being a kangnam housewife was a prequisite to being a good mother.
Of course someone from another culture may not have the same advantages as a rich family from kangnam but that applies to poor uneducated, and disabled natives too.
The poor and disadvantaged have always had more difficulties anywhere in the world which is precisly why there needs to be mechanisms to balance opportunity.
As I said before Korea needs both unskilled and skilled labor. The former because who the hell is going to want to do 3D jobs or jobs otherwise considered too beneath by Koreans nowadays? The only people who are willing or forced to do it from poor country. Skilled is also needed to fill jobs that the education system in Korea cannor produce. One example are car designers, the most prominent ones are europeans. Just look at who designs the KIA and Hyundai cars.
#146, Arghaeri, please read my correction on #133. I wish there was an edit post system here, but there isn’t. Good candidates for immigrants is far from being equated as “Good mothers”. Australia has the immigration point systems, as most of Western countries, and I don’t see them taking in anybody that wants to come over. Why do you expect Korea to take the people who are in the bottom of the economic and education level? Nevermind, I think I know what you’re getting at here, Korea is not a worthy country to be choosing its own immigrants, that’s what you’re implying.
“The poor and disadvantaged have always had more difficulties anywhere in the world which is precisly why there needs to be mechanisms to balance opportunity.”
And that is the crux of the argument. There’s enough of poor and disadvantaged as there is, why unnecessarily add more to what’s already there, by importing them from abroad?
cm,
yea there are fair number of poor in Korea already but these poor Koreans also shun 3D work that somebody has to do. Business that need this kind of labor will be squeezed by these type of labor shortage. You really can’t force Koreans to do this kind of work even if they are not well paid at their current job. We have to accept that however irrational it may seem to you.
Also these poor immigrants are willing to do the work and at times for less than the Koreans. Plus they can be a source of population replenishment since I mentioned before they are bound to have higher fertility rate. This will be a drain in the shortrun but as I mentioned a significant number of them do adapt. The question is how accepting will the Koreans be of them. Will they be allowed to make their way upward in the socioeconomic ladder? Koreans have made a lot of progress over the last decade or so but is that enough?? It seems they have long way to go to accept foreigners since the press still in a habit to sensationalize and blow up misdeeds of foreigners seeing that there still posting about this here.
“Also these poor immigrants are willing to do the work and at times for less than the Koreans.”
Again, most of the immigrants in the West were highly educated middle and upper class people from their respective countries. There are immigrant doctors who are driving cabs. You are expecting Korea take in any unskilled immigrants – is that going to go well when it’s now up to Korea to spend the money to educate these people and upgrade them?
“Koreans have made a lot of progress over the last decade or so but is that enough?? It seems they have long way to go to accept foreigners since the press still in a habit to sensationalize and blow up misdeeds of foreigners seeing that there still posting about this here.”
That’s a classic sign of someone who don’t watch or read Korean language news, who depend on blogs that sensationalize on sensationalized Korean reports of foreigner wrong doings. I can assure you that the number of positive reports on multiculturalism and why Korea needs it, outnumbers any negative reports of foreigner wrong doings, by at least 100 to 1. I wish the Western media stops with the outdated reports on Korea that Korea stubbornly clings to homogenious race theory. That is in the past, and it now raises eyebrows when any Korean still clings to that theory.
If you look at polls and general sentiment, pretty everyone everywhere is against immigration. It’s imposed on people by governments and elites.
redwhitedude,
The posts on this blog are not representative of Korean media.
The “About” section of this blog clearly says that “this blog is not representative of Korea.”
Also, How much more accepting do you want the Korean govt to be toward immigrants? They’re already giving free money to multi-ethnic Korean
families. They’re helping multi-ethnic students to do better in school. They’ve been significantly increasing their multi-ethnic families aid budget.
(Personally, I’m against giving all multi-ethnic families free money, regardless of their income. I think this will encourage over-immigration.)
Also, even though the Korean economy is doing pretty well as a whole, young Koreans have great difficulty finding jobs, and even middle-class Koreans are having difficulty making ends meet. (So young Koreans are not getting married. And even married couples hesitate to have kids b/c they can’t afford to. The main reason Koreans are not having kids is that they can’t afford to.)
Korea is a densely populated, extremely competitive society.
The gap between rich and poor is also growing rapidly.
So it’s not a matter of Koreans “allowing” foreigners to climb up the socioeconomic ladder. It’s just a difficult place to succeed for anyone.
When foreigners come to Korea and decide to have a family in Korea, they should definitely consider all these things, before having kids.
#154 – took the words right out of my mouth.
I would like to add, Korea is open to immigration and its majority of people look favorably at immigration, at a time when the West is slowly closing their doors and the opinions turn negative toward immigration.
I don’t expect korea to do so, but having allowed it, even encouraged it, I don’t see any problem with ensuring they have some help to provide their offspring with opportinties to strive and survive.
I do however support that these need not be universal benefits, to those like myself who do not need it.
Correction noted Cm.
jk6411,
you got me there. However when people say that there were too many foreigners in Korea. I’m not sure what they mean because it is a country that has historically been 99% Korean so does it mean that it went up 1% up and people are already saying that or is it what westerners would consider diverse as in foreigners are hitting double digits percentagewise? I personally think that the government and society in Korea has yet to figure how to properly deal with multiculturalism. As I said immigration and multiculturalism I don’t think there is a country that has figured it out. Also relying on government help too much to boost leads to crazy government bureacracy at least that is my fear. If people are fed up with immigration. Unfortunately there will be jobs that immigrants will have to fill. It sucks even if the economy is in a tough situation seeing that the latest stat on the cia world factbook states 15% below the poverty level in Korea.
cm,
I don’t cling of homogenous race theory, but I do get ticked by blowing up of foreign misdeeds and at times MH does single it out to my chagrin. If the west is closing its doors it is the perfect chance for Korea to attract talent from the west. However I don’t think you can selectively control immigration to the extent that you are calling for such as only skilled professionals. It goes with the territory of being developed country.
There is no points system for partner visas – it works much as the Korean system does. If a citizen marries someone from overseas they’re pretty much guaranteed (after a long period of interviews and paperwork) a resident visa.
#159 – hoju_saram, I doubt Australia has the brides trade system is as big as Korea. I do realize there are mail order bride industries where men buy women on-line, but I don’t think the scale even comes to matching Korea’s (which in my opinion should be completely scrapped and the matchmakers declared illegal and treated as same as pimps). That’s the sad part of the Korean immigration – the outcome is mostly the result of women trafficking which can’t be good for a natural relationship between the wife and husband. It’s hard enough it is for people with different cultures and languages to get along as couples, but add to it the burden of marriage that got created through a money transaction. It puts double stress on the burdened Korean social system which now must clean up the mess caused by quickly failed marriages that were bought and paid for. I can only imagine what the children of mixed marriages must go through with unstable family lives at a time when they need the support of their parents. It’s really no wonder why they’re having a tough time.
Completely agree.
cm,
It just seems this foreign bride business was set up without proper regulatory framework was put in place. Sort of the same deal that it seems with English teachers that slip through because there weren’t any proper procedures to check their background. I think they should just not allow the brides residency that ought to kill this whole business or at least most of it. I wonder if children of these broken marriages are another source of adopted children. Also the age differences of some of these hook ups are ridiculous I mean that’s just another layer of issue adding to an already tough match. Frankly I think this business all they care about is hooking people up and getting their money I don’t think they care about if the match will last.
and that’s why I say support them, and stop complaining that it’s “unfair/unequal” that they are receiving assistance from the government.
@ H. Schmidt #120
Leaving aside the comparison of mail order brides to prostitutes, why assume that they would all do poorly? I would hope that prostitute mothers would encourage their children to do well at school so that they can have a different job.
Regarding alleged “mail order brides”, a friend of mine likes to quote a US embassy (in Seoul) visa section officer, who said to his staff when they questioned the bona fides of some marriages, “People marry for a lot of reasons. One of them is love.”
agree, but sometimes it’s the only way a Korean male (esp. farmer) can get a wife.
I have seen classrooms, of 33 students, in which 21 students are boys and 12 students are girls.
It is very, very common in Korea.
The boys have to find their wives from somewhere.
The foreign bride business would not be necessary, if Korean parents didn’t plan to have boys, but gave nature an opportunity to select the gender of their child naturally.
If only classes consisted of 16 boys and 16 girls, the foreign bride business would not be necessary.
The fact that Korean girls don’t want to marry farmers, well that’s just what Korean society has become.
A friend of mine put it best—the more Korea talks about being a multicultural society, the clearer it is it isn’t.
I agree that positive stories about multiculturalism outnumber bad, and that the authorities are more open to immigration than they’ve ever been. But as for Korea not “stubbornly clinging to homogenious race theory,” I ain’t so sure. That it feels like a major change despite the fact that the foreign-born population is just 3% is probably telling.
Spoken like a man who looks across his southern border and sees Seattle, not Tijuana.
@cm #152:
From BR Myers:
North Koreans are clearly more racist than South Koreans, but that idea of purity of race still fits in the South Korean discourse. Luckily, however, most of those who “marry in” don’t suffer quite the same indiginities as they can do in other societies. Korea might not openly embrace the racial other, but they haven’t had race riots or lynchings caused by miscegenation (yet – knock on wood).
I thought even in Seoul its only 2%, and much less elsewhere, and a chunk of those are chosunjok. What are the latest official stats?
A law professor in Gwangju once said to me “We don’t have any race issues in Korea, because we don’t have many foreigners here”.
The hysteria which seems to so often surround reporting and online discussion of the 3% foreign population, whether to do with crime, marriage or welfare is really unfortunate. I mean, they can’t be single handedly overwhelming the welfare system, destroying social stability and cultural cohesiveness and driving the crime figures up to terrifying new heights. Sometimes I think it is only their ‘visibility’ which is the major problem- I mean there must be other inequities in the welfare system and examples of wasteful public spending? But do they create such heated debate?
It may become a problem in the future, but that hasn’t happened yet. What happens in the future depends on how the immigration issue is handled (of course including debates on immigration quotas and visa requirements). I would say public support can play a positive role in helping immigrant/’multicultural’ families assimilate.
“But do they create such heated debate?”
Sigh… no, they really don’t. There is not much debate going on about welfare for immigrants as there is in the west (not even nearly). And anti-immigration feelings in Korea, although a growing one, is still a minority voice mostly on-line. Once again, blogs like this are not representation of Korea. Can you understand that?
Correction: what are commented in blogs like this are not representative voice of all Koreans.
True. And I like to think this is because Korean immigration policy mirrors, more or less, popular opinion on the issue.
“I have seen classrooms, of 33 students, in which 21 students are boys and 12 students are girls.
It is very, very common in Korea.”
No that kind of huge numeric gap between boys and girls, is not “common” in Korea. Even at the worst time of sex ratio difference in 1990, (110 boys born per 100 girls) are taken into account, your example of “common” is way still way out of wack to be really common in Korea. The sex ratio differences in Korea has improved drastically over the last decade, and now there are 105 boys born per 100 girls, which are almost normal levels. The men who are buying wives are 40′s and 50′s middle aged men, whose generation were not part of the generation of sex abortions (1980′s – 1990′s). There are just as many Korean women who are in their 40′s and 50′s as there are men, and the explanation that shortage of women is the reason why Korean men have to look elsewhere is a myth. It has more to do with economics than anything. Even if you are right, still, it doesn’t justify the brides trade.
#165,
Putting a regulatory framework doesn’t necessarily mean keeping the brides out or necessarily making it harder it would have gone a long way to avoid such BS such as murders because psychological problems on the part of the Korean males that seems to happen once in a while.
If people are so against it as I said just don’t let them settle in Korea as I suggested but unfortunately certain segments of society are desperate for mates so it is not practical so regardless people have to put up with it.
Also some of you guys have alluded to this notion of homogenous race by the reaction of Koreans. All the more reason why the educational system needs to be reformed. I think being more accommodating to foreigners will go a long way but I doubt this will happen seeing that people are getting fed up with benefits given to “multicultural” families. Maybe the whole approach was wrong to begin with.
“True. And I like to think this is because Korean immigration policy mirrors, more or less, popular opinion on the issue.”
And it’s also the reason why there has been almost complete lack of public debate or complaints about some of the dodgy programs for immigrants like free cooking class lessons. And take the universal daycare program for multi-ethnic families. You are eligible for this program even if you are a high income earner. You are also eligible to trade in the daycare service for cash, if you don’t need the daycare. What’s even more ridiculous is that Korean Americans who had given up their Korean citizenship are also deemed to be eligible for the freebie. This at a time, when many Korean families are slipping through the cracks, deemed not eligible. It’s a waste of spending which will grow bigger as the programs expand. So programs like these slip through unnoticed, because nobody ever talks about them. A big chunk of the Korean public are not even aware what’s happening with their money.
re. cm 170
I take your point (I do understand that), but I did clearly say reporting and online discussion. I probably should have said English language newspapers and online debates.
Don’t know where you are getting your figures from, but go to any school and count the boy-girl classroom ratio yourself.
I can take you to some schools if you are not allowed into the schools.
Classroom: 33 students 22 boys + 11 girls = normal these days
“I doubt this will happen seeing that people are getting fed up with benefits given to “multicultural” families. Maybe the whole approach was wrong to begin with.”
Can you give me examples of Koreans who are fed up with benefits given to “multicultural” families? Who are they? And is it racism if someone questions the benefits of having one social program for foreigners, while having another completely different social program for Koreans?
“Classroom: 33 students 22 boys + 11 girls = normal these days”
So what are you saying, Year of the Dragon? Korea has a sex ratio at birth of 2 boys to 1 girl? Please think before you trump out the numbers.
I’m not advocating racism by any means. However to maintain stability, it’s best that Korea remains as a homogeneous. And I really think homogeneity makes Korea stronger and more peaceful.
The sex ratio is getting more balanced in Korea. However Korean parents should have more daughters. It’s better for Korean society to have a balanced sex ratio.
that’s what I am saying CM – it used to shock me when I walked into schools, it doesn’t shock me any more, it’s the norm..
Before you reply to me quoting me, learn how to “quote somebody properly”
( ……………….. without the spaces
It will make your replies much easier to read.
#182 – so you are claiming South Korea’s sex ratio at birth is 200 boys to 100 girls??? Where are YOU getting YOUR numbers from?
# 182 didn’t work – so I will try again.
CM – if you want to quote someone use this:
………….
(without the +’s).
Now, I can anyday, anytime, take you into a Korean government Public school and allow you to look into a classroom, you can count the boy:girl ratio yourself.
that didn’t work either….
use this blockquote …………… /blockquote
with on either side of it!
Year of the Dragon, I don’t have to count all the boys and girls in every schools in the ROK to know that your figure of 200 boys to 100 girls is outrageously if not laughably wrong. And it still doesn’t change the fact that even with the worst sex level difference of 115 boys to 100 girls, in the early 1990′s, doesn’t explain the so called ‘shortage’ of women for the middle aged farmers who come from a generation with no sex ratio differences. Of course that doesn’t mean as those boys who were born in the 1990′s get to marriageable age, they will indeed experience the shortage of women, and international marriages will only rise exponentially in the future – which will make 3% foreigner population rate to keep doubling every 5 years.
When you learn to stop writing in “dribble” and learn to paragraph properly and quote people properly, then I will reply to you.
(You wrote 744 characters OR 134 words in ONE paragraph etc – when you learn to write properly, I will read what you write).
#188 – please stick to the subject and stop with the personal attack and stop taking this personally and seriously. That’s a sign of losing it. Even a simple Google search will tell you how wrong you are.
[blockquote]This is for Year of the Dragon [/blockquote]
It may work or it may not.
I am trying to help you now CM.
The one above the comma, and the one above the Fulls top ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_stop ) NOT [ or ]
How’s this?
Methinks YotD VASTLY overestimates interest here in reading his views. Go for quality over quantity, PLEASE!
well done! I will give you s sticker!
Regarding mail-order brides:
I think the matchmaking companies should have all prospective brides and grooms take personality/interests tests (a-la Match.com) to ensure at least a basic level of compatibility between couples.
(Hell, I think all couples planning to get married should take these tests, to make sure that they are really compatible with each other on a deeper level than just physical attraction.
I think this will greatly reduce the number of divorces.
But this is much more critical for mail-order brides, since the prospective brides and grooms get so little time to get to know one another before deciding to tie the knot.)
A personality/interests test !!
Korean farmer, I’m interested in not being lonely, and having someone to prepare my food and clean under the shelter of my home.
Vietnamese peasant, I’m interest in food and shelter.
Matchmaker: congratulations your interests are perfectly aligned.
People should just live together then there would be no divorce.
It’s unacceptable that Koreans are buying Vietnamese wives for a few dollars. Korea should act like an advanced nation and ban all mail order bride agencies. Korean farmers should not be allowed to marry if they are physically, mentally or financially unstable.
H.Schmidt @#198,
Well, I don’t think mail order bride agencies will disappear any time soon.
There is a lot of demand for such brides.
If Korean men can’t find Korean wives, they need to find wives somewhere.
And let’s not forget that the majority of these multicultural marriages do turn out well. (It’s just that a few bad ones get a lot of press.)
I think what the Korean govt should be doing to help these multicultural families is provide foreign-born spouses free classes so that they can learn Korean and adjust to life in Korea as quickly as possible. (and really encourage them to take these classes)
Also, they should provide free classes for children of multicultural families, starting from a young age, so that they won’t get left behind when they enter school.
As for monetary aid, I think they should limit it to families who truly need it.
Let’s not forget that “multicultural families” are still a new phenomenon in Korea. (Multicultural marriages started taking off from the mid-1990s.)
Right now we’re seeing the children of the 1st wave of multicultural marriages reach their teens.
These first children may be having trouble at school, but there’s no guarantee that ones who follow them will as well.
Korea is still learning how to handle multicultural families.
But as time goes on I think the Korean govt will do a better job, and multi-ethnic Koreans will be better integrated into society.
As for Korean men looking for foreign brides, yes I do think they should be better screened for mental illness, criminal background, and whatnot.
#199 jk6411,
Mail order bride industry is a corrupt industry. Vietnamese girls/women as young as teenagers are sold as commodities to 40+ year old Korean men for a few dollars. That is human trafficking and the mail order bride industry must be banned.
Recently the interracial marriage statistics showed that interracial marriages in South Korea have decreased from 10% in 2010 to 4% in 2011 which is even less than Japan’s interracial marriage rate.
Also, you’re incorrect about the history of IR marriages in South Korea. IR marriages started after Korean War with American soldiers however the IR marriages were minimal. In the 1990′s Korea had minimal IR marriages (much less than Japan). The IR marriage rate peaked in 2005 mainly due to the trade of Vietnamese and other Southeast Asian mail order brides. Mentally ill Korean farmers can choose one Vietnamese woman from 20 who were all lined up like commodities.
I’m not against all interracial marriages however I’m against the mail order bride industry. The Korean government is also spending too much tax money to provide welfare to multicultural families and this is unfair on Korean families. Interracial marriages are not for Korea and the mail order bride industry must be banned.
H.Schmidt @#200
Well, I don’t know what you call “a few dollars”, but the marriage brokers typically charge about $10,000.
And the Vietnamese women vary in age and level of education, some are even college-educated. And it’s not like they’re forced to marry someone; they can choose not to marry if they don’t want to.
If you go here, you can see interracial marriage stats for recent years:
http://www.index.go.kr/egams/stts/jsp/potal/stts/PO_STTS_IdxMain.jsp?idx_cd=2430&bbs=INDX_001
You can see that the numbers have been pretty constant.
The fact is, Korean men are not going to stop marrying foreign women any time soon. The govt should take steps to prevent crimes against foreign wives, and they should better regulate the marriage brokers. But I don’t think the industry will disappear any time soon.
201, jk6411 you’re wrong.
Most mail order bride agencies charge only a few hundred dollars and a thousand at most. Regardless of the cost, men should not be buying women especially in an advanced nation like Korea. Mail order bride industry is a corrupt industry.
I’m not sure if you’ve checked the latest marriage statistics in Korea but the IR marriage rate in Korea was 4% in 2011, compared to 10.5% in 2010. IR marriages in Korea have already started decreasing since 2005.
As the sex ratio is becoming more balanced in Korea IR marriages will keep decreasing. Before 2005, the IR marriage rate in Korea was only 1% to 3% much lower than the 5% to 6% in Japan during the same period.
No one should be able to buy a woman. It’s called slavery and it makes Korea look like a 3rd world country. Many of these mail order bride industries scam Korean men, which the Joongang Daily reported.
The Korean government should ban the mail order bride industry. Mentally ill or physically disabled/financially unstable Korean farmers buy Southeast Asian women for a few dollars. Mail order bride industry is unacceptable in an advanced nation like Korea.
Actually in the 1990s interracial marriages in Kores was only 1% compared to Japan’s 5%. So Korea started later.
Mail order bride industry scam old Korean men for money. Hence mail order bride industry is a corrupt industry. Mail order brides are like commodities bought for a cheap price and sexually abused.
Korean government must ban mail order bride industry to protect human rights.
Yeah but the problem is that immigrants and foreigners in say countries like US, Canada, and europe are KNOWN for being leechers who do nothing but complain and cry racism card, live off welfare and with the “woe is me” attitude when they are fully capable of working harder to get themselves off welfare, but choose not to. I don’t think Korea wants to have that burder on their welfare system.
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