Xenophobia Against Newly-elected Filipina-Korean Spreads Online

[unreal.livejournal.com]

With the aftershocks of the general elections last week still rumbling on, no other candidate revealed the political fault-line in South Korea like the election of Jasmine Lee, a Filipina-Korean TV host and actress-cum-Saenuri proportional candidate, winning a seat in this election.

Ms. Jamine Lee, a well-known figure for the Filipino community and an advocate of multicultural families in South Korea is expected to help advance the welfare of some 50 000 OFWs (overseas foreign workers) as well as 1.2 million immigrants in South Korea. She met her Korean husband while she was still a college student. After marriage, she moved to Korea in 1995 and acquired the Korean citizenship in 1998. Her late husband died while rescuing their daughter in a flash flood in 2010. Since then she has been featured in a number of TV programs, including “Love in Asia” and a hit-movie Punch. Saenuri was hoping to tap into the immigrants’ votes with her nomination.


The issue of growing presence of migrant workers and foreign residents in South Korea is beginning to be felt the political arena. While the need for the manpower in the time of falling fertility and aging demographic is well-recognized, many view the idea of multiculturalism with deep reservation if not with hostile suspicion, as the public reaction to the gruesome murder by a Chinese-Korean migrant worker last week showed. Multiculturalism is seen by many as a policy lobbied by the big business interests and forced upon the ordinary citizens as an attempt to lower the wage, artificially replenish the population and weaken the labor unions and trades organizations in the name of global competitiveness.

The following article is one of the hottest topics on portal site Daum, with thousands of comments flooding in.

Controversy over xenophobic attacks against newly-elected Jasmine Lee spreads on the Internet

Controversy over xenophobic attacks against newly-elected Filipina-Korean Jasmine Lee (35 years old international-marriage migrant) of the Saenuri Party, was widespread on Twitter.

A number of controversial comments such as “mail-order bride sales will go up”, “illegal migrant workers will run rampant” are widely circulating over the Tweeter.

One Tweeter user commented: “We will bankrupt ourselves by paying these mail-order brides” while another wrote: “With Jasmine Lee entering the National Assembly, I wonder how many more illegal migrants and mail-order brides will flood in, and reveal the true nature of blood-sucking multiculturalism.”

While none of these claims against Jasmine Lee are true, a number of un-substantiated claims regarding her campaign promises are being circulated, such as ‘illegal migrant workers free medical treatment’, ‘free return airfare for returnees’.

One Tweeter wrote: “it frightens me to read her campaign promises, really makes me wonder whether she is a Korean Assembly member or a chief of illegal migrant workers.” None of these claims have any confirmed sources and some are blatantly untrue.

In such an atmosphere, others including Professor Jo-guk raised their concerns that people should refrain themselves on Twitter from such racist words and criticism.

Professor Jo-guk urged refrain on racially-motivated comments and slanders, adding “her political stance and qualification could be subjected to scrutiny but one must not indulge in racism”.

Professor Jin Jung-gwon added “Those losers who are bad-mouthing Lee Oi-soo [one of Korea's most followed Tweeters] and spreading allegations about electoral frauds in Gangnam area must be done away with if one were to hope for the presidential election”.

Cartoonist Goh Pil-hun wrote “Hate the party [Saenuri] but how dare you to talk of Mrs Lee that way. Those who are spreading racist remarks are the ones who deserve discrimination”.

Actor Kim Jung-seok chimed in: “I know Jasmine Lee personally, and knowing how tragically her husband died, to hear things like “mail-order bride bitch” really boils my blood”.

Some argued that while xenophobic remarks and racially-motivated discrimination are unacceptable, the allegations on her academic qualification fraud must be raised, it is maintained.

One Tweeter user wrote “Racial discrimination against Jamine Lee must stop. On the other hand, it is equally wrong to lump together what is a valid scrutiny against her qualifications as racially motivated”, adding “to make it uncomfortable to even mention her name, isn’t that precisely un-egalitarian in itself?”

Comments from Daum:
"Our country is headed completely in a wrong direction, what a crazy show this is to have nominated her as a proportional candidate. And this is all the more shocking coming from a conservative party such as Saenuri, not even from a progressive side. This country has no left or right but only those who abuse the average citizens, now we know that for sure. A vain-glory person such as Jasmine Lee and Saenuri are putting on a helluva show here. Western European countries or Scandinavian countries would not think of doing this. An Assembly member may not have to be smart but she would certainly need to be patriotic. How could we expect this from a first-generation migrant?"

"It’s not xenophobia per se but the crazy campaign promises that irks us~~Free medical care for illegal aliens~ To support Saenuri that nominates a crazy bitch, that’s what is causing this sense of loathing"

"Free medical care for illegal aliens and now free airfare support for returning home, are you out of your mind? We are paying our tax to send you for free? Get those crazies out back to where they come from."

"I am against multiculturalism. Look what happened to Spain once they accepted Muslim migrants. Look at Mexico after NAFTA….Against multiculturalism… No to voluntary naturalization… To increase fertility rate, post-natal care and maternal services should be improved, not through multicultural policy."

Source: koreabang

Comments

[luvey.livejournal.com]

i kinda feel they have taken cues from the US crazy political idiots with all the unfounded hate and propaganda.

[modernabsurdity.livejournal.com]

They've been brushing up on Batshit Insane 101.

[kazu-kumaguro.livejournal.com]

because generalization is never good, sometimes I hate to admit that I like Korean idols when I'm looking at the koreans here but then again I have a korean friend who I like so much and I know that some of them are nice people albeit very exclusive (but oh well I guess the exclusive ones are going back to korea after graduation anyway)

[ryousan26.livejournal.com]

Wow. I'm totally offended by those comments since I'm a Filipino myself.

[empressmaruja.livejournal.com]

Buwisit sila, eh 'yung mga kababayan nga nila kung makadayo sa bansa natin, daig pa ang siga.

[laeryn.livejournal.com]

facepalming.

[lydzi.livejournal.com]

"I am against multiculturalism. Look what happened to Spain once they accepted Muslim migrants. "

Wtf is that comment? Some people in this world really abuse their right to be stupid. I'm all Team Gandhi but the back of my hand really wants to meet some faces sometimes.

[laeryn.livejournal.com]

mte. I would like to know what the heck was that person talking about bc I just. Wtf.

[sers-sers.livejournal.com]

wow....just wow.

I cannot with all of this

[es2pido.livejournal.com]

As a Filipino, I find those stupid, irresponsible comments really offensive.

[es2pido.livejournal.com]

“illegal migrant workers will run rampant”

“mail-order bride sales will go up”

Oh, how I wish I can post equally (or prolly more offensive) stupid comments against Koreans but I'm too awesome for that >8)

And I just remembered, our Prez is dating Grace Lee, a legit multilingual Korean. I wonder how Lee would react on this. I'm pretty sure this issue has reached her radar already.

[illustratedd.livejournal.com]

Get those crazies out back to where they come from
I am against multiculturalism.

i CAN'T. this entire article, people, just...wtf, there's so many narrow-minded people in the world.

[asnindie.livejournal.com]

With an ageing work force, the view on multiculturalism must be reversed, something alot of asian countries need to realise. But yeah these comments are pretty horrible, not to mention the silly propaganda but then this is Politics.

[-ochre.livejournal.com]

lol pls even US has to embrace multiculturalism

people are just fucking protective of this nationalistic sentiment and that's a shame.

[devilstay.livejournal.com]

Oh, fml. I can't with this stupid shit.

[modernabsurdity.livejournal.com]

Oh noes! Pure Korea will be sullied! They'll take our jerbs and steal teh menz.

Fuck this, just fuck all of this.

[bea-chan22.livejournal.com]

[-ochre.livejournal.com]

I find that sometimes these comments are really not representative of the population as well. These news agencies really scrape the bottom of the humanity barrel to find these disgusting comments. I'm willing to bet that some koreans are equally smh at this.

[kimiko1387.livejournal.com]

Agreed...someone had to vote for her.

[jongina.livejournal.com]

“mail-order bride sales will go up”, “illegal migrant workers will run rampant”

...really? side-eyeing those commenters throwing shade at us.

[-ochre.livejournal.com]

it's like if i had a headline that said "kpop fans have little brains and are offensive" you can be sure that i can find comments right in this comm

[beatification.livejournal.com]

It's embarrassing.

[msdaccxx.livejournal.com]

Well, the electorate in her area seemed to like her well enough to vote for her. It's not hard to find inflammatory crazies on twitter

[eishastan.livejournal.com]

smh at those comments, that's so offensive ide.. fuck racist people, wherever they come from.

[asth77.livejournal.com]

It’s not xenophobia per se but the crazy campaign promises that irks us~~Free medical care for illegal aliens~

Ic

[lydzi.livejournal.com]

That alien thing is just so weird. I'm ready to send a dictionnary to the person who wrote that.

[moronicus-kyla.livejournal.com]

!!!LONG RANT AHEAD!!!

Racism in general is very offensive to me and I'm doubly offended because I'm Filipino :| I saw this news in KBS World earlier and watched in horror. My dad asked me what was up and I didn't dare translate a word of the report to him; he would have gone completely bonkers O_O Though honestly, WTF SK.

I can respect comments questioning her qualifications based on her experience as a public official but to say those things is unfair, rude and very ignorant. It's also very disrespectful to our country and downright hypocritical, seeing as we take in many Korean immigrants, students and businesses. I do think that Mrs. Lee would factor in immigrants in her platform but they won't be her only concern, obviously. All politicians have a pet cause, why can't she have hers? She's just as much a Korean as she is a Filipino by now so whoever's criticizing her needs to STFU.

THEN AGAIN, if she was disliked from the start for whatever reason, how the hell did she end up winning? Cheating can only do so much and there just aren't that many immigrants (unless these racist natural-born citizens were too damn lazy to vote). If they had issues with her, they should have brought it up before the damn election, not when she finally gets elected and it's too late :| Honestly, most election drama is caused by a public that isn't involved :|

Also, I don't understand this anti-multiculturalism shit one bit. They want their country to be recognized, I get that. For that to work, SK needs to work on their international relations. If they want that to fucking work, they can't call their immigrants fucking mail-order brides or bloodsuckers or whatever :|


!!!END RANT!!!

[lady-theta.livejournal.com]

FLAWLESS RANT

[empressmaruja.livejournal.com]

Stay pressed, Korea.

[chomper-go-rawr.livejournal.com]

a+ gif XDDD

[evivante.livejournal.com]

If they only knew how many of their countrymen are in the Philippines, then we'll talk.

[es2pido.livejournal.com]

IFKR

[seines.livejournal.com]

kinda ot but the koreans ive come across around here are pretty noisy and rude... prior to getting into kpop i found them very annoying.

[izabera.livejournal.com]

"To increase fertility rate, post-natal care and maternal services should be improved, not through multicultural policy."
These things are not mutually exclusive, and a country with an ageing population will need both in order to survive.

[valieleen.livejournal.com]

Well, well, well. Those idiots are just gonna have to suck it up. She already got elected, so some people must have had enough sense to see what she's got going for her and her cause(s).

[jeit91.livejournal.com]

ughhhhhhhhhh