'We are unkind hosts to foreigners'

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

By Kim Rahn

Are Koreans ready to embrace multiculturalism? A survey showed that there is a long way to go before the Confucian-steeped country becomes a truly multicultural society. A government-sponsored survey showed that only a third of Koreans agreed to the coexistence of various races, religions and cultures.

The latest case in point illustrating that the country isn’t ready to embrace naturalized citizens and foreign residents were racial attacks by bloggers on Philippine-born Jasmine Lee. Lee who was married to a Korean man ― now deceased ― took Korea citizenship and became a proportional representation lawmaker-elect of the ruling Saenuri Party in the April 11 elections. Some bloggers posted racist comments, claiming interracial families were gaining at the expense of Koreans.

“In Europe, antipathy toward minority ethnic groups has become an issue, with riots occurring. In Korea, the number of foreigners is still small, but when it grows, racial problems will emerge here, as we already saw with the attack on Jasmine Lee,” professor Mo Kyung-hwan at Seoul National University said.

It seems the government’s efforts to have interracial families and foreign residents integrated in Korean society haven’t worked well as seen in the survey and the recent racist attacks on a Korean-Chinese murder suspect, and the naturalized lawmaker-elect from the Philippines. According to the Korean Multiculturalism Inventory conducted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on 2,500 citizens between December and January, 36.2 percent of Koreans agreed to the coexistence of various cultures in the country. The ratio was far lower than 73.8 percent, the average ratio of 18 European nations, based on the Eurobarometer Survey and the European Social Survey, the ministry said. This was the first time for Korea to develop and conduct such a survey to measure the degree of multiculturalism.

Some 86 percent of Koreans also said having Korean ancestors was important for the nation’s identity, attaching greater importance to “racial homogeneity” than Japan’s 72.2 percent, the United States’ 55.2 percent and Sweden’s 30 percent. However, the respondents weren’t so united on whether foreign residents had a negative influence on society. About one third of them said foreigners take their jobs away, increase the nation’s crime rate or make the state pay more for support to them. Such ideas were much stronger in European nations such as Germany, Britain and France.

“The survey was conducted in December and January, before the Wu Yuanchun murder case, and the election of Jasmine Lee. We guess if we conduct the survey now, more people may answer foreigners boost the crime rate,” a ministry official said.

Earlier this month, Wu abducted, raped and killed a 28-year-old Korean woman in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. Since then, negative comments on Korean-Chinese residents have spread rapidly on the Internet.

The survey also showed, in general, people experiencing more education or events related to multiculturalism or those more frequently meeting foreigners were more open-minded. However, the openness rather fell among those having foreign residents as family members or those who “very often” meet and talk to foreigners.

“People having a very direct relationship with foreigners may have conflicting interests from the latter’s. For example, Korean laborers in industries which hire many migrant workers had more negative views on multiculturalism because they think foreigners may take their jobs away,” the ministry official said.

Mo said understanding of multiculturalism has grown superficially when it comes to matters of right and wrong. “But people turn negative when asked whether they are willing to pay more taxes to help interracial families better adapt to Korea.”

“In the case of people with foreign family members, too, they face difficulties while living with the members and have to help the latter in their daily lives. In the position of providers, they may develop a negative perspective on multiculturalism,” the professor said.

Along with the survey, the ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office announced measures to support interracial families, but most of them are focused on assisting the families’ adaptation to Korean society.

“Foreign residents make up about 2 percent of population. Government measures should focus more on the remaining 98 percent, Koreans. It is important for the majority to learn how to respect differences and embrace migrants as members of our society,” Mo said.

Source: Koreatimes

Comments

[unlickdbearwhlp.livejournal.com]

Nope. Especially where jobs and money are involved...
Korean laborers in industries which hire many migrant workers had more negative views on multiculturalism because they think foreigners may take their jobs away

Ain't no American comin' up off more money to support...uh, anything, especially mixed families, where one member is possibly ~illegal.
people turn negative when asked whether they are willing to pay more taxes to help interracial families better adapt to Korea.

[benihime99.livejournal.com]

Xenophobia is all around us
I guess it might be more obvious in country with no or low cultural diversity.

[laeryn.livejournal.com]

Not really. Idk about everywhere else but in Spain the "they take our jobs" and sometimes even "cross the street, there's an [insert another race here] coming" thing became kind of usual in the middle '00s when immigration was something huge. Now the immigrants are running away too, lol, and it was kind of fading away (more like, said in private, probably) but yeah.

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

it's all shades of grey, but korea is pretty charcoal-y

[falling-empress.livejournal.com]

america has been a shit melting pot of cultures and racial hate, but in the end it happened, it's a little bit better (little), and it's better than the alternative (korea).

[asth77.livejournal.com]

I think some americans out there don't understand that their country is the best one that accepts foreign cultures.
It's not perfect, but believe me outside it's worse. That's why many ppl talk about america as if it was the most open minded ever because outside it is really worse.

[xoxeskel.livejournal.com]

Australia could be better. We're damn accepting of foreign cuisine, if that counts for anything lolno.

[meganvio.livejournal.com]

nope. anybody who says otherwise is in denial

[marisu-dono.livejournal.com]

Singapore and Netherlands.

Not to say that they don't have racism, but you usually get side-eyed by the majority if you make a racially insensitive comment.

[slatslatslats.livejournal.com]

Sweden is very accepting to foreigners. To the extent that reversed discrimination is becoming a bit of an issue.

[sisterjune.livejournal.com]

these are my thoughts. its unfortunate but its pretty common. and I was of course not surprised when the article said europeans had more negative feelings about how immigrants impact society. and not to mention the GOP's continued racist attacks on mexican immigrants in the US. Is there really any place that isnt full of racism is the real question here.

[akaich0u.livejournal.com]

America.

Seriously, check your privilege once in a while.

[lobotronic.livejournal.com]

Not really, but the difference here (and one of the reason why this is such a huge issue) is that other countries facing heavy immigration have had decades to work through their problems. There are measures in place to make sure the worst of it is stopped. They're not perfect, but there's a certain amount of "we just can't DO that anymore, it's wrong, and we know that now!" going on in a lot of other countries.

The idea of a multicultural Korea is SO NEW that people are freaking out. They're going through a period of social change in a few shorts years...the kind of change that other nations have had over a hundred years to sort through.

[ren-squared.livejournal.com]

ok this line, "It seems the government’s efforts to have interracial families and foreign residents integrated in Korean society haven’t worked well" someone correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't it Korea that was setting up separate schools for foreign kids/half-Korean kids to go to instead of Korean school? That is a definite government effort against any type of integration.

[falling-empress.livejournal.com]

Apartheid? That's pathetic. I really don't understand what goes on in their minds sometimes...

[asth77.livejournal.com]

I don't know.
I think If I ever marry in Korea, and decide to live there I'll put my kids in an international school no matter what.
Imagine what the half korean kids may live right now in korean schools?
Before the society accepts it it's better like that, knowing how my own country -which has way more multircultural families than Korea- reacts....

[unlickdbearwhlp.livejournal.com]

...attaching greater importance to “racial homogeneity” than the United States’ 55.2 percent

That's too high OTL Homogeneity shouldn't have anything to do with this country's "national identity".

As far as Jasmine Lee, President Obama has had his Amurricaness called into question from jump. Half of the arguments against him have nothing to do with his policies, and everything to do with his race.

These results are unsurprising. After centuries (or decades, if you want to start from the 60's), the US still sucks, so I'm sure SK won't be welcoming for a long while.

[lady-theta.livejournal.com]

O_O OBAMA IS A AMERICAN?!?!?
SOME ONE TELL FOX NEWS
*cough* It's amazing that it's still an issue in the US.

[falling-empress.livejournal.com]

A government-sponsored survey showed that only a third of Koreans agreed to the coexistence of various races, religions and cultures.

Still laughing at the bitch that told me I'm being racist by saying a majority of Koreans are xenophobic lolll.

[asth77.livejournal.com]

“In Europe, antipathy toward minority ethnic groups has become an issue, with riots occurring."

Ohhh are they talking about what happened in 2005 here...

[sawyer-k8.livejournal.com]

I don't know about any riots, but France is horrible when it comes to accepting foreigners and people of other faiths (i.e. the Muslim conflict). When I went to France last year a lot of people were very rude to me and my friend.

[yasmine2009.livejournal.com]

It's post like this that make me sad for the world.

[marisu-dono.livejournal.com]

One thing I'm wondering though, are most of these foreign residents expats or naturalized? Can they vote? Anyone knows?

[cettefemme90.livejournal.com]

Yeah y'are. Unless you want their money.
/in my experience

I'm glad they're recognising the problems of their homogeneous and often racist culture though.

[phililen3.livejournal.com]

OT but I don't understand this one
Some 86 percent of Koreans also said having Korean ancestors was important for the nation’s identity, attaching greater importance to “racial homogeneity” than Japan’s 72.2 percent, the United States’ 55.2 percent
Isn't the States a country of immigrants? Native Americans count for so little of the poulation.

[limerencing.livejournal.com]

Sad to say, in our case, Philippines is waaayyy too accepting of foreigners.Hope we can be more discerning. T_T Colonial mentality here is deadly.