“People who live in foreign countries are foreigners; people who live in Korea are Koreans.” To prevent dissemination of xenophobic sentiment, this catchphrase from a public service advertisement was released to the public, but both Koreans and foreigners would agree with this with difficulty.

Campaign promises of Lee Jasmin, a naturalized Korean who was elected as a proportional representative of the Saenuri Party in the last April election; included the implementation of a free health service for illegal aliens, free return air tickets and the receiving of special admission into universities for students from multicultural families, et cetera. These policies widely provoked controversies, because they gave the impression that her pledges are only for foreigners who constitute only a small portion of people in Korea.

A survey about embracing the various cultures in Korea, held by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, demonstrated how Koreans feel about cultural co-existence: only 36% agreed it is preferable that Korea should have various races, religions and cultures. In order to keep up with the times and worldwide trends of having a multicultural society, Korea seems to need some changes. This, however, cannot be achieved through catchphrases disagreeable to Korean sentiment, or through pledges that are unlikely to be realized. Instead, an analysis of public sentiments and the roots of these sentiments is vital and far-reaching and is needed in order to take measures appropriately.

Having a long history without a multicultural community, Koreans are not yet used to living with foreigners in perfect harmony. There is little opportunity to meet and integrate with foreign students while children are still in school; therefore it makes it harder for them to socialize later. Further, the belief that Korea is a racially homogeneous nation, even though it has been proven to be incorrect, still has an influence on Korean society. Thus, the society has not gained a sufficient understanding of these other cultures yet. Language barriers also hinder communication with foreigners, which is not such a problem in English-speaking countries. Thus, the lack of communication, which is a key problem preventing Korean society from starting to become a multicultural nation, also prevents people from living together in unity.

The media aggravates fears as well. It seems that the media tries to relieve the anxiety of the public, in order to prevent the spread of xenophobia. However, the way the news concerning foreigners is reported, could easily generate negative feelings instead. A murder case last month of a woman in her twenties in Suwon, for instance, grabbed the headlines and commanded the public’s attention, broadcasting and underlining that the felony was committed by a foreigner.

A statistical statement is sometimes released indicating that the number of crimes committed by foreigners in Korea is actually lower than by Koreans. Furthermore, crimes committed by Koreans against foreigners are outnumbered by the reverse case. Few will be relieved by that news, however. People will simply associate foreigners with crime cases, since they cannot know about foreign people well. Instead, public attention tends to concentrate on other statistical data, for example: the number of cases of crime has been increasing in proportion to the rise in population of foreigners, or that crimes occurring in rising density districts, mostly populated by foreigners, are becoming intensified.

Public warnings that race riots or terrors attacks could occur as a consequence of racial discrimination, released with the object to arouse attention and soothe the racial antagonism in society, do not go far toward lessening xenophobia. This is an attempt to suppress fear by provoking another fear, making the impression that foreigners are the people who need to be guarded, instead of that they are the people with whom we can live.

Last but not least, is the matter of earning a living. Some struggling job-seekers might think that foreigners in Korea are taking away their jobs. From foreign lecturers at language institutions to migrant workers, including illegal aliens who work on construction sites as day laborers, or in the service industry; low wage-earners could be regarded as no more than competition.

Xenophobia is not only the concern of Korea, but is shared in different degrees by other nations too. Moreover, it could be accepted to some extent as a generation change, as Korea becomes a multicultural society. However, the xenophobic sentiment in fact, can not completely disappear, as xenophobia exists in any country. It is appropriate that Korea moves toward an established multicultural society. Drastic measures should be avoided so as not to draw unwelcome attention from those who resist this change. It is simply a matter of letting people know that foreigners are also human beings. Thus, the catchphrase from the public service advertisement would best to be changed to: “The people who live in Korea, are guaranteed by Korea, just as you are.”

Kim Ji-Su(Editor-in-chief)

Violette@kookmin.ac.kr