SOUTH KOREA = MIGRATION IN 1999

During 1999 the economy of South Korea experienced a strong rebound from the previous slump generated by the financial crisis. GDP grew by 8 percent, unemployment declined to 5.7 percent and currency regained stability. One of the first consequences of the recovery was the return of irregular migrants. After more than 60,000 had left in 1998 as part of the voluntary repatriation program, leaving approximately 90,000 still in Korea, the number of irregular migrants reached 100,000 again in January.  The majority of them were Chinese (56 percent), followed by Bangladeshis, Filipinos, Mongolians and Vietnamese. An update in September revealed that irregular migrants had reached 126,043, making up 34 percent of the 368,212 foreign workers in Korea. In reaction to it, the government announced the usual amnesty, two-month grace period starting on 1 December, during which irregular aliens were given a chance to leave the country voluntarily and be exempted from paying fines. Overstayers unwilling to avail of the amnesty will have to face criminal punishment and deportation if caught. The government promised to ensure the payment of arrear wages and accident compensation. It is estimated that trainees working in Korea have not been able to retrieve 3.8 billion wong. Trainees are required to deposit 50 percent of their earnings in fixed savings. Those who had turned irregular workers were not able to recover the money for fear of deportation.

At the same time, the government amended the immigration law, raising the age for mandatory fingerprinting from 17 to 20, and considered granting foreign residents voting rights. It also demanded the same rights for the 600,000 Koreans who have been in Japan for a very long time. It also made provisions to attract ethnic Koreans back to the country, by granting them the possibility to stay up to two years without having to renew their visas, with possibility to extend the time of residence, and the right to purchase and sell land. However, because of protest from China, ethnic Koreans who left before 1948 have been excluded. These are perhaps 2.2 million Koreans in China, 500,000 in CIS and 150,000 in Japan. Thus, perhaps 2.85 million of the 5.5 million ethnic Korans around the world have not been included.

In addition to attracting back ethnic Koreans, the government considered policies to facilitate foreign investment. The president recommended scrapping the law which prohibits foreigners to acquire land and allow foreign investors to take over local firms through mergers and acquisitions. To encourage foreign tourism, no visa is necessary for tourists staying in Korea for two weeks and holding a US green card or a re-entry permit.

South Korea also offered to take in refugees who fled North Korea because of harsh conditions, including famine, and were in China and Russia, countries that did not intend to keep them and were considering repatriating them to North Korea.