Anti-refugee backlash

> Yemenis spark wave of xenophobia in South Korea

SEOUL: A few hundred asylumseekers from war-ravaged Yemen have sparked an unprecedented wave of xenophobia in ethnically homogenous South Korea.

When just 550 or so Yemenis arrived over several months in South Korea, the reaction was uncompromising.

“Is the government crazy? (They) will rape our daughters!” was one of the top comments, liked by thousands, on Naver, the country’s top internet portal.

Hundreds protested in Seoul last month urging authorities to “kick out fake refugees” while nearly 700,000 – a record – signed a petition on the presidential website calling for tightening what are already some of the world’s toughest refugee laws.

“Europe may have historical baggage with the countries (former colonies) ... but South Korea has no such moral obligation,” the petition said.

Refugees are largely an alien concept in the Asian country where only around 4% of the population are foreigners, mostly from China and Southeast Asia.

Discrimination against them is widespread. Many are openly mocked on public transport for being “dirty” or “smelly”, and refused entry to fancy restaurants or public baths.

A government survey in 2015 showed 32% of South Koreans do not want a foreigner as a neighbour – far higher than 14% in the US and China’s 12.2%.

The Yemenis took advantage of visa-free access to the tourist island of Jeju.

The loophole, intended to boost visitors to the destination, has been closed to other Yemenis following the uproar.

A recent opinion poll showed about half of South Koreans oppose accepting the Yemeni asylum-seekers, with 39% in favour and 12% undecided.

Park Seo-young, a 20-yearold college student from Daejeon, was against.

“I heard that Yemen has a very poor record in women’s rights ... and I’m afraid that the island will become more dangerous than before and the crime rate will go up,” she said. – AFP