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Koreans in the Arab world

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Koreans in the Arab world used to form a major part of the worldwide Korean diaspora. Koreans started coming to the Arab world in large numbers in 1974 as migrant labourers; between 1975 and 1985, 1.1 million Korean workers came for work, which made it the third-most popular destination for Korean emigrants. However, most eventually returned home or moved on to other countries, and as of 2007, the South Korean government's own figures showed only a few thousand of their nationals living in the region. However, North Korean workers also have a growing presence in several countries in the region.[6]

Koreans in the Arab world
Regions with significant populations
 Kuwait5,000[1]
 Qatar1,800[2]
 United Arab Emirates1,600[3]
 Saudi Arabia1,200[4]
 Iraq100[5]
Languages
Korean, Arabic, English
Religion
Christianity, Islam, Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Koreans

History

Though Korea had a long history of trading contact with the Arab world by means of intermediaries, there were no recorded Korean visitors before 1959, when two Korean Muslims went to Mecca for the hajj.[7] In 1974, the first South Korean firm won a contract in the region, for highway construction in Saudi Arabia, and imported 218 South Korean construction workers, the first Korean residents, to assist in the project. The following year, 3,593 South Koreans went to Saudi Arabia for work. By 1977, migrants to Saudi Arabia alone composed nearly one-fifth of all registered emigration from South Korea, making it the third-most popular destination for emigrants (the top two being Japan and the United States, each of which had longstanding Korean communities, Korean Americans and Zainichi Koreans).[8]

The growth in the South Korean migrant worker population reflected a deliberate policy of the government to promote manpower exports; they had established a special department for this purpose as early as the mid-1960s, and in the 1970s, construction enterprises were given priority in order to facilitate their entry into overseas markets.[9] Over two dozen South Korean companies employed migrant labour, the largest such employer being Hyundai Construction; Koreans were described as having a "competitive advantage" over workers of other nationalities due to their discipline and level of skill, which some commentators attributed to South Korea's practise of universal male conscription. Unlike their Western competitors, Koreans worked around the clock in shift; huge lighting systems were installed to facilitate night work. Wages were roughly two-and-a-half times those for similar types of work in South Korea.[10] A survey of migrants showed that 73% were between 25 and 40 years old; under half (48%) of the regular workers were married, while 69% of contract workers were.[11]


The receiving countries were concerned about the effect that long-term residence of migrant workers could have on their societies; they preferred Korean workers because they were unaccompanied by family members and so stayed only for short periods.[12] The typical length of an assignment in the region was three years.[10] Migration to the region would peak in 1982 and 1983.[6] Several factors in the late 1980s contributed to decreasing the amount of Korean migration. Increasing labour unrest initiated by South Korean workers provided one stimulus for the localisation of the workforce.[13] South Korea's rising labour costs were another reason. During the latter half of the 1980s, the proportion of Korean labourers working on construction projects for Hyundai declined from 70% to only 20-30% during the 1980s, with the shortfall being taken up by local labourers instead.[6][14] By 1990, only 56,000 Korean migrant workers went abroad to any destination, a drop of over 70% since 1982.[15]

By country

Iraq

See also: Demographics of Iraq

The first group of nine South Korean workers arrived in Iraq in 1975; however, until the end of 1980, only a total of 1,958 registered emigrants went to the country. However, their numbers would increase along with the intensification of the Iran-Iraq War; from 1981 until 1985, Iraq was consistently the second to fourth-most popular Arab world destination for South Korean migrant labourers, a total of whom 66,665 went to the country during that period.[6] In March 2003, then-president Roh Moo-hyun agreed to dispatch a contingent of ROK army engineers to Iraq.[citation needed] Later, under US pressure,[citation needed] the South Koreans expanded their presence, creating an entirely new division, the Zaytun Division, consisting of 3,600 troops; they were sent to Iraq in September 2004. As of March 2007, about 1,600 remained; another 400 were expected to return home in April, with the others departing by the end of the year.[16] There were also 128 South Korean civilians in Iraq as of 2004.[5] There are no registered schools for Korean nationals in Iraq.[17]

Kuwait

See also: Demographics of Kuwait

Koreans in Kuwait first arrived in 1975 as employees of South Korean construction companies, although the two countries did not establish formal relations until June 1979.[4][18] By this time, Kuwait had already become the second-most popular Middle Eastern destination for Korean workers behind Saudi Arabia; by that time, 13,813 Korean workers had already come to Kuwait. However, Kuwait would soon lose the second-place position, being surpassed by Libya in 1981 and Iraq in 1982.[6][8] Koreans in Kuwait generally did not receive a welcome from or assimilate to the local society; in common with Indians, Filipinos, and Pakistanis, they were described as being at the bottom of the social structure, "ridiculed and stripped of their rights".[19] Nor did they spend much of their money locally; as meals and housing were provided for them in their work camps, it was estimated that they remitted 80% of their earnings back to South Korea.[20] In spite of these difficulties, between 1975 and 1985, 63,898 South Korean workers came to Kuwait, and as late as 1990, roughly 10,000 were estimated to remain.[6] Kuwait's only school for Korean nationals, the Kuwait Hangul School, was established on 1 March, 1991.[21] Most South Koreans returned home in the following decade, and as of 2007, only 921 South Korean civilians resided in the country; there was also a small contingent of South Korean soldiers, who numbered 170. However, North Korean companies have established a greater presence in recent years, and the Government of South Korea estimated that there were roughly 4,000 North Korean construction workers in the country.[4] In 2005, a group calling itself Kuwait Mujahideen claimed to have killed a Korean national as part of an attack on a United States Army base in Umm Al-Haiman.[22]

Libya

See also: Demographics of Libya

Though Libya did not receive its first South Korean workers until 1977, it quickly became a popular destination; it was the only Arab country which experienced consistent growth in the number of Korean workers between 1981 and 1985, and by 1985 it had already become the Arab world's second most popular destination, with 23,138 arrivals from South Korea. In total, from 1977 until 1985, 103,953 South Koreans came to Libya.[6]

Saudi Arabia

See also: Demographics of Saudi Arabia

South Korea established diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia in 1962, and opened an embassy in Jeddah in 1973, which would later move to Riyadh.[1] Labour relations were especially a source of friction in Saudi Arabia; one eyewitness account by an American expatriate claims that Hyundai's management called in the Saudi military to put down a strike at the Jubail port construction project, and that the army then proceeded to arrest and execute several workers.[23][13] Korean workers were also not afforded the opportunity for much social contact with their host population, though a few did convert to Islam.[7] Saudi Arabia's first school for South Korean nationals was established on 18 September, 1976 in Jeddah; the Saudi Arabian International School in Riyadh also created a Korean section on 24 April, 1979. As of 2007, the two schools enrolled a total of 44 students at the kindergarten and elementary school levels.[24] Migration to the country would peak in 1982 and 1983, with over 122,000 South Koreans entering Saudi Arabia in each of those years, making up over 70% of Korean migration to the region. However, by 1985, the number of South Koreans entering Saudi Arabia had fallen to 58,924, paralleling a downward trend in the whole region.[6] In 1998, South Korea closed their consulate in Jeddah; as of 2007, South Korean government figures showed only 1,200 of their nationals living in the country. There was no known North Korean presence, and North Korea does not maintain diplomatic relations with the kingdom.[1]

Qatar

See also: Demographics of Qatar

South Korea and Qatar established diplomatic relations in 1974, and two years later, the South Korean embassy opened in Doha.[2] Qatar was never a major destination for South Korean labourers; the first group of 636 workers did not arrive until 1976, and until 1985, only a total of 12,816 South Korean emigrants chose Qatar as their destination.[6] Unlike in other countries in the region, Korean workers in Qatar did not just come as employees of Korean companies, but also as subcontractors of Japanese companies as well.[25] An estimated 800 South Koreans and 1,000 North Koreans lived in the country as of 2007.[2] North Korean workers are reported to be among the lowest paid in the country, earning US$170/month, less than even Nepalis; they perform low-skilled work such as plastering and bricklaying. Their lives are subject to a great deal of official constraint, and they try to avoid contact with the South Koreans.[26] There are no registered schools for Korean nationals in Qatar.[17]

Other countries

Other countries which received Korean migrant workers in the late 1970s and early 1980s include Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Oman, and Sudan.[6] The Cairo Korean School, founded on 5 December, 1979 is the Arab world's only Korean day school with a middle school division; it enrolls 41 elementary school students and 36 middle school students.[27] As of 2006, there were roughly 1,600 South Koreans living in Dubai, including several hundred working for Emirates Airlines; they form the majority of all Koreans in the UAE. However, there was no South Korean consulate in Dubai; the country's only formal representation is their embassy in Abu Dhabi.[3]

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Cheongwadae (Kuwait) 2007. Excludes military servicemembers on active duty.
  2. ^ a b c Cheongwadae (Qatar) 2007
  3. ^ a b Cheongwadae (UAE) 2006. Figure includes only Dubai.
  4. ^ a b c Cheongwadae (Saudi Arabia) 2007
  5. ^ a b People's Daily 2004-04-09. Excludes military servicemembers on active duty.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Seok 1991: 56-58
  7. ^ a b Baker 2006
  8. ^ a b Bonacich 1991: 105-106
  9. ^ Park 1998: 122-123
  10. ^ a b Steers 1999: 107-119
  11. ^ Seok 1991: 58-59
  12. ^ Park 1998: 122
  13. ^ a b Halliday 1984
  14. ^ Kwon 2001: 104-105
  15. ^ Park 1998: 121-122
  16. ^ Yonhap News 2007-03-13
  17. ^ a b NIEED-ROK 2007
  18. ^ MacKellar 1982
  19. ^ Mohammed 2003: 21
  20. ^ Mohammed 2003: 20
  21. ^ NIIED-ROK 2007: [1]
  22. ^ Chosun Ilbo 2005-01-16
  23. ^ Collins 2003: 100-101
  24. ^ KERIS 2007: [2][3]
  25. ^ US Congress 1980: 28
  26. ^ RFA 2007-01-17
  27. ^ NIIED-ROK 2007: [4]

Sources

  • Baker, Don (Winter 2006). "Islam Struggles for a Toehold in Korea". Harvard Asia Quarterly. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • Bonacich, Edna (1991). Immigrant Entrepreneurs: Koreans in Los Angeles, 1965-1982. United States: University of California Press. pp. 105–106. ISBN 0520076567. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  • Collins, George Francis (2003). Goodbye Saudi Arabia. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 1553952774.
  • Halliday, Fred (May 1984). "Labor Migration in the Arab World". Middle East Research and Information Program Reports (123). doi:10.2307/3011279.
  • Kwon, Seung-ho (2001). The Chaebol and Labour in Korea: The Development of Management Strategy in Hyundai. United Kingdom: Routledge. ISBN 0415221692. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  • MacKellar, F. Landis (1982). Native and foreign population and labor in Kuwait. Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates.
  • Mohammed, Nadeya Sayed Ali (2003). Population and Development of the Arab Gulf States: The Case of Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait. Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 0754632202.
  • Park, Young-bum (1998). "The Republic of Korea: Trends and recent developments in international migration". Migration and Regional Economic Integration in Asia. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. pp. 121–132. ISBN 9264160396. {{cite conference}}: Unknown parameter |booktitle= ignored (|book-title= suggested) (help)
  • Seok, Hyunho (1991). "Korean migrant workers to the Middle East". Migration to the Arab World: Experience of Returning Migrants. United Nations University Press. pp. 56–103. ISBN 9280807455. {{cite conference}}: Unknown parameter |booktitle= ignored (|book-title= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |editors= ignored (|editor= suggested) (help)
  • Steers, Richard M. (1999). Made in Korea: Chung Ju Yung and the Rise of Hyundai. United Kingdom: Routledge. ISBN 0415920507.
  • "President Roh Moo-hyun's Official Visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia". Cheongwadae (Office of the President), Republic of Korea. 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • "President Roh Moo-hyun's State Visit to the State of Kuwait". Cheongwadae (Office of the President), Republic of Korea. 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • "President Roh Moo-hyun's Official Visit to the Qatar". Cheongwadae (Office of the President), Republic of Korea. 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • "President Roh Moo-hyun's Speech to Korean Residents during his Official Visit to the United Arab Emirates". Cheongwadae (Office of the President), Republic of Korea. 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • "Report of Korean's Death in Kuwait Under Investigation". Chosun Ilbo. 2005-01-16. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  • "재외한국학교 (Korean Schools Overseas)". Korea Education and Research Information Service. 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  • "Overseas Korean Educational Institutions". National Institute for International Education Development, Republic of Korea. 2002-03-01. Retrieved 2007-04-22.
  • "South Koreans detained by Iraq insurgents released". People's Daily. 2004-04-09. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
  • "How's the Kimchi? Secret Lives of North Korean Workers Abroad". Radio Free Asia. 2007-01-17. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  • FY 1981 Foreign Assistance Legislation: Hearings Before the Committee on Foreign Relations. United States Congress/Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. 1980.
  • Lee, Chi-dong (2007-03-13). "South Korean troops asked to stay longer in Iraq". Yonhap News. Retrieved 2007-04-26.

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