By Lee Kyung-min
In December, about 20 Cambodian workers engaged in a bloody group fight inside a bar in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province.
The incident is belatedly becoming the talk of town after surveillance camera footage showing their brutal fight was aired on TV Wednesday.
Some of the Cambodian men, who all work in factories in Gimhae or Busan on temporary visas, sustained deep stab wounds and bone fractures that will require months of hospital treatment, police said.
During the fight, they smashed bottles of beer and soju, and threw dozens of chairs at each other, breaking dishes and glasses. The owner of the bar said he was lucky that they only cost him his tables and dishes, not his life.
“There were a lot of blood stains. I could have been hit by any of the bottles they threw,” he said.
Residents in Gimhae were frightened by the videos of the incident.
“I thought of foreign factory workers as being docile, hardworking and somewhat naïve. But this likely breaks that stereotype. They could be violent and dangerous, too. I’m afraid of them,” a resident said.
Police said they have apprehended 11 of the workers involved in the fight. They were charged with assault with weapons and damaging property. They are still looking for the other nine suspects.
Police said the fight began after an argument.
In November, a 22-year-old worker from Gimhae, surnamed Cham, was assaulted by three workers from Busan, also Cambodians.
About one month later, Cham and his friends encountered the workers from Busan at the bar in Seosang-dong, Gimhae. Cham asked for an apology for the previous incident, but was ignored. They then immediately got into a fight, police said.
“It seems they were instantly provoked by each other after recognizing who they were. As for now, their case does not indicate crime organized by a bigger gang. But we are investigating to find out detailed information," a Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency official said.
“We understand the public’s concern that their actions might lead to crimes of a similar sort. I hope foreigners will try not to engage in criminal activity or violence for that matter. If not, it will be the law-abiding ordinary foreigners living here who will suffer from prejudice.”
“The factory workers stay at their dorm during weekdays, and they come out to have fun during weekends,” the official added.
Seosang-dong, Gimhae, where the bar was located, is known for its high population of foreign workers, also called the “Itaewon of Gimhae.” Itaewon is a district in central Seoul with a high population of foreigners.
The Busan Sasang and Gimhae Hallim factory complexes are known for their high number of foreign workers staying on temporary work visas.
More than 19,000 such workers live in Gimhae, and 16,000 in Busan. There are almost 50,000 foreigners living in Busan, and a third of them are factory workers mainly from Asian countries including Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
According to data from the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs, foreigners make up more than 3 percent of the nation’s total population.
Out of the total population of more than 51 million, almost 1.6 million are foreigners. More than 32,000 foreigners live in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, some 23,000 in Hwaseong, also in Gyenonggi Province and some 16,000 in Suwon, Gyeonggi.
In Seoul, some 25,000 live in Yeongdeungpo, southwestern Seoul, and some 15,000 in Guro, also in southwestern Seoul.