By Kim Se-jeong
Staff Reporter
Haliun Zoright from Mongolia had a successful story to tell. She told The Korea Times that she had come to Korea in 2000 to study economics; married a Korean man in 2004; and passed a test to enter the Korean Immigration Office the next year.
Another Mongolian named Batmonkh had quite a different story to tell. He came to Korea to support his wife and child back in Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia, having quit his previous career as a journalist, which only earned him approximately $100 a month.
Living in Seoul wasn't easy, Batmonkh said. For an intellectual with a high level of education, working long hours in a factory cast more agony than joy, even though the pay rate was higher. His employers weren't all nice. Troubles with employers and loneliness led him to return.
These are just two stories of about 30,000 Mongolians who are currently in Korea for their ``Korean Dreams.''
According to the Korean Immigration Service, nearly 15,000 of them are workers ― legal and illegal. Four thousand workers are recorded as undocumented.
And this was what was on the agenda list of the Mongolian Prime Minister of Mongolia Sanjaagin Bayar when he visited Korea earlier this month.
He stated that raising living conditions in Mongolia was the fundamental solution to averting a population exodus. Plus, he called for cooperation from the Korean government in reducing the number of illegal Mongolian residents in Korea.
``We want to ease the whole process of getting visas. It is now quite an exhausting process for many Mongolians,'' the prime minister said in an interview with The Korea Times.
Currently, getting a visa, especially for those who wish to work in Korea, is beyond the reach of many Mongolians. The Korean government requires a command of language whose standard is far too high for native Mongolians; and for those who pass the test, long job training awaits.
Also for visitors, Bayar said, the Mongolian government hopes to extend the duration of documentation-free stay in Korea, currently 30 days. In fact, Bayar and Prime Minister Han Seung-soo agreed on extending the duration to 90 days during the visit.
Acknowledging the popularity of Korea in Mongolia, Bayar added, the cooperation would also create favorable circumstances for Korean tourism.
The Korean-Mongolian connection has a long history, although official diplomatic relations has only been enlivened for 18 years. The year 2010 will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Mongolia is the root of the Korean heritage. Including the language, anthropologically speaking, Koreans have been given the characteristics of ancient Mongolians.
The story of Genghis Khan, founder of the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous empire in history, was woven into Korean history in the 13th century. The empire stretched out to president-day Poland in the west, to Korea in the east, and from Siberia in the north to the Gulf of Oman and Vietnam in the south.
Mongolians fondness of Korea is found without difficulty. ``Solongos,'' or rainbows, is a descriptive word for Korea in Mongolia. The Korean language is the second most popular foreign language to learn after English.
One Mongolian diplomat said Korea is the most popular country to work in abroad, and when arriving, they find it easy to integrate into society thanks to their similar appearance and similar way of life.
Korean commodities in Mongolia are what reinforce the positive image of Korea there, as Korean brands have become household names, and Bayar welcomed Korean investors with a new focus on natural resources.
``We are willing to go hand in hand with Korea when it comes to natural resources. It will be a win-win situation for both countries,'' he said.
The two prime ministers agreed on convening the Korea-Mongolia cooperation on energy starting next year in an attempt to encourage Korean companies to shift their eyes to the mineral rich country.
The landlocked central Asian country has abundant coal, iron, gold and copper, ranking as the 10th largest country in terms of natural resources.