I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.
Nepali workers console each other
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Nepalese residents along with their Korean supporters hold a candlelit vigil in front of Daehanmun, the main gate of Deoksu Palace in downtown Seoul, Sunday, to pray for those killed by an earthquake which devastated the Himalayan country, April 25. / Yonhap
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Gov't, employers asked to let Nepali workers go home
Ambassador Kaman Singh Lama
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Anxiety peaked this week among some 28,000 Nepalese migrant workers in Korea, days after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed more than 5,000 people in 45 Nepalese cities, including Kathmandu.
Many of them have family members at home who were either displaced, injured or killed by the unprecedented natural disaster.
Even though they are in a foreign land, almost 3,000 miles away from home, the workers share the unspeakable pain of their countrymen, who are still reeling from the earthquake’s aftermath.
These trying times, however, have only served to strengthen their ties not only with their families back home but also with the Nepalese community in Korea. Members of the community have been gathering frequently to console each other.
Navaraj Timalsina, 28, a manufacturing worker living in the midwestern city of Songtan, experienced one of the worst days of his life on April 27. After being informed of the deadly earthquake, he immediately made several phone calls to his family members in the suburban area of Kathmandu.
After his attempts to reach his parents, grandparents and younger brother, who all live together, failed, he didn’t sleep. The worst-case scenario played over and over again in his head. A day later, Timalsina finally spoke to one of his family members over the phone and learned that all of them are safe. However, they have been displaced because their home was completely destroyed.
Upon hearing that none of them were hurt, Timalsina said he breathed a sigh of relief. “Before the phone call, I was deeply worried about my family members because they have gone through a really bad thing,” he said.
There are two other Nepalese workers at his workplace, one of whom lost family members to the earthquake.
Timalsina is relatively lucky, because other Nepalese workers have not yet been able to contact their families and thus, are still plagued with worry. They have been calling the Nepalese Embassy in Seoul to ask for help in finding out their family members’whereabouts.
“We feel helpless,” deplored Raja Ram Bartaula, deputy head of mission at the embassy. “There is nothing we can do for them. Thus, we feel frustrated.”
The Nepalese diplomat, who has been here alone, said his home in Kathmandu was also destroyed, and his wife is living temporarily in their courtyard with their neighbors. But, he said, the important thing is that all his family members and relatives are safe.
Search and rescue efforts are ongoing in Nepal. So far, more than 5,000 people were confirmed dead and more than 10,000 were found injured.
Korea has pledged $1 million to help the earthquake-stricken country and has dispatched more than 40 people to join the international search and rescue efforts.
Koreans have also been making donations to help the people affected. Some have called the embassy to ask if it receives donations or need other forms of assistance.
Nepalese Ambassador to Korea Kaman Singh Lama is grateful to these Koreans’ kindness and support for the Nepalese in need. His parents and relatives in Kathmandu were also affected by the earthquake and are now living in shelters.
He said the embassy doesn’t take donations directly, but it opened a bank account to which Koreans can make donations. The Nepalese envoy added that at the moment, what Nepal desperately needs are basic items like blankets, tents, medicine and drinking water, among other things.
Memorial service
The Nepalese community plans to hold a candlelight vigil for the victims and their families in Seoul during the weekend. They also plan to erect a memorial altar in downtown Seoul where people can lay flowers for the victims. K.P. Sitouola, representative of the Korea Office for the Non-Resident Nepali Association International Coordination Council, proposed that the labor ministry or employers allow Nepalese workers in Korea whose family members were killed or severely injured to take a leave of absence for several days to go back to Nepal.
“Since they are working under strict labor conditions, it is difficult for them to take several days off to go back to their home country to attend their family members’ funerals. Given the severity of the natural disaster and its devastating impacts on the livelihoods of the Nepalese people, I hope that the Korean government or the employers can give special consideration to these Nepalese workers,” he said.
Otherwise, Sitouola said, the Nepalese workers may have to quit their jobs in order to leave the country to attend their loved ones’ funerals. They would find it extremely difficult to work knowing their families’ situations in Nepal.
The vast majority of Nepalese migrant workers in Korea work in the manufacturing sector. Labor shortages have motivated the Korean government to allow such workers into the country.
Korea is a popular destination for Nepalese workers, most of whom are college graduates. Other popular countries are the United States, European countries and Japan, according to Nepalese workers.
The popularity of these destinations has resulted in intense competition among Nepali people for job opportunities in these countries. This year, for example, the quota for Nepalese workers in Korea is only some 3,600. However, more than 63,000 Nepalis have applied for job opportunities in the country.
“The competition for jobs in Korea is high because the country is safe and the income level is higher compared with those in Southeast Asian countries,” Sitouola said. “Depending on their monthly income and savings, most Nepalese workers earn enough to buy a home in Nepal if they work here for five years or so. In Nepal, it will take at least 20 or 30 years for them to make enough money to purchase a home.”