80% of Vietnamese think Koreans have positive impact
By Jun Ji-hye
Eight out of 10 Vietnamese people think the increasing number of Koreans in their country would bring positive effects, according to a survey jointly conducted by The Hankook Ilbo and The Korea Times.
The survey was carried out on 1,000 Vietnamese people from Dec. 7 to 16 to mark the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Vietnam.
Among the respondents, 77.8 percent said “yes” in response to a question on whether the increasing number of Koreans in Vietnam would positively affect them, while 22.2 percent said “no.”
Forty percent of respondents said they have been influenced by Koreans the most in the cultural area, while 39 percent chose the economic field.
Three good features of Korean people, cited by the Vietnamese, were hard-working (41.3 percent), responsible (38.9 percent) and friendly (33.7 percent).
Sixty-one percent of participants also cited Korea and Vietnam’s cultural similarities, while 71 percent said the similarities have made it easier to work with Korean people.
When asked to choose the most popular keywords about Korea, 39 percent selected “Korean films,” while 35.9 percent said “K-pop” and “35.3 percent kimchi.”
Among those who have ever traveled to Korea, 69 percent said they really liked or liked the country.
Three of the favorite things about Korea liked by the Vietnamese were the scenery (48.5 percent), food (47.7 percent) and electronic devices (35.8 percent).
With Korea scheduled to hold the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games and Paralympic Games early next year, 54 percent of participants said they would travel to Korea if offered a visa exemption.
Meanwhile, only 30 percent of respondents said the fact Korean soldiers had participated in the Vietnam War was a negative factor in their image of Korea.
Rather, more people thought Vietnamese brides suffering abuse after moving to Korea and Korean businesses treating Vietnamese workers poorly were bigger factors in creating a negative image.
Negative impressions of Korea among Vietnamese people appear to have accumulated more after the two nations established diplomatic relations.
Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen, an associate professor at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities of Vietnam National University, Hanoi, who advised on the survey, said the results in general have affirmed the perceptions of Vietnamese people about Korea.
“Vietnamese people have high expectations for the relations between the two countries for further development of the economy and culture of Vietnam,” she said.
The professor noted, however, issues related to Vietnamese marriage migrants and poor treatment of Vietnamese workers have negatively affected Korea’s reputation.
“In the future, if those issues are repaired, the image of Korea would be much more positive and relations between the two countries would have stronger attachments, and be friendly and attaching to the core values of each country in all aspects,” she said.