Jun Ji-hye, a reporter at the finance desk of The Korea Times, focuses primarily on economic policy and government agencies, mainly covering the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Ministry of Budget and Planning, the National Tax Service and the Korea Customs Service. She previously covered financial authorities, including the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service, and earlier worked on the political, city and business desks, reporting on a wide range of issues.
Koreans leaving Myanmar amid growing instability following coup
An anti-coup protester throws a smoke bomb against police forces in Thaketa township in Yangon, Myanmar, in this March 27 photo. AP-Yonhap
By Jun Ji-hye
By Jun Ji-hye
Escalating violence in Myanmar amid anti-coup protests and the military's deadly suppression is triggering an exodus of Koreans from the Southeast Asian country, with the Korean government joining other countries telling their citizens to leave the region due to safety concerns.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs here has urged Korean nationals staying in Myanmar to return home as the country has become a global flashpoint amid mass protests against the Feb. 1 military coup that ousted the democratically elected government, led by Aung San Suu Kyi who heads the National League for Democracy party.
“We asked Koreans in Myanmar to return home through available flights, as long as they are not on any important assignments, and refrain from entering that country until the situation improves,” a foreign ministry official said, Friday.
The ministry said it has taken measures to increase the availability of temporary flights on the Yangon-Incheon route to up to three times a week this month from the current one to two times a week.
The ministry noted the decision was made after discussing developments in the situations with the Korean ambassador to Myanmar via teleconferencing, adding that about 370 Koreans have already returned home from Myanmar since Feb. 1.
The decision came at a time when an increasing number of countries around the world are telling their citizens to leave the Southeast Asian country amid a recent escalation in violence.
Norway's foreign ministry advised against all travel to Myanmar and encouraged its citizens there to leave the country in a statement issued on March 30.
The United States also ordered the departure of non-essential diplomats and family members due to concerns over what U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the “increasingly disturbing and even horrifying violence.”
Concerns among Koreans have deepened after a local employee of Shinhan Bank, one of Korea's leading banks, was shot in the head by the military in Yangon on Wednesday while traveling home from work in a company car. The employee received treatment in a local hospital but died on Friday.
A general view of the office building of Korea's Shinhan Bank in Yangon, Myanmar, Thursday. A local employee was shot by military, Wednesday, and died the next day. Reuters-Yonhap
The incident has led the Korean government to urge its citizens to leave the region, which has also prompted many Korean companies to order the departure of their employees.
For its part, Cheong Wa Dae's National Security Council (NSC) held a standing committee meeting, presided over by Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, Thursday, vowing to come up with measures to guarantee the safety of Korean nationals and companies in Myanmar, and bring them home if the situations gets worse.
The NSC also vowed to cooperate closely with the international community to restore democracy in Myanmar.
However, it has become more difficult to book flights to Korea as not only Korean nationals but also other foreign nationals are increasingly seeking to board temporary flights to Incheon, operated by Myanmar Airways International (MAI), to leave the country.
According to aviation officials, MAI's temporary flights to Incheon scheduled to depart on April 11 and 13 have already been fully booked.