ED Gov. Kemp of Georgia should address Korea's collective sense of betrayal
A masked federal agent wearing a Homeland Security Investigations vest guards a site during a raid where more than 300 Koreans were among 475 people arrested at the construction site of a joint Hyundai Motor-LG Energy Solution factory for electric vehicle batteries in Ellabell, Ga., Sept. 4, in a still image taken from a video. Reuters-Yonhap
Restoration of trust heavily eroded over Sept. 4 raid of Hyundai-LG plant in Georgia
The governor of the U.S. state of Georgia, Brian Kemp, is expected to arrive soon in Korea. This state, had it not been for the events of Sept. 4, would have not been well-known to Korea. But Koreans have seen how U.S. immigration officials searched, shackled and then detained more than 300 Korean nationals during a raid on a plant under construction in a joint venture by Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution (LGES) in Ellabell, Georgia.
The plant is part of a massive $7.6 billion investment, and LGES was in the process of constructing a battery factory at the site when the immigration raid took place. Korean nationals, including those directly employed by LG and its suppliers, were shackled and then held at a detention facility. Immigration officials said the Korean nationals were not working with proper visas or had overstayed their visas. The detained workers were mostly in Georgia on a B-1 (temporary business visitor) visa or through the visa-free Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), the latter of which was a gray area that was suddenly and unexpectedly deemed improper for anyone seeking to work in the United States.
Korea and the U.S. belatedly worked together to seek the release of the detained workers and to find better visa solutions. Meanwhile, Seoul and Washington officials agreed that Korean workers of companies investing in the U.S. could stay in the country under B-1 visas or ESTA for the purposes of installing, servicing and repairing foreign-purchased equipment at their U.S. plants.
Gov. Kemp of Georgia did call for visa reform in the aftermath of the raid. With his visit expected next week, we hope the governor will do his best to address the sense of collective betrayal and resentment that the Korean public still feels. It's vital that he does so, as LGES has resumed sending workers to the Georgia plant.
Despite the 72 years of the Korea-U.S. alliance, and Korea's active investment in the United States in recent years, Koreans vividly recall that the Georgia plant raid was almost proudly promoted as "the largest single-site enforcement operation in U.S. history" by Department of Homeland Security officials.
Koreans whose family members were among the 300 or so detainees spent days in horror waiting for news of their release. The Korean public was shocked, to say the least, and anti-U.S. sentiment percolated.
As this is Kemp's third trip here, he is familiar with the economic investments Seoul has made and plans to make in his state. There are hurdles, first and foremost, relating to visas. The U.S. has yet to allot an appropriate quota for Korean nationals under the H-1B visa as it does for such countries as Singapore, and the two sides have not yet agreed on setting up a visa dedicated to highly skilled Korean workers. In addition, Trump has issued an order that anyone newly applying for the H-1B visa must pay a hefty fee of $100,000 — a measure aimed at encouraging businesses to hire more Americans. As Kemp has done before, he should continue to press for improved visa policies for Korean workers who will be staffing plants and creating jobs in his state.
More importantly, Kemp would do well to apologize for the September raid to assuage the minds of Koreans and ensure that Georgia's business environment remains vibrant, free and democratic. The governor's visit was planned well before the raid, reports said. In any case, he comes at an opportune time — as a U.S. local leader, he can demonstrate the goodwill of his state not only to the business sector here, but to an alarmed Korean public.
“Georgia stands committed to strengthening cultural and business ties,” the Georgia Department of Economic Development posted on social media. “Together, we look forward to a future of continued collaboration and success."
The governor must abide by this statement. Should Kemp succeed at appeasing the Korean public's anger, he would, inadvertently or not, be facilitating President Donald Trump's task at the upcoming APEC summit in Gyeongju as he intends to meet with President Lee Jae Myung and other world leaders.