Foreign-natives cast ballots nationwide
By Bae Ji-sook, Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff reporters
About 80,000 naturalized Koreans and some 13,000 foreigners who have gained permanent residency in Korea were able to cast a vote in the local elections.
Unlike presidential or general elections, foreigners who have acquired permanent resident status after more than three years are guaranteed suffrage in local polling.
According to the National Election Commission (NEC), 12,899 foreigners - 5,673 males and 7,226 females - were eligible for the elections. The number is about twice those who participated in the 2006 local elections.
Many of them expressed high hopes to pick the "right person" who will work for the local community and moreover pay extra attention to migrant civilian issues.
"I picked people who are enthusiastic, smart and have hearts for the migrant population - someone who could care about my children, too," said Lee Yeon-shil, a naturalized Mongolian.
Lee, whose birth name was Salanghai, came to Korea 10 years ago and earned her Korean citizenship six years ago. She is a veteran among her peers, having participated in presidential, local administration and general elections. But even for her, this election is a bit tricky.
"This year, things are a bit complicated because there are so many people to pick and some of their pledges aren't evident," she said.
Lee, who works for With World Woman, a civic group for migrant spouses' equal rights, said the election was exciting amid the political tension. "I have become more prudent in choosing the right one," she said.
Ri Evgenia from Russia, who obtained permanent residency four years ago, has prepared a lot for her first voting experience. She has looked over the candidates' ages, careers and activities, but was not sure which one to vote for till the very last minute.
"I reviewed the brochures with my husband and we talked over each candidate. We disagreed over some," she said.
Lowering barrier
Ri is excited to see the results and what the elected ones have to offer. "I was not interested in the election before. But since I have the right to vote this time, I am glad that I could express an opinion," she said.
To greet the newcomers, the NEC sent voting notices in English and Chinese to the foreign-origin participants.
Busan NEC offered interpretation services for international voters Wednesday.
They explained how to vote and provided information on the different parties and candidates in four languages - English, Japanese, Chinese and Russian.
Yanggu in Gangwon Province, Danyang in North Chungcheong Province, and Gimhae in South Gyeongsang Province among others held mock ballots supervised by the NEC days before the actual vote.
"It seemed that many people didn't really know about the election procedure. We need to take extra care with foreign residents because they are deprived of information on individual candidates and the ballot process," said Jang Young-jae, an NEC official at Danyang.
The voters agreed. "There are sometimes language and culture barriers, indifference to politics and other reasons. We do need some guidance in a way," Lee said.
But she was firm regarding the voting. "I think it is my right and responsibility to pick someone who will work for our community and the country," she added.