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| Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon, left, meets French Minister of the Interior and Overseas Territories Gerald Darmanin in Paris, March 8. Courtesy of Ministry of Justice |
By Ko Dong-hwan
Introducing a new central government agency dedicated to Korea's immigration policies is apparently gaining momentum after Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon returned from Europe where he studied the migrant policies of advanced countries.
Han met with key immigration policymakers in France, Germany and the Netherlands during his trip from March 7 to Wednesday. Upon his return, the minister said in a statement that the economic and political leaders of Europe place high priority on immigration policies.
Han's meetings with the European leaders led to bilateral agreements with each country on establishing closer ties to share immigration policies and data. Deals were also made to create a hotline for officials of national immigration policy bureaus in each country.
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| Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon meets Dutch Minister of Justice and Security Dilan Yesilgoz Zegerius in The Hague on March 9. Courtesy of Ministry of Justice |
"I'm sure that the recent summits will help us launch a new control tower on immigration policies and introduce related policies," Han said. "We will do our best to get started."
Han visited Paris on March 8 to meet French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. The ministry oversees the Directorate-General for Foreign Nationals in France as well as the French Office of Immigration and Integration.
Han visited the Netherlands on March 9 and 10, where he met Justice and Security Minister Dilan Yesilgoz Zegerius, who emigrated from Turkey as a child. The ministry is responsible for immigration and naturalization services.
In Germany on March 13 and 14, Han met Rita Schwarzeluhr Sutter, parliamentary state secretary at the German Federal Interior and Community Ministry. The ministry runs the Directorate-General M, H and V, which handle immigration policies, and Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.
The officials not only shared their ministries' strengths and achievements, but also their failures and causes behind them, according to Han. His counterparts also shared how they persuaded members of the public who had objected to their countries' immigration policies.
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| Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon meets German Vice-Minister of the Interior and Community Rita Schwarzeluhr Sutter in Berlin, March. 13. Courtesy of Ministry of Justice |
"Minister Zegerius, in particular, candidly told me how she had arrived in the Netherlands as a first-generation immigrant when she was a child and grew up to become the country's top immigration policymaker," said Han. "It was a really meaningful meeting for me."
The foreign leaders asked Han why Korea wishes to introduce a new immigration policy control tower that's similar to their own, according to the Korean minister. Han answered, "There is no country on earth with a perfect set of immigration policies. Neither would there be a country without systematic immigration policies that will ever successfully run its own affairs."
The countries that saw Han's latest visit all have low birthrate and aging society problems, which Korea is now experiencing. A part of the countries' solutions was embracing immigrants through inclusive governance.
Han has been pushing for the introduction of a new immigration policy control tower in Korea since earlier this year. The bid was included in the ministry's plan this year that was passed by President Yoon Suk Yeol.
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