The ashes of the 20-year-old Vietnamese woman who was killed by her husband only a week after she began her married life in Korea were flown home after funeral services in Busan last week. No words of consolation or monetary compensation can relieve the sorrow of her family. Upon leaving here, her parents asked the authorities to punish their daughter’s Korean husband, who claims to be mentally ill, and to tighten the watch on international marriages to prevent the recurrence of such tragedies.
This may be the worst case involving an international marriage, but numerous incidents of domestic violence, familial disharmony and eventual separations have been reported as arrivals of mail-order brides have increased in recent years. About 1,250 international marriage brokers or agencies are registered here and they are mostly one-man or a husband-wife offices. It is assumed that many more individuals are doing such brokerage business through the internet.
Police have started crackdown on illegal brokerage practice such as falsifying marriage and medical records and other papers necessary to get entry visas for foreign brides. The justice ministry is planning to conduct orientation sessions for men who would go to Viet Nam or other East Asian countries to “interview” applicants, with warning that visas will not be issued to women coming to men who failed to attend the class.
Closer police scrutiny and the education of the would-be bridegrooms could have some effect but international marriages will thrive as long as there is demand and supply, and so will there be unfortunate results as well as happy families.
What is asked of the Asian women wishing to immigrate to Korea through marriage is that they have no illusions about this country. Korea’s GDP of around US$20,000 compared to Viet Nam’s $1,000 does not at all guarantee an affluent, happier life. Driving a car or the possibility of making small remittances to the family back home could accompany huge risks of domestic trouble from cultural differences and communication problems.
As Korean society is inevitably headed toward a growing percentage of intercultural homes, the authorities should work for systemic improvements to help foreign-born brides better adapt themselves to the new environment here and prevent fraudulent brokerage practices. Yet, it is all the more important that individuals seeking international marriage are not cheated by false advertisements and their own misconceptions.
