© Goryeo-in Village
ry of ethnic Koreans’ deportation to Central Asia. The community’s media form one of the pillars of the village. Its residents operate a help network through the local radio stations, Goryeo FM and Nanum (“Sharing”). They offer support to anyone facing difficulties, such as suffering from a serious illness or having trouble paying medical expenses. Goryeo FM is the first-ever radio station run by ethnic Koreans who have found a new home in the country of their ancestors. Eighty percent of its programs are in Russian for the convenience of community members who are more comfortable listening to Russian than Korean. This 24/7 radio station is so popular that even their relatives and friends in Central Asia listen to its programs with a smartphone app. Meanwhile, Nanum Radio supplies detailed news about the village to some 110,000 listeners every day via Facebook and email. Fourth-Generation Descendants The community spirit of the Goryeo-in in the Gwangju area is strong. Residents help each other organize weddings and funerals and gather volunteers who clean the streets and help prevent crimes. They also established a monthly “Visit Goryeoin Village Day” to attract attention from the general public, and in November 2017, the village welcomed Uzbekistan’s Minister of Preschool Education Agrippina Shin. There are a variety of support programs underway for the
76 KOREANA Spring 2018
Goryeo-in Village celebrates the third Sunday in October as “Day of Goryeo-in.” Children of the village pose after performing a traditional Korean fan dance on the fifth annual “Day of Goryeo-in” in 2017.
village residents. Nevertheless, life here is not always easy. Residents feel particularly helpless when they fall ill. Even if they become eligible for health insurance coverage after staying 90 days, it is still a considerable burden for most of them to pay 100,000 won for their health insurance every month. Another chronic difficulty is obtaining visas. The current law regards only first- through third-generation Goryeo-in as “overseas ethnic Koreans” and grants them long-term stay permits, but classifies fourth and younger generations as “foreigners.” Accordingly, the latter must leave Korea when they turn 19, even if they were born in Korea, or have to leave and re-enter the country repeatedly to renew their three-month visitor visas. There are currently some 400 fourth-generation descendants in the village who are inconvenienced by these visa constraints. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the first arrival of Goryeo-in. “We’ll prove here in our homeland that we’re proud descendants of the Korean nation by upholding the wishes of our ancestors who dedicated themselves to seeing their country’s sovereignty restored,” said Shin Joya.