Seoul –  IOM in the Republic of Korea (ROK), with the support of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, has unveiled a public awareness raising sculpture exhibit in Seoul Plaza to mark International Migrants Day 2017. The exhibit, by Korean sculptor Yi Hwan-Kwon, is entitled My Migrant Neighbour III and aims to promote positive perceptions of migrants. Yi is a distinguished Korean artist, who is famous for distorting objects to provide creative perspectives for audiences.

“We are very pleased to organize our third campaign with Mr. Yi to address the changes we are seeing in the country. There are now an estimated two million migrants in Korean, but many continue to face difficulties integrating into the Korean society,” said Miah Park, IOM ROK Head of Office.

The exhibition includes a sculpture of Italian priest Father Vincenzo Bordo, whose Korean name is Hajong Kim. Over the past 28 years, he has worked with some of the most marginalized communities in Korea. He established Anna’s House, a soup kitchen for the homeless, in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and became a Korean citizen in 2015.

“As a migrant, Father Bordo has made a really positive contribution to Korean society,” said Park.
Other new sculptures in the exhibition include North-South Korean Couple (2016) and Three Siblings of a Marriage Migrant Family (2015).

For more information please contact IOM ROK. Miah Park, Tel: +82 70 4820 2781, Email: mipark@iom.int. Or Jumi Kim, Tel: +82 70 4820 0292, Email: jukim@iom.int