Republic of Korea - For the first time in its history, the Republic of Korea will tomorrow (23/12) welcome its first group of 22 refugees from Myanmar for resettlement.

The four families, who have been living in a Thai refugee camp, will arrive in Incheon as part of a pilot refugee resettlement project that starts this year and will run through 2017.

IOM Seoul has been supporting the South Korean Ministry of Justice since last April by providing policy recommendations and sharing IOM’s expertise based on its resettlement experience spanning the past 64 years.

Before the families departed Thailand, IOM Thailand provided health assessments, pre-departure cultural orientation, and made all the necessary travel arrangements.

The decision to launch the pilot follows South Korea’s July 2013 enactment of the first refugee law in Asia. It will become the world’s 29th refugee resettlement country.

On arrival at Incheon airport, the refugees will be met by officials from the Ministry of Justice, IOM, UNHCR and local NGOs.  

Following their arrival, the refugees will stay at an Immigration Reception Center near Incheon to receive language training and more cultural orientation to teach them about South Korean society.

“IOM welcomes the ROK’s decision to resettle refugees from Myanmar for the first time. It sets a good example for other Asian countries thinking about accepting refugees in the future,” said Miah Park, Head of Office at IOM Seoul.  

“The heightened awareness of refugees due to ongoing global media coverage should help Koreans to understand their potential contribution and help them to achieve that potential in the country that they can now call home,” she added.  

For further information, please contact Miah Park at IOM Seoul, Tel: +82 70 4820 2781, Email: mipark@iom.int   or Eunjin Jeong, Tel: +82 070 4820 2324, Email: ejeong@iom.int