Indians in South Korea say Seoul’s Covid-19 testing order on foreigners lacks readability

Just three days after issuing an order on March 17, requiring all international staff in Seoul to endure diagnostic assessments for Covid-19, the town authorities was compelled to amend it following widespread criticism and accusations of xenophobia from international nationals, together with embassies, within the nation. The Seoul metropolitan authorities had required all international staff within the metropolis to get examined earlier than March 31 or face fines of as much as 2 million gained (roughly US$1,770). An analogous order was issued by the neighbouring Gyeonggi province authorities that moreover compelled employers to require assessments on all new international job seekers and hiring of solely those that take a look at unfavourable.
But these plans had been rapidly scrapped on March 18 after backlash, together with protests by rights teams. In its up to date orders, the Seoul metropolis authorities mentioned it’ll proceed to advocate assessments for foreigners employed at workplaces which are vulnerable to spreading infections, as an example, bars and small factories, an AP report quoted Lee Hae-seon, an official from the Seoul metropolitan authorities saying. The Gyeonggi provincial authorities, nevertheless, has mentioned it has no plans to withdraw its testing order on foreigners, the deadline for which is March 22.
The quickly altering orders have left many within the Indian group not sure of how one can proceed. “It is fundamentally a racist move,” mentioned an Indian worker at Samsung in Seoul. “There are many people who have been working from home without stepping out and now they will have to come out to get tested and risk exposure to Covid-19,” he mentioned. Indian nationals within the South Korean capital metropolis instructed indianexpress.com that designated testing facilities had lengthy traces of international staff following the town authorities’s order.
Seoul had 243,000 registered international staff in keeping with figures from final December, though officers estimate one other 150,000 could also be undocumented, a Reuters report mentioned.
Indians who spoke to indianexpress.com mentioned that many in the neighborhood imagine that these orders are additionally problematic as a result of they lack readability, however are reluctant to brazenly criticise the transfer out of fears for his or her immigration standing. However, due to the quickly altering orders and with the deadline approaching, many Indian nationals have merely chosen to get examined than to threat getting fined if the federal government decides to make last-minute amendments.
A authorities signal board outdoors a testing middle in Pocheon, Gyeonggi province, South Korea, that reads “Only Foreign Worker”. (Photo: Sanjay Yadav)
The Indian group is essentially divided into three teams in South Korea: college students, white collar staff and undocumented staff. “Indians working in big tech companies work on the same visa category as that of a restaurant employee. Even a company like SK Telecom wasn’t clear about what the regulations were and employees were asked to wait for more information before getting tested,” mentioned an Indian nationwide in Seoul who until a couple of days in the past, labored for the South Korean wi-fi telecommunications operator.
Researchers and STEM college students like Nitish Katoch discovered themselves having to get examined as a result of their college coursework requires them to be registered as international staff. This necessary testing isn’t a well-thought or well-executed plan by the federal government, Katoch mentioned. “I understand that there is a pandemic and that you want your country to be safe, but you’re segregating foreigners in a way that doesn’t really help. The testing center is approximately 15 minutes away from my workplace and so I had to get tested at a private hospital to save time, which cost me US$100.”
Indians whom indianexpress.com interviewed previous to the modification of the orders mentioned that it appeared that the federal government was primarily making an attempt to focus on testing migrant staff, lots of whom reside in small, cramped areas, however didn’t wish to make it obvious, and therefore expanded the coverage to incorporate all international staff.
“Most Indians aren’t happy with the orders. There are many who haven’t really travelled outside or even held community gatherings and they are still being asked to do this after following all government protocols,” Katoch mentioned.
Long traces are seen outdoors a Covid-19 testing middle for foreigners in Pocheon, Gyeonggi province, South Korea. (Photo: Madhu L)
For members of the Indian group, it’s actually the dearth of readability within the orders and the brief timeline that has been imposed that has been troublesome and aggravating. “When they first put out guidelines, people weren’t really sure what needed to be done,” mentioned Katoch. While the testing itself is fast, it’s the lengthy traces, notably in high-density neighbourhoods which have turn out to be a trigger for concern.
But there are others in the neighborhood, like undocumented Indian migrant staff who discover little trigger for grievance. Thirty-five-year-old Brijesh does odd jobs in Gyeonggi province and was solely completely satisfied to get examined. “Indians are careless. I used to tell people to wear masks and they would say ‘corona is nothing’,” Brijesh mentioned of his fellow staff. “I feel like the Korean government is doing the right thing. We Indians don’t even stop for the red light at traffic signals; this is coronavirus.”
“There are foreign nationals here who don’t really follow health protocols like the ban on gatherings of more than five people. The Koreans are afraid and they don’t know how else to control the situation,” mentioned Sanjay Yadav, president of the ISKCON temple in Pocheon, who helps undocumented Indians in Gyeonggi province.

Madhu L. got here on a vacationer visa 5 years in the past to South Korea and by no means left. The 30-year-old resident of Pocheon who works in a neighborhood manufacturing unit, likes the nation and barring her immigration standing, follows all different native legal guidelines and rules. “I was walking back the other day from my factory to my room and in one corner of the street, I saw a group of 20 Indians violating the ban of gatherings of five. They were laughing and joking and with the exception of one or two, nobody was wearing a mask,” Madhu mentioned. “Covid-19 is a global pandemic, so why are people objecting to testing?”
On March 19, the Indian Embassy in Seoul issued an announcement indicating that like its American, British and French counterparts, it had mentioned the orders with authorities authorities. “The Embassy has taken up the matter of (the) new requirement of all expatriates including Indians to undergo COVID19 test by March 31, 2021. We have highlighted that any steps taken to combat the Covid19 outbreak must be fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory….The Embassy is hopeful that the concerned authorities will review the matter in view of our intervention and that of many other Embassies,” the assertion mentioned.

Following widespread complaints that the testing was discriminatory, South Korea’s National Human Rights Commission mentioned it was reviewing these testing directives in Seoul and in different areas. The nation’s Health Ministry ordered the Seoul metropolis authorities to implement measures that “don’t discriminate between Korean and foreign nationals and don’t infringe on human rights,” in keeping with an Associated Press report.
An Indian nationwide waits outdoors a Covid-19 testing middle, with an extended line seen behind him in Pocheon, Gyeonggi province, South Korea. (Photo: Sanjay Yadav)
Nishesh Gupta, a Ph.D. scholar on the University of Science and Technology in Daejeon is scheduled for getting examined for Covid-19 this weekend, simply in time for the deadline, after his division issued a round for all international college students. The nearest testing middle is a 20 minute practice experience away, and like his associates, he isn’t very involved concerning the accusations of xenophobia levelled on the South Korean authorities. “If it was mandated just for citizens of one country, then it would have been a problem. But when you’re going to someone else’s house, you follow their rules.”