Thai social media storm brings S. Korea to table over holiday entry blocks
South Korea and Thailand are working to resolve the issues related to the entry of Thai tourists into South Korea.
Social media has been abuzz with calls to “Ban travelling to Korea” following a significant number of Thai tourists being denied entry by South Korean immigration authorities.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, on Friday, seized the opportunity to discuss two major concerns during the annual meeting between the Thai and South Korean foreign ministries. They discussed Thai nationals being rejected from entry into South Korea, as well as the stringent entry inspection measures imposed by South Korea’s immigration authorities.
The Nation has learned that the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand expressed concern about the impact of this issue, highlighting that it is affecting a significant number of Thai tourists who wish to visit South Korea for purely leisure purposes. That this issue has also gained momentum on social media, could potentially have a broader impact on the overall Thai tourism to South Korea.
The undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Korea is said to have expressed regret upon learning about the issue and stated that they do not wish for this problem to affect Thai tourists.
They emphasized that South Korea does not have a policy of rejecting Thai tourists from entering the country, and any stringent entry inspection measures may be the result of decisions by individual officials rather than an official policy.
The undersecretary affirmed that the South Korean government recognizes the need to address the issue of Thai nationals working illegally in the country, which has been increasing. They have introduced measures to tackle this issue, such as a voluntary departure programme.
This program allows individuals who have been working illegally to voluntarily report to South Korean authorities and be repatriated to their home country without facing penalties. Participants in this programme will not be blacklisted from entering South Korea in the future.
Additionally, in this year, South Korea has increased the quota for Thai labourers to work in South Korea under the Employment Permit System (EPS) from 2,500 to 4,800. This demonstrates South Korea’s emphasis on the importance of labour from Thailand.
Both parties agreed that urgent discussions are necessary between relevant agencies from both sides to address the two issues. They have given instructions for organizers preparing the Sixth Thai-South Korean Bilateral Consultative Mechanism meeting in South Korea.
At that meeting, the Director-General of the Department of Consular Affairs, together with relevant agencies from both sides, will engage in serious and swift discussions in an effort to find solutions to these issues.
