Korea becoming popular destination for East Asian immigrants

Korea has become an increasingly popular destination for would-be immigrants from East Asian countries, the International Organization of Migration said Thursday.

In an analysis of global immigration, IOM said that Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan have surged to become the destinations of choice for East Asian migrants.

Of these countries, Korea is the most outstanding in the change of immigration trends. It said more than 30,000 Koreans migrated to the United States annually until the end of the 1980s, but beginning in 1990, Korea surged to become one of the major countries where the people of other Asian nations want to live.

The number of migrant workers in Korea reached 267,000 in 1997, but declined sharply to 160,000 after the currency crisis erupted in November 1997.

The number of foreigners residing in Japan legally numbered 783,000 in 1980 and rose to 1.5 million in 1997. Most are Koreans and Chinese, but the number from other nations increased to 630,000 in 1996 from 260,000 in 1990.

China was found to be sending the largest number of unskilled workers abroad among East Asian countries, with about 400,000 migrating overseas annually. Of them, 100,000 settle legally in the United States, Canada Australia, or other countries legally, but illegal Chinese immigrants were estimated to total 200,000 every year.