Female N. Korean worker defected from Kaesong complex: activist

A North Korean defector who escaped from an inter-Korean industrial complex in the border city of Kaesong where she was employed remains in a third country, a South Korean activist was quoted as saying in Kaesong by Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old woman, whose identity was withheld for her safety, fled Kaesong in late September and has since asked for help to travel to South Korea, according to Kim Yong-hwa, who leads a Seoul-based civic group advocating for the human rights of North Korean defectors.

The Unification Ministry and officials from South Korean firms operating in Kaesong said they had not heard about the defection and that there was no sign of abnormality at the complex around that time.

If confirmed, it would be the first known defection from the industrial complex, where about 36,000 North Koreans are employed by dozens of South Korean factories operating under the tight control of authorities from Pyongyang.

Seoul officials say the workers were carefully selected from a pool of young people with good family backgrounds from the North Korean border city or Pyongyang to ensure they would not be unduly influenced by the atmosphere of capitalism at the comoplex.

Exactly what motivated the woman to defect is not known, but Kim said she was apparently forced to choose between her marriage and her job, which earned her a relatively good salary in the impoverished nation.

The communist North bans female workers at Kaesong plants from getting married, a violation of their rights, Kim added. "(The young woman) is said to have gotten a warning once from the authorities over the matter," he said.

Kim says North Korea exploits its workers at Kaesong by giving them only US$2 out of their monthly wage of about US$60 paid by South Korean firms.

Currently, 88 labor-intensive garment, kitchenware and various other South Korean factories operate in Kaesong. Pyongyang recently expelled hundreds of South Korean officials and managers from the complex in an effort to pressure Seoul to change its hardline North Korea policy.

[출처 : 코리아헤럴드]

[Herald Interview]Ahn Trio back in hometown for Christmas

If you think accomplished classical musicians are above playing carols to maintain a professional image, you`re wrong.

Ahn Trio, the popular Korean-American alternative classical music group, will give the "Rock `n Christmas with the Ahn Trio" concert on Dec. 17 at Seoul Arts Center.

Consisting of the twins Lucia and Angela, plus Maria, the trio first got the world`s attention in 1987 when they were covered in Time magazine.

The "Asian-American Whiz Kids," as the magazine called them, made their official debut in 1989 and have since been popular in both the United States and Korea for their innovative style of presenting classical music.

"Concerts in Korea definitely mean something special to us," said Maria Ahn, the youngest member who plays the cello, in an email interview. "It is our country where we were born."

Because Korea has always been a special place for them, Maria said they have prepared something special in their repertoire for the upcoming concert.

Transcriptions of Christmas songs will include "Silent Night," which will be very different from the way most of us know the song.

The trio will also present the Korean premieres of their newest works, including "Danceband" by Japanese-American composer Kenji Bench and "Yu-Ryung" by acclaimed U.S. jazz musician Pat Metheny.

"Yu-Ryung" is about substitute drivers who drive car owners home when the latter have had too much to drink. It is said that Metheny, who is well-acquainted with Korea and enjoys a big fan base here, associated the drivers with the word "yuryeong (ghost)" when he first heard of them.

"It`s such an honor that Pat wrote a new piece for us," said Maria. She said it was an excellent work that a modern-day Mozart who is well acquainted with Korea might have created.

Another piece the trio recommended was "Lullaby for My Favorite Insomniac," selections from their latest same-titled album which was released in April.

Many classical music fans often wonder why the trio mixes classical music with different genres like DJing, pop music and dance.

"We try to show that classical music has a huge range of different types," said Maria, adding that the works of Mozart, Beethoven and Stravinsky were considered "modern" back in their days.

From old masters to modern-classical composers who write updated classical pieces, the trio said they love them all.

Having worked together as sisters and a trio for almost 20 years, they said it is great that they can trust and support each other.

"But we (sometimes) need to have a break to feel fresh and get new ideas for new projects," said Lucia, the eldest who plays the piano. "We choose to take separate vacations and be away from each other and come back to our touring life feeling recharged."

The trio also said they had a simple way to solve the arguments that occasionally arise.

"Because there are three of us, we just vote. And sometimes I get my way!" said Lucia.

Besides their concert, the trio also said that they were very excited to spend Christmas with their grandmother who cannot travel to New York City, which is where the sisters live. They also said they want to enjoy eating their favorite Korean foods, like tteokbokki and jjajangmyeon.

Like the trio has done in the United States - holding workshops for those who cannot afford to come to their concerts - they also are preparing a project with UNICEF Korea to set up free community outreach concerts in the near future.

The concert will be at 8 p.m. Tickets run from 30,000 won to 100,000 won. For details, call (02) 318-4301.

By Koh Young-aah

(youngaah@heraldm.com)

[출처 : 코리아헤럴드]

Discrimination at Incheon Airport

By Nicola Johnston

During a recent trip to Incheon International Airport, I was pleased to notice the new addition of a prayer room to the list of facilities at the airport.

My husband was taking a long flight, and, as Muslims, we both wanted to pray one of our five daily prayers before he took the flight.

After eventually finding the (badly signposted) prayer room, hidden away in some dark corner of the new section of the airport, our hopes were dashed.

We walked through the door and found segregated prayer rooms. There were three elaborately decorated rooms, one for Christians, one for Catholics and one for Buddhists.

Where was the Muslim prayer room? If they chose to segregate the prayer rooms, then they should have a room for each faith, not just the top three most popular religions in Korea, especially as Muslims would probably use the prayer room the most.

I understand that if people see Muslims praying before a flight it can make them nervous because of an unfair stereotype, but it should not stop them from creating space for Muslims to pray.

Incheon International Airport is striving to be the best airport in Asia, with the main competition coming from Hong Kong and Singapore. It will never beat those airports until it is fully open to everyone.

Hong Kong Airport also has a prayer room, which I have used, and it is a multi-faith room that is open to all religions.

It contains Bibles, Qurans, prayer mats, chairs, a compass pointing toward Mecca and even a small place to take wudu (the ritual cleansing of the body before praying), that, coupled with the fact that it is easy to find amongst the departure gates, makes it an enjoyable airport to travel through.

Muslims have lived in Korea since 1976 and currently 35,000 Muslims live in South Korea.

Islam is the world's fastest growing religion amongst people of every cultural background, and for Incheon to become a truly first class international airport, it will have to take a more welcoming stance to better appeal to international travelers.

For a Muslim, South Korea is a very difficult country to live in because there is very little awareness about Islam and it is almost impossible to find food at Korean restaurants that do not contain pork.

For Incheon Airport to become truly international and to encourage more Muslims to use it as a transit destination, I would like to see them stop discriminating against Muslims by adding a Muslim prayer room and to improve on current sign posting in the future, so that other people can pray in peace before they travel.

The writer can be reached at nicolalouisejohnston@yahoo.co.uk

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