South of Seoul takes a deep dive into the South Korean government systems and uses a case study based on recent research surrounding issues experienced within the US Military community. The following information is sourced from Korean government civics classes, interviews with 1339, interviews with the Ministry of Foreign affairs, and personal interviews with US Military personnel regarding their experiences.
About COVID-19 Procedures Across Korea
Interpretation Federal policy and implementation of procedures related to Korean Federal COVID-19 policy vary across South Korea. Such variations in local policy and procedures may occur because Korean Federal Government issues general, vaguely worded COVID-19 policies and then allow local government offices the right and freedom to interpret and implement such vague COVID-19 policies as they see fit for their individual populations. (This is also true about other Federal policies in Korea).
Allowing local governments the freedom to interpret the broad Federal COVID-19 policies provides small and large local governments the important flexibility they need to meet the needs of their communities. When living as a resident in Korea, such freedom and flexibility help create a comfortable local living environment for those living in rural areas as ‘restrictions’ are not as heavily enforced as in highly populated areas such as Seoul.
However, such flexibility can also cause issues – especially related to issues surrounding foreign populations. Let’s look at how such a system may impact the US Military personnel.
Federal COVID-19 Policy v. Local COVID-19 Procedures
For international residents and US military living in South Korea under the SOFA agreement, such variations in policy and procedure can cause great stress and frustration. Such stress comes from factors such as:
- The Federal Government regulations often get translated to other languages while local policy and procedures do not. (This creates misunderstandings in how international residents understand local procedures.)
- Lack of an understanding of how Federal policy becomes implemented locally.
- Lack of awareness of the KCDA (Center for Disease Control) hotline 1339 which offers English langauge support related to COVID-19 policy at the federal level)
- Lack of foreign language support at local government offices (some small governments don’t have the resources to provide equitable access to non-Korean speakers)
- Lack of an awarenss related to how to advocate for clarity related to local COVID-19 rules (many international residents do not take Korean civics courses to understand how to interact with local government)
Case Study: US Military Living Under the SOFA Agreement Use of Form 49
Those associated with the US military currently struggle with the above issues in relation to From 49 (Confirmation of vaccination form). As previously mentioned in other South of Seoul blog articles, many of those associated with the US Military do not live in Korea as residents. They live in Korea under SOFA which means they are in Korea but not integrated into Korean social systems and thus carry a special Form 49 to verify their foreign vaccinations.
Possible Impact of Federal Policy v. Local Procedures on Form 49 Acceptance
In theory, Form 49 allows US Military personnel and families to live in Korea without registering in the Korean social systems (interview with 1339). Such an agreement to use Form 49 sounds exciting! It sounds like the US military living in Korea under the SOFA agreement will now have no issues moving about the country if they are vaccinated. It seems like showing the form to any business in Korea should solve all vaccine-related issues. However, that has not been the case. US military personnel using Form 49 have been turned away from businesses across South Korea (first-person reports gathered through community interviews).
Such issues related to the acceptance of Form 49 may come from the issue that Federal agreements do not necessarily translate into the local adaptation of associated procedures (interview with 1339). Since each local government office across Korea should create local rules related to Form 49, different local governments (who may not have US military-related people live in an area) may put different levels of effort into promoting Form 49 to businesses. Frankly speaking, some local governments with limited cash and staff may not implement any procedures or distribute any information to businesses related to From 49 (interview with 1339). That would be their choice.
Possible Impact of Internal Korean Federal Policy v. Public Korean Federal Policy
Additionally, the Korean Federal government created the policy related to Form 49 for the US Military as a special agreement related to SOFA. Such a situation means that policy related to Form 49 does not exist publically (interview with 1339). That means you can not look up the policy online and it is not shared publically. When South of Seoul asked for a copy of such a policy we were told it was not publically accessible and only passed around internally (interview with 1339). When asked how we could prove such a policy regarding From 49 exists, the KCDA said that people can call 1339 to confirm the policy (interview with 1339).
Possible Lack of Business Access to Information Related to Form 49
What such a situation could mean is that many Korean businesses may not be aware of the agreement to accept Form 49 as Confirmation of COVID-19 Vaccination exists. Since businesses cannot access the policy related to 49, said businesses may struggle to believe an agreement to accept Form 49 exists if local governments have not issued a statement regarding Form 49. Additionally, many foreign and locally owned businesses interviewed by South of Seoul did not know they could call the KCDA directly at 1339 to confirm policy related to Form 49.
Possible Differences in Quality Related to Using Form 49 v. a Korean FRC
The issue of From 49 causes great stress for many US military-associated peoples during an already difficult time. Under the current situation, equitable awareness of From 49 across Korea will likely take time as each local government or business slowly adapts. US Military personnel with locally registered vaccines and/or FRC numbers may feel more relaxed and comfortable living in Korean society during COVID-19.
This does not mean South of Seoul is telling US Military personnel to get FRCs or register their foreign vaccines in Korea. We simply wish to provide insight into a current struggle faced in our community and how it may or may not impact people in our community. Activity duty military should speak to their command regarding how to handle such issues.
Contact the Local Government Office to Understand Local COVID-19 Information
The Form 49 Case Study demonstrates the need for international residents to advocate for their needs at the local as well as federal levels. In order to do this, we all need to know where our local government offices exist.
In areas of the country with large populations (Suwon, Daejeon, etc) such local government offices are called ‘Gu offices’ (구). You can find such offices for your area on Naver. Smaller administrative areas (such as Pyeongtaek-si) do not have enough people to have a ‘Gu office’. Therefore, in smaller cities such as Pyeontaek the City Hall or the smaller eup, myeon, or ri (-읍, -면, -리) offices should be contacted.
The administrative offices for towns ending in eup (-읍), myeon (-면), or ri (-리) are called 행정북지센터.
City Hall Locations with Pyeongtaek-si
In Pyeongtaek we recommend starting with City Hall locations if you have specific questions related to COVID-19 rules in Pyeongtaek. Remember that such information does not necessarily apply to Cheonan, Asan, Osan, Anseong, or Hwaseong.
Pyeongtaek City Hall
031-8024-5000
Copy and paste phone numbers into Naver Maps to get directions
Hangul Address
경기 평택시 경기대로 245
The main city hall in Pyeongtaek
Songtan City Hall
031-8024-6000
Copy and paste phone numbers into Naver Maps to get directions
Hangul Address
경기도 평택시 경기대로 1366
You can pay: - Parking tickets - Speeding tickets - Car registration
Advocating for the Needs of International Residents in Korea During COVID-19
Although South of Seoul used a situation experienced by the US military as a case study to understand issues related Korean government, the relationship between Federal Korean COVID-19 policy and local governments impacts all international residents in complicated ways. As a group, international residents should be empowered with the civic knowledge needed to advocate for their needs and strive for the equitable implementation of COVID-19 policy in all areas of South Korea.
Disclaimers
South of Seoul gathers information through personal interviews, reading government policies, and newspaper articles. All information should be verified and cross-checked in your local area. South of Seoul does not represent either the South Korean government or the governments of our multi-national volunteer team. South of Seoul welcomes clarification on information as we understand language differences and cultural differences may muddy detailed understanding of complicated situations.
South of Seoul finds many benefits in how the South Korean federal and local governments manage COVID-19 policies. The case study contained in this blog article documents a situation that may exist and the possible causes for such a situation. Even strong systems may cause issues that may need to be addressed after reviewing outcomes.
Related Articles
If this article contained information you found helpful, you may also want to read the following blog articles:
- Special Blog: 1339 Verification of US Military Vaccine Paperwork
- US Military: Getting Your Foreign Registration Card (FRC) in South Korea
- US Military: Connect to Life in Korea with Your FRC (aka ARC)
Founded in 2015, the South of Seoul team consists of volunteers on three continents working together to support English-speaking people traveling or living in South Korea. South of Seoul volunteers work with organizations and individuals across South Korea to improve equitable access to information across South Korea. Much of South of Seoul’s information focuses on Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
Blogs published under the authorship of “South of Seoul” include blogs compiled by multiple volunteers to improve access to standardized information unrelated to individualized personal experiences.
