SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; FEBRUARY 23, 2010

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SEOUL 000287 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KS US SUBJECT: SEOUL - PRESS BULLETIN; FEBRUARY 23, 2010 TOP HEADLINES -------------- Chosun Ilbo Autonomous High Schools Face Probe over Illegal Admissions JoongAng Ilbo Uncomfortable Truth about University Tuition Fees; ROK Tuition Fees Second Most Expensive in OECD Dong-a Ilbo Former Ruling GNP Chairperson Park Geun-hye Allegedly Rejected President Lee's Proposal to Meet Hankook Ilbo President Lee to Tackle Education Reform Head-on Hankyoreh Shinmun Blue House Allegedly Secretly Investigated Pro-Park Geun-hye Lawmakers to Pressure Them on Sejong City Revision Segye Ilbo ROK Fast Becoming a "Multicultural Society" Seoul Shinmun Schools under Criticism for Turning Blind Eye on School Violence DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS -------------- According to an ROKG official, chief ROK nuclear negotiator Wi Sung-lac will visit China today to discuss the resumption of the Six-Party Talks. (JoongAng, Dong-a, Hankook, Hankyoreh, Segye, Seoul, KBS, MBC) Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan will meet in Washington on Feb. 25 with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to discuss the North Korean nuclear issue. (JoongAng, MBC) According to a study by an ROKG-run institute, hundreds of ROK women enter the U.S. as sex-trade workers every month. (JoongAng) MEDIA ANALYSIS -------------- -N. Korea -------------- Most ROK media covered chief ROK nuclear negotiator Wi Sung-lac's Feb. 23-24 visit to China to discuss the resumption of the Six-Party Talks. Right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo quoted an ROKG official as saying that Wi will meet with his Chinese counterpart, Wu Dawei, to be briefed on North Korea's top nuclear negotiator Kim Kye-gwan's recent trip to China, and to discuss ways to resume the multilateral talks. JoongAng also noted U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Stephen Bosworth's reported visit to Beijing in the near future, and the planned Feb. 25 meeting in Washington between Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. JoongAng also expected that the relevant parties would engage in full-blown discussions about resuming the Six-Party Talks. Moderate Hankook Ilbo, meanwhile, reported a senior ROKG official as saying: "The U.S. is seeking a visit to China by Ambassador Bosworth to be briefed on recent China-North Korea talks and to discuss the resumption of the Six-Party Talks. Given that chief nuclear negotiator Wi is going to China in such a rush, there will likely be a U.S.-China contact this week." SEOUL 00000287 002 OF 004 FEATURES -------------- SEX TRADE BRINGS HUNDREDS OF KOREANS TO U.S. (JoongAng Daily, February 23, Page 2) By Reporter Hong Hye-jin Study: Smuggled into the country, some turn to drugs and gambling. A first-of-its-kind study by a government-run institute has revealed that hundreds of Korean women enter the United States as sex-trade workers every month. Twenty-two Korean prostitutes and industry insiders who worked in the United States were interviewed by the Korean Institute of Criminology for four months beginning in May last year. According to Jang Joon-oh, a senior researcher in charge of the project, most of the Korean women paid brokers $10,000 to help them cross various borders leading to the United States. Seven out of 18 Korean sex workers interviewed told Jang they were smuggled into the United States from neighboring Canada and Mexico. The seven women, who work in massage parlors or karaoke bars, said they hid in cars to cross borders, or risked their lives by sneaking past the U.S.-Mexico border with Mexicans. The 11 other sex workers arrived in the United States on tourist visas. All 18 of the sex workers interviewed were illegal aliens in the country. One earned a green card after she fabricated marriage documents, but faces deportation to Korea if caught by U.S. immigration. A 36-year-old sex worker who worked in the industry in the United States for five years confessed she hid herself under the back seat of a van and illegally entered the United States from Canada. Since taking up the sex trade, she has acquired a holiday drug and gambling habit of $10,000 a day. The study also found that some women who went to the United States for sex work saw Internet advertisements reading, "Escape recession: Looking for "unni" (women) who want to work in the U.S." The respondents said they worked more than 13 hours with seven or eight customers a day on average. Eighty percent of the clients were Americans and the sex workers said they were paid around $200 per hour, with $80 of that money going to the owner of the sex business. The interviewees said they earned at least $10,000 a month. Many Korean sex workers in the United States frequently move to other states to avoid crackdowns. They normally start working in western cities such as San Francisco or Los Angeles and move to Dallas, Atlanta and New York. "The sex industry wants to lure new clients, and they prefer to switch their workers often," Jang explained. Jang, who conducted his interviews in the United States, said the women's American dream of a decent life turns upside down quickly. "Many Korean sex workers don't speak English at all, and they can't get on the bus alone," Jang said. "It's nearly impossible for them to live a normal life in the United States." Korean women in the sex industry in the United States were generally satisfied with the high salary, but they get homesick and feel lonely because of the language barriers and other factors. Jang said many turn to drugs or gambling to escape their reality. "It's important to determine the illegality of sex work, but we also need comprehensive research on whether Korean sex workers in the SEOUL 00000287 003 OF 004 United States were exploited or have had their human rights severely infringed," Jang said. (This text was provided in English by the newspaper.) CHILDREN GIVE U.S. SOLDIERS THUMBS UP AND SAY "PLEASE GIVE ME SOME MONEY" (Chosun Ilbo, February 23, 2010, Page 6) By Correspondent Lee Ha-won from Bagram Air Base Chosun Ilbo Correspondent Lee Ha-won, boarding a bulletproof armored vehicle, accompanies U.S. soldiers on their patrol outside Bagram Air Base. On the morning of February 21, 1st Lt. Brian Waddy of "Task Force Gladius" under ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) Regional Command East came to pick me up. He reached out his hands to me, saying with a serene look on his face, "Welcome to a far away land." He was the person in charge of helping me until my activities under the Embed Program in Afghanistan end. Task Force Gladius is tasked with patrolling and guarding the areas around Bagram Air Base. On February 21, it was assigned the mission of patrolling Area G near the airbase and carrying out public services. The vehicle that I boarded for my first mission was a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle, which is specially designed to survive mines and explosives. It looked much larger and stronger than a Humvee, an all-purpose, modern-day jeep which the U.S. military usually uses in its operational areas. The door of the MRAP was almost too heavy to open with one hand. My tap on the door window failed to make a sound due to the vehicle's bulletproof glass fittings as thick as a finger joint. The state-of-the art communications equipment installed in the vehicle makes it possible to communicate with headquarters and other vehicles at any time. When I asked "What does this vehicle cost? About 100,000 dollars?" 1st Lt. Waddy responded, "It seems to be several times more expensive than that." He noted, "MRAP vehicles were deployed to Afghanistan last year because of poor road conditions. You are lucky." Now that I was sitting in a military vehicle with body armor and even wearing a helmet for the first time since my discharge from military service, I grew more nervous. Before leaving Bagram Air Base for patrol, soldiers from Bravo Company loaded their rifles with live ammunition. They had reserve bullets around their waists. I was sent to the ISAF Regional Command East, where the headquarters of the U.S. Bagram Air Base is located. The ISAF Regional Command East controls Parwan, where the ROK's Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) and troops for its protection will be stationed, as well as Bamyan, Panjshir, and Kapisa. Area G, where TF Gladius's Bravo Company went out on patrol, is a relatively safe region, but U.S. soldiers did not let their guard down. One soldier, sitting in the backseat between the first lieutenant and me, kept watch in every direction with the upper half of his body outside the vehicle and his hands on a 360-degree revolving machine gun. Whenever the machine gun swiveled, making a big noise, the lower half of his body would move right beside me. While three MRAP vehicles moved along a narrow road in Afghanistan, reconnaissance aircraft and transport planes were seen flying in the sky. Some U.S. military aircraft were flying low enough to look into every nook and cranny of the region. In this region, there are two things that antagonize the U.S. military: rocket launchers and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The Taliban, which mainly controls the southern part of Afghanistan, does not have much influence over Parwan Province, where the ROK's PRT will be deployed. However, some members of the Taliban sneak into Parwan and come close to Bagram Air Base to fire SEOUL 00000287 004 OF 004 rockets and then run away. Also, U.S. troops remain on high alert because the Taliban attempt to set off remote-controlled bombs when U.S. vehicles pass by. When I arrived at the center of area G, U.S. forces kept their armored vehicles in line and stood on both sides to start patrolling on foot. When I deviated from the line for a moment to take pictures, Lieutenant Waddy approached and warned me not to get out of the line. The patrolling company first stopped by a police station which had a well located in the middle. The building was reminiscent of the ROK in the 1950s. Deputy Chief Nabi Kohestani welcomed the U.S. troops with a smile. A soldier took out a large picture he took a few days prior. The picture was of a U.S. soldier and an Afghan policeman sharing food together and putting their arms around each other's shoulders with a beaming smile. One soldier said, "We became friendly with policemen in this area. We have developed trust in each other." The Bravo Company went to the center of this area, which was packed with shops, together with the Afghan police. U.S. troops have made it a rule to patrol this area with the Afghan police. Sergeant Rodrigues of the company said, "We can minimize backlash from residents by patrolling with Afghan police." U.S. forces also intend to increase residents' trust in them. Residents in this area are friendly toward U.S. troops. U.S. forces frequently provide goods for residents and school supplies for students, striving to shore up their image as U.S. forces extending a helping hand to residents. Also, many young Afghans have found jobs at Bagram Air Base. Bagram Base, where tens of thousands of personnel are stationed, has had a considerable impact on the local economy. This (the impact on the economy) seems to be why residents now approach the patrolling U.S. forces without hesitation, and smile as they hold out their hands to shake (with the soldiers). (Afghan) children raise their thumbs (in appreciation) of the U.S. forces. Some of the children approach the armored vehicles, shouting, "Give me the money." During their patrol, U.S. forces receive and deal with suggestions from residents through an interpreter. By the time the patrol was over, a U.S. soldier was surrounded by ten Afghan residents. A resident grabbed the young soldier, asking him to buy a chicken he brought. The resident said, "Fifty, fifty," by which he meant the chicken costs fifty dollars. The soldier refused with a smile, but the resident was persistent in his demand. Other residents, who had been watching this, also implored the soldier to buy their chickens. In the end, when the soldiers of the Bravo Company returned, two chickens were also aboard the MRAP vehicles. They paid 10 dollars for each chicken. A soldier said, "We sometimes buy goods to develop friendships with local residents. Today, I bought a very unique one." Other soldiers nicknamed the two chickens that boarded the MRAP vehicles "combat chickens." TOKOLA