“I wasn’t a professional because I did not know what to do or what to say exactly when an immigrant woman asked for help. Through the master course, however, I came to learn how to approach to the problems these women and multiracial families are faced with. There were a lot of “aha” moments while studying.”
“I want to work for the government to help foreign workers and immigrants. As Korean people still have stereotypes about multiracial families, children born to an immigrant mother or father are likely to be bullied a lot in school. I want to help solve those problems and improve the perception toward migrants.”
Phamti Phuong, 36, a Vietnamese immigrant by marriage, who has graduated from a South Korea’s Konkuk University with summa cum laude, being recognized for her euduring passion for learning and volunteer work
Phamti Phuong at her graduation
SEOUL, Aug. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – Phamti Phuong, 36, a Vietnamese immigrant by marriage, acquired Korean citizenship in 2012. She works for the Eumseong County Multicultural Family Support Center founded by Samsung Group.
In the center, she manages coffee Barista training courses for migrant women and runs social contribution programs. She also works as an interpreter in the center whenever requests are made.
She entered Konkuk University to study the master program in social work in March 2012 as she has always wanted to professionally help immigrant women and multiracial families in Korea. She graduated from the school with summa cum laude. Her passion for learning and volunteer work is also highly recognized.
She has volunteered as a Vietnamese interpreter for immigrant women. In addition, she gathered Vietnamese women to practice their traditional dance to give a show for the elderly. She even took care of migrant women who delivered babies.
Life Journey of Phamti Phuong
She first met her husband in 2002. After three years of dating, they got married. In 2007, she came to Eumseong in North Chungcheong Province of Korea with her husband.
As she has learned the Korean language and the culture in the local welfare center, Phuong started to adapt herself to the new surroundings. Since then she has gathered other Vietnamese women in Korea and volunteered for the elderly and the handicapped with them, which aroused her interest in helping the underprivileged.
International marriage has rapidly grown in South Korea since the late 1990s, which is especially common in rural farming communities. Most brides come from China, followed by Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries.
Multiracial Korea
According to a National Statistics Office publication on the 29th, in 2012 22,908 mixed-race children were born from multicultural families, 4.7% of the total 484,550 births. The birth rate for multicultural families has been steadily increasing – 2.9% in 2008, 4.3% in 2009 and 2010, and 4.7% in 2011 and 2012. (National Statistics Office/Yonhap)
By Veronica Huh (veronicah@koreabizwire.com)
