Korean media: Getting out of the "week of nightmare", stepping on South Korean soil today
316 South Koreans detained by the US arrive in ... Cho Hyun: "Clear commitment that they will not be treated unfairly upon re-entry"
On local time 11th, more than 300 South Koreans detained by the U.S. immigration authorities departed for home and are expected to arrive in South Korea on the afternoon of the 12th. This is seven days after the incident on the 4th, when they were arrested at the Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint battery factory construction site in Erlaville, Georgia, USA, during a surprise inspection for illegal stay and employment, and were taken to the Fox Creek detention facility.
On the morning of the 11th, they took a bus from the Fox Creek Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility to Atlanta airport, and boarded a Korean Air chartered flight arranged by LG Energy Solution. According to the South Korean government's request, the U.S. immigration department did not restrain them with handcuffs during the transfer. It is reported that among the 317 South Koreans detained (307 males and 10 females), only one person did not choose "voluntary return" but remained locally. In addition, 14 foreigners who were also arrested at the factory construction site along with the 316 South Koreans (10 Chinese, 3 Japanese, and 1 Indonesian) also boarded this charter flight.
On the 10th, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington D.C., where he said: "The U.S. has clearly promised that the South Koreans detained this time will not be treated unfairly when they re-enter the United States." Rubio stated: "President Donald Trump instructed to quickly negotiate and take measures to meet the South Korean demands as much as possible." Additionally, the South Korean and U.S. foreign departments decided to establish a working group to discuss new visa forms for South Korean professionals. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andrew Beck, deputy national security advisor of the White House National Security Council, who met with Cho Hyun, said: "Large-scale South Korean investment in the U.S. has been implemented, but the current visa system is not matching it."
The detained South Koreans were originally scheduled to return the day before, but suddenly were postponed. According to an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "President Trump said, 'The detained South Korean nationals are all skilled workers, let's study the plan to keep them from returning to South Korea and continue working, training, and training American labor in the U.S.' and thus halted the repatriation process."
Source: Chosun Ilbo
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1843048430163975/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself