Pinay running for parliament in South Korea

Source: abs-cbnnews.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Filipino community in South Korea is supporting the candidacy of Jasmine Lee who is running for a seat in Parliament under the ruling party.

Jasmine became a naturalized Korean in 1998, three years after she married Korean Lee Dongho and moved to South Korea.

The ruling Saenuri Party included her in the list of 46 candidates for the proportional representative seats in the April 11 elections in South Korea.

Lee is also a popular TV host and heads the Global Resource Center (GRC) in Seoul, a non-government organization serving as a support group for foreign wives of Koreans.

Vice President Jejomar Binay said Lee “gives hope not only for Filipinos but for all migrants and immigrants”.

"We are all very proud that a full-blooded Filipino is being given the opportunity to be a member of the Korean Parliament," Binay told South Korean media. "It shows that Korea is prepared to extend the opportunity to become a public servant even to those who were not born here."

If Lee is elected, Binay said Lee will be an advocate not only of Filipino workers’ rights, but the rights of all migrants in South Korea.

Lee, who was present during the Vice President's dialog with the Filipino community at the Philippine Embassy, wrote down the concerns raised by the OFWs, among them the plight of "Stateless children," or children born to migrant parents who are not recognized by host countries.

"What we can do is to appeal to the host governments to recognize these children. But the problem is not only confined to South Korea but in other countries, especially in the Middle East where there are an estimate 6,000 of them," Binay said.