On September 13, the Chosun Ilbo published an article titled <“X-Korea, let’s take axes”: the reaction of Joseonjok who did not receive disaster relief payments>. The very title of the article does not suit the standing and dignity of a newspaper that claims the largest circulation in the Republic of Korea, but we reproduce it as it is for the record. The content is even more embarrassing. It placed in its precious pages, as if it were an important source’s tip, random talk that anonymous people of unknown identity were exchanging on an internet bulletin board of unknown location.
Perhaps because the reporter thought the “harsh swearing and complaints” expressed online by people who did not receive disaster relief payments were socially dangerous, the reporter abandoned the basic fact-checking and reporting ethics a journalist must observe, and hurriedly ran a brief item without any additional reporting. Yet judged only by the level of the expressions mentioned in the article, they are mild compared with the anger that Korean people who did not receive disaster relief payments expressed on internet bulletin boards, and it is embarrassing even to compare them with the many hate expressions left in the comments on this article.
When one reports on a phenomenon, the basic task is to analyze its cause. Yet the article conveys the complaints of migrants who did not receive the payments without filtering, while remaining silent on the cause, the problems of the discriminatory payment of disaster relief. The article does not include facts that are easy to find with a little searching, for example that many advanced countries such as the United States, Japan, Germany and Canada pay government support to long-term resident foreigners, or that last year the National Human Rights Commission judged the exclusion of foreign residents from disaster relief payments to be unjust discrimination. It did not report on the daily lives of foreign residents during the COVID disaster either. We doubt that hate comments from unknown people are more worth reporting than the opinions of experts who say that paying anyone who can spend to stimulate the economy, regardless of nationality, accords with the original purpose of disaster relief payments. At this rate, the article conveys only the discriminatory and hateful sentiment that “Joseonjok, who are mere foreigners, dare to hold complaints about government policy.” If this was the intent of the article, it can never be called an article. It is merely shameful hate speech that is embarrassing to bring out into the open.
It also goes against the reporting ethics that journalists themselves have declared. In January 2020, nine media workers’ organizations, including the Journalists Association of Korea, and their members made the “Media Practice Declaration Against Hate Speech.” In the declaration, journalists said, “We will fully recognize the concept, context and harm of hate speech, and carefully examine whether hate speech is present in various social phenomena and statements before conveying them.” In particular, they declared that they understand that hate speech occurs frequently when economic recession, disasters and the like occur, and that they will examine such matters more closely from the perspective of human rights. Journalists themselves promised that, at the very least, they must not simply convey as it is the very phenomenon of negative hatred and hostility being expressed toward social minorities, but must grasp its background and context, interpret it from a human rights perspective and then convey it. They only need to do as they promised.
Disasters do not distinguish between nationalities and races. Everyone has been enduring hard times for a long while. We can also understand, to some extent, that when we are ourselves too exhausted, it does not seem entirely good that other people receive something. But groundless anger and hostility cannot solve problems. In times of disaster, when social solidarity is difficult, the exclusion of and hatred toward minorities have always been an easy exit strategy. Excluding foreigners is easy for now, but once such discrimination and hatred begin to be tolerated in society, that place can be replaced at any time by other powerless people. It will make society sick and give rise to greater violence. The mission of journalists is to gather wisdom and find the right path rather than seek the easy one when times are hard. To overcome the COVID disaster, rather than the easy path of excluding and discriminating against minorities, we propose that we walk together the careful and unfamiliar path on which no one is excluded and all can coexist in peace. Even if it feels a little uncomfortable at first, we believe that in the end that path will make our society firmer, like ground hardened after rain. We appeal to all journalists to stop shameful hate speech against migrants and the incitement of hatred and violence, and to join in reflection for peace and coexistence.
공익법센터 어필, 국제이주문화연구소, 두레방, 민주사회를 위한 변호사모임 국제연대위원회, 사단법인 선, 아시아의 창, 아시아 평화를 향한 이주 MAP, (사)오픈넷, (사)올 젠더와 법 연구소, 원곡법률사무소, 장애인권법센터, (사) 이주민지원공익센터 감동, 이주민센터 친구, 한국이주여성인권센터, 이주노동자평등연대(건강권 실현을 위한 보건의료단체연합 (건강권 실현을 위한 행동하는 간호사회, 건강사회를 위한 약사회, 건강사회를 위한 치과의사회, 노동건강연대, 인도주의실천의사협의회, 참의료실현청년한의사회) , 노동당, 노동사회과학연구소, 노동전선, 녹색당, 대한불교조계종사회노동위원회, 성공회 용산나눔의집, 민변노동위원회, 사회변혁노동자당, 사회진보연대, 이주노동자노동조합(MTU), (사)이주노동희망센터, 이주노동자운동후원회, 이주민방송(MWTV), 이주민센터 친구, 전국민주노동조합총연맹, 전국불안정노동철폐연대, 전국학생행진, 지구인의정류장, 필리핀공동체카사마코)