"'Must-Wear Item for Visiting Korea': Badges Become Essential for Taiwanese Amid Rising Anti-China Sentiment"

Anti-China Sentiment Rapidly Spreading in Korea
Growing Anxiety Among Taiwanese Tourists Amid Rising Anti-China Attitudes

Recently, as controversy grows over the allowance of visa-free entry for Chinese nationals, anti-China sentiment has been spreading in South Korea. In this context, Taiwanese tourists, who are often mistaken for Chinese tourists, have been sharing their concerns online about wearing "Taiwanese badges" to clarify that they are not from China.

On October 10, a post appeared on social media asking, "Anti-Chinese sentiment is severe in Korea these days. Should I wear this badge?" along with a photo of a badge that reads "I am Taiwanese" in Korean. The badge posted by the author features a caricature holding the Taiwanese flag (Blue Sky, White Sun, and a Wholly Red Earth) and the phrase "I'm from Taiwan" in English. Beneath the text is a caricature holding the official Taiwanese flag.

A collection of badges saying "I am Taiwan" written in Korean and various other languages. Screenshot from social media.

After seeing this, Taiwanese netizens commented, "Koreans have difficulty distinguishing between Chinese and Taiwanese people, so you must carry it with you," and "A similar situation happened in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic, and at that time, I wore a badge with the Taiwanese flag." One netizen shared, "When I visited Korea and wore this badge, I noticed that the store staff's attitude became more positive." On the other hand, another netizen pointed out, "Taxi drivers often pick up tourists and can tell the difference between Taiwanese and Chinese, but ordinary people really can't," adding, "Some Koreans may not know the difference between China and Taiwan at all."

As the concerns of Taiwanese tourists suggest, there have been recent crimes targeting Taiwanese individuals in Korea. In September, a Taiwanese YouTuber, identified as B, was assaulted by two Korean men in the Hongdae area of Mapo-gu, Seoul. The two men reportedly made advances toward B, suggesting they spend the night together, and after she refused physical contact, they assaulted her. The police response also sparked controversy. Initially, the police stated that the assailants were Chinese, but later corrected the information, confirming they were Korean.

As of August, 1 in 3 foreign tourists in Korea is Chinese

Amid the spread of anti-China sentiment in Korea, statistics from the Korea Tourism Organization show that as of August, one out of every three foreign tourists was Chinese. In August alone, 605,000 Chinese tourists visited Korea, a 1.7-fold increase from January of this year (364,000). This figure surpasses the pre-pandemic level of August 2019 (578,000).

On the 13th, tour guides for Chinese group tourists were waiting for arriving tourists in front of the arrival hall at Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon. Photo by Yonhap News

In particular, the recent allowance of visa-free entry for Chinese nationals has fueled the spread of "anti-China" sentiment in Korea, which has in some cases escalated into hate crimes targeting Chinese individuals. For example, in April, a man in his 30s, identified as B, kicked two Chinese women in their 20s who were visiting Korea, after hearing them speak Chinese on a bus. He followed them off the bus to the stop and assaulted them.

Five days later, B was arrested by the police for striking a Taiwanese man in his 30s on the head with a soju bottle, having mistaken him for a Chinese national. In August, the Seoul Western District Court stated, "The defendant harbored hostility toward Chinese nationals and deliberately targeted Chinese individuals at night, which constitutes a hate crime and warrants a severe punishment," and sentenced B to 10 months in prison, clearly identifying the case as a hate crime.

Furthermore, some experts have expressed concern that the current anti-China sentiment in Korea is intensifying in the form of a "pyramid of hate." The "pyramid of hate" theory posits that hatred toward a particular group can progress from hate speech to discriminatory acts, hate crimes, and even genocide. Experts warn that anti-China sentiment in Korea is now at a dangerous stage, where discriminatory acts are escalating into hate crimes.