15 KOICA Overseas Volunteers Recalled to Korea After Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Photo by KOICA Jeonggyeong

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-eun] Although KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency) overseas volunteers have been recalled to Korea for sexual misconduct committed locally, it has been revealed that they have not faced any punishment domestically.

According to data on 'reasons for early return (disqualification)' submitted by KOICA to Lee Tae-gyu, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee from the People's Party, there have been a total of 15 cases from the year before last to this year where volunteers were disqualified and recalled due to sexual misconduct incidents abroad. Such cases have occurred annually, with 2 cases in the year before last, 9 cases last year, and 4 cases this year.

Among these sexual misconduct cases, 2 involved foreign victims locally, while the majority occurred within the same volunteer group.

However, Lee Tae-gyu's office revealed that KOICA has never reported or requested investigation by the police regarding these sexual misconduct offenders recalled to Korea.

Additionally, the number of KOICA volunteers who fail to complete their promised service period and return early is also increasing. The total number of early dropouts from KOICA volunteer groups from 2016 to October this year is 492. This number has been rising from 100 in 2016, 105 in 2017, 112 in 2018, to 144 in 2019.

Lee Tae-gyu pointed out, "The dispatch of KOICA overseas volunteers is a promise between countries, and the increase in early dropouts damages the nation's credibility."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.