Asian Games Defections Driven by Economics

(ATR) Economic opportunities are the best theory for why seven athletes ran away from their teams at the Asian Games in Incheon.

An expert from the Migration Policy Institute told Around the Rings she believes that finding employment in South Korean factories is the biggest motivation for athletes to illegally stay in Incheon after the 2014 Asian Games.

"South Korea is one of the key destinations for migrants in the region," Dovelyn Agunias told Around the Rings in an interview.

"It has been since the 1990s. There are a lot of factories there, and they don’t have the workers so they get them from overseas."

Three of the athletes hail from Nepal, two from Sri Lanka, one from Bangladesh, and one from Palestine. Their visas expire October 19.

"[If] you look into the country that you mentioned, those are three countries where there’s a lot of interest to go abroad."

Migrant workers in South Korea must go through the "Employment Permit System," set by the government. Potential workers must show a basic proficiency in Korean before they are allowed to apply for jobs in the country.

After the testing, migrants are still subject to a lottery system, which according to Aguinas can be very restrictive.

"The system that the Koreans have put in place is very selective. I’m not surprised that you have athletes who would decide to overstay and take that opportunity to come to Korea and stay and look for a job."

Agunias believes that the athletes could be being helped by informal networks of immigrants to "sustain their stay," while evading the police.

"South Korea is not unique in many countries that attract migrant labor and it is the fact that many overstay."

Various media reports have cited the immigrant cities of Bucheon and Ansan outside of Incheon, as a possible destination for the missing athletes.

"We’ve planted informants in areas where many workers from these countries live to collect information about missing athletes’ whereabouts," a senior police official toldAFP.

After the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, 16 athletes did not return home with their teams, choosing to stay behind.

"We've been preparing to cooperate with the immigration office before the games started," an Incheon police spokesman told Reuters.

The police official said in the report that if the athletes are found before October 19, they will be asked to leave the country. If they are found after that, they will be deported.

Maxwell da Silva, secretary general of the Sri Lanka National Olympic Committee, told ATR that the NOC was working all appropriate parties, "but at the end of the day the damage has been done."

A report in the Sri Lanka Sunday Times said that both Sri Lankan athletes have had their passports surrendered to the South Korean authorities and are being put on an international travel blacklist.

Chef de mission Shemal Fernando said to the Times that both athletes could report to the Sri Lankan embassy in South Korea before their visas expire and fly home with emergency travel documents.

The Bangladeshi, Palestinian and Nepali NOCs could not be reached for comment.

A spokesperson for the Incheon Asian Games Organizing Committee told ATR that once the investigation was handed to the Incheon police, it could no longer comment.

Requests for comment from the Incheon police for this story were not returned.

Written by Aaron Bauer

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