1. On February 10, the Foreign Ministry held a safety meeting with delegates from missionary groups that dispatch missionaries to foreign countries. Ambassador for Overseas Koreans and Consular Affairs Han Dong-man presided over the meeting on ways to better ensure the safety of the Korean missionaries abroad.

2. Amid a growing number of Korean missionaries dispatched overseas being deported or banned from entry to certain countries of late as a result of their illegal missionary activities, Ambassador Han underscored the need for more safety measures. On that note, he asked missionaries to comply with laws and respect customs of their host countries; to receive sufficient education on laws of their host countries before their dispatch overseas; build emergency contact networks with the ROK’s diplomatic missions in their host countries; and be ready to deal with emergency situations and cooperate systematically with the ROK’s local diplomatic missions should any incidents or accidents happen.

3. The Foreign Ministry, which concluded with the Korea World Missions Association and the Korea Crisis Management Service on July 20, 2016, an agreement for cooperation on the safety of Korean missionaries dispatched overseas, will make active efforts to better ensure the safety of the Korean missionaries overseas, including providing them with safety education and relevant materials before their dispatch to foreign countries and sharing with them information on safety situations in risky regions.


* unofficial translation