- The awards ceremony for the “5th contest on experiences with incidents and accidents abroad” was held. -

- Participants shared how to deal with crises abroad through vivid accounts of their experiences. -

1. The awards ceremony for the "5th contest on experiences with incidents and accidents abroad,” co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Korean National Police Agency, and the National Fire Agency, was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday, July 7.

※ The ceremony was attended by 26 winners (16 teams), Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Jina, Director-General for Consular Affairs and Safety at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Yoon Chusok, Director General for International Cooperation at the Korean National Police Agency Lee Jun-hyeong, and head of the 119 Response Department at the National Fire Agency Park Geun-oh.

2. The contest, which marks its fifth anniversary, received a total of 285 entries in three categories: video, Insta-Toon, and essay. The entries ranged from an experience of wisely overcoming risks abroad to a story of getting out of a crisis with consular assistance from overseas missions and consular call centers. Following the evaluation process, 16 entries were finally selected.

The winner of the integrated grand prize across all three categories was awarded the Foreign Minister's Award, and the Korean National Police Agency Commissioner General's Award and the National Fire Agency Commissioner's Award were presented to the winners of the top, excellence and encouragement awards in each category.

3. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Jina congratulated the winners of the contest at the ceremony, stressing that "the biggest reason for the existence of the country is to protect the lives and safety of our people."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs promised to strengthen the protection network for overseas citizens by cooperating more closely with related agencies, including the Korean National Police Agency and the National Fire Agency.

4. The grand prize of this contest (Minister of Foreign Affairs’ Award) was given for a story of a Korean company employee in South Africa whose daughter developed a rare disease while he was working there.

Lee Kwon-chul won the award for his essay titled "Cape of Good Hope, There Was the Republic of Korea,” which introduced the story of his young child's experience.

In 2021, when he was unable to return home due to the COVID-19 variant in South Africa, he received a lot of help from the Embassy of the ROK in South Africa, including 119 emergency medical counseling services for overseas Koreans and introduction to local hospitals.

Touched by the efforts of local medical staff during his child's recovery, Lee expressed his appreciation by organizing a charity event to help single mothers and victims of child violence in South Africa. The event was co-hosted by the Embassy and the Korean Firms Association in South Africa, of which he was the chairman.

Mr. Lee said, "With the help of the Embassy, I was able to restore my child's health and practice sharing."

5. "I Became a Refugee in Canada," which won the top prize in the video category (Korean National Police Agency Commissioner General's Award), is the story of Jeong Yoon-kyo, who had to evacuate urgently due to a large wildfire while living in western Canada on a working holiday. Based on her evacuation experience at that time, Ms. Jung shared her own tips on how to deal with wildfire damage in Canada.

"I was relieved to receive the necessary information when I contacted the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Vancouver in a crisis situation," she said.

6. Lee Eun-seol, who won the top prize in the Insta-Toon category (Korean National Police Agency Commissioner General's Award) for "The Reason for Dreams," drew a 10-cuts cartoon about her story of experiencing an earthquake while traveling in Japan.

Ms. Lee said, "My family, who was in danger during the earthquake, was able to return to Korea safely with the help of the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Osaka."

"That experience gave me a dream of working at an embassy and helping people someday" she said.

7. Lee Gun-woo, who won the top prize in the essay category (Fire Commissioner's Award) for "Hide and Seek in the Dolomites," shared the frightening experience of his young child missing in the snowy mountains of the Dolomites, Italy.

Mr. Lee said he was able to find his child with the help of the consular call center and the Embassy of the ROK in Italy, while he was misunderstood due to language barriers with the local police.

He emphasized the need to prepare thoroughly for emergencies to ensure a pleasant overseas trip.

8. Since holding its first contest in 2021 with the enforcement of the Act on Consular Assistance of Protecting Overseas Korean Nationals, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has annually organized the contest together with the Korean National Police Agency and the National Fire Agency to discover outstanding content containing the people's overseas travel experiences.

9. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Korean National Police Agency, and the National Fire Agency will conduct various public relations activities by actively utilizing the winning entries of this contest in order to effectively inform the public of the consular assistance system and how to respond to overseas incidents and accidents.