In a knot after going to South Korea to earn wedding expenses

SEOUL: With his wedding scheduled in three months, Alif (not his real name) figured that a job in South Korea paying 1.7 million won (RM6,375) a month would help him cover his RM18,000 expenses.

All his plans went out the window, however, after he arrived in South Korea in November.

“I was fired after only a week. I have been jobless for almost two months, and desperate to the point that I had to borrow money to buy a ticket home to Malaysia,” said the 23-year-old.

“However, this won’t stop me from coming back to this country next year,” he told an mStar Online team that was in South Korea to look into the lives of Malaysians working there illegally.

“I came to South Korea at the wrong time (during winter).

“During this season, there isn’t much to do,” said Alif, whose short-lived job involved harvesting seaweed.

“We are living like homeless people here.

“When my friends ask me if I have eaten, I feel sad because I can’t remember the last time I ate,” said Alif.

Alif returned home, got married on Feb 17 and is now managing a small business in his hometown.

His story is a reflection of the experiences of two other Malaysians in the country’s Itaewon district.

Itaewon, with a population of 22,000, also has a number of tourists and expatriates, as well as US army personnel stationed at the military base there.

Like Alif, Farhan and Syukri also became homeless after they were fired.

These three were among the 251,000 illegal foreign workers estimated to be in South Korea as reported by The Korea Herald earlier this year.

Of this number, at least 5,000 are Malaysians.

Zarul, a multimedia animation diploma holder from a private higher educational institution, was forced by his boss to return to Malaysia after a turnip-cutting machine almost crushed two fingers on his left hand.

“My employer paid the hospital bill, but told me to go back, maybe because they refused to continue paying (for treatment).

“While waiting for my employer to deposit my salary for 19 days of work, I met a Malaysian volunteer who was willing to help get my salary and compensation throughout my treatment period here,” he told mStar Online in Itaewon.

For the moment, he is depending on the volunteer’s kindness to provide him with a temporary home and medical fees while he awaits his worker’s compensation.

Another illegal worker, Siti, said she learnt of a job opportunity in South Korea while holidaying in Japan with a friend.

“We came to South Korea to look for jobs. We managed to find work in Gwangju but were forced to live in a three-bedroom house with 18 others,” she said.

According to her, the situation got worse when she and her friend were let go during the winter. They also lost 160,000 won (RM600) to an agent who promised them a job that didn’t exist.