South Korean workers return home after immigration detention in US

Seoul, Sep 13 (IANS) More than 300 South Korean workers returned home Friday after a weeklong detention by US immigration authorities in Georgia, ending an unprecedented incident that bewildered Seoul and stirred confusion over ties with its ally.

A Korean Air chartered plane, carrying 316 South Koreans and 14 foreigners, landed at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, around 3:23 p.m., a day after their release from detention following last week's immigration sweep at an electric car battery plant construction site co-run by Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution Ltd. in Bryan County.

The workers were released from the facilities in Folkston early Thursday (local time), as Seoul made intensive efforts to secure their release and return home through negotiations with Washington.

They went through a separate fast-track process upon arrival and emerged from the gate to meet their families and relatives, many of them breaking into tears of relief, reports Yonhap news agency.

They boarded chartered buses arranged by their companies to travel back home.

Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik received the workers in person at the airport.

"We did our best, but we regret that we could not bring them home sooner," Kang told reporters after meeting the workers. "We plan to push for improvement to the US visa system in terms of the issuance and eligibility, including creating a new visa."

Kang noted that there is a gap in how the two countries interpret the scope of the short-term B-1 visa for businesspeople, saying that it will take some time to reform the system.

"Discussions must proceed quickly to eliminate mistrust so that companies can work and invest safely in the United States," he added.

Heavy security had been in place around the terminal to manage the crowd.

The airport also swarmed with foreign media crews eager to capture the workers' return, highlighting the intense global attention the saga has drawn over the past week.

The detention sent shock waves and fueled public anger in South Korea after US immigration authorities released video footage showing Koreans being searched, shackled and handcuffed with metal chains before being loaded onto a transport vehicle.

The incident prompted South Korea's top diplomats to fly to Washington and meet Trump officials to address the issue, and senior Hyundai and LG executives also headed to Georgia to manage the fallout.

Following negotiations, Seoul and Washington agreed to release the workers and return them home in the form of voluntary departure rather than deportation. Seoul has worked to ensure that the detention does not negatively affect their future US travel.

The workers' release was delayed by one day as US President Donald Trump encouraged them to stay in the country, Seoul officials said, as his administration seeks to expand cooperation with Seoul to rebuild the US shipbuilding, semiconductor and other industries.

Seoul said the workers will return home and may plan their next travel to the United States afterwards.

Among the foreign nationals aboard were 10 Chinese, three Japanese and one Indonesian. Most of the detainees are men, with only 10 women among them.

One South Korean with family in the US chose to remain in custody and pursue legal action. He is seeking release on bail.

Most of the workers were on short-term business or 90-day recreational visas to work, arguing that the current US visa system has limited their ability to carry out their projects in America and calling for visa reform, such as creating a new work visa or raising visa quotas.

After his talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday (local time), Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said the two sides agreed to work together to form a working group to improve the visa system for South Korean businesses.

In a press conference on Thursday, President Lee Jae Myung said that companies are "bound to hesitate" to make direct US investments if similar incidents recur and expressed hope for continued talks with Washington on visa reform.

--IANS

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