[lbo-talk] Rural S. Korea sees bumper crop of foreign brides

[uvj at vsnl.com]

Reuters.com

Rural S. Korea sees bumper crop of foreign brides
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2006-03-31T144852Z_01_SEO198358_RTRUKOC_0_US-KOREA-MARRIAGE.xml&archived=False

Fri Mar 31, 2006

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean men in rural areas are having a tough time
wooing local women with prospects of spending a lifetime with them on the
farm and are increasingly turning to brokers to find foreign brides.

In 2005, more than one in three men in rural areas married a women from
overseas, mostly from China or Vietnam, figures released this week by South
Korea's National Statistical Office (NSO) showed.

"The rates of international marriages have increased because the values of
Koreans have become more liberal," said Park Kyung-ae, an official with the
NSO.

Several rural counties have launched programs to provide financial support
for South Korean men to help them pay for mail-order brides.
They have also set up programs to help foreign spouses adjust to a new life
in the country.

One of the biggest growth trends in almost completely homogeneous South
Korea last year was finding a foreign spouse, with 14 percent of all
weddings in 2005 being international marriages, the statistics office said.

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