Site Search:
 
Speak Korean Now!
Teach English Abroad and Get Paid to see the World!
Korean Job Discussion Forums Forum Index Korean Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Teachers from Around the World!"
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Mother discovers son lost in Itaewon 16 years ago
Goto page 1, 2  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Korean Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> General Discussion Forum
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
sojusucks



Joined: 31 May 2008

PostPosted: Fri May 25, 2012 9:12 pm    Post subject: Mother discovers son lost in Itaewon 16 years ago Reply with quote

http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.aspx?aid=2953457&cloc=joongangdaily|home|newslist1

Quote:
The tragedy began in early afternoon on Aug. 10, 1996, when Hong�s husband went to a restaurant in Itaewon, central Seoul, to meet a friend for drinks. He took his son, then 3 years old, with him.

The toddler wandered off and his father didn�t notice. When he finally noticed the boy was gone, he made a panicked call to his wife.



Father of the year?

Quote:
For some reason, the couple didn�t have a good photo of their son so they couldn�t produce missing child leaflets.



Not one?

Quote:
Hong asked for help in March at a police station in Wonju, Gangwon, where she currently resides, only to be hit with the shocking revelation that her son had never been reported missing with the police. She assumed her husband had reported him missing.

Hong filed a belated missing child report three months ago.

The case was transferred to the Yongsan Police Precinct since the boy disappeared in the district. The police tracked down a Seoul orphanage that the son had stayed in and finally found the son, surnamed Park, who lives in Mokpo, South Jeolla. A DNA test confirmed he was indeed her son.



Speechless
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Nismo



Joined: 31 Aug 2005

PostPosted: Fri May 25, 2012 10:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bizarre. And the adopting family are pricks. You don't adopt a child at the age of four and "return him" at the age of ten. He's not a defective product. And are the parents really that dense? She scoured Itaewon for her missing child and didn't once personally contact the police? Sounds more like a case of abandonment and, later, guilt.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
luckylady



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Location: u.s. of occupied territories

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 12:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

maybe because the police weren't known for being that helpful ?

as well as the general culture that "blames the victim" people would just accuse her of being a bad mother and that it's her fault her son went missing? even if maybe it was, that shouldn't take away from the fact he needed to be found but I can see where that would be an excuse not to even try.

just a sad story all the way around, unfortunately.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Julius



Joined: 27 Jul 2006

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 12:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What is even more ridiculous is that the mother says she is desperate to see her son before she dies....but wants to wait a month until she looks better before doing so.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
yodanole



Joined: 02 Mar 2003
Location: La Florida

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 2:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, at least all that effort Rolling Eyes Laughing finally paid off

and only 3 months after notifying the authorities....as opposed to wandering around Seoul in search of a needle in a field of haystacks....but as previous posters noted, she had valid excuses Shocked
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
rkc76sf



Joined: 02 Nov 2008

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 2:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This just about equals the family that put the toddler in the laundromat washing machine.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
yodanole



Joined: 02 Mar 2003
Location: La Florida

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 2:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Probably a good thing they didn't have a microwave

rkc76sf wrote:
This just about equals the family that put the toddler in the laundromat washing machine.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
radcon



Joined: 23 May 2011

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 6:07 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

So transparent. Father "lost' the kid on purpose and the mom may have been in cahoots. It never occured to her to search orphanages looking for a recent new comer instead of knocking door to door (which she didnt do any way). This is a common MO in Korea.This has Toby Dawson written all over it.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Joe Boxer



Joined: 25 Dec 2007
Location: Bundang, South Korea

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 6:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

radcon wrote:
So transparent. Father "lost' the kid on purpose and the mom may have been in cahoots. It never occured to her to search orphanages looking for a recent new comer instead of knocking door to door (which she didnt do any way). This is a common MO in Korea.This has Toby Dawson written all over it.

Exactly what I was thinking.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Julius



Joined: 27 Jul 2006

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 7:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

radcon wrote:
This is a common MO in Korea.This has Toby Dawson written all over it.


I guess the stigma of single parenthood has a lot to do with it - be it unmarried mothers...or divorcees.

I met an American Korean over here looking for his parents. He was staying in a hostel while he basically looked through phone directories and did internet searches (not easy considering he barely spoke korean).

Quote:
In 1986, South Korea had 18,700 orphaned or abandoned children. Almost half were sent abroad for adoption

it was the case until recently that Korean citizenship was directly tied to family bloodline. Children not a part of a Korean family (i.e., orphans) were not legal citizens of Korea.

in recent years, roughly 1 of 250 Korean births are adopted by American families alone

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_adoption_of_South_Korean_children
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
cdninkorea



Joined: 27 Jan 2006
Location: Seoul

PostPosted: Sat May 26, 2012 7:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

So some of you think the parents intentionally abandoned their son? Motive?
Back to top