South Korea medical body chief’s response to foreign doctor hiring plan blasted as ‘clearly racist’

The government said foreign doctors would be allowed to practice in the country to tide over crisis sparked by a months-long strike by junior medics

The head of the Korean Medical Association was accused of ‘exploiting Islamophobia’ after he shared a post on newly graduated Somali doctors with the comment: ‘Coming Soon’

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Doctors stage a rally against the South Korean government’s medical policy in Seoul on March 3. Photo: AP

Published: 3:39pm, 10 May 2024

South Korea will allow foreign doctors to work in its hospitals after a rigorous vetting process, the prime minister said on Friday, as a months-long strike by junior medics shows no sign of resolution.

Thousands stopped working on February 20 to protest government plans to train more doctors, causing chaos in hospitals.

The government, which has already offered some concessions in a bid to end the stand-off, said this week that doctors with foreign medical licences would be allowed to practice in the country, in a bid to ease service disruptions.

After the move was announced, the head of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), Lim Hyun-taek, shared a screenshot of a news report on newly graduated Somali doctors with the comment: “Coming Soon.”

The post, which was later removed, prompted widespread online criticism, and was highly inappropriate and “clearly racist”, Kim Jae-heon, the secretary general of an NGO advocating free medical care, said.

The post “exploited Islamophobia and stereotyping against developing countries”, he said.