Intermarriage Migration and Transnationalism focused on Filipina Wives in South Korea

필리핀 국제결혼이주여성의 초국가적 행태에 관한 연구

This study is to explain the nature of transnational activities being involved in by Filipina intermarriage migrants in Korea by examining the institutional backgrounds of market, society and the state. The increasing number of Filipina intermarriage with Korean coincides with the advance of liberal market economy, which governs internal and bilateral interactions between and among the three institutions in both countries. While existing various reasons for engaging in intermarriage, a significant number of Filipina wives in Korea ventured into it with uncertain expectations that they might earn better lives and could support their families. Such hopes usually turn out in vain when they meet the real lives in Korea. It is mainly because their spouses in Korea would rather be those who left behind in the marriage market due to their lack of competitiveness. Filipina wives are also suffering from social isolation caused by language and other barriers such as family relations or rural life they might settle in. Their transnational activities usually tend to be their effort to breakthrough their unexpected condition of difficult lives in Korea. They usually make use of transnational sort of community activities to cultivate chances to engage in bread earning activity. Migrant's transnational activity has a great impact on sociocultural changes in the country of origin and of arrival. Transnational activity provides migrants with economic opportunities, and uplifts self-esteem as well. Intermarriage couples, especially with Southeast Asian wives, and their offsprings show a tendency of downward assimilation to Korean society. Korean state policy toward them should not simply apply undiscriminated assimilation theory, but take into account their possible strength of transnational identity with which they could find a means to integrate themselves successfully into the mainstream Korean society.