7 Korean nationals arrested

Seven Korean nationals were arrested yesterday on orders of Immigration Commissioner Andrea Domingo for teaching foreigners how to speak English at a foreign language school in Quezon City without the required permits from the government.

Domingo said one of those arrested was Kim Yoo Jung, one of the school owners, while the six others were students of the EAU Learning Center at 101 Xavierville Avenue, Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

Domingo said that the Koreans were arrested after the bureau confirmed that the school, which admits mostly Koreans, has been operating without the appropriate authorization to accept foreign students. She added that the six Korean students do not have student visas or special study permits as required by existing laws governing the entry and stay of foreign students in the Philippines.

The Korean students, according to Domingo, violated Section 9 of the Philippine Immigration Act which requires aliens intending to study here to secure student visas either from the bureau or the Philippine Consulate in their port of origin.

On the other hand, Domingo said that the Korean owners and managers of the school violated Executive Order 285 which mandates that only schools accredited by the Inter-Agency Committee on Foreign Students can accept foreigners for enrollment.

The illegal activities of the Koreans were reported to the bureau by a former school instructress whose advise to secure the proper permit to operate had been ignored.

The Koreans boasted that they could easily bribe immigration officials if caught violating immigration laws. – Rey Arquiza