Can you show me evidence of the growing number of crimes committed by E-2 visa holders? k thx

I love how just about every time the Korea Times runs an article about policies directed at foreigners, the very next day there's one about how this particular plan is unpopular with foreigners. Today there's this article about some teachers' reactions to the murky new visa regulations:

``The law, which will be put into effect from the end of March, will more thoroughly prevent foreigners with criminal records from coming to Korea than just regulations,'' said Song So-young, an immigration official.

The official said the growing number of crimes committed by E-2 visa holders has driven the authorities to set the requirements.

He's talking about two different things: people committing crimes back home before they get to Korea, and E-2 holders committing crimes once they're here. One has nothing to do with the other, and in two paragraphs he's managed to insult two groups of people.

Worth pointing out that although the initial press release from ATEK made it look like these changes wouldn't really apply to E-2 visa holders---since we're already subject to these regulations---the papers have now focused once again on the E-2 crowd. There's this article, the Chosun Ilbo one from earlier today, and the reports in the Korean-language press, with headlines like "법무부，범죄경력 외국인강사 'No'," "법무부, 외국인 우수인재 'YES'…범죄경력 외국인강사 'NO'," and "전과 있는 외국인 영어강사 비자 못받는다."

Of course everyone would say "NO" to importing criminals, but when you make the implication---nay, when you say it in the papers---that a certain demographic presents a special problem, and when you do so without citing any evidence, you're setting up what will turn out to be an indisputable argument. "We must keep out criminal foreign teachers." / "There aren't many criminal foreign teachers." / "Yes, I read it in the paper." / "There's no evidence of criminal foreign teachers." / "I read it in the paper. They found it out." Repeat repeat repeat. So not only do we get to be potential criminals, we get to be the bad guys for arguing against Korean journalism. The only thing to do, then, is to try and dispute the facts, something that always goes over well. *cough*

I think I'm going to have to get in the paper to talk about this, because the people they talk to never seem to get it right. Foreigners aren't complaining about being subject to background checks, because we realize these are common for teaching jobs back home. Moreover, the problem isn't chiefly that these regulations are expensive, burdensome, or redundant. The problem is that there is absolutely no evidence for the charges that teachers on E-2 visas are committing more crimes, or evidence that they're committing crimes at all. It's possible to introduce legislation---the terms of which E-2 teachers have been following since December, 2007, thank you very much---without slandering thousands of people with no evidence whatsoever. For all the rabble-rousing about the E-2 menace, you'd think one of these immigration officials, or columnists, or vigilanties would have actual evidence of these foreigners committing the crimes they're accussed of.

Additionally, they're going to have to show how a rule is going to be more effective than simply a regulation. This reminds me of all the talk about "unqualified" teachers with fake degrees or forged credentials. They were vetted by immigration and the embassy, so if they still managed to get jobs, whose fault is that? If criminals are still getting through, as is implied, whose fault is that?

Yes, some of you will laugh at me demanding answers, saying a foreign government doesn't have to answer to some nobody. Fine. All I'm doing is pointing out the connection between the continuous insults and the lack of enthusiasm many foreigners are feeling for Korea. Believe it or not people don't like being called criminals, and the media has been doing this for years with impunity. And without sufficient evidence.