The South Korean government has expressed concern on the safety of more than 80,000 Koreans living in the Philippines and the more than one million Korean tourists visiting the country every year.
According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, South Korean officials “acknowledged and articulated their appreciation for the efforts being undertaken by the Philippine government in addressing the issue, including in the inter-agency meeting convened by President Aquino earlier this year to tackle the matter and find long-term and enduring solutions to the problem,” during the visit of Senate President Franklin M. Drilon to South Korea upon invitation of the Republic of Korea National Assembly recently.
Drilon assured the Korean government that the Aquino administration is giving high-level and full attention to the issue.
He also expressed his commitment to sit down with relevant Philippine government agencies to study the possibility of signing an executive agreement that will strengthen cooperation between the two countries on criminal matters.
In his visit to South Korea in December 2014, Aquino assured the South Korean government that the Philippine government will be setting up Korean desks in police offices to address crimes targeting Koreans in the Philippines.
Rep. Choi Gyu-Sung, president of the Korean-Philippines Parliamentary Friendship Association, during the meeting, also discussed the matter of undocumented Filipinos in Korea, which, as of June 2015, exceeded 12,000.