The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Jamaica last week celebrated Korea-Jamaica Friendship Week in the city of Montego Bay, St James from September 23 – 27.

The festivities included the Korea-Jamaica Friendship Week Reception on Tuesday, September 24 at the Grand-A-View Restaurant and the Korean Film Festival on September 25 and 26 at Palace Cineplex.

Charge d’ affaires at the embassy, Young G Lee, recently answered a few questions about the friendship week celebrations:

Why did you host Korea-Jamaica Friendship Week?

A: I hosted Korea-Jamaica Friendship Week Reception in honour of 57 years of bilateral friendship between Korea and Jamaica.

The decision to include the Korean Film Festival on the itinerary was strongly influenced by the fact that, since being in Jamaica, I’ve noticed that Korean culture has barely penetrated Jamaican society so it is my personal mission to change that.

With the increasing globalisation of the world’s economy, it is important to spread cultural awareness throughout the world’s population and the most efficient way to spread cultural awareness is through entertainment. The Korean-Wave is entertainment-driven. It features, among other genres, K-pop, K-dramas and K-movies. I believe that bringing K-movies to the big screen, free of cost, will make a difference.

Culture is more meaningful when it is shared. It opens doors for other forms of exchange so these activities may even lead to additional bilateral cooperation between Korea and Jamaica.

Why did you choose to host Korea–Jamaica Friendship Week in Montego Bay,

A: The events and promotions organised by my embassy are generally based in Kingston & St Andrew. These are just two of the 14 parishes in Jamaica so focusing on them may be viewed as inefficient in spreading awareness of the Korean culture.

In 2017 I strayed from the norm of hosting events in the capital city and took the first Korea-Jamaica Friendship Week Reception to Montego Bay. To say that the event was a success would be an understatement. I went back to Kingston in 2018 however, for my final staging of the event I wanted to return to the second city. I have a lot of love for Montego Bay and I hope that my expansion on the staging of events will serve as the seed of change for my successors.

The aim is to bring events to as many parishes in Jamaica as possible.

Until now, what kind of cultural events have you hosted?

A: In addition to the annual Korean Film Festival, which is held in both St Andrew and St James, my embassy has a tradition of hosting an annual K-Lovers’ Party and Talent Show. It is by far our most popular event. Each year, lovers of Korean culture come out to dance, sing, and showcase their Korean-related talents. It is actually quite amazing to see because there are no formal Korean culture courses available for the general public to partake in so when Jamaicans come out to perform K-pop songs and dance to the K-pop beat, it means that they are acting on their own initiative. The fact that there are persons with a genuine and strong interest in my culture is heart-warming to me and my colleagues.

Stemming from the consistent success of the K-Lovers’ Party and Talent Show, as well as the K-Lovers’ constant demands for more events, I decided to host a more educational event, the Korean Language Speech Competition. The competition was first held in 2018 and I must admit that I had some doubts about the probability of it successful because it did not have an entertainment aspect. Contrary to my concerns however, the competition was hugely successful. It was oversubscribed and there were participants as young as three years old.

Apart from the three annual events, in 2018, I collaborated with the Korea Foundation to bring the delicious Korean musical — Chef — to Jamaica. A band of cultural performers travelled from Korea to Jamaica and delivered the performance of a lifetime to a packed Courtleigh Auditorium. The centre of the production was the traditional Korean dish bibimbap — rice mixed with meat and assorted vegetables and the production team mixed dance, a cappella, martial arts maneuvers and comedic techniques to deliver the performance of a lifetime.

What are your future plans for cultural exchange between Korea and Jamaica?

A: I would really love to invite another band of cultural performers to Jamaica to do an islandwide tour so that more persons may get the chance to enjoy Korean stage performances.

Outside of that, my time in Jamaica is unfortunately coming to an end. The rest of my tenure will be dedicated to hosting 2019’s K-Lovers’ Party and Talent Competition, the Korean Language Speech Competition and Korea’s National Day Celebration.

My only hope is for my successor to continue carrying the torch by hosting the Korean Film Festival, the K-Lover’s Party and Talent Show and the Korean Language Speech Competition annually, as well as continue working on expanding on cultural awareness activities in Jamaica.