Ambassador’s Message, December 20, 2011

Message from the Irish embassy

“I am writing to you today following the unexpected news of Kim Jong-il’s death over the weekend. His death raises many questions which only time will answer.  As of now, the general expectation, which we at the Embassy share, is that there will be no immediate change in the policies of the DPRK.  There is no immediate necessity to take any further precautions.  We continue to recommend that all Irish people living here should register with the Embassy and strongly recommend that anyone planning to travel to North Korea register with the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy.

That said, I would draw your attention to the information on responding to emergencies issued by the Embassy last year and which are copied below and suggest that you might refresh your knowledge of the information posted on the Embassy’s website – www.embassyofireland.or.kr.

I wish you a very pleasant and peaceful Christmas and New Year.

Best wishes,

Eamonn McKee / Ambassador

Responding to Emergencies

• The first step for Irish citizens is to ensure that your passport is up-to-date.  The second step is register with the Embassy.  Registration is simple. Click onwww.embassyofireland.or.kr and then click ‘Registering with the Embassy.’ Having information on how to send messages to you and/or to contact you is absolutely vital in the event of a sudden-onset emergency.  Based on the latest annual statistics available from the Korea Immigration Service we know that there are more than eight hundred Irish who live in the Republic of Korea and about two thirds of that figure appear on the Embassy’s Citizens’ Register.  I would urge you to encourage anyone who has not registered with the Embassy to please do so.  There may be concerns about confidentiality but I assure you that this information is not shared and is used solely by the Embassy.
• What advice is given in an Emergency very much depends on the kind of emergency and what the authorities are doing or planning in response i.e. whether it is natural or man-made, where it is imminent or underway, whether it requires a large movement of population and so on. There is an ‘Emergency’ side bar on the Embassy’s website for general guidance.  For example in areas prone to emergencies or where there may be a need to move quickly in uncertain circumstances, it is often recommended to have a ‘grab bag’ readied containing vital documents and essential supplies (suggested items for inclusion are listed).
• Aside obviously from monitoring ongoing situations, the Embassy stays in close touch with the EU delegation here, other missions and with the Korean authorities.  The Embassy should be your first port of call if you are seeking advice.  In an emergency if contact with the Embassy is not possible, the Department of Foreign Affairs operates a Consular Assistance Unit in Dublin which provides advice, support and assistance to Irish citizens in emergency situations and to family members in Ireland who are concerned about the welfare of an Irish citizen abroad. The Unit operates during normal Irish office hours (Monday-Friday). You can make contact with the Unit by telephoning +353 1 408 2000. Outside normal office hours, an Emergency Duty Officer is available at all other times (including weekends), 365 days a year (the contact number is the same).  The Embassy also provides a 24 hours service (010 3247 6455).  Please be advised that the Emergency Duty Officer should only be contacted in the event of a genuine emergency. If your query is not urgent, please wait until the next working day to contact the Embassy or making contact with the Consular Assistance Unit.
• In the event of an emergency, the Department of Foreign Affairs can mobilize its Crisis Centre. It has done this on a number of occasions for example in response to 9/11and the 2006 crisis in the Lebanon. During an emergency, the Crisis Centre liaises with relevant missions abroad and national authorities, is manned 24 hours and issues free-phone numbers to members of the public in Ireland to trace relatives. The Department can also send members of staff to the site of the emergency to assist.  The Travel Advice Section of the Department’s website contains further useful information (www.dfa.ie).

I hope this information is useful and reassuring.  Please feel free to forward any comments and please also encourage anyone you know who has not registered with the Embassy to do so.

Eamonn McKee / Ambassador”

Photos of ‘An Irish Christmas 2011’

Mighty night it was (who remembers the Late Late Show theme tune…?). Cheers to all who came, the musicians (Ben Rowe and David Holden, and Dara Sheahan), the Wolfhound (for the venue and spot prizes), the Irish embassy (the other spot prizes) and to all the folks who volunteered on the night to make it work. And to Sean C for the IAK stamp. Some photos (courtesy of Shauna), apologies if you have seen them on Facebook already.

 

 

Move over to new IAK website complete

As you may have noticed we’ve been migrating the IAK website. We’re happy with how things are going (in particular being able to reach people on Facebook and Twitter) and so now the IAK domain http://www.iak.co.kr is pointing to our new website.

We’ve migrated over most of the content on the old IAK site, lots of it is quite interesting – for instance take a look at the photos and videos from St Patrick’s Festival in 2007

Ambassador’s Message, December 1, 2011

You might consider participating in the poll to choose the logo that will represent Ireland’s EU Presidency in the first six months of 2013.  The poll was launched yesterday by the Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Eamon Gilmore T.D. and Minister of State for European Affairs, Lucinda Creighton T.D..

Voting is as easy as clicking on www.eu2013.ie where you can find details about the four logo designs. The site is hosted by Merrionstreet.ie, the Government News website.

Speaking at the launch, the Tánaiste said: “in planning the look and feel of the Presidency, I want to open up the process to everyone in selecting the logo for the Presidency, which will be the starting point for how the Presidency will present itself to all of the other Member States.”  

Also at the launch, Minister Creighton expressed the hope that people would have their say and get involved in the selection of their favourite logo: “With just over 12 months before the Presidency begins, we are asking the public to decide on the logo which they believe best represents the image we want toproject of our Presidency of the other EU MS.”

The poll will end at 5pm on 31 December with the winning design announced early in the New Year.

As for more local matters, this week the Embassy hosted the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Pat Breen T.D.  His programme on Monday was focused on how best to promote Irish trade in Asia generally and Korea particularly.

Deputy Breen met with KOTRA, the impressively resourced Korean trade promotion agency, and was briefed by Enterprise Ireland and the Embassy on Ireland’s current approach.  He also discussed trade promotion best-practice with the Ambassadors of Denmark and Belgium, the Director of the Swiss Business Hub at the Swiss Embassy and a trade expert at the EU delegation.

Deputy Breen travelled on to Busan to join the Irish delegation at the Fourth High Level Forum (HLF4) on Aid Effectiveness, and to participate in the Parliamentary Forum there.

The Irish delegation at the HLF4 Busan is headed by the Minister for State for Trade and Development, Jan O’Sullivan T.D.  As well as participating in the Forum proper, Minister O’Sullivan joined the Thematic Sessions and focused on a number of “side events” including on gender and hunger.  She met with the participating Irish NGOs and also with the heads of delegation from Ireland’s nine partner countries (where we have aid programmes – see www.irishaid.gov.ie ) to discuss the ongoing review of the White Paper on Irish Aid and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Africa Strategy.

Minister O’Sullivan travelled to Busan after her first visit to Vietnam, one of Ireland’s partner countries. During her four-day visit to Vietnam, she met a number of high level partners in the Vietnamese Government, including the Deputy Prime Minister, Hoang Trung Hai.  In addition to discussing opportunities to expand bilateral trade between Ireland and Vietnam, the Minister launched the programme of development co-operation between Ireland and Vietnam for the next five years.

Having attended the Opening Ceremony in Busan, I can attest to the hospitality and organisational capacity of our Korean hosts who managed almost 3,000 attendees and some 120 delegations, international organisations and NGOs with their customary skill and efficiency.

For more information on the Forum, the Outcome Document and the issue of aid effectiveness generally visitwww.aideffectiveness.org.

Best wishes,

Eamonn McKee / Ambassador

IAK meeting Sun Dec 11th at 4pm in the Seoul Grand Hyatt

Just a reminder that we have a regular IAK meeting next Sunday Dec 11th in the business meeting rooms on the 2nd floor of the Seoul Grand Hyatt hotel. If you want anything in particular brought up just email iak.chair@gmail.com

Hope to see you there!

IAK invites you to ‘An Irish Christmas’ on Sat Dec 17th, 19:30 til late at The Wolfhound (flyer)

Flyer for the IAK organsied ‘An Irish Christmas’ to be held in the Wolfhound on Sat Dec 17th, 19:30 til late

Click here to visit this event on Facebook, or here to visit on Meetup.com

Irish National Archives Now Online

Yesterday, the Irish National Archives were launched online for the first time.

This should prove very valuable for those carrying out any research on Ireland from Korea.

From the archives page:

Occupying a key position in the cultural and intellectual life of the nation, the National Archives holds the records of the modern Irish State which document its historical evolution and the creation of our national identity.

In keeping with our Mission Statement, we secure the preservation of records relating to Ireland which warrant preservation as archives and ensure that appropriate arrangements are made for public access to archives.

Our holdings relate to all parts of Ireland and have enormous research potential as they provide essential primary source material for people seeking to understand the political, economic and social forces which have shaped our nation. The records also permit the study of Government policy and encourage greater use of our archival heritage by the general public.

Please visit nationalarchives.ie for more.

Fancy some Irish ceili and set dancing in Seongbuk-gu on Sat December 10th? No experience required!

Longstanding IAK member Sean Conneely is running a night of ceile and set dancing on Sat Dec 10th in the Columban centre in Seongbuk-gu. The atmosphere is welcoming, you don’t need to know anything about Irish dancing (or even about dancing fullstop), just bring a bit of enthusiasm.

Further details here

Here’s a dance that will probably get performed – The Siege of Ennis

See – it’s fun!