Moldova has a future and is a place guarded by God

{Info-Prim Neo feature from the series “Independent for 21 years. New Moldovans coming?!” with Kim Won Sim, director of the “Se Jong” Korean Language and Culture Center, who decided to live in Moldova and help our youth, being convinced that Moldova has a future.} Before coming to Moldova, Kim Won Sim did not know anything about this country. She had traveled a lot before, and had had the opportunity to live in Romania. [{“In that period Moldova was richer than Romania, and many of my acquaintances would go to Moldova to buy housewares, since they were of better quality over here. My husband and I became curious: “How is Moldova?”}] The family took the first step in this direction in 1992. [{“In order to live in Moldova, we needed an invitation. But who would invite us? We did not know anyone. With the help of the Korean community in Romania we got some invitations and passed through all formalities. Thus, in the autumn of 1992 we managed to settle in Chisinau.”}] In order to continue her studies she studied Romanian, and later enrolled at the Journalism and Communication Sciences Faculty. [{“I got a 10 for my thesis. My advisor told me to go further and get my doctor’s degree. I accepted, but he transferred to another university shortly after. Due to that, I had to leave and follow him.”}] At the proposal of the deputy dean of the Free International University of Moldova, Kim Won Sim opened in Chisinau a center of Korean culture and language. [{“I admit I took several days to analyze the whole situation. Once opened, the center would be a great responsibility. However, we took the risk and accepted. The visit of the South Korean Ambassador was of great support and encouragement to us.”}] When asked about the common points between Moldova and South Korea, Kim Won Sim says that the two countries might seem very different at first, but, in fact, they have many similar aspects. Both have a small territory, although South Korea is 3 times larger than Moldova. Just as Moldova, South Korea does not have natural resources, but does have human capital. Both countries have suffered from excessive vassalage to powerful nations. And the 1948 war between South Korea and North Korea destroyed almost the entire South Korean territory. [{“Korea’s division into South and North is similar to the division of Moldova and Romania. At the language level, Moldova is one of the few countries that use the polite forms of pronouns. In South Korea these forms are necessary and even important. Another similarity is the peoples’ soul. Both peoples are hospitable, have certain traditions for welcoming guests. They are very hard working peoples.”}] For 60 years, South Korea managed to keep its 12th rank in the global economic top, being one of the four Asian Tigers. But it hadn’t always been like this. The country was very poor after the war, even compared to Moldova, says Kim Won Sim. [{“South Koreans have a tradition of celebrating 100 days since a child’s birth. It is tradition kept since the times of hardships, when children younger than 100 days, over even younger than 1 year of age, were not even being registered, because most of them died due to famine or diseases. This people contributed to the growth of the country, through hard work and sacrifice. Although living a life that lacked many commodities, the parents would send their children to study, because they understood that besides the work force they also needed wise minds. Children, youth, are the future.”}] According to Kim Won Sim, the emergence of a leader that fought for the people and represented its interests has encouraged the development of the country. Albeit conducting an authoritarian policy, he promoted well thought strategies, which led to the country’s growth. He sent youth to study in Russia, the USA, China, and Japan, in order to accumulate the necessary knowledge, and implement it in different fields. Due to this leader, the opening of several plants was possible, which gave people jobs and increased productivity for both home and foreign consumption. South Korea is annually stricken by calamities, whereas Moldova is a place well-guarded by God, says Kim Won Sim. In her opinion, the country needs a leader who would rule for the people. [{“I can say that after the fall of the USSR, which Moldova was part of, the country was forced to stand alone, albeit unready to do so. Many lost their jobs and spread throughout the world in search for a decent living.”}] Kim Won Sim has been in 32 countries, but has chosen to stay in Moldova. [{“«Home» is equivalent to me with Moldova. There is no home for us over there, in Korea. Korea is very developed now, and has changed a lot. The image of my birthplace has changed; I don’t recognize it anymore.”}] When they settled in Chisinau, the language to be studied was not even an issue. [{“At the market, while shopping, I ask the prices of products in Romanian, but many people answer in Russian. I admit I don’t speak Russian and often answer “ya ne znayu po ruski” (“I don’t know Russian”). Then, people tell me that there are people who have been living here their entire lives and still don’t speak Romanian. They even give me extra than the amount registered on the scales. People like it when I speak Romanian, and I enjoy speaking this language.”}] When asked to compare Moldovan youth to Korean ones, Kim Won Sim said that the youth in Korea spend more time preparing for their chosen profession. Student life doesn’t end where the curriculum ends; students are interested in searching, in deepening their knowledge. Most of the libraries work 24/7. They are overfilled even during breaks. [{“Here, in Moldova, having visited several libraries in the capital, I was appalled to see that there were almost no youths there.”}] The instruction school for youths from needy families, who she had opened after graduating university, offers free year-long intensive courses for 5 subjects: English, Informatics, Tailoring, Accounting, and Taekwondo. Annually, 50 youth graduate these courses. [{“After graduating university I noticed that not all youth have the opportunity to study. Then, the question surfaced: “What can I do to help them?” If you give the hungry man fish, then he will keep asking for fish indefinitely. But if you teach the man to fish, then he will be able to feed himself. With this thought in mind I opened the instruction school.”}] Kim Won Sim thinks about ways to help the children left alone, with their parents working abroad. Most of them are not supervised by any adults, and spend most of their time in front of computers, forget to communicate with others. [{“I would like to do something for these children. Children are purer than us, and need a childhood, supervision, love, and care. This is why I would like to organize different activities for them, for increasing their interest towards beautiful things and towards spending their leisure time in a fun way. I would like to help those who are discouraged, and help them have a more interesting, more beautiful, and better life.}] ****** [Dumitriţa Furtuna, Info-Prim Neo] {The first time the Info-Prim Neo Press Agency used the sentence “New Moldovans coming” was in the summer of 2010, also at the anniversary of Independence. It seemed appropriate to us, to attribute this description to a category of people whom Moldova can lay its future hopes upon. The Info-Prim Neo team believes that Moldova has changes for adequate development only in the case when the society will accumulate a critical mass of new people. We did not refer strictly to young people, and strictly to ethnical Moldovans. “New Moldovans” are all the people who adopt new visions and experiences, new will and mentality; all those who care about themselves, their family, and their country. It is true that the Agency found it necessary to end the sentence “New Moldovans coming” in an exclamation mark (!), as a symbol of hope, and an interrogation mark (?), in order not to scare our luck away.} [{Info-Prim Neo} ]