South Korean students’ exchange visit to US city nixed over dog meat tradition
- Ganghwa county planned to send 12 high schoolers to New Jersey’s Palisades Park to experience a different culture for three weeks
- The city ditched the programme after coming under pressure from US animal rights who highlighted South Korea’s infamous dog farms
The county planned to send 12 high school students to the US borough with which it has maintained friendly relations since 2020 to engage in the programme.
The programme aimed to give South Korean students opportunities to learn English and experience a different culture for three weeks. It was originally expected to take place in December.
Dog meat trade on the slow decline in South Korea
However, last June, Palisades Park abruptly informed Ganghwa county of their intention to suspend cooperation regarding the programme, stating that the decision was unavoidable as it faced negative public opinion due to South Korea’s dog farms, where dogs are raised for meat, in Ganghwa county.
US animal rights activists who learned about South Korea’s dog meat farms via social media reportedly asked the US borough’s authorities to cease its exchanges with the Korean county.
An official from Ganghwa county expressed regret over the failed programme, saying that it was a result of cultural differences.
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“The tour programme was changed to take place in Thailand, and efforts to do further exchanges with Palisades Park will continue,” the official said.
While in modern South Korea societal attitudes towards animals are shifting, with a high proportion of the population keeping dogs as domestic pets, the country’s infamous dog farms and dog meat restaurants are still operating.
