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Raphael Rashid Profile picture
Raphael Rashid
@koryodynasty
Seoul-based freelance journalist. 라파엘 라시드 | 프리랜서 기자 | '우리가 보지 못한 대한민국' 저자 | 서울 거주. raphael@rashid.kr / koryodynasty@proton.me
Sep 14 • 12 tweets • 4 min read
1/ A repatriated Korean worker from the Hyundai-LG battery factory secretly wrote a detention diary about their 7-day experience in ICE custody in Georgia. The worker says ICE officers mocked them with words like as "North Korea" and "Rocket Man" despite holding a business visa. 2/ The worker held a B1 visa for a 2-month work meetings and training trip. They were body-searched while wearing hard hat and safety boots at 10am on 4 September. ICE gave arrest warrant forms at 1:20pm with no explanation and no Miranda rights were read. Image
Sep 9 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
1/ UPDATE regarding Google's Korean map saga: Google announced today it will remove latitude/longitude coordinates for ALL *South Korean* locations from Google Maps globally IF granted mapping data permission from the Korean gov. Not just sensitive sites but the entire territory. Image 2/ This goes far beyond Google's previous offer to blur sensitive facilities. The transport ministry has confirmed to me that they did indeed make this request for "national security" reasons but did not elaborate on the specifics. theguardian.com/world/2025/aug…
Sep 8 • 19 tweets • 5 min read
1/ S. Korea's entire media establishment across political spectrum has united in unprecedented editorial consensus expressing profound betrayal, outrage, national humiliation, and fundamental breach of US-ROK alliance re: mass arrest of Korean workers at Hyundai's Georgia plant. 2/ The general sentiment: while Korean media occasionally unite on domestic issues, these are usually severely politicised. Here, the level of scorn spanning from conservative establishment to progressive outlets is extraordinarily rare. They are furious.
Sep 6 • 19 tweets • 7 min read
1/ Something that's not being reported much re: ICE crackdown at Hyundai-LG Georgia battery factory: Korean companies investing billions cannot get proper visas, are then criminalised for bringing skilled workers to fill gaps American labour cannot.

Sentiment is one of betrayal. 2/ The language in local media is visceral.

Chosun Ilbo: "Built tens of trillions [KRW] factories for America... to then get slapped as illegal immigrants."

News1: "Told us to invest, then treated us as illegal immigrants." This isn't about law, it's about perceived duplicity. Image
Image
Sep 5 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
US authorities have reportedly detained 450 workers at Hyundai-LG battery plant construction site in Georgia yesterday, including over 30 South Koreans said to have legitimate visas. Seoul has expressed concern and says Korean nationals' rights "must not be unjustly violated." Image The detained South Koreans at the Ellabell facility are said to be on B1 business visas or ESTA waivers for meetings and contracts. Foreign Ministry has dispatched consuls to the scene and "conveyed concerns and regrets" to the US embassy in Seoul. en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN202509…
Sep 4 • 10 tweets • 3 min read
1/ A South Korean parliamentary committee has passed expanded special prosecutor laws that would mandate live TV broadcasts of ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law trial, citing "public interest" in seeing proceedings for "grave state crimes". yna.co.kr/view/AKR202509… 2/ The laws target three major issues/ongoing investigations: Yoon's December martial law attempt (insurrection), corruption allegations against his wife Kim Keon Hee, and the controversial death of a marine during flood rescue operations.
Aug 8 • 23 tweets • 8 min read
1/ Google Maps doesn't function properly in South Korea. You can see restaurants and landmarks, but can't get walking or driving directions. Authorities have for 18 years refused Google's requests to export detailed mapping data.

That could all change next week.

Full details: Image 2/ South Korea is one of only 3 places globally where Google Maps doesn't work properly - alongside China and North Korea. It's a grievance that many foreign tourists face when coming to the country.

My article in the Guardian: theguardian.com/world/2025/aug…
Jun 9 • 14 tweets • 5 min read
1/ South Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung is reportedly considering appointing his own criminal defence lawyer as a Constitutional Court justice whilst facing a constitutional question over whether his ongoing trials can even continue. koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/202… 2/ Lee Jae-myung faces five ongoing criminal cases including election law violations, perjury, and alleged illegal payments to North Korea. But there's a big constitutional question mark over whether these trials can proceed at all.
May 26 • 17 tweets • 6 min read
1/ Conservative presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo is desperately trying to distance himself from his far-right extremist past, but evidence reveals years of close collaboration with South Korea's most notorious radical preacher.

2/ In January 2020, Kim Moon-soo co-founded the Liberty Unification Party with Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon, leader of the extremist Sarang Jeil Church. Kim served as party leader whilst Jeon provided the ideological foundation and grassroots network. Image
May 22 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
1/ South Korea prosecutors suspect a disgraced ex-military intelligence commander turned fortune teller actually wrote Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration. Roh Sang-won visited defence minister's home 20+ times before 3 December martial law, including daily in final 4 days. 2/ Roh was dishonourably discharged from the military in 2018 following a sexual harassment incident and subsequently became a fortune teller. Despite this, he allegedly acted as an unofficial adviser to former defence minister Kim Yong-hyun.
May 15 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
1/ South Korea's opposition party has alleged that Judge Ji Gui-yeon, who's overseeing disgraced ex-president Yoon's insurrection trial, received improper entertainment at a room salon. They're demanding his immediate removal and a formal investigation. imnews.imbc.com/news/2025/poli… 2/ For context: "Room salons" in South Korea are exclusive entertainment venues where male clients pay premium prices for private rooms with hostesses who pour drinks and provide "companionship" and sometimes sexual services. They operate in legal grey areas.
Apr 3 • 8 tweets • 3 min read
1/ S. Korea is treating Trump's 25% tariff announcement as a national emergency, with Acting President Han Duck-soo mobilising an all-government response.

"The situation is very grave with the approach of the reality of a global tariff war", Han said. koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-04-0… 2/ With Trump declaring April 2 as "Liberation Day" for American industry, South Korean officials are scrambling to develop strategies to protect the country's $128 billion in exports to the US, which generated a $55.7 billion trade surplus last year.
Mar 28 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
1/ A few weeks after President Yoon declared martial law in December, I was able to read a military document detailing how martial law would have worked... has it been successful.

The content was so disturbing that I still have nightmares about it. 2/ This wasn't just a "warning" to the opposition as Yoon claims. The manual reveals extensive control measures had martial law been successful, including an extensive permit system for going out at night and driving.
Mar 24 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
1/ What today's Han Duck-soo ruling tells us about President Yoon's impeachment case: not much.

Here are the implications from the Constitutional Court's decision: Image 2/ The court rejected Han's impeachment because his violations couldn't be "definitively determined to constitute betrayal of public trust" (국민의 신임을 배반한 경우에 해당한다고 단정할 수 없어).

This standard will no doubt apply to Yoon's case as well.
Mar 24 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
BREAKING: South Korea's Constitutional Court rejects PM Han Duck-soo's impeachment BREAKING: South Korea's Constitutional Court has rejected the impeachment of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, allowing him to immediately resume his duties and role as acting president during President Yoon's suspension.
Mar 21 • 12 tweets • 4 min read
1/ We find ourselves again not knowing when Yoon's impeachment verdict will be announced. So much speculation. Only the 8 justices know what's going on. Meanwhile, this endless guessing game continues as Korean media try to decipher every signal from the Constitutional Court: 2/ What we DO know: The court announced it will deliver Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's impeachment verdict on Monday 24 March. This is also the same day as President Yoon's criminal trial hearing at Seoul Central District Court for the insurrection charges.
Mar 6 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
1/ I just watched the German public broadcaster ARD's documentary about South Korea's martial law crisis. It’s both appalling and shocking. This isn't merely biased journalism, it's borderline unethical, functioning essentially as a mouthpiece for far-right conspiracy theorists. 2/ The documentary presents extreme views without any pushback whatsoever. It legitimises unfounded claims about Chinese/North Korean infiltration, election fraud, and a supposed "communist threat" from the opposition. All without critical examination. ardmediathek.de/video/phoenix-…
Feb 23 • 20 tweets • 7 min read
1/ The impeachment proceedings against President Yoon are reaching their conclusion.

The Constitutional Court must determine if his December martial law declaration violated South Korea’s democratic order.

Here are the key questions the court must consider: Image 2/ First: was there legal basis for martial law? The Constitution only permits this during a state of war, internal turmoil or an equivalent emergency requiring military intervention to maintain public order.

Feb 6 • 22 tweets • 4 min read
1/ I've obtained the 101-page indictment against President Yoon Suk Yeol detailing the December 3, 2024 martial law incident. He's charged with leading an insurrection (내란우두머리).

Here's a breakdown of the allegations: 2/ The planning began months earlier. From March/April 2024, Yoon held meetings with military leaders at his safe house in Samcheong-dong discussing "the only way forward is through emergency powers" and "the military needs to step up and take an active role".
Jan 16 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
1/ Quite extraordinary how S. Korea's president claims sending armed troops to storm parliament was based on a copy-paste error. The martial law decree that launched one of the most serious crises in Korean democracy was apparently just... poorly proofread.hani.co.kr/arti/english_e… 2/ On Dec 3, troops with live ammunition broke into the National Assembly, smashing windows. The military deployed 57,735 rounds of ammunition. This was to "ban political activities". But Yoon now says the decree authorising this was just accidentally copied from old templates.
Jan 13 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
1/ North Korea's mounting casualties in Ukraine: what we learned from South Korea's spy agency briefing today, according to lawmakers who attended.

Revelations about captured soldiers, suicide orders, and the human cost of NK's support for Russia's war effort. 2/ South Korean intelligence estimates over 3,000 North Korean casualties in Ukraine:

- Around 300 dead
- Approximately 2,700 wounded