American KATUSA
I met a really interesting KATUSA a few days ago. For those who don’t know what a KATUSA is, he is a Korean Augmentee to the United States Army. They are Republic of Korea soldiers that serve along side of American soldiers in regular US Army units but are supervised by the ROK Army. Only male soldiers are authorized to serve as a KATUSA.
Anyway, I was talking to this KATUSA about where he was from and he told me he was from Minnesota. I was a little surprised and ask if he had family there or had just visited Minnesota but he said he was born and raised there. He then told me his dad is a Korean citizen and his mom is an American thus giving him dual citizenship. He could of avoided ROK Army service by staying in America or just giving up his Korean citizenship. However, he did not want to give up his Korean citizenship and his dad was adamant about him doing his military service so he agreed to join up. This is the first American KATUSA I have ever met. I wonder how many more are out there?
I don't know about KATUSA's, but I have met two American ROK soldiers in the last two years. Like you, I thought it was pretty weird.
I've also met several ROK's that have attended college in the States, some of which plan on going back to attain higher degrees after their service.
I read a story a few years ago in a Korean paper about a guy who had come back to Korea to serve in the military. His family had emigrated to South Africa and he was in the process of applying for permanent residence there when his father told him he was 'Korean' and had to ditch everything and defend a country he didn't remember. I don't grasp the mindset of these people. Maybe the following is going through their brains:
'I want to leave my homeland, so my children will have a better life. Let's go live and raise our kids in a foreign (read white, English-speaking)country. But never let the kids forget they're still Korean. Let's get as much as we can from the stupid white people. And then complain about it.'
According to Korean law, dual citizenship is possible until 19 or 20.The KATUSA you met faced a choice: America or Korea. He chose Korea and has given up his US citizenship.
His father is a poor excuse for an American, if that's what he indeed is. He's lived in the USA and married an American but he's still 'Korean.' Why didn't he move the family back to Korea? The answer is clear, but he can't face it: His family would have had no future in Korea. America doesn't need these kinds of people.
Ed, I think your assessment of the situation is a little harsh, but you are certainly entitled to your opinion.
You could say the same thing about Irish-Americans, Italian-Americans, Mexican-Americans, etc..
Are you serious? The KATUSA had to give up his American citizenship because he chose to serve in the ROK Army? That may be true, although it doesn't sound right to me.
The KATUSA gets to keep his American citizenship. He just had to do his ROK time to keep his Korean citizenship. So he continues to have dual citizenship.
USA does not honor the dual citizenship. But many foreign countries do honor the dual citizenship for their benifits like South Korea. That is the reason why many Korean-American can keep the Korean Citizenship in Korea along with their US citizenship.
I am Katusa and study in one of universities in Illinois. The biggest reason why so many Korean students still determine to take ROK military service even if they can rather decide to go with American citizenship is because they just want to keep dual citizenship or somekind of patriotism. I don’t feel like wasting my 2 years it is still very meaningful in some way.