ASIA/SOUTH KOREA - Seoul launches measures to combat increasing loneliness

Seoul (Agenzia Fides) - In a metropolis like the South Korean capital Seoul, where life is hectic and everything revolves around individual success, loneliness is an issue that affects thousands of people, often the elderly, but also a growing number of adolescents and young adults. "Loneliness is poverty and poverty is exclusion. It is not only economic poverty, but also poverty in human relationships, social, psychological and spiritual poverty," explains Jesuit Father Sang-Hoon Park, Director of the 'Research Center for Social Solidarity and Human Rights' in the South Korean capital. "Loneliness," he explains, "creates a state of deep anxiety and worry, both personal and social. It causes sadness to spread. Loneliness is often the cause of many problems such as fear, violence, trauma, crime, suicide, depression, apathy and even political polarization. This is an important issue and a new social problem". Scientists have found that young South Korean adults are increasingly isolating themselves from society, raising questions about the state of youth in a country known for its ruthless competition and social pressures regarding professional performance. Back in 2019, a study by the Korean government's Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs estimated that around 3 percent of South Korea's population between the ages of 19 and 34 suffer from isolation, which the study defines as "a lack of meaningful interactions," sporadic relationships within the family, and "a lack of someone to turn to for help in times of need."
For this reason, the Catholic faith community has welcomed the Seoul Metropolitan Government's new plan to combat the phenomenon of loneliness and social isolation that is increasingly common among the capital's residents. The city, Mayor Oh Se Hoon announced, will invest a total of 451.3 billion won (about $330 million) over five years to create a "loneliness-free city." The aim is to counteract the rapidly increasing phenomenon of "lonely death" in the city and combat what sociologists call a real "social disorder".
The new online platform "Smart 24 Platform" will be set up, which Korean and foreign residents can turn to for psychological help and advice, also thanks to a 24-hour hotline. The city also intends to create and promote meeting spaces that also offer simple meals at modest prices. The city administration also announced a system to encourage participation in public events such as festivals and outdoor libraries, as well as visits to cultural sites and green spaces, in order to create a city where "no one feels lonely". "Loneliness and isolation are challenges that we must face together in society, and we will mobilize all the necessary resources," said the mayor of Seoul. Korean Catholics welcome these measures, highlighting an essential point, namely "community" and "fraternity", dimensions lived in the Churches that help each person not to feel alone: "When someone listens to us and shows genuine interest in our difficulties and our needs, something very profound happens in us. Slowly, fear and anxiety disappear. The experience of being valuable to someone is an enormous creative force," explains Jesuit Father Sang-Hoon Park.
Korean Salesian Sister Georgia Kim Yong-eun adds: "We are never alone, because the Lord is always with us and walks beside us. Prayer, love and service to others are the remedies against loneliness". (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 2/11/2024)

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human rights

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youth

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the elderly

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society

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