Grieving and cut off, Myanmar diaspora in Korea rallies for loved ones after quake

Korea Herald

30-03-2025

Fear has gripped members of the Myanmar diaspora in South Korea, after a devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar Friday. For many Myanmar nationals here, the disaster has unleashed a wave of misery, with unresolved phone calls, worries about missing loved ones, and a sense of helplessness.
'I still haven't been able to reach my parents," Naing Aung, 34, told The Korea Herald on Sunday via phone. 'Homes have collapsed, people are missing — and we're just watching it all happen from a distance."
Naing, who came to South Korea as a migrant worker in 2021, is now a graduate student in international regional cooperation at Pusan National University and chair of the Gyeongnam Myanmar Community — a Korea-based group representing Myanmar residents in South Gyeongsang Province. He said he has been flooded with messages from fellow nationals who are still unable to confirm the safety of their families.
'They're watching the death toll rise, powerless to help from thousands of kilometers away,' he said.
The 7.7 magnitude quake, which struck central Myanmar, has killed at least 1,644 people and injured more than 3,400, according to figures released by the country's military regime as of Saturday afternoon. The quake toppled buildings and crippled essential infrastructure, leaving much of the city without electricity, phone or internet service.
Naing also noted that many Myanmar nationals in Korea have received no support from the military regime — which seized power in a 2021 coup — to help them contact their families back home.
'The military-led Myanmar government has not taken any steps to assist its nationals abroad in reaching their families,' he said.
Kyaw San, 28, spokesperson for the Myanmar Federal Democratic Mission Coalition, said that even the Myanmar Embassy in South Korea is inaccessible to many Myanmar nationals in Korea who have protested the regime.
'Many of us, including myself, have been blacklisted by the junta and cannot turn to official diplomatic channels for help because of our political activities,' he said. 'We're completely on our own.'
The MFDMC, a coalition formed by Myanmar nationals in South Korea after the 2021 coup, organizes protest movements and civic campaigns in support of democracy in Myanmar.
'And just as we were already struggling with our status here, this sudden earthquake struck — and now we have no channel left to connect with home. It's devastating,' Kyaw said.
Kyaw also expressed growing concern about mental health within the community. 'Just yesterday, a Myanmar woman working in Singapore took her own life after hearing her entire family was gone,' he said. 'We're checking in on each other here in Korea, trying to prevent that from happening again.'
From grief to action
Overcoming grief and mounting anxiety, people are now mobilizing grassroots relief campaigns — turning their pain into action to help loved ones and others affected by the deadly quake in Myanmar.
With no support from their government, Myanmar nationals in Korea have turned to each other — and to the internet — to organize relief efforts.
The Gyeongnam Myanmar Community launched a donation drive on Friday night, just hours after the quake struck. By the second day, it had raised over 46 million won ($31,300) from more than 1,200 donors. The funds will go toward emergency medical supplies, and the group is also using its Facebook page to support Myanmar nationals in Korea who are emotionally distressed after losing contact with family.
The MFDMC is also collecting donations through Facebook to provide emergency medicine, food and clean water.
Others, like May Thu, a Suwon, Gyeonggi Province-based small business owner who sells mobile phone plans to Myanmar nationals, is also using social media to raise awareness.
On Sunday, May uploaded a donation appeal video to the Facebook page Myanmar-Korea Youth Community, a network dedicated to building ties between young people in both countries.
'In moments like this, we don't have time to wait for help,' May said. 'We do what we can with the tools we have — especially online,' she said.
In a rare move, Myanmar's military government — officially known as the State Administration Council — called for international assistance. In a televised speech on Friday, junta leader Min Aung Hlaing said he 'would like to invite any country, any organization, or anyone in Myanmar to come and help."
This marked the regime's first appeal for outside help since largely cutting itself off from the international community after the 2021 coup. But many in the Myanmar community still remain wary.
'In 2008, during the tsunami, international aid was sent to Myanmar, but the military kept most of it for themselves,' Kyaw said.
South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also announced Friday that it would provide $2 million in humanitarian aid to Myanmar through international organizations. The ministry said the aid was intended to support lifesaving efforts in affected areas and added that further support would be considered as the situation develops.