한국국제교류재단

the University of Indonesia. After graduating, she worked as a lecturer at the local branch of Samsung Electro-Mechanics (SEM) and as a simultaneous interpreter. When she returned to Korea, she headed up global education for SEM and also majored in Korean language education at the international graduate program at Ewha Womans University. She has taught foreigners about the Korean language and culture at Hallym University and SEM, among other places. In addition, she has helped Indonesian migrant workers and other immigrants adjust to living in places like Siheung and Ansan. She is a consummate veteran who has taught Indonesian language and culture and the Korean language in Indonesia and Korea.

Hwang began the interview on a cautious note. “Korean language education in Indonesia is still somewhat lacking,” she said. She also bemoaned the lack of Korean investment and exchange. “China, they have Confucian Institutes—cultural centers—all over the place, from Southeast Asia to Africa and many South American countries,” she explained. “They’re investing actively in education.” As a country that ostensibly depends on exports to survive, Korea focused its attention on the US, Europe, China, and Japan while neglecting its Southeast Asian neighbors, Hwang said. She seemed surprised at the huge emphasis 16 on English education and culture at a time when the majority of immigrants and migrant workers in Korea come from Southeast Asia. She also commented on Koreans’ insularity. These days, the country has an export dependence score of over 100, yet the population still focuses most of its attention on domestic concerns. A look at its newspapers is all it takes to bear this out: more than 90% of the top news stories have to do with Korean politics, economy, and society—a striking contrast with the world’s top newspapers, like The New York Times, The Guardian, and Le Monde, where more than 60% of top news is international. “The globalization age demands education in Korean and minority language to match the degree of globalization in our economy,” she said.

Hwang also said she plans to keep an eye on the sustainability of the recent Korean Wave. “Prestigious national universities have departments set up for Korean language and literature or Korean studies, and there’s a boom of Korean education in private universities and academies, but the government and general public haven’t given that level of attention,” she explained. Korean language contents are held, she said, but added, “That’s mostly the work of the companies that have come here, not efforts by the government.” She also said it was “very fortunate” that the Ministry of Education has recently started running a Test of Proficiency in Korea (TOPIK) system in Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries. Hwang praised the Korea Day events, where she said the Korean Wave was doing its part to promote economic and cultural exchange. She also said she hopes to contribute to promoting that kind of exchange with Indonesia when she reaches her post by working to provide more organized Korean language education for locals.

Lately, the focus of her attention has been on teaching Korean language, culture, and law—part of an effort to keep up with rapid developments in Indonesia. “In the past, Korean relations with Indonesia remained more or less confined to a business-to-consumer (B2C) framework, but in 2013 the trend has been for business-to-business (B2B) and multilateral exchanges with countries that are interested in Indonesia’s resources and environment and the rate of its development,” she said. “It would be a good idea to consider something along those lines.”

Hwang said she has recently been working in various ways to help prevent wasteful resource development and look for paths to sustainable growth. “Since taking office in 2004, the administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been spearheading concerted effects to upgrade the country’s development,” she said. “Right now, it’s pushing hard to make greater administrative democracy and transparency a top governance priority.”

With 250 million inhabitants, Indonesia has the world’s fourth largest population. It is also the largest Muslim-majority country in the world. It does business with Korea in a wide range of areas, including electronics, shipbuilding, and defense. With an area of 1.9 million square kilometers, Indonesia is nine times the size of South Korea. With 17,508 islands, it is the island nation with the largest number of islands. The largest ethnic group is the Javanese (45%), followed by the Sundanese, Acehnese, Madurese, and Bataks. Islam is the national religion, with 87% of the population belonging to the faith. It has been widely touted for the potential of its abundant timber and underground resources such as petroleum, natural gas, tin, bauxite, manganese, and nickel. Much of those resources end up being exported. With a 2009 GDP of US$561.3 billion, the country has been pointed to as a potential economic power. It is a big country that is developing much faster than other Southeast Asia nations. But business is limited in its bridge-building abilities. For a real synergy effect to happen, cultural exchange also needs to be part of the mix. We look forward to seeing Hwang’s contributions to cultural exchange and Korean education there over the next three years.