1 in 5 foreigners in S. Korea experience discrimination: survey

SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- One out of five foreigners staying in South Korea experienced discrimination though 80 percent of them were satisfied with their life here, a survey showed Wednesday.

Among foreigners who had stayed here for at least one year, 19.7 percent said that they encountered discrimination, according to Statistics Korea.

Foreigners faced more discrimination at shops, restaurants, banks and workplaces than at schools, real estate agencies, and public organizations, the survey indicated.

Around 40.8 percent of the respondents said they were "very satisfied" with their life here, while 39.6 percent replied that they were "a bit satisfied."

Among the total, 43.4 percent picked language barrier as the hardest thing faced by foreigners living here, followed by loneliness and cultural differences that were selected by 28.8 percent and 27.8 percent each.

The results were based on a survey of 25,000 foreigners in 2022, when the number of foreigners residing here came to about 1.75 million.