{"id":2198361,"date":"2022-08-19T19:27:45","date_gmt":"2022-08-19T10:27:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/pro\/?p=2198361"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:44","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:44","slug":"seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/","title":{"rendered":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kim Young-ja had not seen her sister Oh Kyung-ja for 33 years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After the death of their parents, poverty made life difficult for the siblings. Young-ja, then seven, was put up for adoption, and the sisters lost touch. In 1987, Kyung-ja married and moved to the United States. It was only thanks to a television program that tracked down long-lost loved ones that the sisters were reunited after decades apart.<\/span><\/p>\n

While finally visiting South Korea for a family reunion, Kyung-ja decided to spend a night at Young-ja\u2019s semi-basement apartment known as “banjiha” made famous by the 2019 film \u201cParasite.\u201d Kyung-ja knew she would soon be returning home and wanted to maximize time with her long-lost sibling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That night torrential rains flooded the city, causing a landslide that engulfed Young-ja\u2019s unlicensed banjiha. Both sisters and Young-ja\u2019s two young daughters were killed.<\/span><\/p>\n

One would be forgiven for thinking this is a recent story, a tale of loss from last week\u2019s record downpours that killed at least 14 people. But Young-ja died more than 20 years ago, in the Sillim neighborhood of southwest Seoul \u2014 the same flood-prone part of the city that President Yoon Suk-yeol surveyed when a 47-year-old woman, her older sister, and 13-year-old daughter drowned while trying to escape their flooded banjiha.<\/span><\/p>\n

More South Koreans will likely die in their banjihas, a result of lax enforcement by successive administrations that appear unable or unwilling to provide secure and affordable housing for vulnerable populations.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

The 2019 film “Parasite” famously features a family that lives in one of Seoul’s semi-basement homes | Image: Neon<\/p><\/div>\n

The dark, musty banjiha \u2014 which literally means \u201chalf-underground\u201d \u2014 began to spread in the 1970s after an amendment to the Building Act <\/span>ordered<\/span><\/a> all new multi-family properties to be built with basements that could act as underground shelters in case of conflict with North Korea. Seoul lies just 30 miles (48 km) south of the inter-Korean border.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rapid industrialization drove South Koreans to cities, and the government gradually <\/span>relaxed rules<\/span><\/a> on basement building standards that allowed property owners to rent out these literal bomb shelters. Today there are an estimated 200,000 banjiha, many housing multiple people.<\/span><\/p>\n

Most banjiha would never meet the threshold for \u201cadequate housing,\u201d a right to which all South Koreans are entitled under article 25 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Their small windows make it difficult for sunlight to seep in, likely <\/span>disrupting<\/span><\/a> serotonin levels for residents and stressing mental and emotional health. Unsurprisingly, a lack of this hormone is <\/span>linked<\/span><\/a> to major depressive disorders, along with other mood and anxiety conditions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Poor ventilation also reduces the habitability of banjiha. Due to the nature of their location, they have more issues related to moisture and dampness than above-ground dwellings. <\/span>Studies<\/span><\/a> in recent years have found banjiha residents, particularly children, to suffer an increased risk of hay fever and asthma.<\/span><\/p>\n

The limited airflow also allows fires to spread faster, cause more injuries, and greater property damage compared to fires originating above ground level. Add on to this the fact that many banjiha have undergone <\/span>illegal renovations<\/span><\/a>, use natural gas for hot water and cooking, yet lack fire protection and safety features including smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors and fire extinguishers. A qualitative review of news articles since the 1990s reveals countless cases of <\/span>fires<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>gas explosions<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>poisonings<\/span><\/a> in banjiha, causing dozens of severe injuries and <\/span>deaths<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

And of course, banjihas are prone to flood every time heavy rainfall occurs. The installation of plumbing fixtures below ground level runs below municipal sewage systems. Given most banjiha were built <\/span>without<\/span><\/a> sump pumps and backwater valves, with installation of these devices left up to the landlord or tenant, the risk of storm water backing up city sewers and regurgitating into the unit is high. Even if the units are retrofitted, their advanced age makes water seepage through untreated foundation cracks and other weak spots unavoidable.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Uneven, sloping terrain in areas like Sillim also makes it difficult to prevent surface runoff from inundating banjiha during extreme flooding.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Yoon Suk-yeol visits a home that flooded in Seoul | Image: South Korean Presidential Office (Aug. 9, 2022)<\/p><\/div>\n

In the aftermath of last week\u2019s deadly floods, the Seoul government announced it would ban the construction of new banjiha in the city and that all existing half-underground dwellings convert to non-residential spaces within 20 years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But such decrees have been made before, and nothing much changed. Over the past two decades, successive city governments, including under current Mayor Oh Se-hoon when he was previously mayor a decade ago, have failed to act decisively due to budget deficits and the <\/span>inability to secure affordable alternative housing for banjiha residents.\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

The inhabitants of banjiha are incredibly diverse and include the elderly, university students, migrant workers, and others. What they have in common is their inability to live elsewhere. Facing a competitive and expensive real estate market and insufficient public housing, they are forced into banjiha because it\u2019s all they can afford. However, even with lower rental barriers and welfare subsidies, many are forced into debt to cover their housing and utility expenses.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Committing to knee-jerk policies following tragedy causes confusion and conflict, and leaves clear accountability for follow-through actions undefined. This is especially true in South Korea, where flood-prevention projects and the management of relief measures are distributed between the Ministry of Land, Construction, and Transportation, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, as well as various bureaus and divisions at the local government level.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s also necessary to navigate a plethora of laws at the nexus of housing and natural disaster management, including but not limited to the Natural Disasters Countermeasures Act, the Natural Disasters Relief Act, the Building Act, and the Housing Act. Uncoordinated policymaking neither serves the interests of those who will be impacted in the long term, nor does it consider their voices.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Support for banjiha residents must be tied to the specific needs of communities, considering household income levels, while ensuring residents\u2019 humanity, dignity, and rights are upheld throughout the process. Where they will go and how their costs will be covered has to be reflected in whatever frameworks are ultimately developed. Achieving consensus among concerned parties won\u2019t be easy but must be attempted if this problem is to be solved in a timely and constructive manner that balances the divergent interests involved.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Now is not only the time to talk about solutions but to learn from past failures. Twenty more years of floods followed by political platitudes will be an injustice for the victims \u2014 past, present and future.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Edited by Arius Derr<\/em><\/p>\n

Business & Economy<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kim Young-ja had not seen her sister Oh Kyung-ja for 33 years.\u00a0 After the death of their parents, poverty made life difficult for the siblings. Young-ja, then seven, was put up for adoption, and the sisters lost touch. In 1987, Kyung-ja married and moved to the United States. It was only thanks to a television […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3665,"featured_media":2198366,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[24],"yoast_head":"\nSeoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kim Young-ja had not seen her sister Oh Kyung-ja for 33 years.\u00a0 After the death of their parents, poverty made life difficult for the siblings. Young-ja, then seven, was put up for adoption, and the sisters lost touch. In 1987, Kyung-ja married and moved to the United States. It was only thanks to a television […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/08\/banjiha-yoon-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"685\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Bishawjit\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@southkoreapro\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jack Greenberg\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Bishawjit\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/313e6f940bf1ae7b8cc487ec00b1b562\"},\"headline\":\"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\"},\"wordCount\":1123,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Business & Economy\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Analysis\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\",\"name\":\"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"description\":\"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KOREA PRO\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png\",\"width\":360,\"height\":50,\"caption\":\"KOREA PRO\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/southkoreapro\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO","og_description":"Kim Young-ja had not seen her sister Oh Kyung-ja for 33 years.\u00a0 After the death of their parents, poverty made life difficult for the siblings. Young-ja, then seven, was put up for adoption, and the sisters lost touch. In 1987, Kyung-ja married and moved to the United States. It was only thanks to a television […]","og_url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/","og_site_name":"KOREA PRO","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","article_published_time":"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":685,"url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/08\/banjiha-yoon-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Bishawjit","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@southkoreapro","twitter_site":"@southkoreapro","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jack Greenberg","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/"},"author":{"name":"Bishawjit","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/person\/313e6f940bf1ae7b8cc487ec00b1b562"},"headline":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options","datePublished":"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/"},"wordCount":1123,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"keywords":["Business & Economy"],"articleSection":["Analysis"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/","name":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options - KOREA PRO","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-08-19T10:27:45+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-05T07:11:44+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/08\/seoul-wants-to-ban-subterranean-housing-but-residents-have-few-other-options\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Seoul wants to ban subterranean housing, but residents have few other options"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","name":"KOREA PRO","description":"Be smart about South Korea. Up-to-date analysis on foreign relations, politics, society and economy. Made by the producers of NK PRO and NK News.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#organization","name":"KOREA PRO","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2022\/11\/logo.png","width":360,"height":50,"caption":"KOREA PRO"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/nknewsorg\/","https:\/\/twitter.com\/southkoreapro"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198361"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3665"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2198361"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198361\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2199384,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198361\/revisions\/2199384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2198366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2198361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2198361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2198361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}