Lucky, Daniel and Alberto discuss Korean foreign residents' voting rights

Overseas stars of the YouTube channel "354" discussed Korean foreign residents' voting rights in a video released Tuesday.

From left, Lucky, Daniel and Alberto discuss Korea's election processes in a video released on their YouTube channel 354 on Tuesday. [HNS HQ]

Overseas stars of the YouTube channel "354" discussed Korean foreign residents' voting rights in a video released Tuesday.

"As a person who has lived here 10 years, attained level 4 in Korean language skills [Test of Proficiency in Korean] and devours Korean food, I think I should be given a right to vote," said Lucky, an Indian national whose legal name is Abhishek Gupta. He is a TV personality in Korea.

"Korea, as well as Italy, should give the right to vote to foreigners as their populations grow," said Italian national Alberto Mondi, also a TV personality. "Though, I do think they would need to go through a scrutinized verification process," he added.

According to Article 34 (Preparation and Management of Registration Form of Foreigners) of the Immigration Control Act, a non-Korean citizen registered in a relevant local constituency who has had a permanent resident visa for at least three years has the right to vote.

Therefore, although Lucky has been in Korea for a decade, not having a permanent visa disqualifies him from voting.

354 is a channel with 354,000 subscribers featuring Lucky, Alberto and Daniel Lindemann, a German national and Korean TV personality. They largely discuss Korean culture on the channel.

The trio further compared Korea's elections with their own country's and encouraged viewers to exercise their right to vote.

"Voting is important," they said. "It determines the next four years."

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]