More than 10,000 haenyeo across the country to gather in September

Haenyeo are working in the sea on Jeju Island. Courtesy of Jeju Island

More than 10,000 haenyeo, female divers in Korean, across the country will gather in September.

Jeju Island announced on June 24 that the founding general assembly of the National Haenyeo Association, which will unite haenyeo nationwide, will be held at the 17th Jeju Haenyeo Festival this September.

Preparations for the establishment of the National Haenyeo Association are well underway. A promoters' meeting will be held on Jeju Island on June 26-27, attended by more than 20 representatives of haenyeo from eight coastal provinces across the country. The meeting will specifically discuss in detail the formation of a preparatory committee, which will play a major role until the founding general meeting of the National Haenyeo Association, as well as future schedules.

The movement to establish the National Haenyeo Association began in earnest last year. It is estimated that there are more than 10,000 haenyeo distributed along the coast of Korea, including Jeju. This is due to the fact that many haenyeo have traveled from Jeju to other parts of the country after getting married since the end of the 19th century.

Haenyeo and their culture have been recognized for their cultural and fishery values by being designated as national and UNESCO heritage sites. However, policies to support and preserve haenyeo vary depending on the local government, and the gap between regions is wide. As a result, voices began to emerge that a unified support policy at the national level was needed, and it became the background for the establishment of the National Haenyeo Association.

The consensus for the establishment of the National Haenyeo Association spread quickly, starting with a forum held in Busan in August last year, followed by another forum at the Jeju Haenyeo Festival last September, where haenyeo from five regions, including North Gyeongsang Province, Ulsan, and South Gyeongsang Province, participated. In October last year, discussions were held in South Jeolla Province and South Chungcheong Province, and in November, a meeting was held in Gangwon Province.

Eventually, the establishment of the National Haenyeo Association was decided at a parliamentary debate in December last year where haenyeo from all over the country gathered. This year, an administrative working-level council was formed in April, involving officials in charge of affairs related to haenyeo in eight coastal cities across the country.

Jeong Jae-cheol, director of the Jeju Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Bureau, said, "The National Haenyeo Association has been promoted since last year in order to unite the capacities of haenyeo across the country and establish national support policies," adding, "The promoters' meeting that is set to be held this month will be the actual starting point for the establishment of the National Haenyeo Association."

Meanwhile, Jeju Haenyeo Culture was listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016. In addition, Jeju's haenyeo fishing industry was designated as a National Important Fishery Heritage in 2015 and haenyeo as a National Intangible Cultural Property in 2017.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.