self defense in south korea?

[wannasupra]

so i'll be over here at least a year. not authorized to have a carry weapon. even a knife will land you in jail for quite awhile. what are my options? is anyone familiar with the laws here? i mean don't get me wrong, i'm not gonna go out looking for trouble, and i'll always de-escalate the situation when i see the opportunity, but the stuff they're telling us about some parts of town have me a little freaked out. and yes, i'll stay out of those parts if i can, but i can't read korean, and bad areas aren't always labeled in bright red. anyhow, besides situational awareness (which will be a big part of safety here) and learning tae kwon do (which is also part of the plan, should be fun too), what reccomendations do you fellas have for me?

 

[rajb123]

I lived there in the JW Marriott hotel in Seoul for 3.5 of the last 10 years!

It is a one massive traffic jam and you can go out at 3am and get stuck for hours. They eat dog meat and other weird stuff too. They charge $7,000 USD to shoot golf balls into a net for one year at the hotel. Golf is $800 per round. Their cars are pint-sized and only business people speak English.

I can't say one good thing about this country.

I never saw police carry guns so I'm clueless. If you are going there for business - get a new job and avoid the place. They may get nuked by Kim-Jung Ill, anyway.

 

[Ron James]

I have a total of four tours in Korea. The only thing I ever worried about was the North Koreans. Never needed a knife, club or any other devise for self defence and you better believe I was all over the country. Why don't you just relax and enjoy the place.

 

[Gordon]

After getting my Brown Belt in 1971 from a Tiger division ROK troops Tae Quan Do school ; you would be one hurting laddie if ye crossed an adept of THEIR NATIONAL SPORT !!!!!!

 

[Grynch31b]

Are you military?

Whether you are or not, if you're there on a business trip your employer should have someone knowledgeable on the topic.

 

[T.R.]

I was stationed at OSAN for a year. I brought a short axe from home in my whole baggage. It was in my wall locker.

They sell ball peen hammers and all sorts of knives in Song-Tonge

TR

 

[Strykervet]

All the guys I ever knew to got in more trouble with the chain of command than with the locals. Alcohol is the American way of dealing with life in SK. Soju is the drink, and Jack Daniels comes in "combat size" bottles that are over two gallons (but the bottle looks like five in my mind!).

Just stay away from the midget hooker. The t-shirt isn't worth it and she has been there for decades.

Oh yeah, and if you are average height or over (5'7"+) you will tower above and outweigh 90% of the population. The people are cool though, and the food is good too once you develop a taste for it. Cucumber kimchee, seaweed, and bulgoki... Yum!

 

[wannasupra]

yes military. yes, wierd food, stay away from kagogi (dog), and i'm 6'2", so much taller than most. they just go overboard on the safety briefs. i'll be down near pyongtaek, not necessarily right in seoul, but i'm sure i'll find occasion to zip up there. i mean, there's a costco up there, three in fact.

 

[Sky]

Think once you settle down and get accustomed to their culture you will find many things interesting and eye opening. It is not America and they have a culture that goes back several thousand years. You treat them with respect and they will almost always do the same for you. Dog. cat, bugs, all protein just sit back and enjoy; you are not in Kansas.

 

[towboat_er]

I was there in 90 - 91. I loved it. Best time of my 6 years in military. If ya don't have a good time in the rok its your own fault... very low crime rate. I never had any problems with nationals and I was all over the country.

 

[25cschaefer]

I was stationed there for a year; in Korea, if you get into a fight you have to pay the other guys hospital bills and him your's. You can get arrested for defending yourself but not for helping someone else, i.e. if someone jumps out at you with a knife in an alley, you can’t hit him, but if you see someone jump out with a knife at someone else you can defend them. In fact you can get arrested for not doing anything; you must at least call the police. If you get into trouble, either scream, run, or hope no one is watching. I was confronted by two drunks in an alley late one night in downtown slum Seoul, there was not much for me to do when one of them broke a bottle so I put a 6' 2" sized whooping on them but was very surprised that even blind drunk they still knew Tae Kwon Do. I walked away with a cut on my arm and a bruised shin, no one saw anything, I called police and reported two drunks passed out in an alley. All in all I loved Korea but they have some goofy laws my favorite is that you can go to jail for splashing a pedestrian with a mud puddle.
Most of the cops there don't carry firearms because the police is one option for the mandatory 2 yrs military service and they are mostly 18 yr old kids with little training and turned out onto the streets. They walk in pairs and carry these 3 1/2ft sticks with a weight in the handle attached to a spring that slams to the tip when swung; they are sweet, easy to carry and hard hitting. Do not try to run from them, the longer you run the more join the chase and they are young and untrained so when the catch up, they don't wrestle with you, they beat you until you stop resisting. I've seen the aftermath of a soldier who thought he could steal a bar sign and out run the cops, ten club swords rained on him for over a minute until he was unconscious, gave him a lazy eye.