Filipino in South Korea

[111117SK]

Greetings!

I am grateful to have found this site for it really helped me get some clarity after finding out I was HIV positive. I went to an anonymous testing center last September 3rd and the rapid testing was positive. So they asked me to wait for a few weeks for the confirmatory and on the 20th it has been confirmed. It was a hell of a roller coaster of emotions. One moment I'll be depressed and crying the next is wanting to live and maximize it. Goes back and forth up to now.

So I am a Filipino living and working in South Korea. I thought about just going home back to the Philippines. But I am trying to take my chances of getting treatment here since it's a first world country. I am still currently waiting for the nurse from the center to refer me to a hospital to get further tests and finally get medications.

I have nightmares of my employers finding out about my status and getting sent back home. I am hoping that she could refer me soon to a hospital and get things finally started.

I have tried to search for people who have HIV that are living here in South Korea. But it's just hard bec of the language barrier. Maybe someone who is also in South Korea may read this and speaks English and hopefully they reach out.

I don't know what else to say but hope you guys are having a nice day!

[Axiom]

Very sorry to hear of your diagnosis

was your testing done, and confirmed in south Korea?

I was was working in Korea when i got my diagnosis - though I did my confirmatory test in thailand.  As i understood it, from talking to the ID doctor in korea, if HIV is confirmed, they legally must inform the CDC.
Now if you look at the website called HIVtravel.org - it does suggest that Korea has a policy of deporting people with HIV.

I dont mean to worry you, and hopefully its not gonna be a problem, but just wanted to give you a heads up, so you can do some research, and plan your next step.

What visa are you on?

[filopoz]

Hi Migs. Perhaps you can ask some information about HIV treatment from the testing hub where you are diagnosed. I advise you not to disclose your status to your employer as there seems to be a high stigma of HIV in that country. In the worst case scenario, going back to the Philippines is not a bad option if you cannot get treatment in Korea. Among many countries in the world, the Philippines is one of the countries that provide free antiretroviral treatment drug and I know some people (online) who seems to be doing good with their treatment and lives a normal life in our country.  I am newly diagnosed too so I know your feeling. PM me if you need someone to talk to.

[111117SK]

Thanks for your responses.

@axiom, what year were you here in SK? I got tested via KHAP. They do anonymous testings for foreigners. When I found out I was positive. I immediately thought I needed to go home. The nurse asked what visa I am on and since I am not under a teaching visa she said I could stay and get medications without my employer knowing. It sure does need to get reported to the CDC that's why it takes so long for me to be referred to a hospital and start treatment. I still do have worries about my employers finding out but I am trying to stay as much as I could so I can save a bit more money if I ever do have to go home if they find out.


@filopoz since my diagnosis I have created a dummy account via FB just so I can find people to talk to in the Philippines to seek advice about medications and stuff. After finding out that meds are free. I considered to just go home. Bec I wasn't sure that time if I would be deported or get medication here in Korea. I have the constant worry of my employers finding out really and if I go home that would disappear. However, I earn so much more here in Korea. I realized that sinec I only have 18 months on my visa to try to see if I can stay as long as I can. I do send money back home and was hoping to save a bit more before I go home but also worry that I need to get medication. Its a tough situation but I am trying to keep my head held high and not stress too much about it. Sometimes it gets the better of me though and I couldnt sleep. It's rough but it is what it is.

[Expat1]

Sorry to hear about your troubles.   Several people I know were deported from SK for being HIV+.  All were teachers.  Many came over to Thailand were there is no such rule .

[Expat1]

Internet search seems ominous.

 Many foreign residents face mandatory HIV testing, and are deported if found to be HIV-positive – despite government assurances to the UN that such tests ended years ago.

South Korean diplomats have repeatedly told the United Nations they do not test foreigners for HIV, and are at the forefront of AIDS tolerance.

But a simple call to the Korean Immigration Hotline to ask for teaching visa requirements clears it up, at least for workers on the ground. Teaching visa candidates “must undergo an HIV/AIDS test,” the operator says, as well as a drug test.
https://thediplomat.com/2016/09/aids-in-south-korea-out-of-sight-out-of-mind/

a post dated from 2010
Cho also argues that the South Korean government never exercised its prior right to ban individuals living with HIV from entering Korea. Instead, since December 2007 the Korean government has carried out a policy of deporting foreigners already residing in Korea who were found HIV-positive after compulsory testing.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-solis/korea-maintains-mandatory_b_443724.html

Contact info from an NGO that works in HIV called: Korean Alliance to Defeat AIDS.
http://www.aids.or.kr
Location
1307, Semi bldg. 57
Yeongdeungpo-dong 8-ga
Yeongdeungpo-gu
Seoul
Korea

Tel: +82 2 2675 4111-4

Good luck. 

[Expat1]

Professor Benjamin Wagner of Kyunghee University Law School in Seoul has done a lot of research in this area, perhaps you can contact him regarding this.  I'm sure he would be interested in hearing your experience of the process.