The Justice Ministry has proposed a bill to revise existing laws so that skilled foreigners, ethnic Koreans who have been adopted overseas and foreigners who live in Korea after marrying Koreans can hold dual citizenship. The ministry is also seeking to permit dual citizenship for foreigners like ethnic Koreans who were born in here and have lived in the country for more than 20 years.

In May, the ministry said it would permit talented foreign workers and Koreans adopted abroad to hold dual citizenship, but it has expanded the range of applications after collecting public opinion. At present, foreigners acquiring Korean citizenship have to give up their original nationalities within six months. Under the new rules, people with dual citizenship must apply for Korean resident registration numbers, use Korean passports and sign a written oath vowing not to exercise their rights and privileges as foreigners. In the past, there were people who abused their dual citizenship to take advantage of special admission to Korean universities, enjoying only the perks offered by both nationalities. That is how the term "dual citizenship" has acquired a bad image in Korea, and the ministry has decided to use the term "multiple citizenship" instead.

The scope of people eligible for multiple citizenship should be boldly expanded. Vladimir Saveliev, a professor from Russia working as a researcher in information technology at Hanyang University, came to Korea in 2000 and has also worked at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology. An expert in three-dimensional displays, Saveliev became a Korean national late last year and gave up his Russian citizenship. His three children live in Germany, Hungary and Australia, but those countries allow multiple citizenship and they have no problem retaining their Russian passports, Saveliev says. To pass the national exam, Saveliev had a tough time learning the Korean language.

At Pohang University of Science and Technology, 67 out of 1,869 students come from China, India, Iran, Vietnam and other countries. Out of 1,888 students at the School of Engineering at Seoul National University, 203 are foreigners. If multiple citizenship is allowed, then a considerable number of talented foreigners like Saveliev would want to live and work in Korea.

With the birthrate in Korea falling to the lowest in the world of 1.13, the contributions of foreign women who have married Korean men and have settled here must be recognized and they should be given proper legal status. There are 125,000 foreigners who have moved to Korea after marrying Korean nationals. Many Southeast Asian countries limit property ownership by people who relinquish their citizenship, so the Korean government should make sure that foreigners marrying Korean nationals do not suffer disadvantages in the countries of their birth. If those people and their children are granted multiple citizenship, they could serve as valuable bridges linking Korea with foreign countries.

The Global Overseas Adoptees' Link has surveyed Koreans who were adopted overseas and discovered that 93.4 percent of them wanted to acquire Korean citizenship. Ethnic Koreans living here have to carry foreign resident identification cards even though they have been living here for two or three generations and have paid their taxes, and cannot fully enjoy welfare benefits even when they reach pension age, while schools catering to ethnic Koreans do not receive Korean government funding even though they pay education-related taxes. Efforts must be made to grant multiple citizenship to these people as well.

There are 7 million ethnic Koreans living abroad. Even if they are not permitted to hold multiple citizenship, at least they should find it easier to get a visa or residency permit so that they can contribute by investing in Korea and engaging in business here.