Accommodation Assignment Incident Including Yemeni Jamboree Members Who Did Not Enter the Country

Organizing Committee Assigns 175 Members to Hyejeon University
Welcome Banner and Catering Buffet Go Unused

The 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree Organizing Committee assigned accommodations to Yemeni scouts who had not even entered the country, causing a baffling situation.

An absurd incident occurred where the 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree Organizing Committee assigned accommodations to Yemeni scouts who had not yet entered the country.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 9th, according to Chungnam Province and Hongseong County, the organizing committee announced the previous morning that they would accommodate about 5,200 jamboree scouts at 18 facilities in Chungnam to avoid the northward advance of Typhoon 'Khanun.'

When the dormitory of Hyejeon University in Hongseong was assigned as accommodation for 175 Yemeni scouts, officials from Hongseong County, Chungnam Province, and Hyejeon University hurriedly prepared to welcome the scouts. They checked the cleanliness of the dormitory and even prepared welcome banners.

Along with this, a catering buffet was arranged for the meals of the 175 scouts, but there was no information at all about when the scouts would depart or what time they would arrive. Multiple inquiries were made to the organizing committee, but the only response received was that they could not provide the contact information of the group leaders.

However, the Yemeni scouts had not even entered Korea, and Hyejeon University learned of this fact after 9 p.m. It is reported that Lee Yong-rok, the mayor of Hongseong County, Lee Hye-sook, president of Hyejeon University, and other officials from Chungnam Province, Hongseong County, and Hyejeon University left the site around 10 p.m.

An official from the province explained, "When the scouts did not arrive, we investigated the situation and were informed that they had not entered the country," adding, "From the province's standpoint, we have no idea why they were included on the list."

There was also confusion at Hanyang University in Seoul on the same day. A female jamboree scout from Switzerland was assigned to a dormitory used by male students currently enrolled, but her belongings were removed again, and they reportedly returned to a hotel.

On that day, Hanyang University accepted about 120 Swiss jamboree students at the request of the Seoul city government. However, the second dormitory provided by Hanyang University was a male students' dormitory, raising concerns that female scouts using it could cause discomfort. Regarding this, Hanyang University stated, "Considering the safety of the students, we coordinated with Seoul city to promptly move them to a hotel."