Closing borders cannot be answer to fight terrorism: Nobel Prize laureate
By Choi Soo-hyang
SEOUL, Nov. 25 -- A French Nobel Literature Prize laureate said Wednesday closing off borders and rejecting immigrants cannot be an answer to eradicating terrorism.
"By sharing the limited resources, we can improve inequality and injustice. It would ultimately prevent the young people from ending up in making frustrating decisions in desperate situations," Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio said during the 15th Kim Okgil Memorial Lecture held in Ewha Womans University in western Seoul.
Under the theme of "Seeds and Fertility: Migration in Culture and World Literature," the French novelist underlined the importance of flow between countries in terms of people and thoughts.
Despite some criticism that immigrants cause economic crises, bring in diseases and increase crime rates, there are much more benefits than losses by welcoming them, the 75-year-old author said, criticizing the current politicians for shifting the blame on to immigrants.
"A culture that locks oneself in without opening to a stranger is no more than a dead culture," he said.
Le Clezio, a widely known devotee and a frequent visitor to Korea, arrived in Seoul on Tuesday for the lecture, which will be followed by a round-table talk with South Korean professors on Thursday.
He will fly back to Paris the following day, according to university officials.
scaaet@yna.co.kr
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