Fleeing civil war in his home country Cameroon, Fossi Wandji found himself stuck in an Incheon International Airport terminal for a year when his attempt at obtaining asylum from South Korea was rejected.
However, the Asian nation is now counting on him to boost its chances at the Homeless World Cup tournament — something that could in turn bolster his bid at winning the right to stay on in South Korea.
Wandji, 27, is playing on a squad with seven other South Korean players in the tournament, which showcases national teams made up of young, unhoused people, refugees and those who have battled substance abuse.
Photo: AFP
The tournament, newly backed by global soccer body FIFA, is hosted by Asia for the first time this year since it began in 2003.
The event bills itself as helping participants change their lives for the better through soccer and has already sparked a feel-good documentary starring Bill Nighy, plus a South Korean movie last year called Dream.
However, Wandji’s experience is also reminiscent of another movie, Tom Hanks’ The Terminal, in which the protagonist was forced to live in an airport as he was denied entry to the US, but unable to return to his own country because of a military coup.
“I left Cameroon because Cameroon had a war,” Wandji said on the sidelines of the soccer pitch at Seoul’s Hanyang University.
While he was trying to flee, a contact who was helping him suggested South Korea could be a good place to seek refuge. So, in October 2022, Wandji boarded a plane to Seoul.
However, the South Korean Ministry of Justice immediately rejected his claim on his arrival at the airport, blocking him from leaving the terminal while he sought a reversal of the decision.
While he waited, the Terminal 2 transit area became his temporary home.
“I had some place where you can put a blanket,” he said, describing how he shared the space with about 10 other people, including Russian asylum seekers, who had fled to avoid military conscription in the ongoing war with Ukraine.
Photos published by South Korean newspaper Hankyoreh showed Wandji making a makeshift bed with a blanket, using boxes of noodles to separate himself from other asylum seekers sleeping nearby.
Despite signing international conventions on refugees, South Korea accepts only a tiny number of asylum seekers each year. It has received more than 116,400 asylum applications over the past 30 years, but approved 1,507 — a 1.29 percent acceptance rate, South Korean Ministry of Justice data showed.
A South Korean court has overturned the ministry’s rejection of Wandji’s claim, allowing him to leave the airport last year with a stay permit while his asylum application is re-examined.
In May, Wandji applied to join the South Korean Homeless World Cup team and made the squad two months later.
His contribution has been crucial, teammate Hong Seung-woo said.
“Without his defense, we would have conceded so many goals,” Hong said.
Wandji scored one goal in the team’s first five matches.
This year’s edition features 52 teams from 38 countries worldwide, local organizers and it is the first since FIFA signed an agreement to partner with the Homeless World Cup Foundation in organizing it.
Under the agreement, FIFA is providing medals and trophies, and broadcasting the event which runs until Saturday, on their FIFA+ streaming platform free of charge.
“I don’t know how to explain, but I feel like this [South Korea] is my country,” Wandji said. “I pray to God that I win asylum.”
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