Garden to boost Korea's image

Frustrated at lagging behind China and Japan, South Korea will fund a large part of a proposed $1.5 million Korean garden at Barrys Pt Reserve on Auckland's North Shore to give its image a boost.

The Korean Garden Trust has been granted a licence by North Shore City Council to use the reserve in Takapuna for the garden, which will have a jungja (pavilion) - with underfloor heating - an ojakkyo (bridge), a pond and extensive flower gardens.

"We hope this garden will be one way to help New Zealanders experience and appreciate our Korean culture more," said trust spokesman Stanley Park, who indicated that Seoul would be footing at least a third of the bill.

The funding will be part of South Korea's global effort to improve its image overseas, which the country's President, Lee Myung Bak, has reportedly described as a "big problem".

In a Colmar Brunton study conducted last year for the Asia New Zealand Foundation, only 1 per cent of Kiwis thought of South Korea first when they thought of Asia and only 23 per cent mentioned it when asked to name Asian countries. More Kiwis associated Asia with China (86 per cent) and Japan (62 per cent).

In the 2008 Nation Brands Index - an international ranking system based on outsiders' first impressions - South Korea ranked 33rd out of 50 nations, behind Poland and the Czech Republic. New Zealand ranked 17th. Germany was top of the list.

In New Zealand, directors and key members of the Korean Society met last night to discuss the campaign.

Ideas discussed included using Korean-born Kiwi golfer Danny Lee as a poster boy, supplying Korean books to school libraries and getting Seoul to sponsor an annual Korean food festival, society spokesman Kenny Jeong said.

"With so many Korean organisations and businesses here, I am sure there are many ways that we can bring South Korea closer to the hearts of Kiwis, and I think the Korean garden will be a good start."