‘Together Day’ to break down language barriers

BBB Korea, a nonprofit organization that provides free interpretation through mobile phones, will host the BBB Walk Festival in celebration of the third Together Day co-hosted by the Ministry of Justice near the Cheonggye Stream on May 20.

BBB, short for Before Babel Brigade, a volunteer network founded ahead of the Korea-Japan World Cup in 2002, provides a free, 24-hour interpretation service by phone (1588-5644) in 17 languages including English, Japanese, Chinese, French, Italian, Arabic, Polish, Turkish, Swedish, Malay-Indonesian and Vietnamese. Over 3,600 people are registered as BBB volunteer interpreters to help expatriates and foreign tourists deal with problems that arise during their stays in Korea, such as communicating with a taxi driver, supermarket cashier or a realtor.

This year’s festival will be attended by Justice Minister Lee Kwi-nam, foreign ambassadors, and expatriates appearing in the popular KBS TV show “Misuda” (Chatting Beauties).

The theme of this year’s festival is “Let’s make Korea free from cultural and language barriers,” and BBB Korea said participants will be able to communicate with each other and learn ways to respect different cultures while strolling along the Cheonggye Stream from 3:30 p.m. on May 20.

Visit www.bbbkorea.org for registration. BBB Korea said those who sign up online by May 19 can participate in the festival for free. On-site registration will cost 3,000 won ($2.60). All participants will be presented a T-shirt and hat as souvenirs.

By Kim Mi-ju [mijukim@joongang.co.kr]