Most of don’t really closely resemble our passport photos. The photo was taken years ago and since then you’ve probably gained weight, changed your hair color, or started wearing glasses. That’s usually acceptable to the airport security, but not in all cases: like these Chinese women who were detained at the airport because they looked drastically different after plastic surgery.
Three Chinese women found themselves on a spot earlier this month because plastic surgery had changed their faces drastically and immigration officers at passport control in South Korea could not match them to their passport photos.
Chinese TV presenter Jian Huahua, who was apparently present at the situation, posted a photo of the women with heavily bandaged faces to her Weibo social media account, joking that even their mothers would not be able to recognize these women.
She later removed the picture from her account but by then it had already gone viral.
The picture shows the three women sitting with passports in hand, their faces heavily bandaged and swollen from the surgery. It had already attracted over 30,000 comments before being removed.
Traveling for Cosmetic Surgery
Cosmetic surgery is popular among Chinese women and thousands of them travel abroad for cosmetic surgery.
South Korea—notorious for it’s over enthusiastic approach to plastic surgery—is a popular medical tourism destination for Chinese women seeking cosmetic surgery.
It is estimated that about half the women under the age of 30 in Seoul have undergone some kind of plastic surgery. Cosmetic surgery is so popular there that the chi-chi Gangnam district of the city, where many cosmetic clinics are located, is known as the “Improvement Quarter.”
The booming plastic-surgery industry attracts many foreigners, some of them even lured by travel packages that include recuperation at a safari trip in Africa following cosmetic surgery in South Korea— if you are actually allowed to board the place.
Why were the Chinese women detained ?
These women, who appeared to be in their 20s, were reportedly traveling during China’s Golden Week, a national holiday during which the residents are encouraged to take paid vacations.
South Korea has long been the preferred destination for Chinese tourists during Golden Week, according to Shanghaiist, but the political unrest this year caused the numbers to drop by 70 percent.
More Chinese women reportedly turned to countries like Malaysia and Thailand for chin enhancement, eyelid lift, and other cosmetic surgeries.
Thailand is already a popular medical tourism destination for European and Australian medical tourists who are looking for quality medical care at affordable prices, and maybe the Chinese also get to discover a taste the famous Thai hospitality—and hopefully not get in trouble with airport security.
Post-surgery troubles are rarely about immigration issues but for these Chinese women detained after their plastic surgery, this might be an unforgettable incidence. We urge medical tourists to stay back for recovery and not try to rush their return afetr any treatment.
Resources:
Why were three Chinese women stuck at a South Korea airport after cosmetic surgery?, Jeju Weekly, Oct 11, 2017 http://www.jejuweekly.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=5728
3 Chinese Women unrecognizable after plastic surgery; detained at South Korea immigration, HelloKPop, Oct 11, 2017
https://www.hellokpop.com/korea/3-chinese-women-plastic-surgery-south-korea/