SEOUL CENTRAL MOSQUE
… Against the backdrop of the 1973 oil crisis and growing dependence on energy imports, the expansion of diplomatic relations with Muslim-majority countries gained strategic significance. Under Dictator Park Chung-hee, the construction of the mosque was politically enabled. The initiative originated within Korea’s Muslim community, while funding was provided primarily by international Muslim partners.
The mosque thus represents not only a place of religious practice, but also the entanglement of labor migration, foreign policy, and global economic relations in South Korea during the 1970s.
