Skylion ...
I think you may be somewhat misinformed. Life for foreigners in Korea is certainly different from Hong Kong or Dubai, but it's not the hardship that you may be imagining.
More to the point, KAL's expat captains don't even live in Korea at all, but rather commute on a monthly basis from their homes, which may be anywhere in the world they choose to live. For most of us, this is the critical difference between EK and KAL and the reason why the EK DEC positions are of little interest.
There just aren't many guys willing to take an approx 40% pay cut and move their families from Vancouver/Brisbane/Zurich or wherever out to the sandbox. Frankly, EK seems to have got it backwards in assuming that they could attract guys at a discount to the going rates. The truth is that they will have to offer a premium if they want guys with the sort of qualifications they are requiring to give up long term contracts and homes in the nicer parts of the world in order to work for EK.