Most Popular
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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K-pop singer lost consciousness after being hit by foul ball, cancels show
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
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Seoul says Fu Bao loan 'not going to happen'
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[Today’s K-pop] BTS pop-up event to come to Seoul
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Top court upholds 3 years prison term for academy teacher over SAT test leakage
An English teacher at a private academy has received a three-year prison term for colluding in the leaking and selling of SAT test papers to overseas students, court records showed Friday. The Supreme Court finalized the prison sentence for the academy teacher in Seoul's Gangnam district surnamed Song, for colluding with part-time teachers at foreign language high schools and brokers to sell the US college admissions tests to students and parents overseas prior to the exam date. The suspect
Dec. 15, 2023
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Police bust multinational drug ring based in Seoul for 1st time
Police have busted a Seoul-based multinational drug ring suspected of trafficking narcotics into Southeast Asia, officials said Thursday. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said they have uncovered four members of the international drug network, including a Singaporean kingpin, and arrested two of them on charges of distributing new types of cannabis and methamphetamine overseas from September 2022 to July 2023. The drug syndicate reportedly began distributing the narcotics in Singapore and Vi
Dec. 14, 2023
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Army to end exemption for severely obese men
The Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday that it would revise criteria exempting men with weight issues, allowing the enlistment of severely obese men for mandatory military service. The proposed change will lower the bottom threshold from the current BMI of 16 to 15 while raising the upper limit from the current 35 to 40. Therefore, the number of those who are underweight and overweight who can join the Army as active duty soldiers will increase. In general, a BMI of 18.4 or less is consid
Dec. 14, 2023
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Tuition subsidy plan for foreign toddlers insufficient: NHRCK
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea criticized the Ministry of Education on Thursday for insufficient subsidies and kindergarten programs for foreign children, urging the government to take action. “Initially, the Ministry of Education stated that it would investigate ways to expand its tuition program subsidies further than it is now. However, not only is their plan to do so insufficient, but no concrete data has been submitted to back up its plan,” said the NHRCK. “
Dec. 14, 2023
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Deliberate noise punished as stalking for 1st time
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a ruling by a lower court that issued a suspended jail term for stalking to a man who deliberately made noise to pester his neighbor, marking the first time for South Korea's highest judicial body to decide such a crime constitutes stalking. The defendant in his 30s was sentenced to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, on charge of stalking, which the Act on Punishment of Crime of Stalking stipulates can be punishable by up to three years in
Dec. 14, 2023
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Mom, unaware of son's death for 7 years, seeks state compensation
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against a woman who requested state financial compensation for her son's death in the 2014 sinking of Sewol ferry, which she only learned of in 2021. She was, however, granted the right to inherit her share of the compensation paid to her son by the government. The plaintiff filed charges for compensation for the son's death in 2021, after belatedly learning of his death in one of the worst maritime tragedies in the country's history. The 2014 s
Dec. 14, 2023
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Philippine Congress members join Sunfull Movement
Members of the Philippines' House of Representatives joined the Sunfull Internet Peace Movement to promote positive online culture and tackle cyber violence, said the Sunfull Foundation on Wednesday. Led by OFW Party List Representative Marissa Magsino, the Sunfull Foundation in the Philippines plans to expand the movement by having more legislators sign the pledge, with the aim of spreading the use of positive language, especially within the Philippine Congress. “The Sunfull Declarat
Dec. 14, 2023
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Wage gap between small and large firms persist as youth avoid jobs at SMEs: data
South Korean young adults are avoiding jobs at small firms due to low compensation, as the wage gap between small and large companies has been at nearly double for several years, data showed on Thursday. A survey conducted by the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, involving 1,000 young people between Oct. 20 and Nov. 1, revealed that the average expected monthly salary among individuals employed at SMEs was 3.23 million won ($2,490). The most expected salary range, chosen by 40.7 per
Dec. 14, 2023
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Woman becomes lawyer after assaulting police
A 31-year-old woman, whose assault of a police officer had thwarted her initial dream of becoming a prosecutor, has become a lawyer, local media outlets reported Thursday. The Korean Bar Association said it has accepted her application, as her previous criminal record from assaulting an officer is not in violation of the code of conduct for a lawyer. South Korea's Attorney-at-law Act stipulates that anyone who has received a suspended term for imprisonment without prison labor, or a more se
Dec. 14, 2023
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Korea bans cafes exhibiting exotic animals
A ban on the operation of exotic animal cafes, where people can see, touch and interact with the animals, begins Thursday, according to the Ministry of Environment. Under the amendment to the Wildlife Protection and Management Act approved at a Cabinet meeting on Dec. 5, beginning Thursday it is illegal to exhibit "wild animals" in facilities not registered as zoos or aquariums, in a bid to protect the animals better. Owners of such animal cafes should either reregister their establi
Dec. 14, 2023
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Voice-activated emergency call systems installed in women's bathrooms in Busan
Busan city officials said Wednesday that they have installed emergency call systems in public women's bathrooms in four underground shopping districts, including a voice-activated one in Busan Station. According to the Busan Infrastructure Corporation, officials have installed the emergency call systems in a total of 18 underground public bathrooms across the southern port city. They were installed at two bathrooms in the underground shopping district connected with Busan Station, six bathr
Dec. 14, 2023
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New law gives police more authority in emergency situations
A new bill stipulating the authority bestowed upon police officers dispatched in emergency situations has recently been passed by the National Assembly, police officials said Wednesday. According to the National Police Agency, the parliament passed the law on operation of the 112 emergency dispatch service last Friday, providing legal grounds for the police's actions in emergency situations including evacuation of citizens, imposing fines and forcing entry into buildings. South Korea's
Dec. 14, 2023
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School violence victims hit 10-yr peak: survey
The proportion of elementary to high school students who said they have experienced school violence reached the highest level in 10 years this year, a survey showed Thursday. The result was revealed in a school violence survey conducted by the education ministry for a month until May 10 on 3.17 million students from fourth year elementary to high school levels nationwide. In the survey, 1.9 percent of the respondents said they suffered school violence between August last year and May, up 0.2 per
Dec. 14, 2023
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[Graphic News] Marriages between Koreans and foreign spouses log largest growth in 2022 as pandemic eases
The number of marriages between South Koreans and foreign spouses rose by the greatest number last year as the stable COVID-19 situation promoted people’s cross-border movements, the statistics agency said. The number of “multicultural marriages” jumped 25.1 percent on-year to reach 17,428 in 2022, according to the data from Statistics Korea. It marked the sharpest growth since the statistics agency began compiling related data in 2008. The number of international marriages fel
Dec. 14, 2023
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[Herald Interview] Mayor Oh's grand schemes to bring out Seoul's fun side
In a crowded but somewhat solemn atmosphere, some 60,000 people gathered at Seoul's New Year's Eve celebration near Bosingak on Dec. 31, 2022, braving the cold and waving their smartphone flashlights while watching prominent figures here ring a 3.2-meter-tall bell 33 times after a countdown. For this year's New Year's celebration, the Seoul Metropolitan Government, as the host of the event, is looking to spice things up by adding festivities to boost touristic appeal. Immersi
Dec. 13, 2023
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Korea 9th-biggest climate change contributor: study
South Korea ranked as the ninth-largest recent contributor to the global climate change crisis, with a financial liability of 517.7 trillion won ($392.7 billion), according to an analysis released by the nonprofit Solutions for Our Climate on Tuesday. Assuming the same liabilities for both developing and underdeveloped countries affected by the climate crisis every year until 2050, the organization concluded that Korea’s climate debt will average 20 trillion won per year. Among Korean comp
Dec. 13, 2023
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S. Korea seeks to bar former terrorists from seeking asylum
The Ministry of Justice has announced plans to strengthen legislation that could ban former members of terrorist organizations from seeking asylum in South Korea. On Tuesday, the ministry said it will propose a new bill that will allow the government to revoke a person’s refugee status if the individual commits a serious crime in Korea. The bill will also allow authorities to cancel a person's refugee status after they have been granted asylum in Korea if the individual has a record o
Dec. 13, 2023
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Man jailed after setting fire to mother-in-law in exorcism ritual
A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced a 44-year-old man to two years and six months in prison for setting his mother-in-law on fire while performing what he claimed to be an exorcism. The defendant, surnamed Kim, was taking care of the 68-year-old victim at a hospital in Nowon-gu, northeastern Seoul, on May 29, when he lit pieces of tissue paper on fire and threw them at her. The victim sustained second-degree burns on various parts of her body including her scalp, left hand, face and neck. Kim w
Dec. 13, 2023
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S. Korean driver's tests to include section on self-driving cars
Starting next year, South Korean government will revise the traffic laws and driver's tests to accommodate for the rapidly advancing technology for automated driving systems and development of self-driving cars. The National Police Agency on Wednesday rolled out the traffic safety plans in preparation for when self-driving cars will hit the road, in which they announced that traffic safety education related to automated driving systems will be included in the state-issued driver's lice
Dec. 13, 2023
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[Graphic News] 6% of executives in S. Korea’s top 100 firms are women: data
The proportion of women in executive positions at the top 100 companies in South Korea reached the 6 percent mark for the first time ever this year, data showed. According to data of top 100 companies in terms of sales compiled by global headhunter UnicoSearch, 439, or 6 percent, of the total of 7,345 executives were women as of the first half of this year. The executives included executive directors, members of the owner families and unregistered directors, but not outside directors. By compani
Dec. 13, 2023