Kyung Hee University will hold Peace BAR Festival 2018 to celebrate the 37th anniversary of the International Day of Peace and gather academia, nongovernmental organizations and business partnerships to examine the Korean Peninsula and find values to contribute to the global peace movement.The two-day festival will be held from Tuesday to Thursday under the theme “The Korean Peninsula in an Age of Transformative Civilization: Values and Philosophy” at the Grand Peace Hall and Lobby of the Univer

Social Affairs Sept. 16, 2018

A Seoul court on Wednesday handed down a one-year prison term for a former Korean ambassador for sex offenses against subordinate workers by abusing his occupational authority, when he was stationed in Ethiopia.Seoul Central District Court sentenced former Ambassador to Ethiopia Kim Moon-hwan to one year in jail and ordered him to undergo 40 hours of treatment for sex offenders. The court also prohibited Kim from working at children-related institutes for three years. Kim was detained immediatel

Social Affairs Sept. 12, 2018

Once an aid-recipient country, South Korea has worked its way up to becoming a donor country, at a speed that surprised the world. The country’s development and changes also occurred under a unique circumstance, at a cease-fire with a communist state. But Korea has been weak in making long-term policies, as state plans often revolve around yielding a result during the 5-year presidential term. Now, the country should look beyond to plan its future looking 30 years ahead, according to Park Jin, t

Politics Sept. 11, 2018

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday reiterated the importance of the upcoming inter-Korean summit and called for cooperation from the parliament, after political leaders rejected an invitation to accompany him to Pyongyang.“We should make the upcoming Pyongyang summit an opportunity to lead complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and a peaceful inter-Korean relationship, and to aid breaking the stalemate between the United States and North Korea,” President Moon said at a Cabinet meeting.

Politics Sept. 11, 2018

The Education Ministry on Monday published revised guidelines on school violence that give victims the right to participate in the retrial process. The revised guidelines, which come three years after the first set of guidelines was introduced in 2014, provide a detailed process for dealing with school violence, to allow victims to receive proper assistance from school violence centers across the country. (Yonhap)Victims of school violence were previously not notified when abusers filed for a re

Social Affairs Sept. 10, 2018

Over thousand students and staff have been hit with food poisoning after eating chocolaste cakes at school cafeterias, the government reported Friday.As of 6 p.m. on Friday, 2,112 suspected cases of food poisoning have been reported to the Ministry of food and Drug Safety, the Education Ministry said.The cakes were manufactured by W1F&B and distributed by Pulmuone Foodmerce, a major food supplier.(Yonhap)Based on an initial inspection of the manufacturer, KCDC said salmonella was found in the in

Social Affairs Sept. 7, 2018

Following some 10 kilometers on the lakeside of Cheongpyeong Dam in Gyeonggi Province toward Nami Island, one is welcomed by a small French theme park with unique and colorful houses. Opened in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, a decade ago, French-style theme park Petite France offers visitors various experience programs, performances and exhibitions, steeping them in French and European culture.From centuries-old traditional French “Guignol” hand puppet performances and a doll play with traditional

Travel Sept. 7, 2018

A kindergarten building in Seoul tilted Thursday night around 11:22 p.m. after the collapse of a retaining wall at a nearby construction site. The building was empty, and no one was injured. According to local fire authorities and the Dongjak District Office, the accident at Sangdo Public Kindergarten occurred because construction of a nearby housing complex caused the ground to sink. (Yonhap)The outer walls and pillars sustained damage, and experts warned that the kindergarten was at risk of co

Social Affairs Sept. 7, 2018

Prosecutors on Thursday demanded 20 years in jail for former President Lee Myung-bak over a series of corruption charges including bribery and embezzlement. Along with the jail term, the prosecutors also sought a 15 billion won ($13.4 million) fine and forfeiture of 11.1 billion won, in the last hearing, which began at the Seoul Central District Court at 2 p.m.“Heavy punishment is inevitable, as the magnitude of the corruption cases appears to be unprecedented,” the prosecutors said. “Lee damage

Politics Sept. 6, 2018

Parents of disabled children denounced the Seoul Education Office on Wednesday for making a deal to obtain the support of residents of the Gangseo district in Seoul for the establishment of a special school in the area. On Tuesday, Cho Hee-yeon, superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Education Office, Rep. Kim Sung-tae of the Liberty Korea Party representing the district and a representative of Gangseo residents who initially opposed the facility held a press conference to announce their agree

Social Affairs Sept. 5, 2018

Korean Red Cross said Tuesday it sent an additional 2,144 hygiene kits for those affected by a dam collapse that occurred in late July in Laos.The relief goods are to be delivered by Korean Air to Danang, Vietnam. From there, they will be transported on land to the site of the incident by the Lao Red Cross and International Committee of the Red Cross in Laos, the Korean organization said. Hygiene kits prepared by the Korean Red Cross (Korean Red Cross)The kits include detergents for washing and

Foreign Affairs Sept. 4, 2018

Hundreds of apartment residents who were evacuated after a large sinkhole appeared in the Geumcheon District in Seoul have refused to return to their homes amid concerns that their apartment buildings might collapse. When a parking area of an apartment complex in Gasan-dong partially sank Friday, some 200 people from 76 households were evacuated from their homes.  (Yonhap)The sinking of the land occurred as the embankment installed for a nearby construction site collapsed amid unprecedented down

Social Affairs Sept. 3, 2018

SEJONG -- Labor conditions for about 80,000 part-time lecturers in South Korea are expected to improve as a result of a policy proposal agreed upon Monday by instructors, universities and the government. At a media conference at the Ministry of Education, a consultative panel tasked with improving the treatment of part-time lecturers announced a proposal that would mandate universities to hire part-time lecturers for at least a year and to allow reappointments for up to three years.Lee Yong-woo,

Social Affairs Sept. 3, 2018

The Education Ministry announced Sunday that it will provide 4.6 billion won ($4.1 million) to public schools for the installment of safety devices to prevent young children from accidentally being left alone on school buses According to the ministry, it will provide 300,000 won each for the 15,000 school buses of public kindergartens, elementary and special schools across the nation to install safety devices in the vehicles. (Yonhap)Several young children here have died or suffered harm after b

Social Affairs Sept. 2, 2018

An average of 17.7 cases of “molka” -- using hidden cameras to take pictures or videos for sexual purposes -- were reported per day last year, a lawmaker said Sunday.According to the data Rep. Park Kyung-mee of ruling Democratic Party of Korea received from the National Police Agency, a total of 6,465 cases molka crimes were reported in 2017, showing an increase of 1,280 cases from the year before.(Yonhap)While the numbers continue to increase, only 1,720 of the 4,499 molka suspects identified b

Social Affairs Sept. 2, 2018