Politics gets uglier as lawmakers on all sides face harassment claims

It has been harassment after harassment this week, with an opposition lawmaker using a “royal concubine” reference as she disparaged another female legislator, just a day after a progressive party leader was sacked for sexual misconduct against a fellow lawmaker. Adding to the series of disclosures, criminal actions, apologies and ensuing uproar was the accusation that the main opposition party leader made inappropriate physical contact on a reporter’s body as he pushed her ou

PoliticsJan. 28, 2021

High-profile N. Korean defector leaves for US for congressional hearing on anti-leaflet law

A vocal North Korean defector activist has left for the United States for a congressional hearing on a controversial bill South Korea recently passed to ban the sending of anti-North Korea leaflets, his lawyer said Thursday. Park Sang-hak, a North Korean defector who runs Fighters for a Free North Korea, flew to Washington on Wednesday to attend the hearing that Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) is seeking to convene to discuss the anti-leafleting law. "Park left for the US yesterday for the purpos

North KoreaJan. 28, 2021

Here’s how S. Korea plans to get to herd immunity by November

The South Korean government on Thursday unveiled its long-awaited plan for vaccinating the public, with the rollout set to kick off in a few weeks. The first doses will be offered to front-line health care workers in the Seoul area, where the active outbreaks have been concentrated, starting next month. From March, older adults and workers at long-term care homes and other congregate settings and first responders, including contact tracers, will be getting the jabs. Next in line are adults ag

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

Coronavirus cluster from missionary group spreading nationwide

A coronavirus cluster originating from a local Christian missionary group called the International Mission (IM) appears to be spreading nationwide, as officials said Thursday as many as 340 people have been infected so far. According to local governments, 41 IM-related educational and research facilities in 13 metropolitan cities and provinces reported 269 COVID-19 cases out of their combined membership of 866 as of 10 p.m. Wednesday, marking an infection rate of 31.1 percent. The Internationa

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

ASEAN-Korea Centre recognizes 10 winners of 2020 essay contest

The ASEAN-Korea Centre presented awards on Wednesday to 10 winners of the 2020 ASEAN-Korea Academic Essay Contest. The contest, jointly organized by the ASEAN-Korea Centre, the Korea National Diplomatic Academy’s Center for ASEAN-India Studies and the Center for Strategic and International Studies Indonesia, received 112 entries from students throughout the ASEAN region and South Korea from August to November last year. The topic was promoting digital partnership between ASEAN countries

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

Man seeks compensation for spending 20 yrs in prison on wrongful murder conviction

A man has asked a court to compensate him for serving a prison term after he was wrongfully convicted of raping and killing a girl more than two decades ago, judicial sources said Thursday. According to the sources, Yoon Seong-yeo filed the claim on Monday with the Suwon District Court, south of Seoul, seeking more than 2.5 billion won ($2.25 million) in compensation for spending 20 years in prison on the wrongful murder conviction of a 13-year-old girl in 1989. The 54-year-old was arrested on

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

S. Korea to expand in-person classes and care programs at schools

South Korea will expand the proportion of in-person classes and improve the quality of online learning and child care programs so that the new academic year can proceed without delays, the Ministry of Education announced Thursday. The Education Ministry said the country’s new school year will kick off as scheduled in March and provide more than 190 class days for elementary, middle and high school students and over 180 days for those in kindergarten. The move will also allow Korea to car

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

New justice minister begins term with visit to detention center

New Justice Minister Park Beom-kye began his term Thursday by visiting a correctional facility at the center of a recent COVID-19 outbreak. During the visit to Dongbu Detention Center in southeastern Seoul, Park told reporters that he chose the facility as his first stop because the public's welfare depends on controlling the coronavirus pandemic. "I'm worried that the virus situation is getting worse again after getting better," he said. "I plan to focus judicial administration

PoliticsJan. 28, 2021

Parking not fine: Abandoned cars cause Incheon Airport headache

On top of the crisis posed by the pandemic, Incheon Airport has another headache: A growing number of apparently abandoned vehicles in the airport parking lot, with one such car there for seven years. The number of such cars has doubled in the past year. Because long-term parking is not illegal in most airports, the process of disposing abandoned vehicles is not simple. According to the Incheon International Airport Corp. on Wednesday, some 48 vehicles have been in the airport parking lot fo

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

FM nominee: Boosting alliance with US 'primary task' for S. Korea diplomacy

Boosting the alliance with the United States is a primary task for South Korean diplomacy, the nominee for foreign minister said Thursday. Chung Eui-yong, who served as national security adviser to President Moon Jae-in before his nomination as foreign minister, made the remarks during a brief press availability, calling the alliance with the US "the foundation of our diplomacy." "I think one of the most important tasks for our diplomacy is to continue to develop our alliance wi

Foreign AffairsJan. 28, 2021

Army draftee in Paju tests positive for new coronavirus

An Army draftee in Paju, north of Seoul, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Thursday. The soldier was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 in a second virus test conducted after joining the boot camp, according to the ministry. All other conscripts who joined the camp with the soldier tested negative. The latest case raised the total number of infections reported among the military population to 546. Nationwide, South Korea added 497 new virus cases Thurs

DefenseJan. 28, 2021

PM: COVID-19 situation turns unstable again, new distancing levels to be fixed with prudence

The government will "prudently" determine whether to lower social distancing levels this week against the backdrop of the still unstable COVID-19 situation, as well as the approach of the traditional Lunar New Year holiday, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Thursday. The prime minister's remarks were made during an interagency meeting on the COVID-19 response held at the government complex in Seoul. The government will announce new social distancing levels over the weekend ahead of

PoliticsJan. 28, 2021

Civic groups demand suspension of military drills with US for confidence building with N. Korea

Nearly 400 local and foreign civic groups on Thursday urged South Korea and the United States to suspend joint military drills as a "major confidence-building measure" toward North Korea. A total of 387 organizations, including 197 South Korean civic groups, made the appeal weeks after North Korea demanded an end to such combined military exercises during a recent party congress. "Suspending these costly and highly provocative war exercises will be a crucial step toward re-start

North KoreaJan. 28, 2021

New virus cases around 500 for 2nd day amid continued rise in cluster infections

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed around 500 for the second straight day on Thursday as cluster infections traced to religious facilities continued ahead of an adjustment of the level of social distancing measures this week. The country added 497 more COVID-19 cases, including 479 locally transmitted infections, raising the total caseload to 76,926, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The figure was down from 559 on Wednesday. The new daily cases

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

Court upholds constitutionality of new anti-corruption probe body

The Constitutional Court said Thursday that the establishment of a powerful anti-corruption investigation agency is constitutional, clearing the way for the new body's full operation. The court said the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) essentially belongs to the executive branch and thus a law governing its status does not violate the principle of separation of powers stipulated in the Constitution. It noted that running the agency independently from the execut

PoliticsJan. 28, 2021

Biden stresses need for complete denuclearization of Korean Peninsula: White House

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday highlighted the need to completely denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. Biden made the remarks in a call with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, according to the White House. "They discussed regional security issues, including China and North Korea," a White House readout of the call said. "They together affirmed the necessity of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and the early resolution of the abductions issue," it a

North KoreaJan. 28, 2021

NK calls on beefed-up efforts for 'self-reliance' to achieve five-year economic plan

North Korea's official newspaper Thursday urged stepped-up efforts to realize a self-reliant economy and carry out key policy goals unveiled in a rare party meeting earlier this month. At the eighth congress of the ruling Workers' Party earlier this month, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un admitted the failure to meet the country's previous five-year development goals and put forward a new five-year plan focusing on self-reliance. "The socialist economic construction is the most crucial tas

North KoreaJan. 28, 2021

Over 60% of N. Koreans face food insecurity amid global pandemic: US report

More than 60 percent of North Korea's population is facing food insecurity as the global coronavirus pandemic has undercut food supplies in the impoverished country, a US Department of Agriculture report showed Thursday. According to the report by the department's Economic Research Service, 63.1 percent or 16.2 million people in North Korea suffered food insecurity in 2020. Food insecurity occurs when people fall short of the nutritional target of 2,100 kilocalories per day. The 2020 figure f

North KoreaJan. 28, 2021

[Newsmaker] Heavy snow advisory issued for Seoul, northern Gyeonggi

A heavy snow advisory was issued for Seoul and northern Gyeonggi Province on Thursday, the state weather agency said, predicting up to two hours of snowfall in the morning. The Korea Meteorological Administration said the advisory took effect in northwestern Gyeonggi at 8:30 a.m. and in Seoul and northeastern Gyeonggi at 9 a.m. The warning is issued when the expected snowfall is 5 centimeters or more within 24 hours. Incheon, the western coast of Gyeonggi and northwestern Gyeonggi will likely

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021

S. Korea confirms 4 more cases of bird flu, caseload now at 77

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Thursday it has confirmed four additional cases of highly pathogenic bird flu, raising concerns over the further spread of the disease in the country. Of the new cases, one case each was confirmed in Pocheon, Paju, Icheon, and Anseong the previous day, all in Gyeonggi Province that surrounds the capital city, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. A seven-day standstill order has been issued on all poultry farms in the four ar

Social AffairsJan. 28, 2021