[Graphic News] Number of workers taking parental leave declines for 1st time

　The number of South Korean workers who took parental leave in 2021 decreased year-on-year for the first time since the system was introduced in 2001, government data showed. 　A total of 110,555 workers took time off to take care of their children last year, down 1.3 percent from the previous year‘s 112,040, according to statistics from the Labor Ministry. 　The decrease was attributed to the exceptionally large number of parental leave takers in 2020, when many schools and kindergartens

NationalMay 13, 2022

US has no plans to provide COVID vaccine to N. Korea, but supports Intl. efforts: White House

The United States has no immediate plans to provide COVID-19 vaccines to North Korea but supports international efforts to help vaccinate the people of the reclusive country, a White House spokesperson said Thursday. Jen Psaki, however, accused Pyongyang of exploiting its people by denying or diverting international assistance to pursue unlawful weapons programs. "The United States does not currently have plans to share vaccines with the DPRK," the White House press secretary said when

North KoreaMay 13, 2022

White House highlights possible N. Korean nuclear test this month

North Korea may be ready to conduct a nuclear test before the end of the month, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday. Her remarks come less than a week after a state department spokesperson hinted at a possible resumption of nuclear tests by North Korea in the near future. "The United States assesses that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea could be ready to conduct a test there as early as this month," Psaki said when asked in a daily press briefing, referring to

North KoreaMay 13, 2022

NK fires ballistic missile in 16th show of force this year

North Korea fired another ballistic missile into the East Sea on Thursday, continuing a series of launches that have raised tensions on the Korean Peninsula. According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, a projectile suspected of being a ballistic missile was fired into the East Sea. Thursday’s launch is North Korea’s 16th show of force this year. The most recent was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) fired in waters off its east coast on May 7. Pyongyang ha

North KoreaMay 12, 2022

North Korea, economic alliance set to dominate Korea-US summit agenda

North Korea will likely top the agenda for President Yoon Suk-yeol and US President Joe Biden at the summit meeting in Seoul, but forming economic alliances and ties to contain China will also be high on the list for the US. The Yoon administration will face difficult choices as the US and China seeking to involve Korea, a strong player in strategic industries such as chips and batteries, in their supply chains. 　 The Korea-US summit is a key diplomatic event for President Yoon, who has em

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

South Korea enters another election season ahead of June 1 decision

South Korea officially entered another election season Thursday, with candidate registrations being accepted for the local elections on June 1. The National Election Commission is receiving applications from candidates seeking to run for local government posts until Friday. Those aged 18 or above – those born before June 2, 2004 – as of election date are eligible to register as candidates. It is the first election in South Korea in which high school seniors will be able to particip

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

Presidential secretary under fire for hate speech on homosexuality, sexual slavery victims

A secretary for recently inaugurated President Yoon Suk-yeol is under fire for his past comments on sexual slavery victims and sexual minorities, where he called homosexuality a “treatable” mental illness and labeled victims of sexual slavery under Japanese colonial rule as prostitutes. Kim Seong-hoe, the presidential secretary for religion and multiculturalism for Yoon, said in a Facebook post Wednesday that he “sincerely” apologizes for some of the problematic comments

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

Unification minister nominee willing to visit Pyongyang as special envoy

Unification Minister nominee Kwon Young-se said he would consider visiting Pyongyang as a special envoy when he steps into office, during a parliamentary confirmation hearing on Thursday. “I will consider the situation with North Korea and consult with our foreign policy and national defense team and openly consider the possibility,” he said in response to a question from Rep. Lee Tae-kyu of the ruling People Power Party. Kwon is a four-term lawmaker who is considered a close asso

North KoreaMay 12, 2022

North Korea confirms COVID-19 outbreak, Kim orders lockdown

North Korea officially confirmed a COVID-19 outbreak for the first time in a state media report on Thursday. Calling the situation the “biggest emergency,” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered a de-facto lockdown to prevent further spread of the disease. According to the Korean Central News Agency, Pyongyang has detected cases of the stealth omicron variant, the highly transmissible offshoot of the omicron virus. “The country’s biggest emergency has occurred with a

North KoreaMay 12, 2022

[Newsmaker] ‘Fake geniuses’ highlight S. Korean elite’s obsession with top schools

How many high school students have their papers published in academic journals? The question has prompted headlines in the South Korean media in recent days, following a political scandal. At the center of the controversy is the daughter of Justice Minister nominee Han Dong-hoon who published five academic papers and four e-books within the space of two months as a high school student. Reminiscent of a case years ago involving the daughter of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk and the family&

Social AffairsMay 12, 2022

2 men riding e-scooter together without helmets die after being run over by SUV

Two men riding an e-scooter together without helmets were hit by an SUV in southern Seoul and died Thursday, police said. The SUV, driven by a man in his 40s, allegedly rammed into the two men on a road in a business area of the southern Gangnam district at 2:20 a.m., according to an initial police investigation. The victims, in their 20s, were rushed to a hospital but died soon after. The SUV driver was not under the influence of alcohol, police said. The Gangnam Police Station booked the SUV d

Social AffairsMay 12, 2022

S. Korean military to revive 'provocation' reference to NK missile tests: sources

South Korea's military plans to revive the reference to North Korean ballistic missile tests as "provocations," informed sources said Thursday in an apparent reflection of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's hard-line stance on the recalcitrant regime's military threats. The Joint Chiefs of Staff has decided to use the expression in its public announcements of future North Korean missile launches in line with new Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup's directive, according to the sources. The p

DefenseMay 12, 2022

Yoon appoints foreign, interior ministers

President Yoon Suk-yeol appointed Foreign Minister Park Jin and Interior Minister Lee Sang-min on Thursday, a presidential official said, amid a delay in their parliamentary confirmation process. The appointments will help meet the quorum for Yoon's first Cabinet meeting set for later in the day. Park is a lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party, and Lee is a former vice chief of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission. (Yonhap)

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

Seoul's daily subway ridership hits pandemic-era high on eased restrictions

The daily number of riders on the Seoul subway system breached the 7 million mark for the first time in 1 1/2 years, data showed Thursday, partly on the back of rollbacks of COVID-19 restrictions. According to the data from Seoul subway operator Seoul Metro, 7,210,000 people rode subway trains in the capital city on April 29, marking the most single-day riders since Oct. 30, 2020. An average of 7,320,000 riders used the Seoul subway system in a 24-hour period in 2019, the data showed. The averag

Social AffairsMay 12, 2022

Yoon likely to tap ex-envoy to Britain for UN ambassador

President Yoon Suk-yeol is likely to tap Hwang Joon-kook, a former ambassador to Britain, as his first ambassador to the United Nations, sources said Thursday. Hwang is a former career member of the foreign service with years of experience handling the North Korean nuclear issue. He served as head of a supporters' association for Yoon during the presidential campaign. Under the Park Geun-hye administration, Hwang served as chief negotiator for defense cost-sharing negotiations with the United St

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

Candidate registration begins for June 1 local elections, parliamentary by-elections

Candidate registration began Thursday for the June 1 local elections and parliamentary by-elections amid expectations that the results could serve as an early bellwether for the new government of President Yoon Suk-yeol. The National Election Commission (NEC) will receive candidacy registration on Thursday and Friday before the official 13-day campaign period kicks off May 19. Up for grabs in the local elections are mayoral and gubernatorial posts, local council seats and education board chiefs

PoliticsMay 12, 2022

Ex-Culture Minister Hwang under probe over illicit political fund allegations

Police have launched an investigation into allegations that former Culture Minister Hwang Hee took political funds from a state utility agency in return for facilitating business favors, officials said Thursday. Hwang, a two-term lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party, allegedly received a total of 10 million won ($7,818) in political funds from an executive of Korea Water Resources Corp. (K-water) between 2019 and 2020 after a legislative bill proposed by him was approved a year earli

Social AffairsMay 12, 2022

US, other UNSC members condemn N. Korean missile launch but Russia, China

WASHINGTON -- The UN Security Council (UNSC) convened an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss North Korea's recent missile provocations but failed to produce a tangible outcome due to opposition from China and Russia. The special session of the 15-member council came at the request of the US, which condemned North Korea's recent missile tests as "a blatant violation of multiple Security Council resolutions." "Let's be clear. The DPRK is not undertaking its activities defensively

Foreign AffairsMay 12, 2022

US prepared for any kind of engagement with N. Korea: Campbell

WASHINGTON -- The United States stands prepared to engage in any kind of diplomacy or dialogue with North Korea, White House policy coordinator for Asia Kurt Campbell said Wednesday. He also said the new South Korean government of Yoon Suk-yeol is determined to work closely with the US. "I will also just note that we have a new partner, a new president in South Korea that is determined, working with the United States, to be very clearly engaged in deterring and sending a strong message of p

Foreign AffairsMay 12, 2022

Only US intent is to completely denuclearize Korean Peninsula: State Dept.

WASHINGTON -- The sole US intent toward North Korea is to see its complete denuclearization, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday, again dismissing Pyongyang's accusation of hostile US intent toward the impoverished country. Ned Price also reiterated that the US and its allies, including South Korea, only seek to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula through peaceful dialogue. "We have made very clear that we are willing to engage in good faith diplomacy with the DPRK. We do so, of co

Foreign AffairsMay 12, 2022