S. Korea alert against lambda variant, toughens measures against Peru, Chile arrivals

South Korea has adopted tougher measures to block the inflow of the lambda variant of the novel coronavirus as the country is struggling to contain the spread of variant cases amid the fourth wave of the pandemic, according to health authorities. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced Tuesday that arrivals from Peru and Chile will go through a mandatory seven-day quarantine at designated facilities starting Sept. 10. The arrivals from the two countries will receive th

Social AffairsSept. 1, 2021

Last regular legislative session under Moon's term kicks off for 100-day run

The National Assembly is poised to open its 100-day regular session Wednesday, the last such gathering under President Moon Jae-in's five-year term. The regular session will start off with an opening ceremony scheduled for 2 p.m. to process the 2022 state budget bill of a record high 604.4 trillion won ($521.8 billion), as well as other controversial legislative bills down the road. The unicameral South Korean parliament opens its regular session on Sept. 1 every year for a 100-day run. Th

PoliticsSept. 1, 2021

S. Korea, China hold ceremony to casket 109 sets of Chinese troop remains

South Korea and China on Wednesday held a ceremony to casket the remains of 109 Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War for their return to the homeland this week, the defense ministry said. The ceremony took place at an Army base in the western city of Incheon ahead of the repatriation of the remains -- discovered from former battle sites last year -- to China on Thursday, according to the ministry. The repatriation will be the eighth of its kind since Seoul pledged in 2014 to rep

Foreign AffairsSept. 1, 2021

Nearly 1 in 4 recognized victims of toxic humidifier sterilizer products dead: civic group

Almost 1 in 4 people recognized as victims of deadly humidifier sterilizer products in South Korea have died, a civic group said Wednesday. Marking the 10th anniversary of the humidifier sterilizer scandal, the Asian Citizen's Center for Environment and Health released a report showing that a total of 7,535 people -- 1,687 deceased and 5,848 survivors -- had reported they were victims of toxic humidifier sterilizer products as of Aug. 20. Of the total, 4,120 had been granted damage relief as

Social AffairsSept. 1, 2021

New infections spike to over 2,000 again, delta cases rising at alarming pace

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases bounced back to over 2,000 on Wednesday, with the more transmissible delta strain rising sharply ahead of a major holiday this month. The country added 2,025 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,992 local infections, raising the total caseload to 253,445, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The tally marked a sharp rise from 1,487 on Monday and 1,372 on Tuesday. Daily cases have stayed above 1,000 for 57 consecutive days.

Social AffairsSept. 1, 2021

S. Korea asks for continued efforts to encourage N. Korea's participation at health security forum

South Korea has called for member countries of a regional health security forum to work together to encourage North Korea to take part in the forum on pandemics and other challenges, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. Second Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-moon made the appeal in a speech during a virtual working-level session of the Northeast Asia Conference on Health Security -- a forum launched late last year at President Moon Jae-in's suggestion to foster joint efforts to handle pandemics

Foreign AffairsSept. 1, 2021

Number of delivery workers hits new high in 2020 amid pandemic

SEJONG -- The number of delivery workers in South Korea swelled nearly 12 percent in the second half of last year to hit a record high amid the coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Wednesday. Asia's fourth-largest economy had 390,000 carriers as of the end of December last year, up 11.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. The tally covers mailmen, door-to-door couriers, food delivery workers, newspaper deliverers, and carriers of milk and other bev

Social AffairsSept. 1, 2021

US remains firmly committed to dialogue with N. Korea: S. Korean envoy

The United States remains strongly committed to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through diplomacy and dialogue, and is working closely with South Korea to bring North Korea back to the dialogue table, Seoul's top nuclear envoy said Tuesday. Noh Kyu-duk made the remark after holding a series of meetings with his US counterpart, Sung Kim, and other administration officials, including the White House policy coordinator for Asia, Kurt Campbell, during a visit to Washington this week.

Foreign AffairsSept. 1, 2021

Door remains open for dialogue with N. Korea: White House

WASHINGTON -- The US remains willing to meet with North Korea anywhere and anytime, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Tuesday. The spokeswoman noted the North, however, remains unresponsive to US overtures. "Well, we have left the door open and obviously reached out through our channels. I don't have an update for you in terms of any response to our offer," Psaki said in a daily press briefing, adding "(The) offer remains to meet anywhere, anytime without preconditions.&quo

Foreign AffairsSept. 1, 2021

UN human rights experts send letter requesting S. Korea's position on controversial media bill

UN human rights experts have sent a letter requesting the South Korean government explain its position on a controversial media bill that calls for heavier punishments for fake news reports, the foreign ministry said Tuesday. The experts' move came after local human rights advocate groups, including the Transitional Justice Working Group, lodged an appeal with UN special rapporteurs to voice concerns that the legislation, being pushed for by the ruling Democratic Party, could undermine freedo

Foreign AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Nat'l Assembly endorses bill requiring surveillance cameras inside hospital operating rooms

The National Assembly on Tuesday approved a contentious bill requiring surveillance cameras in hospital operating rooms in a bid to step up protection for patients against medical negligence or malpractice. The bill was passed about six years after related parliamentary discussions on its necessity first emerged, in the face of stiff objection from doctors' groups. The revision to the Medical Service Act mandates installing closed-circuit TV cameras in hospital operation rooms and recording

PoliticsAug. 31, 2021

Soldier welfare key to military spending next year

The military is spending drastically more on soldier welfare in its budget for next year by providing better meals, pay and terms for soldiers’ savings, the Ministry of National Defense said Tuesday in its proposal that links most of the 55.2 trillion won ($47.5 billion) spending to maintenance. Soldiers, who take part in mandatory military service that lasts as long as 21 months, make up more than half the country’s 550,000-strong military. The National Assembly will start looking

DefenseAug. 31, 2021

[Newsmaker] 'It is regrettable that I failed to kill more'

The Seoul court issued an arrest warrant for a 56-year-old sex offender surnamed Kang, who is suspected of murdering two women, saying he could flee. Kang with 14 prior criminal convictions, including sex crimes, is accused of murdering women in their 40s and 50s before and after damaging his electronic anklet on Friday. On Monday, police applied for an arrest warrant and the prosecution immediately filed it with the court. Kang attended the court for the arrest warrant hearing Tuesday m

Social AffairsAug. 31, 2021

[News Focus] Tally for foreigners in Korea slides to 62-month low

SEJONG -- The tally for foreigners staying in South Korea has continued to drop for more than a year after peaking at 2.52 million in December 2019 in the aftermath of the pandemic. The number of foreign nationals -- both long-term and short-term visitors -- posted 1.974 million as of July, down more than 6,000 from 1.981 million a month earlier, according to the Korea Immigration Service. This marked the lowest in 62 months since the figure stayed at 1.949 million in May 2016. On a yearly b

Social AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Uzbekistan is reforming rendering public services system

The first step towards a new system Public services are becoming an integral part of every person's life. For example, every day citizens are faced with the need to obtain a child's birth certificate, place him in a kindergarten and then in school, receive different information, different licenses for starting a business and developing it. In Uzbekistan today, all these processes can be carried out in one place – at the Public Services Center. It all started on December 12, 2017 at the i

Foreign AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Civil society reforms in Uzbekistan

Upon Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s election as president of Uzbekistan in 2016, the role of a robust civil society became the cornerstone of development for a new period in the country’s history. Radical reforms have embraced all aspects of our society‘s political and social life -- with nongovernmental organizations and civil society institutions the locus for reimagining the state’s role in our lives. With this purpose in mind, President Mirziyoyev presented a flagship program

Foreign AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Development of the economy of Uzbekistan in the first half of 2021

The following article was contributed by the Embassy of Uzbekistan. - Ed. Despite the ongoing pandemic, the economy of Uzbekistan has reached record growth rates. According to the State Statistics Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the gross domestic product for the first six months of this year increased by 6.2 percent. For comparison: Over the same period last year, due to the pandemic and lockdowns, the economy grew by only 1.1 percent, and in the first three months of 2021 -- 3 perc

Foreign AffairsAug. 31, 2021

[Country Report] Cooperation between Uzbekistan and South Korea is developing in all areas

  It is a high privilege for me to address today the esteemed readers of The Korea Herald on the occasions of the 30th anniversary of Uzbekistan’s independence and 29th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea. After gaining independence, Uzbekistan took a worthy place in the world community. Over the years, a great creative work has been carried out. Human honor and dignity are exalted, the well-being of people is ensured, appearance of our ci

Foreign AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Breakthrough cases top 3,000; people in 30s most vulnerable

South Korea has reported more than 3,000 cases of COVID-19 among those who have been fully vaccinated, data showed Tuesday, with people in their 30s being the most vulnerable age group for reinfection, even after vaccination. The country reported 3,128 cases of such infections as of Monday last week, accounting for 0.04 percent of the 7.7 million people who have received the full-dose vaccine regimen, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The rate of breakthrough

Social AffairsAug. 31, 2021

Controversial ‘fake news’ bill to be revised and voted on next month

The controversial “fake news” bill has been put on hold, with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea taking a step back Tuesday in the face of fierce criticism from opposition parties and the media. Floor leaders of the Democratic Party and main opposition People Power Party announced Tuesday that a committee would be set up to discuss and revise details of the bill, which would increase the penalties that media outlets and journalists could face for spreading misinformation with &ld

PoliticsAug. 31, 2021