S. Korean firms to allow up to 6 days leave for infertility treatment

South Korea has announced plans to double the upper threshold for the number of vacation days eligible for infertility treatment from three to six, in a move to create an equal working environment for men and women. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced Friday it reviewed basic plans for gender equality policies for 2023 and sought new measures to implement for 2024 at the 17th Gender Equality Committee, chaired by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. As part of these initiatives, the min

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

Korea's gender equality shows slight improvement in 2022: govt. data

South Korea's level of gender equality improved slightly in 2022, although women's presence in leadership roles and political representation remains low, according to government data released on Friday. The National Gender Equality Index reached 65.7 out of 100 in 2022, marking a 0.2-point increase from the previous year, according to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. The index, which gauges the degree of equality between women and men in various areas, has been announced ann

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

[Innovate Korea] Star-studded lineup electrifies Innovate Korea Forum

While the vast campus of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology otherwise remained calm, the two-story Lyu Keun-chul Sports Complex buzzed with energy as people gathered for the event in Daejeon Wednesday. "I've been a huge fan of G-Dragon since I was in elementary school," said 28-year-old Kim Min-hyuk, who works in the arts industry and had been waiting in line since dawn. Another attendee, Park, said he took an overnight train from Daegu with friends, all eager to s

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

Vietnamese FM urges business community to grow with Vietnam-Korea ties

Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son urged the Vietnamese community in South Korea to capitalize on growing Vietnam-Korea ties, as he recently attended the kick-off ceremony of the Business Association of Vietnamese in Korea (BAViK). "Currently, the relationship between Vietnam and Korea is at the highest stage of development, and despite the challenging global and Korean economic situations, there are ample opportunities for growth and collaboration," Bui said on May 30, addressi

Foreign AffairsJune 7, 2024

Georgia lauds Korea, partners on Independence Day

Tarash Papaskua, Georgian Ambassador to South Korea, celebrated its 106th Independence Day and the 33rd anniversary of its independence from the Soviet Union at a recent event held in Seoul. "Despite the short period of its existence from 1918 to 1921, the Democratic Republic of Georgia had a significant impact on the development of Georgian statehood in the long run," said Papaskua, during his remarks at the event on May 27. Georgia is now facing geopolitical challenges from Russia�

Foreign AffairsJune 7, 2024

S. Korea's Navy fleet to leave for Hawaii to join biennial RIMPAC exercise

A South Korean fleet of warships and maritime aircraft and around 840 Navy and Marine troops were set to depart for Hawaii on Friday to join a US-led multinational maritime exercise slated to kick off later this month, the Navy said. The fleet will leave a naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju on Friday afternoon to join the biennial Rim of the Pacific Exercise scheduled to run from June 26 through Aug. 2, according to the Navy. The Korean fleet comprises naval ships including the 7,6

DefenseJune 7, 2024

Man sent to prosecution for murdering ex-girlfriend and her daughter

A man arrested for allegedly murdering his ex-girlfriend and her daughter last week was referred to the prosecution for possible indictment, police said Friday. The 65-year-old man, identified as Park Hak-sun, was apprehended on charges of stabbing a woman in her 60s and her daughter in her 30s to death at an office in Seoul's southern district of Gangnam on May 30. He had initially fled the scene but was arrested 13 hours later. Emerging out of Seoul's Suseo Police Station on Friday m

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

Doctors at SNU hospitals set to stage walkout from June 17

Doctors at four major hospitals affiliated with Seoul National University are set to stage a walkout from June 17, according to hospital officials on Friday, in a move that would complicate efforts by the government to resolve a protracted walkout by trainee doctors. Medical professors at the four SNU hospitals voted to launch the walkout, calling for the government to fully withdraw administrative steps to punish trainee doctors who have left their worksites since late February in protest of th

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

[Graphic News] Han River, Gwanghwamun Square picked as Seoul’s top landmarks

The 2023 Seoul Survey revealed that the city’s Korean residents consider the Han River to be the capital’s most iconic landmark, while its foreign residents consider Gwanghwamun Square to be Seoul's most representative site. The survey polled 35,881 Korean national residents aged 15 and up about Seoul’s top landmarks. Results showed 48.3 percent selected the Han River, followed by Gwanghwamun Square, the palaces and N Seoul Tower. The survey asked 2,500 foreign residents

Social AffairsJune 7, 2024

Indonesia's parliament accepts S. Korea's donation of retired warship: reports

Indonesia approved a proposal Thursday to accept a South Korean donation of an aging corvette for its navy, reports showed. Indonesia's parliament passed the proposal to receive the 1,200-ton Bucheon 773 corvette, which retired in 2021 after nearly 30 years in service, from South Korea, Reuters reported. It is estimated that US$85 billion will be needed for maintenance and other costs to make it operational, Deputy Defense Minister Herindra told parliament. The donation came after Indonesia

DefenseJune 6, 2024

Man in Mexico died of a bird flu strain that hadn’t been confirmed before in a human, WHO says

A man’s death in Mexico was caused by a strain of bird flu called H5N2 that has never before been found in a human, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. The WHO said it wasn’t clear how the man became infected, although H5N2 has been reported in poultry in Mexico. There are numerous types of bird flu. H5N2 is not the same strain that has infected multiple dairy cow herds in the US That strain is called H5N1 and three farmworkers have gotten mild infections. Other bird flu va

PoliticsJune 6, 2024

SNU hospital doctors vow to go on strike amid impasse over striking trainee doctors

Professors at four hospitals affiliated with Seoul National University have voted to go on strike later this month if the current impasse over striking trainee doctors is not resolved, their representative said Thursday. The hospitals conducted surveys on whether to go on strike after the health ministry announced Tuesday it will allow hospitals to accept the resignations of trainee doctors, who have remained off the job since late February in protest of the government's plan to raise the n

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024

UNESCO advisory body withholds designation of Japan's Sado mine as World Heritage

An advisory body to a committee of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization has deferred the nomination of a controversial former Japanese gold mine as a UNESCO World Heritage site, the Japanese government said Thursday. The International Council on Monuments and Sites, one of the three advisories to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, recommended "withholding" Sado mine's designation and demanded additional documents, the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs said

Foreign AffairsJune 6, 2024

Marriage race: Koreans get cautious, calculative in search for 'the one'

“Why is it so hard to find someone to marry?” This pressing question torments 28-year-old Kim Jeong-sik (not his real name), who invests significant time and money into his search for a suitable partner. For Kim, it is not all about love or destiny but about finding someone with whom he can build a “decent family,“ ideally someone from a similar or higher economic and social status. “While I used to fall for romance and attraction based on instinct in the past, now

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024

Defectors get back at North Korea with K-pop balloons

A group of North Korean defectors in Seoul tried to fly giant balloons carrying K-pop and other South Korean popular culture content across the border, with a few appearing to have entered North Korean skies early Thursday, according to the South’s military authorities. The defector group, which calls itself Fighters for Free North Korea, said in a statement on this day they flew the balloons in a tit-for-tat response following the hundreds of North Korean balloons filled with trash and pr

PoliticsJune 6, 2024

Medical professors go on all-out strike after quota hike confirmed

Despite efforts to wrap up the prolonged feud between doctors and the government over the implementation of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's plan to increase the admissions quota for medical schools from next year, medical professors decided on Thursday to take collective action with an en masse walkout. Professors at Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Hospital announced that they would push through an all-out strike for an indefinite period of tim

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024

Stronger South Korea can set North Koreans free: Yoon

President Yoon Suk Yeol said Thursday in his Memorial Day address to the nation that South Korea must become stronger to change North Korea and free North Koreans. At the ceremony held at the Seoul National Cemetery, the president said that “fellow Korean compatriots living north of the border, just about 50 kilometers from right here, are suffering from starvation, deprived brutally of their freedom and human rights.” “Peace is maintained through strength, not through submissi

PoliticsJune 6, 2024

3rd grader slaps and curses vice principal, parent accused of child abuse

Education authorities at North Jeolla Province said it has filed charges against the parent of a third-grader, who recently made headlines by physically assaulting and shouting profanity at the vice principal of his school. According to the Jeonbuk State Office of Education, officials have filed a report on the boy's mother as a possible case of child abuse by neglect. The mother had been told by the school multiple times that the boy urgently needed behavioral treatment, but she chose to i

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024

Victim of Miryang gang rape never consented to revealing suspects' identities: group

A local YouTuber's quest to reveal the identities of 44 men responsible for a 2004 Miryang gang rape case has faced opposition from a local women's rights group, which disclosed late Wednesday that the YouTuber never got the consent of the crime's principal victim. The Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center said in a press release that the YouTuber's claim to have "communicated with the victim's family via mail, and agreed to reveal (identity) of all 44" is not

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024

Nearly 80% of call centers workers suffer from verbal abuse, union survey reveals

Korean call center workers have called for proper government measures to address hostile customer complaints, citing a recent survey that showed a majority of workers "endure" unreasonable treatment. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions held a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday, revealing the results of a survey conducted among 790 call center workers from May 28 to June 3. According to the survey, 77.9 percent of respondents said they experienced verbal abuse, 12.8 percent

Social AffairsJune 6, 2024