Former K-pop star in treatment after possible suicide attempt: reports

Lee A-reum, a former member of K-pop girl group T-ara, is currently receiving medical treatment after pan apparent suicide attempt, local media outlets reported Wednesday. The 29-year-old was reportedly found earlier today with what appeared to be a will, according to her representatives, although its content has not been made public. Lee, who was a member of T-ara for a year starting July 2012, recently made headlines by claiming Monday that she had been a victim of domestic abuse by her estran

Social AffairsMarch 27, 2024

Elderly woman dies of heart attack after ER refusal

A woman in her 90s recently suffered a severe heart problem and was taken to a nearby hospital, only to die shortly after being turned away by the emergency medical staff there, local media outlets reported Wednesday. On March 6, the Busan resident had been hit with a myocardial infarction that required an immediate operation. Rescue workers asked a university hospital in the city if the staff could handle her situation, but they said they could not. The ambulance then took a 50-minute trip to a

Social AffairsMarch 27, 2024

S. Korea, US launch task force to block N. Korea's nuclear, missile programs

South Korea and the United States have launched a task force to effectively block North Korea from financing its unlawful nuclear and missile programs, the foreign ministry said Wednesday. The inaugural meeting of the South Korea-US bilateral Enhanced Disruption Task Force was held in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday with over 30 officials in areas of diplomacy, intelligence, sanctions and maritime interdiction, according to the ministry. During the meeting, the two sides discussed ways to counter i

DefenseMarch 27, 2024

[Graphic News] 90% of Korean workers perceive climate change as ‘serious’

More than 90 percent of employed workers in Korea who took part in a recent survey said they consider current climate change to be serious. Incruit, an employment agency, asked 743 workers about their perception of climate change, and 48.6 percent answered that they considered the situation to be “very serious” while 45 percent said it is “somewhat serious.” As to why they consider climate change to be serious, 90.3 percent of respondents said that unseasonable weather,

Social AffairsMarch 27, 2024

Yoon offers to jointly discuss next year's medical budget with doctors

President Yoon Suk Yeol offered Tuesday to jointly discuss next year's medical budget with the medical community, his office said, amid a protracted walkout by junior doctors protesting an increase in the medical school enrollment quota. Yoon instructed his aides to make the proposal to the medical community after he held a meeting with medical staff at Hankook General Hospital in Cheongju, 112 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to Lee Do-woon, senior presidential secretary for public

PoliticsMarch 26, 2024

Doctors' group picks new leader amid tense standoff over increased enrollment quota

A major lobby group of community doctors picked a new leader Tuesday as a prolonged walkout by junior doctors over a medical school enrollment quota continued to disrupt services at major hospitals. Lim Hyun-taek, head of the Korean Pediatric Association, was elected to be the new leader of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), which represents some 100,000 community doctors. Lim won 65.43 percent of the vote in the final round of voting by members of the KMA, beating Joo Soo-ho, the chief KMA s

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Seoul's bus union votes to strike over wage

The labor union of city bus drivers in Seoul voted Tuesday to launch an all-out strike later this week after failing to reach a deal on wage hikes with the municipal government. The Seoul Bus Labor Union said 16,317 of its 18,133 members took part in the vote, with 98.3 percent voting in favor of the strike scheduled for 4 a.m. Thursday. The union has reportedly demanded wage increases, revision of the salary system and the abolition of wage discrimination for contract workers but has failed to

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

N. Korea refuses all contact, including summit, with Japan

North Korea will refuse all contact with Japan, after Tokyo took issue with the problem of Japanese abductees and the North's nuclear program, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said Tuesday. Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee, made the remark in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, a day after she said Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had expressed a willingness to hold a summit with her brother

North KoreaMarch 26, 2024

S. Korea seeks W200tr biotech industrial output by 2035

  South Korea is poised to quintuple its biotechnology industrial output in 15 years, to 200 trillion won ($149 billion) by 2035 from 43 trillion won as of 2020, according to President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday. The Ministry of Science and ICT defined life science industrial output as domestic outputs of all types of biopharmaceutical products including biosimilars, medical equipment, supplements, biomass and biotech-related services. Moreover, his administration will nurture an environment

PoliticsMarch 26, 2024

Germany, South Korea talk energy transition

Germany and Korea discussed the role of sustainable supply chains for energy transition while co-hosting the sixth edition of the Korean-German Energy Day conference in Berlin on Thursday. Korean-German Energy Day is an event held under the Korean-German Energy Partnership, jointly hosted by the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The partnership, initiated in 2019 through a joint declaration of intent, signifies

Foreign AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Tajikistan marks Navruz, hopes fresh start in Seoul

The Tajikistan embassy in Seoul highlighted the core of peace, tolerance and new beginnings marking Navruz on Monday. Navruz means "New Day," symbolizing the rejuvenation of nature and the start of a new year. The festival is celebrated on the first day of spring, typically on March 21, coinciding with the astronomical vernal equinox. The festival is said to have a historic tradition of thousands of years in regions along the Silk Roads, including the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the

Foreign AffairsMarch 26, 2024

[Herald Interview] Indonesia, Korea can bridge global AI divide, says vice-minister

Nezar Patria, the Indonesian vice minister of communications and informatics, called for a bilateral partnership with South Korea to bridge the global artificial intelligence gap. The influence of Western values perpetuates an AI divide and leads to the concentration of economic and social benefits in specific regions of the Global North, he said, citing the 2023 World Economic Forum report. The report underscores the potential of AI to boost economic growth while noting the geographical concent

Foreign AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Banks compete for foreign customers

Recognizing the expansion of the foreign population in Korea, banks are striving to improve access for foreign residents here by providing customized services from the point of arrival to departure. As Foreign nationals are expected to take up a more significant portion of Korea’s demographics amid the nation's continued population decline, local lenders are looking to woo foreign customers through designated communication channels. Korea's top four financial groups -- KB, Shinha

PoliticsMarch 26, 2024

Korea, Uzbekistan to bolster infra, energy, supply chain ties

South Korea and Uzbekistan agreed to reinforce cooperation on infrastructure, energy and supply chains and continue to expand leader-to-leader and high-level exchanges during a vice-ministerial level policy dialogue on Monday, South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. The 16th South Korea-Uzbekistan Policy Consultation, led by South Korean Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won and Uzbek Deputy Foreign Minister Bobur Usmanov, was held Monday in Tashkent, according to the f

Foreign AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Med student hike, a must for competent regional hospitals: Yoon

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday reiterated his stance that the medical school expansion plan is a prerequisite for improving the quality of care at regional hospitals. At a Cabinet meeting held in his office Tuesday, Yoon said the plan to increase the school quota by 2,000 to 5,058 starting 2025 -- confirmed on March 20 -- is "a minimum requirement" to address the doctor shortage and improve the medical system, especially in remote areas. Under the plan, the students admitted to sch

PoliticsMarch 26, 2024

Seoul NGO to hold English speech contest for NK refugees at Harvard

Freedom Speakers International, a Seoul-based NGO that supports North Korean refugees in South Korea, will hold its 19th English speech contest at Harvard University on April 13. Held two times every year since 2015, under the theme "I am from North Korea," this year's event marks the first time the contest takes place outside of South Korea. By holding the event at Harvard University, the organization hopes to help North Korean defectors improve their English speaking skills and

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Seoul to redevelop northern districts

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Tuesday unveiled plans to transform a major part of the city north of the Han River into a new economic center, one that is "up to the level of Gangnam." During the briefing, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said the city government plans to redevelop areas of Seoul north of the Han River by easing regulations placed on residential and commercial areas that are more than 30 years old, turning them into high-tech industrial clusters and new residential areas w

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Restaurant that charged soldiers extra goes out of business

A local barbecue joint that stirred up controversy by charging soldiers extra has been confirmed Tuesday to have closed down. The restaurant, formerly based in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, ceased business operations as of Jan. 2, according to BizNo.net, a website providing information for enterprises across the country. The all-you-can-eat barbecue joint sparked public outrage in December after it was revealed that it charges different fees to soldiers and other adult customers. The price per adult

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Seoul bus union threatens strike amid negotiations over pay

Unionized Seoul bus drivers could go on a general strike on Thursday, raising concerns over a major public transit disruption in the city. The Seoul Bus Labor Union, which has nearly 18,000 members at 65 companies, under the Korean Automobile and Transport Workers' Federation, said on Tuesday that it will begin the strike at 4 a.m. Thursday, pending a majority vote of the members on Tuesday. The union will sit with the city government for final negotiations on Wednesday afternoon and go o

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024

Counting down days for climate action: 10th Climate Clock installed in S. Korea

The state-run Korea Environment Corporation in Seo-gu, Incheon, became the latest site to host a Climate Clock on Monday, marking the tenth installation of the clock in South Korea. This significant event continues the journey that began in 2021, when the Herald Corp. headquarters in Seoul unveiled Asia's first digital Climate Clock, underscoring the nation’s growing commitment to environmental awareness and action. The Climate Clock is a visually compelling reminder of the urgent n

Social AffairsMarch 26, 2024