Justice ministry to grant stay visas to more foreign children studying in S. Korea

South Korea will temporarily expand visa issuance for foreign children staying illegally in the country to better guarantee their right to education, the justice ministry said Thursday. Until now, undocumented foreign children eligible for visas have been middle and high school students, as well as high school graduates, who have been living in South Korea for at least 15 years after being born here. But from next month to March 2025, foreign children who have been living here for at least six

Foreign AffairsJan. 20, 2022

[Newsmaker] Both sides appeal court’s decision on vaccine pass enforcement

The government and opponents of vaccine pass measures both appealed the court ruling that suspended some parts of the vaccine measures, each claiming the ruling is insufficient.　 “In consideration that we are in a crisis now due to COVID-19 pandemic, the minister has directed an immediate appeal against the case for the Seoul Metropolitan Government,” the Ministry of Justice said Wednesday. “As a ministry of judicial affairs, we will actively respond to lawsuits related to

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

School girls seek online buddies to help each other starve

Some young South Koreans, mostly girls, are looking for “pro-anorexia” friends on social media to encourage each other’s dangerous weight loss.  A search with the hashtags #pro-ana on Twitter return a host of tweets, most made apparently by young girls. They announce one’s resolve to fast or seek “pro-ana” buddies.  Pro-ana is a combination of the prefix “pro-,” meaning supporting or approving of, and “ana,” short for anorex

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

Teen brothers get jail terms in grandmother murder case

DAEGU -- Two underage brothers were sentenced to prison terms of up to 12 years Thursday for killing their caretaker grandmother and assisting in the murder out of rage over her scolding. The Daegu District Court sentenced the 19-year-old elder brother to a prison term of minimum 7 years to maximum 12 years for murdering his grandmother at their home in Daegu in late August last year. He was also ordered to wear a GPS tracker for 10 years. Under the Juvenile Act, courts can give an unfixed ter

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

End-of-war declaration ‘meaningless’ if no progress on NK denuclearization: US lawmaker

US Rep. Gregory Meeks, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, expressed support for South Korea’s proposal to declare a formal end to the Korean War, but stressed that the declaration on its own is “meaningless” if Pyongyang is reluctant to talk or makes no progress toward denuclearization. 　 “I commend the Biden and Moon administrations for taking steps to engage North Korea and urge North Korea to return to the negotiating table,” Meeks said in a statemen

North KoreaJan. 20, 2022

Court rejects DP's injunction request to ban sales of anti-Lee book

A local court on Thursday dismissed an injunction request by the ruling Democratic Party (DP) to stop the sales of a book criticizing its presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung. The Seoul Northern District Court rejected the DP's application to ban Seoul-based publisher JW Books from selling and distributing the controversial book titled "Goodbye, Lee Jae-myung," citing the people's right to know and freedom of expression. The 240-page book, authored by lawyer Jang Young-ha, details a

PoliticsJan. 20, 2022

HIV fight on hold for over 2 years

Concerns are growing as HIV testing has been suspended at most local health centers across Seoul to prioritize the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. All 25 local health centers in the capital used to provide free and anonymous sexually transmitted infection and HIV tests until 2019. Nearly two years into the pandemic, however, HIV and STI testing capacity has been drastically reduced with many locations having stopped testing all together. “We understand that seven community health cen

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

Yoon vows to deregulate virtual asset industry

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol vowed Thursday to deregulate the virtual asset industry to further promote its growth. Yoon of the conservative People Power Party said the industry should be allowed to operate without regulations unless they have been explicitly prohibited. "To realize the unlimited potential of the virtual asset market, we must overhaul regulations that are far from reality and unreasonable," he said at a virtual asset forum at a Seoul hotel. &

PoliticsJan. 20, 2022

S. Korea says it's monitoring N. Korea with 'sense of tension,' stresses need for dialogue

The South Korean government emphasized Thursday that dialogue and diplomacy are the only key to building peace on the Korean Peninsula in response to North Korea's thinly veiled threat to scrap a self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests. The North held a high-profile politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party the previous day and decided to consider restarting "all temporally-suspended" activities to brace for a "long-term confrontation" with the U

North KoreaJan. 20, 2022

Hwaseong mayor strives to support city’s rapid growth

Starting his fourth year in office, Hwaseong Mayor Seo Cheol-mo is far from complacent in his governing duties for a city rapidly growing across all sectors. While regional economies have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and the social distancing measures that ensued, Seo believes the real “disease” local government should battle against is their “incompetency.” “New variants of the coronavirus continue to emerge, but there is no need to be excessively afr

PoliticsJan. 20, 2022

Lee pledges W1m basic income for cultural sector workers

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung pledged Thursday to offer an annual basic income of 1 million won ($840) to cultural sector workers. Lee of the liberal Democratic Party announced the pledge as part of his top six campaign promises for the cultural industry. "I will expand hallyu's global presence and open the horizon for the Republic of Korea and the United States to become the world's two leading powers for cultural content," Lee said at a campaign event in central

PoliticsJan. 20, 2022

Seoul city to increase low-carbon buildings and electric cars to achieve carbon neutrality

The Seoul city government will renovate worn-out buildings into low-carbon ones and increase the proportion of electric cars in the city by 2026 as part of efforts to respond to climate change, officials said Thursday. The measures were announced as part of a five-year project from 2022 to 2026 to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Last year, South Korea finalized its goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, as the nation started tackling the challenge of simultaneously responding to climat

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

Navy's sea salvage unit conducts annual wintertime training

An elite South Korean Navy unit began annual wintertime training Thursday to strengthen its readiness posture for underwater rescue operations, the Navy said. Around 90 members of the Sea Salvage and Rescue Unit (SSU) kicked off the three-day training session in waters off Jinhae, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, focusing on underwater search and related operations. The training session included rubber boat pedaling, open-water swimming, and scuba diving. The members will also participate in a

DefenseJan. 20, 2022

Military reports 35 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Thursday reported 35 additional COVID-19 cases, with all of them being breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,762. Of the new cases, 27 are from the Army, five from the Air Force, two from the Navy and one from a unit under the direct control of the defense ministry. Currently, 299 military personnel are under treatment. Of the total military caseload, 1,937 are breakthrough cases. (Yonhap)

DefenseJan. 20, 2022

N. Korea announces amnesty for convicted people to mark late leaders' birthdays

North Korea has decided to grant convicted people amnesty, effective later this month, on the occasion of major birthday celebrations of its late leaders, according to its state media Thursday. The pardons will be granted to those who were convicted of "crimes against the country and people" to commemorate the 110th birthday of Kim Il-sung and the 80th birthday of Kim Jong-il in a decision made by the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, the Korean Central News Agency

North KoreaJan. 20, 2022

Daily cases jump to over 6,000 for 1st time in nearly month amid omicron woes

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases jumped to over 6,000 for the first time in 27 days Thursday amid growing worries over the spread of the omicron virus variant ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.   The country added 6,603 new COVID-19 infections, including 6,357 local infections, raising the total caseload to 712,503, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Health authorities are on high alert over a possible spike in infections as many people trave

Social AffairsJan. 20, 2022

N. Korea hints at lifting moratorium on ICBM, nuclear tests over US 'hostile policy'

North Korea held a policymaking politburo meeting of the ruling Workers' Party presided over by leader Kim Jong-un and decided to consider restarting "all temporally-suspended" activities, Pyongyang's state media reported Thursday, apparently referring to its nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests. The meeting took place after the North conducted four missile tests this month alone, including two of what it claims to be a hypersonic missile, prompting the United S

North KoreaJan. 20, 2022

US supports humanitarian aid for N. Korea, but sanctions must be fulfilled: State Dept.

WASHINGTON -- The United States strongly supports humanitarian assistance for the people of North Korea but UN Security Council sanctions must be fully implemented at the same time, a state department spokesperson said Wednesday. The spokesperson also noted the North often diverts humanitarian aid. "We strongly support and encourage the efforts of US and international aid and health organizations in seeking to prevent and contain the spread of coronavirus in the DPRK and to provide other

Foreign AffairsJan. 20, 2022

US lawmaker expresses support for end of war declaration, urges N. Korea to engage

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Gregory Meeks, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on Wednesday expressed support for a South Korea-proposed declaration for the formal end to the Korean War while urging North Korea to return to dialogue. He, however, said the proposed end of war declaration should come as part of a more "comprehensive process and talks" to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. "I commend the Biden and Moon Administrations for taking steps to engage North Korea and urg

Foreign AffairsJan. 20, 2022

Moon arrives in Egypt for summit focused on economic ties

President Moon Jae-in arrived in Egypt on Wednesday to hold summit talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi with trade and the economy high on the agenda. Moon's visit to Cairo marks the first trip by a South Korean president to the African nation in 16 years, Moon's office said. The two leaders are expected to agree on a joint feasibility study for a bilateral free trade deal, which if sealed would be Korea's first free trade agreement with an African country. Moon will also attend

PoliticsJan. 20, 2022