Missing captain found dead after boat capsizes off southwestern coast

The captain of a fishing boat that had capsized in waters off South Korea's southwestern coast was found dead Sunday, the Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard said the captain in his 70s was found inside his boat's wheelhouse just before noon Sunday. The vessel, carrying five crew members, capsized after colliding with a bigger fishing vessel in waters 3.5 kilometers northeast of Jang Island in South Jeolla Province at around 1:12 p.m. Saturday, according to the Coast Guard. Of the five, one Ind

Social AffairsJan. 9, 2022

Mother of late student activist dies at 82

Bae Eun-sim, the mother of a late student activist whose death became a symbol of South Korea's pro-democracy movement in 1987, died Sunday. She was 82. Bae had been hospitalized for acute myocardial infarction last Monday, and was discharged Saturday. She died at Chosun University Hospital in the southwestern city of Gwangju after collapsing on Sunday. Bae's surviving family members decided against an autopsy and they will proceed with her funeral in Gwangju, some 330 kilometers south of Seou

Social AffairsJan. 9, 2022

Daily infections below 4,000 for 3rd day amid omicron woes

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed below 4,000 for the third straight day Sunday as the country maintained tightened distancing curbs amid concerns over the spread of the omicron virus variant. The country added 3,376 new COVID-19 infections, including 3,140 local infections, raising the total caseload to 664,391, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The daily caseload fell from 3,510 the previous day and 3,716 on Friday. South Korea reported 51 more

Social AffairsJan. 9, 2022

Moon attends send-off ceremony for firefighters killed in warehouse blaze

President Moon Jae-in on Saturday attended the send-off ceremony for three firefighters killed in a warehouse blaze earlier this week, expressing his sympathy to the bereaved families. On Wednesday, the fire broke out at a seven-story warehouse in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul. The victims were unaccounted for on Thursday morning, and their bodies were recovered later. "Moon expressed condolences to each member of the bereaved families, saying he wishes to deliver consolation o

PoliticsJan. 8, 2022

USFK imposes tougher social distancing amid virus resurgence

US Forces Korea (USFK) said Saturday it has decided to toughen social distancing rules for its service members amid the growing number of infections among its troops. The USFK had confirmed a weekly record high of 682 additional COVID-19 cases among its personnel from Dec. 28 to Tuesday. It did not offer more details, including the number of breakthrough cases or locations of the infected members. "Due to the continued presence of COVID-19 within United States Forces Korea and South Korea

DefenseJan. 8, 2022

Military reports 22 new COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Saturday reported 22 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,425. Of the new cases, 13 are from the Army, six from the Air Force, one from the Navy, and one from an officer of the defense ministry. A unit under the direct control of the ministry also reported one case. The military said 1,612 are breakthrough cases out of the total military caseload. (Yonhap)

Social AffairsJan. 8, 2022

Daily virus cases below 4,000 for 2nd day amid omicron woes

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed below 4,000 for the second day Saturday as the country maintained tightened distancing curbs amid persistent worries over a resurgence in infections and the spread of the omicron variant. The country added 3,510 new COVID-19 infections, including 3,300 local infections, raising the total caseload to 661,015, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). It marked a slight drop from 3,717 posted on the previous day and 4,443 t

Social AffairsJan. 8, 2022

Seoul says N.Korea did not test hypersonic missile

The South Korean military on Friday said North Korea did not test a hypersonic missile, clarifying that the launched projectile was a Maneuverable Reentry Vehicle, or MaRV. North Korea’s state media on Thursday claimed the country had test-fired a “hypersonic missile” the previous day.  Pyongyang said the missile made a “120 km lateral movement in the flight distance of the hypersonic gliding warhead from the initial launch azimuth to the target azimuth and precis

North KoreaJan. 7, 2022

Rival presidential candidates agree on more TV debates than minimum 3 rounds

The ruling and main opposition presidential candidates shared an understanding Friday that they should have more TV debates than the minimum three rounds required under law before the March 9 election. Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) told reporters that he welcomes a proposal from Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) who earlier called for holding presidential debates more than three times. Under the election law, televised presidential debates orga

PoliticsJan. 7, 2022

S. Korea extends travel ban on 6 countries, parts of Philippines

South Korea will extend a travel ban on six countries in the Middle East and Africa as well as some parts of the Philippines for six months due to prolonged security risks, the foreign ministry said Friday. The ban was slated to expire on Jan. 31. It will be extended for Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, Afghanistan and the southern region of the Philippine archipelago -- the Zamboanga Peninsula, Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi -- the ministry said. The designated regions are exposed to constant

Foreign AffairsJan. 7, 2022

How will unvaccinated cope with vaccine pass mandate at big stores?

From Monday, Korea’s vaccine pass regime is expanded to department stores and big supermarkets measuring 3,000 square meters or more. Following a weeklong grace period, people will be asked to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result before entering the retail outlets.  The recent expansion of the vaccine pass mandate to those stores, announced Dec. 31, 2021, is part of the government’s tougher social distancing rules to contain the recent virus resurgence.

NationalJan. 7, 2022

[Election 2022] Another dramatic reconciliation, but hurdles remain for main opposition

After another dramatic reconciliation with People Power Party Chairman Lee Jun-seok, Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate of the main opposition party, took the subway to work Friday, and took another step to recovering ties with the party leader. The party chairman welcomed Yoon’s move, saying it signals “the start” for a big change. Lee had said he recommended a number of electioneering activities that would soften the image of Yoon, who was formerly prosecutor general.

PoliticsJan. 7, 2022

Moon extends sympathy for deaths of 3 firefighters

President Moon Jae-in on Friday extended his sympathy over the deaths of three firefighters killed in a warehouse blaze in Pyeongtaek this week. Presidential Chief of Staff You Young-min visited the funeral altar earlier in the day and conveyed Moon's message of condolences to the bereaved families. Moon said he "prays for the repose of the three firefighters who died while facing the flames with thorough responsibility and courage," according to You. You said the government will

PoliticsJan. 7, 2022

S. Korea’s new COVID-19 cases on downward trend, falling below 4,000

South Korea‘s daily coronavirus cases continued to drop, falling below 4,000 for the first time in three days for Thursday. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency‘s data, the country added 3,717 new COVID-19 cases as of midnight Thursday. South Korea has recently seen a modest downward trend in daily COVID-19 cases lately. The numbers of COVID-19 cases for Tuesday and Wednesday were 4,443 and 4,125, respectively. The number of critically ill patients also

Social AffairsJan. 7, 2022

Same sex couple loses suit against state health insurer over spousal coverage

A Seoul court on Friday ruled against a same sex couple demanding the same spousal health insurance coverage as heterosexual couples, saying matrimony in South Korea is still considered a union between a man and a woman. In February of last year, So Seong-wook filed the administrative lawsuit against the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) after the agency canceled So's coverage under the insurance program of his male partner's employer. "The union of a man and a woman is still under

Social AffairsJan. 7, 2022

Shinsegae heir goes on with anti-communism posts, rebukes Instagram over political bias

Shinsegae Group Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin on Friday continued to express his discontent over Instagram’s removal of his post expressing his hostility toward communism. Chung criticized Instagram for its engagement in political activities by deliberately taking down posts that don’t match the preference of the platform, according to a story by local media outlet Maeil Business Newspaper, which cited an anonymous close acquaintance of Chung. “The value of free expression

Social AffairsJan. 7, 2022

Jeonju to host Asia-Pacific tourism conference in 2023

JEONJU -- South Korea's southwestern city of Jeonju will host next year's annual conference of the Tourism Promotion Organization for Asia Pacific Cities (TPO), officials said Friday. TPO, the largest international organization related to tourism in the Asia-Pacific region, was established in 2002 with the goal of developing the tourism industry through the formation of a network among regional cities. It has 136 cities in 16 countries, including South Korea, China and Japan, and 54 private org

Social AffairsJan. 7, 2022

Moon calls for close cooperation with USFK to curb spread of COVID-19 at US bases

President Moon Jae-in on Friday ordered aides to closely cooperate with US troops stationed in South Korea to curb the spread of COVID-19 at US military bases here. Moon also instructed aides to come up with enhanced antivirus measures for citizens and business facilities near US military bases, presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee said in a statement. According to a recent report by the Stars and Stripes, the US military's news organization, US Forces Korea counted 467 new COVID-19 cases

PoliticsJan. 7, 2022

N.Korea says ‘hostile forces,’ COVID-19 preclude Olympic participation

North Korea officially notified China that the country would not attend the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics in a letter, citing “hostile forces’ maneuver” and the COVID-19 pandemic as hindrances, the North’s state media reported Friday. North Korea’s Olympic Committee and Ministry of Physical Culture and Sports sent the letter to the related Chinese authorities, including the General Administration of Sport, the Chinese Olympic Committee and the Beijing Organizing

North KoreaJan. 7, 2022

[Election 2022] Ahn softens on possible alliance with main opposition

Presidential candidate Ahn Cheol-soo of the minor opposition People’s Party said Thursday he “can meet” with Yoon Suk-yeol, the nominee from the main opposition if Yoon made the request, showing a slight change in stance on uniting candidacies to win at the March presidential polls. When asked if he would meet with Yoon of the People Power Party to talk about uniting forces in a televised interview, Ahn said, “when politicians say we need to meet, we can. But whether we

PoliticsJan. 7, 2022