Cabinet passes motion requesting parliamentary reconsideration of 4 broadcasting bills

The Cabinet passed a motion Tuesday calling for parliamentary reconsideration of four bills aimed at changing the governance structure of public broadcasters. The motion, passed a week after the last of the four bills was railroaded by the opposition-controlled National Assembly, will be sent to President Yoon Suk Yeol. Should Yoon endorse it, the bills will be sent back to the Assembly for a revote. Three of the bills call for amending the Broadcasting Act, the Foundation for Broadcast Culture

PoliticsAug. 6, 2024

Pho festival to kick off in Seoul in October

A culinary festival dedicated to promoting Vietnam's trademark pho will be held in Seoul in October, the Business Association of Vietnamese in Korea announced in a press release Tuesday. The festival is to celebrate pho, a Vietnamese dish made from a fragrant broth, rice noodles, herbs and typically beef or chicken, and showcase the dish to Koreans, Vietnamese living in Korea and international tourists. According to BAViK, pho represents the heart of Vietnamese culture and the pinnacle of t

Foreign AffairsAug. 6, 2024

Peru reaffirms support for Korea joining Pacific Alliance

Peru reaffirmed support for South Korea in the Pacific Alliance while celebrating its 203rd Independence Day in Seoul on Thursday. Peru’s Independence Day, which falls on July 28, commemorates Peru’s liberation from Spanish rule in 1821. Peruvian Ambassador Paul Duclos told The Korea Herald that the event was held to highlight his country's deepening ties with South Korea, while reiterating support for Korea's possible inclusion in the Pacific Alliance. "Peru fully sup

Foreign AffairsAug. 6, 2024

Police refer man behind murder of neighbor with Japanese longsword to prosecution

Police have referred a man to the prosecution Tuesday on charges of slashing a random neighbor to death with a Japanese longsword last week. The 37-year-old assailant, surnamed Baek, brandished a 75-centimeter Japanese blade at the entrance of his apartment complex in Seoul's northern Eunpyeong district on July 29 and killed the neighbor, who was smoking outdoors at the time. The victim, a 43-year-old father of two sons aged 4 and 9, did not know the assailant personally. During the police

Social AffairsAug. 6, 2024

Accident with claimed vehicle malfunction leaves 1 dead, 1 injured

One person was killed with another one injured when a car crashed into pedestrians at an apartment complex in central Seoul on Monday, police said. The driver of the vehicle, a man in his late 50s, has claimed vehicle malfunction, but the police suspect "poor driving" may have caused the deadly accident. The accident took place at an apartment complex in Ichon-dong, Yongsan, at around 11 a.m., when the vehicle crashed into a woman in her 50s and then another woman in her 80s, according

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

S. Korea to provide $3 mln to 4 drought-hit African countries

South Korea will provide $3 million to four African countries to help them cope with the damage from severe drought, the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said Monday. Of the total, $1 million will each be delivered to Zimbabwe and Zambia, and $500,000 each to Malawi and Namibia, the ministry said. The aid will be made through the World Food Programme. The four countries have declared a national emergency as the severe drought hit the South African region and exacerbated food shortages. (Yonhap)

Foreign AffairsAug. 5, 2024

South Korean commandos on Kim Il-sung mission to get first apology

South Korean commandos who died as they escaped from Silmido -- an uninhabited island where they were being trained to kill then-North Korean leader Kim Il-sung -- are due to receive an apology from the country’s defense chief for the first time in 53 years. In August 1971, the 24 commandos of South Korea’s secret killer squad fled the island in protest of poor treatment, after over three years of training to infiltrate North Korea and capture its leader. On their way out of Silmido,

DefenseAug. 5, 2024

Education Ministry to inspect study abroad agencies for false ads

Amid South Korea's growing demand for private education, the Ministry of Education said Monday it will conduct a special inspection on agencies that arrange or help students study abroad. The Ministry of Education will focus on false and exaggerated advertisements of such centers to put the brakes on sales methods that prompt advanced learning and promote private education from August to September, with the cooperation of the 17 provincial offices of education nationwide. The ministry will

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

Assembly passes pro-labor ‘Yellow Envelope Bill’

The opposition-led National Assembly on Monday passed a pro-labor bill that seeks to limit employers from filing damage claims against workers during legitimate disputes and requires them to engage in collective bargaining with subcontractor labor unions, amid ongoing protest from the ruling party over the bill. The bill, dubbed the “Yellow Envelope Bill," which is a revision to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act, passed in a 177-2 vote during an afternoon plenary sess

PoliticsAug. 5, 2024

Yoon mulls speech after summer break

President Yoon Suk Yeol is considering delivering a speech to the nation over a set of domestic reform agendas to address crises in the fields of education, labor, medicine, and population, as well as the public pension's sustainability later this month, according to the presidential office Monday. According to the presidential office, Yoon will make public remarks after he returns to his post from his summer vacation next week, and before the first regular session of the 22nd National Asse

PoliticsAug. 5, 2024

Extreme heat triggers outages, heatstroke deaths

As extreme heat persists nationwide, widespread damage including power and water outages, as well as heatstroke-related deaths, have been reported as of Monday. On Sunday evening, 255 out of 1,089 households in the Miju Apartments in Dongdaemun-gu, eastern Seoul, experienced a power outage caused by the persisting scorching heat. A Korea Electric Power Corporation official explained to The Korea Herald that the blackout resulted from a fault in the apartment complex's transformer, which ove

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

100 Filipina caregivers to arrive in Seoul one month ahead of assignment

  A group of 100 Filipina caregivers is scheduled to arrive in South Korea early Tuesday morning to undergo a month-long specialized training program before being assigned to families in Seoul next month, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Monday. The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of Employment and Labor have been advancing a project to introduce foreign caregivers in response to the declining number of local domestic workers amid an aging population and the rising

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

Son Heung-min's agency vows legal action on lavish nightclub spending rumor

Tottenham Hotspur superstar Son Heung-min's agency on Sunday released a statement denying a recent rumor that he spent a large sum of money at a Seoul nightclub, partying with Bayern Munich’s Kim Min-jae and other players of the German club. "We've found that the employees of the club had distributed such falsehood to promote their establishment. ... We assure you that Son did not visit the club or spend all that money," said Son & Football Limited Co. It vowed to

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

N. Korean leader Kim attends ceremony commemorating tactical ballistic missile weapon system

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has attended a ceremony to commemorate the transfer of a new-type tactical ballistic missile weapon system, which serves as the "pivot military hardware" in the armed forces, state media reported Monday. Kim attended the ceremony, which took place Sunday, showcasing 250 new-type tactical ballistic missile launchers, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Kim also delivered a speech, stating that an important task specified in the practical guidelin

North KoreaAug. 5, 2024

[Bills in Focus] Easing discount store restrictions, securing AI usage policies

Proposed Bill: Partial Amendment to the Distribution Industry Development Act Proposed by Rep. Choi Soo-jin (People Power Party) ● The current act prescribes the establishment and modification registration of superstores and quasi-superstores in traditional commerce preservation areas, requiring persons who intend to open superstores, etc., to register and submit an evaluation report on the store’s impact on commercial districts and a regional cooperation plan. The act also requires the Ma

PoliticsAug. 5, 2024

Heat wave causes surge in heat-related illnesses to 1,546 cases, deaths of 257,000 livestock

The nationwide heat wave has led to a surge in the number of patients with heat-related illnesses to 1,546, while causing the deaths of over 257,000 livestock, the interior ministry said Monday. The previous day, temperatures in Yeoju, 64 kilometers southeast of Seoul, reached 40 C, marking the first time since 2018, which was recorded as the hottest year on record. The interior ministry said that the total number of patients with heat-related illnesses from May 20 to last Saturday reached 1,546

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

[Graphic News] S. Korea’s COVID-19 hospitalizations surge in July

The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in South Korea saw a significant rise last month, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. Hospitalizations increased from 63 in the fourth week of June to 91 in the first week of July, 145 in the second week and 225 in the third week. This surge comes despite the country lowering its COVID-19 crisis level from “alert” to the lowest “interest” level on May 1, following a sharp decline in confirmed cases earlie

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2024

Foreign ministry strongly urges S. Koreans in Lebanon, Israel to leave countries

The foreign ministry on Sunday strongly urged South Koreans residing in Lebanon and Israel to leave the countries as soon as possible amid escalating security concerns in the Middle East. Chaired by Second Vice Foreign Minister Kang In-sun, the ministry held a meeting to review the security situation in the Middle East and examine measures for the safe protection of South Koreans in the region. At the meeting, Kang strongly urged South Koreans residing in Lebanon and Israel to depart the nations

Foreign AffairsAug. 4, 2024

Korea sizzles as temperatures soar to 40 C for first time since 2019

South Korea sweltered through its first 40 degrees Celsius temperature in six years on Sunday, amid a relentless heatwave that has gripped the country since the end of July, following the monsoon season. Current weather conditions on the Korean Peninsula are strikingly similar to those of the record-breaking summer of 2018, sparking concerns that this year could become one of the hottest on record. The severe heatwave has already resulted in approximately 540 cases of heat-related illnesses from

Social AffairsAug. 4, 2024

6 in 10 S. Koreans won't date across political lines: survey

Almost six out of 10 Koreans are unwilling to date someone with opposing political views, a survey shows, pointing to a deepening rift between liberals and conservatives in the country. Data from the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, which surveyed 3,950 Koreans aged 19 to 75 last year, revealed that 58.2 percent of respondents did not wish to enter a romantic relationship with partners who do not share their political views. In civic and social activities, over 70 percent of resp

Social AffairsAug. 4, 2024