Yongsan mayor proposes moving US military hotel for park

The mayor of Yongsan Ward said he has proposed moving a US military hotel to a location outside the US Army Garrison Yongsan to make way for a new national park. In an interview with Yonhap News Agency last week, Mayor Sung Jang-hyun said he proposed the relocation of Dragon Hill Lodge from its current location inside the garrison to a site outside Yongsan but inside Seoul during a recent meeting with a central government official. The US military is in the process of returning the site of the

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Members of virus-hit Cheonghae unit members to receive vaccines starting this week

Service members affiliated with a naval unit which reported a mass COVID-19 outbreak while on anti-piracy missions in Africa will begin receiving COVID-19 vaccines starting this week, the defense ministry said Monday. A total of 272 sailors of the 301-strong Cheonghae Unit tested positive for COVID-19 last month and all of the unit members returned home weeks ahead of schedule. The government's failure to vaccinate them before their overseas deployment has been blamed for the mass infection. &

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

Police reopen probe into alleged fraud case involving Bithumb

Police have reopened an investigation into an alleged fraud case involving a former chairman of the operator of South Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, informed officials said Monday. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has been probing Lee Jung-hoon, former chairman of crypto exchange operator Bithumb Korea, after a group of 14 investors filed their second fraud complaint in mid-July, they said. Kim Byung-gun, chairman of BK Group, an entity specialized in medical and investme

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

[Graphic News] Smuggled drugs more than double in H1 amid pandemic

　Drug smuggling caught by South Korea‘s customs agency more than doubled in the first half of the year as trafficking via non-contact delivery means rose amid the pandemic, data showed. 　A total of 214.2 kilograms of drugs were confiscated in the January-June period, up 153 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service. 　Drug smuggling via international mail and cargo sharply increased amid the protracted pandemic, according to the customs office.

NationalAug. 2, 2021

New infections dip on fewer tests; COVID-19 cases top 200,000

The daily caseload has remained above 1,000 since July 7 due to outbreaks centered in the greater Seoul area. Authorities, however, have been on high alert over a nationwide resurgence amid increasing travel during the summer vacation season and the spread of the highly contagious delta variant. "In order to spend summer vacations safely, we request that people meet in small family groups in uncrowded areas," KDCA chief Jeong Eun-kyeong said in a press briefing. To slow down the rec

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

Number of seniors living alone soars 36% over 5 years

SEJONG -- The number of seniors living alone has surged nearly 36 percent over the last five years amid the country's rapid population aging, data showed Monday. A total of 1.66 million South Koreans aged 65 and older lived by themselves in 2020, up 35.8 percent from five years earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. The number accounted for 21.2 percent of local household members aged 65 and older, which numbered 7.85 million last year. In particular, the number of seniors livi

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

N. Korea blames US again for anti-govt. rallies in Cuba

North Korea on Monday denounced the United States again for meddling in internal affairs in Cuba by instigating anti-government demonstrations and unrest in the Caribbean country. "The US's intention has been laid bare outright that it seeks to instigate internal unrest by influencing anti-government elements and bolstering anti-Cuba sentiment globally," the ministry said in a posting on its website. "The US has been involved in behind-the-scene manipulation of anti-government d

North KoreaAug. 2, 2021

NK leader's sister warns S. Korea-US military exercise will cloud inter-Korean relations

The sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un warned Sunday that annual summertime military drills between South Korea and the United States will cloud the future of inter-Korean relations. Kim Yo-Jong issued the warning in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, just days after the North restored long-severed communication lines with the South and raised hope for a new round of detente between the two sides. "I surely see the military drill, which takes place at an importa

North KoreaAug. 1, 2021

More young Koreans without access to COVID-19 shots end up in hospitals

Patients at Korea’s COVID-19 hospitals are getting younger and a growing share of them are ending up in intensive care amid a sluggish vaccine campaign. Currently, the age restrictions for vaccination bar anyone under 55 from getting a shot. By Saturday’s end, slightly over 61 percent of 324 patients currently ailing with critical COVID-19 -- meaning they are on life support or artificial respiration -- nationwide were aged 59 and below. The count of severely or critic

Social AffairsAug. 1, 2021

Clean-up cost dispute delays US base move

South Korea and the US have yet to reach consensus on clean-up costs for military bases that Washington is handing back to Seoul, despite years of talks, the first of which was held in 2002. On Friday, the US military agreed to return about one-quarter of its Yongsan Garrison in central Seoul by early next year. This is the second time since last year the US military is giving up parts of its Yongsan base, the largest US installation here and one of 12 sites out of 80 it needs to hand over to K

DefenseAug. 1, 2021

Vice unification minister plans to visit US in September

Vice Unification Minister Choi Young-jun plans to visit the United States next month to coordinate North Korea policy as South Korea seeks dialogue and reconciliation with North Korea after Pyongyang's restoration of inter-Korean communication lines, officials said Sunday. Choi has been taking necessary steps for a US trip expected sometime in September, such as receiving a COVID-19 vaccine and filing a request for exemption from coronavirus quarantine, ministry officials said. "A trip to

PoliticsAug. 1, 2021

[Newsmaker] More Koreans suffer mental disorders amid pandemic

The number of Koreans who have suffered from mental disorders and eating disorders has risen in the pandemic, data showed Sunday. Last year, the number of people diagnosed with either depression, insomnia, anorexia or bulimia stood at 1,504,181, up by 67,233, or 4.67 percent, from the previous year, according to government data. The data, from the state-run Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, was disclosed by independent lawmaker Lee Yong-ho. Depression accounted for 55.7 perce

PoliticsAug. 1, 2021

Korea ranks 26th of 34 OECD members in Q1 employment

SEJONG -- South Korea’s employment rate has remained behind most members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, regardless of the pandemic situation. The percentage of people aged 15-64 who are in work has continued to stay under the OECD average since before COVID-19 hit the globe. And its lackluster ranking continued throughout 2020. While the average of 34 OECD members reached 66.8 percent in employment rate in the first quarter of 2021, the figure for Korea sto

Social AffairsAug. 1, 2021

[Herald Interview] Bill allowing politicians to take babies to work look set to pass

After Rep. Yong Hye-in, 31, of the Basic Income Party, brought her 2-month-old son to her workplace on July 5, her photos went viral on social media. On the day, she held a press conference to urge the passage of her bill that would allow a lawmaker to enter a plenary session with an infant who needs nursing. Under the current law, only lawmakers, the prime minister, state council members and those authorized by the assembly speaker are allowed. When her photos made headlines, opinions were

PoliticsAug. 1, 2021

Daily infections dip to 1,400s amid no signs of letup

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases retreated to the 1,400s on Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but the fourth wave of infections showed no signs of slowing down despite the adoption of the toughest virus curbs in the greater Seoul area. The country added 1,442 COVID-19 cases, including 1,386 local infections, raising the total caseload to 199,787, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The latest tally is down from 1,710 cases reported Friday and

Social AffairsAug. 1, 2021

Senior Japanese Embassy diplomat recalled home after disparaging remarks against Moon

SEOUL/TOKYO -- A senior Japanese Embassy diplomat in Seoul has been recalled home after causing a stir with remarks disparaging South Korean President Moon Jae-in's efforts to improve relations between the two countries, a Japanese paper reported Sunday. Hirohisa Soma, deputy chief of mission at the embassy, has been criticized both in Seoul and Tokyo after telling a South Korean reporter during a lunch meeting last month that Moon's efforts to improve ties with Tokyo were tantamount to "m

Foreign AffairsAug. 1, 2021

N. Korea’s food shortage to worsen in H2: U.N. report

North Korea’s food security situation is expected to deteriorate in the next four months, a U.N. report has said, citing limited humanitarian access and trade disruptions as key factors leading to the country’s widening food gap. The Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Programme forecast in a joint report released Friday that the North is expected to be facing a food shortage of around 860,000 tons this year, “which is equivalent to approximately 2.3 months&rsquo

North KoreaJuly 31, 2021

265 members of virus-hit Cheonghae unit released from hospitals

A total of 265 out of 272 service members who had contracted the new coronavirus while on anti-piracy missions in waters off Africa were released from medical facilities Saturday after making full recoveries, the defense ministry said. All members of the 301-strong Cheonghae unit were airlifted home last week, cutting short their missions in Africa after 247 troops tested positive for COVID-19. Subsequent tests found 25 more cases, raising the total caseload to 272. Of the total, 227 returne

DefenseJuly 31, 2021

Daily virus cases over 1,500 as infections show little signs of letup

South Korea’s daily new coronavirus cases retreated to the 1,500s on Saturday, but the fourth wave of infections is showing little signs of letting up despite weeks of the toughest antivirus rules in the greater Seoul area. The country added 1,539 COVID-19 cases, including 1,466 local infections, raising the total caseload to 198,345, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The latest tally is down from 1,710 cases reported Friday. The country added six more COVID

Social AffairsJuly 31, 2021

Defense chiefs of S. Korea, US reaffirm commitment to alliance, combined defense posture

Defense Minister Suh Wook held phone talks with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin on Friday and reaffirmed their commitment to a strong alliance and a firm combined defense posture, the defense ministry said. The two ministers discussed bilateral defense issues and the security situation on the Korean Peninsula, "reaffirmed an ironclad South Korea-US alliance and stressed the importance of close cooperation between the two countries," according to the ministry. Their annual summertime

DefenseJuly 30, 2021