Lifting outdoor mask mandate to be decided early May

The South Korean government will decide in early May whether the outdoor mask mandate will be lifted, Interior Minister Jeon Hae-cheol said during a COVID-19 response meeting Wednesday. Jeon noted that the mask mandate will stay in place for the moment as wearing face masks is still important for preventing the spread of infection at the current stage of the pandemic. Regarding the government’s planned downgrade of the COVID-19 infectious disease level, Jeon said that the government wil

April 20, 2022

Schools to open doors in May

From May 1, schools in Korea will resume normal operations under new guidelines. Schools will adapt “normalcy attendance” measures, meaning face-to-face classes will be held and online classes will be reserved for special circumstances. Extracurricular activities, such as field trips and group events, will be allowed. Self-testing routines will be dropped, too. The mask mandate, however, will be maintained at least until the end of the semester. The Ministry of Education announ

April 20, 2022

Key ILO conventions on forced labor, freedom of association take effect: labor ministry

Three key International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions that prohibit forced labor and guarantee freedom of association went into effect Wednesday, a year after South Korea completed the ratification process, the labor ministry said. The conventions -- No. 29 on forced labor, No. 87 on freedom of association and protection of the right to organize and No. 98 on the right to organize and collective bargaining -- will now have the same legal status as domestic laws, according to the ministry.

April 20, 2022

S. Korea reports fewer than 120,000 cases for 5th day as omicron surge declines

South Korea reported fewer than 120,000 coronavirus cases for the fifth straight day Wednesday as the omicron-fueled spike in infections slows down. The country added 111,319 new COVID-19 infections, including 17 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 16,583,220, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The new tally is down 84,100 cases, or 43 percent, from a week ago in an apparent sign that the omicron variant is loosening its hold. Since the virus peaked at 6

April 20, 2022

[According to the law] (3) Seeking refuge in S. Korea

From international marriages, political asylum to run-ins with the law, there are a myriad of legal problems that foreign nationals can get embroiled in. The Korea Herald takes a look at some of the cases involving legal disputes of foreigners in South Korea. The following is the final installment. -- Ed. The Refugee Act stipulates that anyone within South Korean territory has the right to apply for refugee status, and according to a recent ruling, that includes the airport transit area. I

April 20, 2022

Arrest warrants issued for woman, boyfriend in drowning death of husband

A local court issued arrest warrants Tuesday for a woman and her boyfriend who stand accused of causing the 2009 drowning death of the woman's husband for a hefty insurance payout.  Lee Eun-hae, 31, and her extramarital lover, Cho Hyun-soo, 30, were detained Saturday on charges of prodding Lee's then 39-year-old husband to jump into a valley river in Gapyeong, 60 kilometers east of Seoul, even though he was unable to swim, and letting him drown. Investigators suspect they committed the

April 19, 2022

Unionized bus drivers in Seoul vote for strike over wages

Unionized bus drivers in Seoul have voted for a strike to demand pay hikes, its union said Tuesday. According to the union, some 15,800 out of its 18,000 members voted in favor of a strike. They will go on strike on April 26 if negotiations with their management fall through. Unionized bus drivers in major cities, such as Daegu, also voted for a strike on the same day. If they walk out, some 98 percent of buses that run in Seoul will be affected, according to the union. The union claimed a wa

April 19, 2022

Sunfull Foundation declares May 23 ‘No Hate Comments Day’

The Sunfull Foundation has declared May 23 “No Hate Comments Day” to raise awareness about cyberbullying and promote positive online messages. A ceremony was held Tuesday at DGB Financial Center in central Seoul with the Sunfull Foundation’s founder Min Byung-chul, local lawmakers and members of Sunfull youth supporter clubs in attendance. May 23 is the day that the anti-cyberbullying campaign will begin in earnest, the foundation explained. During the week between May 17

April 19, 2022

Webzen labor union to stage game industry’s 1st strike

The labor union of local game developer Webzen has decided to go on what will be the first strike in the country’s game industry if its planned walkout takes place on May 2 as scheduled. “It is hard to see this incident as just an issue where employees of a company are dissatisfied with the way they are treated,” said Webzen’s labor union in a press conference held in front of the game maker’s office in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. “This strike is m

April 19, 2022

Number of infected students in Seoul drops to 10,000s

The number of COVID-19 cases among students and kindergarteners showed a 40 percent week-on-week drop, Seoul’s education authority said Tuesday, as schools prepare to return to normal with the attendance rate for schools in Seoul nearing 100 percent. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Tuesday, 16,814 kindergarteners, elementary, middle and high school students contracted COVID-19 in April 11-17, marking a 40.8 percent drop from 28,366 from the week before. The

April 19, 2022

70% of women in their 20s-30s think Korea is not equal for females

More than half of South Korean people think women are not treated equally to men, a government survey showed Tuesday. According to the quinquennial government study, 53.4 percent of respondents said South Korea is not an equal society for women, down from 62.6 percent tallied in 2016. By gender, 65.4 percent of female and 41.4 percent of male respondents gave the same answer. The survey was conducted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on 8,358 people aged 15 or older last year. Those

April 19, 2022

[Feature] Cut-price crab comes with bitter aftertaste

  Russia invades Ukraine. China locks down an entire city over the coronavirus. And fresh and meaty crabs are half their usual price at supermarkets in South Korea.  In today’s intertwined world, these things are all linked.  But how much should we care?  It’s bonanza time for crab lovers in South Korea, a local retailer tells seafood aficionados, luring them to come and grab the cut-price crustaceans while they still can.  Crab season  On Wednesd

April 19, 2022

[According to the law] (2) International marriages gone wrong

From international marriages, political asylum to run-ins with the law, there are a myriad of legal problems that foreign nationals can get embroiled in. The Korea Herald takes a look at some of the cases involving legal disputes of foreigners in South Korea. The following is the second installment of a three-part series. -- Ed. For decades, there has been a custom of Korean bachelors from rural agricultural towns finding brides in lower-income countries with the help of international marriag

April 19, 2022

Agreement signed to launch 'Special Union' of Busan, Ulsan, South Gyeongsang Province

The interior ministry on Tuesday signed an agreement with the local governments of Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province to launch a new European Union-like administrative unit aimed at promoting balanced regional development and invigorating local economies. The "special union" of the three local governments will officially start operating in January next year, with its council to comprise 27 members -- nine each from the three municipalities -- and the heads of the three governm

April 19, 2022

S. Korea reports 118,504 new cases with omicron receding

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases jumped Tuesday, apparently due to increased virus tests, but the caseload was about half the tally from a week ago as the spread of omicron slows down. The country added 118,504 new COVID-19 infections, including 20 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 16,471,940, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The new tally is similar to the numbers seen in the third week of February when the omicron wave started to accelerate na

April 19, 2022

According to the law (1): Translation hiccups for foreigners in court

From international marriages, political asylum to run-ins with the law, there are a myriad of legal problems that foreign nationals can get embroiled in. The Korea Herald takes a look at some of the cases involving legal disputes of foreigners in South Korea. The following is the first installment of a three-part series. -- Ed. The Act on Citizen Participation in Criminal Trials, introduced in 2008, states that anyone, regardless of nationality, has a right to receive a jury trial. It states

April 18, 2022

[Exclusive] No more prosecutorial investigations? Police brutality victim says more could suffer like him

A victim of police brutality, who was wrongfully convicted and served jail time in place of a serial killer, said taking the prosecution’s investigation powers away could lead more people to suffer in the same way. As a result of a false confession given in response to a coercive police interrogation, Yun Sung-yeo, 55, spent 20 years in jail on a wrongful conviction before he was released on parole in 2009. When the case was re-tried in 2020, the court overturned the conviction from 3

April 18, 2022

Arrest warrants to be sought for woman, boyfriend in drowning death of husband

Prosecutors sought formal arrest warrants Monday for a woman and her boyfriend who stand accused of causing the 2009 drowning death of the woman's husband for a hefty insurance payout, officials said. Lee Eun-hae, 31, and her extramarital lover, Cho Hyun-soo, 30, were detained Saturday on charges of prodding Lee's then 39-year-old husband to jump into a valley river in Gapyeong, 60 kilometers east of Seoul, even though he's unable to swim, and letting him drown. Investigators suspect they comm

April 18, 2022

S. Korea's new cases at 10-week low; most virus restrictions lifted

South Korea's new coronavirus cases dipped to a 10-week low Monday as omicron began to recede and the country lifted most restrictions to move on from the COVID-19 pandemic. The country added 47,743 new COVID-19 infections, including 14 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 16,353,495, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The new tally is slightly fewer than the 49,546 reported Feb. 9 when the omicron variant started to rapidly spread across the country.

April 18, 2022

1 dead, 1 injured in apartment fire in Seoul

A fire broke out at an apartment building in northern Seoul early Monday, leaving one dead and another injured, officials said. The fire started at 3:38 a.m. in a unit on the ninth floor of the 15-story building in Nowon Ward and was extinguished about 50 minutes later. One of the unit's residents, in her 50s, was found dead on-site, and the other resident, in his 20s, was sent to a nearby hospital after inhaling smoke and sustaining burns. About 60 other residents in the apartment evacuated on

April 18, 2022