Seoul to invest W345.9b in metaverse, other digitization projects in 2022

The Seoul city government said Thursday it will invest a total of 345.9 billion won ($291.4 million) this year in projects harnessing such cutting-edge digitization technologies as metaverse, big data and artificial intelligence (AI). Up to 1,067 projects, including those to be pursued by the city's 25 districts, will benefit from the city's investment plan for "paradigm shift to digitization," according to the city government. A chunk of 112.6 billion won of the total investment all

Jan. 13, 2022

Seoul to consider introduction of startup visa: justice minister

South Korea will consider introducing a new visa category for foreign startup entrepreneurs to vitalize the domestic startup ecosystem, according to Seoul's justice minister. At a South Korea-Germany startup industry roundtable meeting in Berlin on Wednesday (local time), Justice Minister Park Beom-kye said Seoul will "review the adoption of a startup visa." "In order to vitalize our startup ecosystem, we need to have an influx of foreigners who want to launch startups in South

Jan. 13, 2022

Daily infections over 4,000 for 2nd day; imported cases hit record high

South Korea said Thursday it will ban all entrants from using ordinary public transportation to try to stem the inflow of the omicron variant from overseas as the number of imported cases reached an all-time high. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said all entrants must use their private vehicles, or officially designated infection-proof taxis, buses or trains. They will also be required to present negative test results issued within 48 hours before their departure for Sou

Jan. 13, 2022

Military reports 11 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military on Thursday reported 11 additional COVID-19 cases, including 10 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,537. Of the new cases, seven are from the Army, three from the Air Force, and one from a unit under the direct control of the ministry. Currently, 212 military personnel are under treatment. Of the total military caseload, 1,718 are breakthrough cases. (Yonhap)

Jan. 13, 2022

Nuke reactor shuts down on mechanical malfunction

A nuclear reactor automatically shut down Thursday after a coolant pump stopped working, but no radiation leak was found, the operator of the country's nuclear plants said. The Reactor-5 at the Hanul Power Plant in Uljin, some 330 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was shut down at around 1:26 a.m., according to the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission said it is currently looking into the stoppage to find the exact cause of the automatic shutdow

Jan. 13, 2022

Public transport expansion, chip development marked Yongin’s past three years

Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, located about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, has grown into a city of more than 1 million known for a clean environment with citizen-friendly policies.  With Mayor Baek Kun-ki heralding the city’s remarkable change, Yongin transformed into a greener and more balanced city with improved standards of living for its citizens -- when it comes to the economy, job opportunities, transportation and education, among others.  On Thursday, Yongin will start a ne

Jan. 12, 2022

Yongin mayor pledges to make Yongin environment-friendly, economically self-sufficient city

Yongin, a city of 1 million located about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, will step up efforts to become an eco-friendly and economically self-sufficient city, said Baek Kun-ki, the mayor of Yongin. During a press conference held on Tuesday, Baek shared his vision for Yongin, whose new “special city” status goes into effect on Thursday. Yongin is one of four cities that received the designation this year. The others are Suwon, Goyang and Changwon. With the city’s new status,

Jan. 12, 2022

Jeju bans trading of tickets to Hallasan

The white peaks of Mount Hallasan on Jeju Island has gained notable popularity this winter, promoting hikers to pay extra cash to get access to the snowy landscape. Dozens of postings seeking to sell, buy or exchange QR tickets to Hallasan National Park have been posted at secondhand online stores. Offered by the national park, tickets are available online for free on a first come first serve basis. One post uploaded on Joonggonara, the country‘s largest online used goods marketplace, sh

Jan. 12, 2022

Young politicians wanted: NGO seeks to reshape politics with grassroots initiative

Everyone talks about the March 9 presidential election. But the local elections to be held in June are the big day Park Hye-min, 29, has been counting down the days to. Park is the executive director of Newways, a nonprofit organization that she founded about a year ago with a friend she met at a book club. The organization’s goal is to discover rookie politicians who speak the same language they do, and foster them as city or provincial councilors who represent young people’s inte

Jan. 12, 2022

Vice FM tests positive for COVID-19

Second Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-moon tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, leading to 16 Cabinet members taking virus tests and canceling their schedules as they attended the same Cabinet meeting with Choi the previous day. Choi attended Tuesday's meeting on behalf of Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong. The 16 other Cabinet members also in attendance included Interior Minister Jeon Hae-cheol, Defense Minister Suh Wook, Unification Minister Lee In-young, Land Minister Noh Hyeong-ouk and

Jan. 12, 2022

‘Omicron is COVID-22’: Korea’s top national hospital doctor spells hope

Omicron may spell the beginning of the end of the pandemic, a leading infectious disease doctor at South Korea’s top national hospital said Wednesday. Dr. Oh Myoung-don, who heads the National Medical Center‘s committee for clinical management of emerging infectious diseases, told a news conference Wednesday, “Omicron is a distinctly different virus from the coronavirus as we know it. COVID-22, if you will.” While COVID-19 is known to infect the lungs, growing eviden

Jan. 12, 2022

Education Ministry’s ‘vaccine cartoon’ attacked

The Ministry of Education is again drawing fire over sharing cartoons encouraging students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 despite the court order suspending vaccine mandate measures on education facilities for young students. On Friday, the ministry posted a cartoon on its social media account, titled “Why did these friends have to take out tteokbokki (rice cakes in a red chili sauce)?” The cartoon shows two students going to a diner for tteokbokki. The owner asks them whether

Jan. 12, 2022

S. Korea approves Novavax COVID-19 vaccine

South Korea's drug safety agency on Wednesday approved an authorization of US-based biotechnology company Novavax Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine. The protein-based vaccine, Nuvaxovid, marks the fifth COVID-19 vaccine to get approval for use here, following the ones by British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University, Pfizer Inc., Johnson & Johnson and Moderna Inc. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety convened a panel of experts from both inside and outside to review the safe

Jan. 12, 2022

Eastar Jet founder gets 6-yr prison term for embezzlement, breach of trust

JEONJU -- The founder of South Korean budget carrier Eastar Jet Co. was sentenced to six years in prison on Wednesday for embezzlement of company funds and breach of trust. A district court in Jeonju, 240 kilometers south of Seoul, handed down the sentence to Eastar founder and independent lawmaker Lee Sang-jik after convicting him on several charges, including embezzlement. The Jeonju District Court also ordered Lee's immediate detention. Lee was indicted for causing about 43.9 billion won (

Jan. 12, 2022

Construction site safety under scrutiny after Gwangju collapse

Safety inspections took place at major construction sites across South Korea on Wednesday, as the search continued for workers missing in Tuesday‘s collapse of a Gwangju apartment building that was under construction. The Gwangju Metropolitan Government earlier in the day ordered the temporary shutdown on all construction sites in the city run by Hyundai Development Co., the company involved in the accident. HDC, later in the day, suspended work on all of its worksites across the country

Jan. 12, 2022

Search for missing workers at Gwangju construction accident site suspended amid safety inspection

GWANGJU -- A safety inspection was under way Wednesday as authorities weighed when to resume a search for the six workers who went missing after the collapse of a facade of a high-rise apartment building under construction in the southwestern city of Gwangju a day earlier. Search efforts at the collapse site were temporarily suspended Tuesday night due to safety concerns over possible further disintegration of the building or the potential collapse of a tower crane adjoining the building. Ext

Jan. 12, 2022

SPO orders joint probe of Gwangju building collapse accident

The Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO) on Wednesday ordered the launch of a joint investigation into a construction site accident in Gwangju in which six people remain unaccounted for. Six workers were unaccounted for after a facade of a high-rise apartment building under construction in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, collapsed Tuesday, according to police. The SPO said it ordered the Gwangju District Prosecutors Office, the city's police agency and the regional labor office to form a j

Jan. 12, 2022

Daily infections back above 4,000 in 6 days amid lingering omicron woes

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases bounced back to above 4,000 for the first time in six days Wednesday, putting health authorities on high alert over a possible resurgence amid omicron concerns. The country added 4,388 new COVID-19 infections, including 4,007 local infections, raising the total caseload to 674,868, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Wednesday's figure was up 1,291 from a day earlier and 53 down from last Wednesday. The country reported 5

Jan. 12, 2022

Over half of S. Koreans support abolishment of gender ministry: poll

A little over half of South Koreans support the abolishment of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family as proposed by the main opposition party's presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, a poll showed Wednesday. According to the Realmeter survey that asked 1,011 adults on Monday and Tuesday, 51.9 percent said they support the dissolution of the ministry in charge of women's affairs, while 38.5 percent opposed it. The remaining 9.6 percent said they were undecided on the issue. By gender, 64 p

Jan. 12, 2022

Moon-established investigative office slammed over possible phone spying

A progressive lawyers’ group Tuesday slammed an anti-corruption investigative agency established by President Moon Jae-in administration over alleged spying on South Koreans. Lawyers for a Democratic Society, more widely known by the Korean acronym Minbyun, held a round-table talk with civic groups to address recent allegations of communications surveillance by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials and their implications on civil liberties. The investigation

Jan. 11, 2022