Most Popular
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Industry experts predicts tough choices as NewJeans' ultimatum nears
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Jung's paternity reveal exposes where Korea stands on extramarital babies
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Samsung entangled in legal risks amid calls for drastic reform
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Heavy snow alerts issued in greater Seoul area, Gangwon Province; over 20 cm of snow seen in Seoul
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[Herald Interview] 'Trump will use tariffs as first line of defense for American manufacturing'
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Agency says Jung Woo-sung unsure on awards attendance after lovechild revelations
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[Herald Review] 'Gangnam B-Side' combines social realism with masterful suspense, performance
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[Health and care] Getting cancer young: Why cancer isn’t just an older person’s battle
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Prosecutors seek 5-year prison term for Samsung chief in merger retrial
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UN talks on plastic pollution treaty begin with grim outlook
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[News Focus] Korean households getting smaller: 4 in 5 have fewer than four members
SEJONG -- The proportion of households in South Korea with fewer than four members has reached an all-time high, government data showed. According to the Ministry of Interior and Safety, the numbers of one-, two- and three-member households came to 9.21 million, 5.49 million and 4 million, respectively, in May. Collectively, these 18.71 million households made up 80.5 percent of the nationwide total, which was 22.22 million. This means only 1 out of every 5 households had four or more members
June 14, 2021
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Delivery worker in coma after collapsing from overwork: workers' group
A parcel delivery worker has suffered a cerebral hemorrhage caused by overwork and fallen into a coma, a couriers' advocacy group said Monday. According to the group, the 47-year-old employee at Lotte Global Logistics Co.'s branch in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, was sent to a hospital after showing abnormal symptoms, such as stiffness of the body, while he was sleeping at home early Sunday morning. The courier, surnamed Lim, underwent surgery for a serious case of a cerebral hemorrhage but r
June 14, 2021
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Controversial launch of new educational governance body in sight
The official launch of a new educational governance body is in sight as demand grows for comprehensive reform of South Korea’s educational system. The National Assembly’s Education Committee approved a bill Thursday to install a new body tentatively called the National Education Commission. The bill is expected to be put to a vote at a plenary session within this month in hopes of the commission officially launching by the end of this year. Under the bill, the commission would comp
June 14, 2021
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Virus cases at over 2-month low; vaccinations tipped to top 14m this week
South Korea's daily new COVID-19 cases rose by the smallest amount in more than two months due to fewer tests over the weekend as the country is preparing for eased virus restrictions starting next month amid an accelerating vaccination drive. The country reported 399 more COVID-19 cases, including 360 local infections, raising the total caseload to 148,273, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Monday's figure was sharply down from 452 cases on Sunday and 565 on Saturda
June 14, 2021
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[Newsmaker] S. Korea’s first Vatican prefect looks forward to arranging pope’s visit to NK
South Korean Archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik, the newly appointed Vatican prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, said he will work toward arranging a visit to North Korea for Pope Francis if he is given the opportunity to do so. “The pope had expressed his willingness to go to North Korea,” You, 69, said at a press conference held Saturday at the Daejeon Diocese in Sejong, following the Vatican’s announcement of his appointment Friday. “If North Korea invites the
June 13, 2021
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[Newsmaker] In-person attendance at middle schools in greater Seoul to increase ahead of full reopening
Middle schools in the greater Seoul area are set to increase the portion of students attending in-person classes starting Monday ahead of the government's plan to fully resume classes from the fall semester, according to educational officials. Under the plan, the cap on in-person attendance will increase from one-third of registered students to two-thirds under the Level 2 social distancing guidelines, enabling more students to take part in in-person classes, the education ministry and local ed
June 13, 2021
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New virus cases back under 500; fully vaccinated travellers to be exempt from 2-week quarantine
South Korea's daily new virus cases dropped below 500 Sunday for the first time in four days due to fewer tests over the weekend, and health authorities plan to exempt people who were fully vaccinated overseas from mandatory two-week isolation from July. The country reported 452 more COVID-19 cases, including 419 local infections, raising the total caseload to 147,874, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Sunday's tally marked a sharp decrease from Saturday's 565 cases
June 13, 2021
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Moon congratulates Korean archbishop on appointment to Vatican secretary position
President Moon Jae-in sent a congratulatory telegram to South Korean archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik, who has become the first Korean appointed to a secretary position at the Vatican, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Saturday. Pope Francis appointed You, chief of the diocese of Daejeon in central South Korea, as the new prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for the Clergy earlier this week. It is the first time that a South Korean has been appointed to a secretary position at the
June 12, 2021
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Seoul says J&J vaccine supply not from troubled Baltimore factory
Johnson & Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine supplied to South Korea was not produced in a troubled Baltimore factory that was forced to throw out about 60 million doses over possible contamination, the health ministry said Saturday. South Korea has been administering Janssen's single-shot vaccine since Thursday to reserve forces, civil defense members and others in charge of defense and foreign affairs after the US. government donated 1 million doses to Korean armed forces. A total of 45
June 12, 2021
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New virus cases in mid-500s for 2nd day amid continued cluster infections
South Korea's daily new virus cases remained under 600 for the second straight day Saturday, as health authorities have decided to extend the current social distancing rules for another three weeks to stem cluster infections. The country reported 565 more COVID-19 cases, including 525 local infections, raising the total caseload to 147,422, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The daily tally marked an increase of nine from Friday's 556 cases but stayed in the mid-500s for the
June 12, 2021
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KDCA chief got second AstraZeneca shot behind closed doors, four weeks after the first
Jeong Eun-kyeong, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s commissioner, received her second dose of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine in April, four weeks after the first one as opposed to the recommended 11 to 12 weeks, the agency said Friday. The belated announcement came after the agency initially declined to publicly respond to a question from The Korea Herald at Friday’s televised briefing. When asked when she planned to get her second dose of the vaccine, she s
June 11, 2021
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[News Focus] ‘Unique’ apartment policy incurs new social conflicts
SEJONG -- The Moon Jae-in administration’s real estate policy has brought about social discord, as preferential treatment was effectively given to particular groups, irrespective of its initial policy intentions. The groups who benefited include people with large cash holdings and young married couples in their 20s or 30s. Though the government has not officially provided special favors for those with huge cash holdings in purchasing homes, property regulations including tight mortgage
June 11, 2021
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Man sent to prosecution over filming, sharing nude videos of boys, men
Police on Friday sent a man to the prosecution on charges of filming and distributing nude photos and videos of more than 1,300 boys and men. Kim Young-jun, whose identity was disclosed by the police earlier this week, is accused of filming about 27,000 nude videos of the victims, including 39 minors, and sharing them online from 2013 until recently. On Friday morning, the 29-year-old appeared in front of reporters for the first time as police officers took him from Jongno Police Station in ce
June 11, 2021
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New virus cases back under 600, distancing rules extended for 3 weeks
South Korea's daily new virus cases fell back to below 600 on Friday, but health authorities decided to extend the current social distancing rules for another three weeks before adopting revamped antivirus measures. The country reported 556 more COVID-19 cases, including 541 local infections, raising the total caseload to 146,859 the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Daily virus cases stayed in the 400s on Monday and Tuesday but spiked to the 600 range on Wednesday and T
June 11, 2021
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Distancing rules again extended, revamped restrictions set to be implemented in July
South Korea will extend its current virus restriction measures for another three weeks and plans to adopt eased measures as part of a set of new distancing rules afterward, health authorities said Friday. Currently, the greater Seoul area, along with the southeastern city of Daegu and the resort island of Jeju, is under Level 2 distancing in the five-level scheme, while the rest of the country is under Level 1.5. The ban on gatherings of five or more people nationwide will be also in place, bu
June 11, 2021
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Curfews on restaurants, entertainment facilities in greater Seoul to be eased from July
Restaurants, cafes and entertainment facilities in the greater Seoul area will be able to open until midnight starting next month as the country is moving to gradually ease virus curbs in line with an accelerating vaccination rate, the health ministry said Friday. Starting in July, restaurants, cafes, karaoke businesses and other entertainment establishments can operate until midnight in the greater Seoul area, two hours more than the current curfew at 10:00 p.m., according to the Ministry of H
June 11, 2021
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ASEAN-Korean Center launches second season of interview series ‘ASEAN Issue’
The ASEAN-Korea Center is set to launch a second season of its own YouTube interview series, “ASEAN Issue,” on Friday. The interview series, aimed at promoting Southeast Asian cultures as well as ASEAN-Korean partnerships, started last year and featured diverse perspectives of the regions. The new season of the interview series will also feature a wide range of topics from culture, history, economies and industries of ASEAN-Korea relations. The first episode, scheduled to be rele
June 11, 2021
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[#WeFACE] Climate activists calling for big changes, now
Efforts from individuals are important in the fight against the climate crisis, but to save the Earth changes at a larger scale must happen now, climate activists said Thursday. Under the theme of climate change activism, the third session of Herald Corp.’s first H.eco Forum brought climate activists together to discuss solutions and share ideas. “We have only six years and seven months to respond to the climate crisis. The climate crisis is not a small problem and it cannot be s
June 10, 2021
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[#WeFACE] H.eco Forum 2021 calls for climate action to create net-zero society
Herald Corp.’s first H.eco Forum opened in Seoul on Thursday, delivering a reality check -- that the Earth has about six years and 235 days to prevent the effects of global warming from becoming irreversible -- and yet signaling hope that we can still avert a climate catastrophe. Under the theme “We face the Climate Clock,” the forum, which was livestreamed, gathered global leaders, businesspeople and activists to discuss solutions to the climate emergency at every level and
June 10, 2021
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S. Korea aims for more vaccine supply next year: official
South Korea has begun preparation to secure more vaccines for next year as the COVID-19 pandemic here is expected to continue even after achieving much-awaited herd immunity this year, a ranking health official said Thursday. The country has already secured enough vaccines to inoculate some 100 million people in a country of 52 million. The vaccines are made by five pharmaceutical firms -- AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson's Janssen, Moderna and Novavax. Over 10 million of the populat
June 10, 2021