Search under way for fishing boat off eastern coast

POHANG -- The South Korean Coast Guard was searching for a fishing boat with six crew members aboard Friday after it made a distress call in choppy seas off the southeastern coast. The Pohang Coast Guard said it received a report at 6:49 p.m. that the 9.77-ton crab fishing boat was flooding in waters some 42 kilometers east of Gyeongju. Six crew members -- three South Koreans, two Vietnamese and one Korean-Chinese -- were aboard, officials said.   The Coast Guard and the Navy dispat

Feb. 19, 2021

200 old Japanese maps define Dokdo as Korean territory

As many as 200 ancient Japanese maps have been confirmed to mark Dokdo in the East Sea as Korean territory, a government-funded foundation here said Friday. 　 The Dokdo Foundation said it has secured the undisputed evidence to deny Tokyo‘s territorial claim to Dokdo after examining some 1,000 old maps owned by various local institutions, including the National Assembly Library, the Northeast Asian History Foundation and the National Map Museum run by the National Geographic Information Ins

Feb. 19, 2021

Coronavirus field inspections due at foreigner-dense workplaces

Quarantine authorities are to conduct intensive coronavirus field inspections at foreigner-dense areas and workplaces and other places deemed highly vulnerable to the pandemic, a government agency said Friday, after recent outbreaks of virus clusters at factories. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters, about 1,000 places nationwide, including industrial plants, large-scale workplaces and construction sites, will be subject to such field inspections from Monday

Feb. 19, 2021

Hundreds of cafe, restaurant owners sue govt. over COVID-19 losses

More than 200 owners of cafes and restaurants sued the government on Friday over losses caused by COVID-19 business restrictions. The plaintiffs -- 170 cafe owners and 70 restaurant owners -- said they are seeking 1.2 billion won ($1.08 million) in compensation from the government. The lawsuit, which was filed with the Seoul Central District Court, is the second of its kind. The first one was lodged last month by a group of 358 coffee shop owners seeking 5 million won each. "Ever since t

Feb. 19, 2021

Gay couple sues state health insurer over canceled coverage

A gay couple has sued the state health insurer for canceling its coverage of one of the partners as a dependent, an activist group said Friday. So Seong-wook and his partner Kim Yong-min filed the administrative lawsuit against the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) with the Seoul Administrative Court on Thursday, according to the Korean Network for Partnership and Marriage Rights of LGBT. The NHIS first granted So coverage under Kim's employer-based health insurance program in February

Feb. 19, 2021

Kolon Life executives acquitted of falsifying data of gene therapy drug

Two Kolon Life Science executives were acquitted Friday of involvement in the company's allegedly fraudulent report on a key ingredient in its gene therapy drug. The Seoul Central District Court handed down the ruling to the drugmaker's two executives, surnamed Cho and Kim, who were indicted on charges that included fraud related to the company's suspected illegalities in the development and sales of Invossa, a cell and gene therapy for osteoarthritis. But the court separately ordered Cho, a s

Feb. 19, 2021

S. Korea makes final check on vaccine deployment plan in mock drill

South Korea carried out a final government-wide mock drill Friday for the planned transport of COVID-19 vaccines ahead of the beginning of the inoculation program next week, the defense ministry said. Earlier this month, health authorities and related agencies conducted the first mock drill at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, for the transport of the foreign-made Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Friday's second and final rehearsal focused on transporting the AstraZeneca's vaccine, to be p

Feb. 19, 2021

Sejong University cleared of corruption allegations

Sejong University has been cleared of corruption charges, the institution said Friday. “All charges the Ministry of Education requested investigation on were dropped in December 2020,” the university said in a statement. “There were no violations of laws nor fall in profitability resulting from negligence by Daeyang Foundation board members,” it said, referring to the education institution that operates Sejong University. The university had been under investigation

Feb. 19, 2021

Two court officials arrested over attempt to rape, assault

Two court officials have recently been arrested in separate incidents this month on suspicion of attempting to rape a woman, and assaulting a karaoke owner in Seoul, police said. A drunk official in his 30s chased a woman into a restroom in a building in Songpa-gu, Seoul, where he then beat and attempted to rape the victim on Thursday, police said on Friday. The man, surnamed Kim, fled as the victim resisted and later was arrested by police. The police are investigating him on charges of at

Feb. 19, 2021

[Newsmaker] Funeral of activist Paek Ki-wan draws thousands of mourners

A funeral ceremony took place early Friday for activist Paek Ki-wan, who devoted his life to the reunification of the two Koreas and many labor and social issues. Paek died at Seoul National University Hospital on Monday at age 88. He had battled complications of pneumonia for a year. Hundreds of mourners had been waiting outside the hospital, holding signs with the lyrics of "March for the Beloved," a famous pro-democracy movement anthem Paek wrote. They watched the vehicle carryin

Feb. 19, 2021

Highly pathogenic bird flu cases in S. Korea nearing 100

The number of highly pathogenic bird flu cases in South Korea is nearing 100, with the prolonged battle against the animal disease set to further push up the price of poultry products. Two new cases of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza (AI) were reported from a duck farm in Goesan, about 160 kilometers south of Seoul, and an egg farm in Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs on Friday. On Friday, yet another suspected cas

Feb. 19, 2021

New COVID-19 cases fall back in 500s; infections at workplaces on rise

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back to below 600 on Friday, while authorities are stepping up monitoring of manufacturing plants and hospitals to slow the rapid pace of virus transmission. The country reported 561 more COVID-19 cases, including 533 local infections, raising the total caseload to 86,128, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The country added six more deaths, raising the total to 1,550. Friday's caseload was down from the previous two day

Feb. 19, 2021

S. Korea confirms another case of highly pathogenic bird flu

  South Korea confirmed another case of highly pathogenic bird flu in poultry Thursday, bringing the total caseload to 98. The latest case of the H5N8 strain of avian influenza (AI) came from a duck farm in Goesan, some 160 kilometers south of Seoul, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said. All poultry within a 3-kilometer radius of the infected farm were culled, officials said. The authorities are investigating another suspected case in Gyeonggi Province near Seoul,

Feb. 18, 2021

Half of Jeju residents opposed to new airport on island: polls

More than half of the residents of Jeju Island are opposed to a new international airport on the southern island, polls showed Thursday. However, residents of the town selected as the site of the airport were in favor of the project in separate surveys by the same pollsters. All of the surveys were conducted from Monday to Wednesday. Nine local news outlets commissioned Gallup Korea to conduct a poll on Jeju residents' view of the central government's drive to build a second international air

Feb. 18, 2021

COVID-19 could be ‘tamed by November,’ says KDCA deputy chief

The COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea will be “sufficiently tamed by November, or possibly earlier,” Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Deputy Director Kwon Jun-wook said Thursday, referring to the vaccination timetable. The deputy director said COVID-19 rates have fallen globally, largely due to the immunization efforts that are already underway in the US and many countries in Europe. He said that once vaccinations kick off in Korea, this country too can expect the

Feb. 18, 2021

Civic activists lose lawsuit to suspend operation of nuclear plant

A group of civic activists and residents lost a lawsuit against a state nuclear safety commission Thursday, in which they sought to suspend the operation of a nuclear power plant in the southeastern provincial city of Ulsan for safety reasons. The Seoul Administrative Court handed down the ruling against 723 complainants who claimed that the Shin Kori-4 plant poses dangers to the protection of people's lives and that the operator, the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Plant (KHNP), should suspend

Feb. 18, 2021

[Photo News] Cold wave hits nation once again

Chonnam National University, just north of Gwangju, is covered in white after another cold wave gripped the country. A citizen walks down a snowy path on the campus. In subzero weather, pigeons walk on the frozen lake on the campus of Chonnam National University. Jeju Island, one of the warmest areas of South Korea, could not avoid the cold this time. A person walks through a blizzard as white snow falls from the sky.  Yet there are signs of spring -- flowers are beginning to bloom even

Feb. 18, 2021

English education should start at earlier age: lawmaker

A South Korean lawmaker serving on the education committee said the nation needs to change the paradigm of English education by providing it at an earlier age and abolishing test-focused, cram-style education. “Preschoolers are building up a considerable level of English skills through private education. Students who first encounter English in the third grade of elementary school have a different starting line than students who learn earlier through private education.” Rep. Kim By

Feb. 18, 2021

Advocates welcome plan for birth registration system for Korea-born foreign children

Children’s rights activists welcomed a move by the Ministry of Justice toward the establishment of a birth registration system for non-Korean children born in South Korea, as a means to ensure that every child has legal status regardless of nationality. A network of advocacy groups said in a statement Wednesday that the ministry’s decision would help Korea better track all children and protect them from mistreatment. It is expected that more than 20,000 unregistered foreign children

Feb. 18, 2021

S. Korea investigating 2 suspected cases of highly pathogenic bird flu

South Korea said Thursday it is investigating two suspected cases of highly pathogenic bird flu, with the country's total confirmed caseload approaching close to 100. The latest suspected cases of the H5N8 strain of bird flu were reported from the provinces of North Chungcheong and Gyeonggi, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. South Korea has so far identified 97 farm-linked cases. The country reported its first seriously contagious avian influenza from poultry f

Feb. 18, 2021