S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases fall below 10,000

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 10,000 on Monday due mainly to fewer tests over the weekend as the country is considering further easing antivirus curbs to regain normalcy. The country reported 8,164 cases, including 33 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,285,910, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Monday's tally was down from 14,742 cases a day earlier but is higher than the previous Monday's 5,774 cases. The country added seven COV

May 8, 2023

Yoon, Kishida agree on Korean inspection of Fukushima wastewater

Leaders of South Korea and Japan agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a higher level at a summit held in Seoul Sunday, both touting that the restored "shuttle diplomacy" has brought yearslong strained relations back on track. At the summit, the second in less than two months, the two leaders agreed to allow a group of Korean experts to visit Japan to inspect the safety of contaminated water to be discharged from Fukushima nuclear reactors. “I hope that meaningful measures will be

May 7, 2023

10 arrested for drug use at foreigners-only club

South Korean police on Saturday arrested 10 people for suspected illegal drug use after raiding a foreigners-only club in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province. According to officials, five police stations across the provincial cities of Siheung, Osan, Hwaseong and Ansan conducted a joint crackdown of a local club located in Jeongwang-dong, Siheung, arresting two Koreans and eight Vietnamese. One of the Koreans was a man in his 40s who owns the club -- operated exclusively for Vietnamese -- while three of

May 7, 2023

Municipalities offer subsidies for hair loss treatment

An increasing number of local governments are subsidizing medical expenses for young people suffering from hair loss amid an increase in the number of Koreans in their 20s and 30s seeking the treatment. Saha District Office in Busan amended an ordinance Wednesday to provide free alopecia treatment for residents aged 19-34. Saha ward office is the latest in municipalities' drive to fund hair loss treatments for residents. Seongdong District Office in Seoul has also been offering cash voucher

May 7, 2023

Number of foreign students at Korean colleges hits all-time high

The number of international students enrolled in Korean higher education institutions hit a record high last year, data showed Sunday. According to the data released by the Ministry of Education, there were 166,869 foreign students enrolled at domestic universities and colleges as of April 1 2022, marking an increase of 10 percent from a year earlier and exceeding pre-pandemic levels. The number of international students included those enrolled in both degree and non-degree programs, such as l

May 7, 2023

S. Korea to lower national crisis level for COVID-19 soon

South Korea plans to "swiftly" lower its national crisis level for COVID-19, the head of the country's public health agency said Saturday, after the World Health Organization declared an end to the virus as a global health emergency earlier this week. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Commissioner Jee Young-mee made the announcement in a release, following WHO's move Friday to end the public health emergency of international concern that had been in place since

May 6, 2023

Flight operations partially resume on Jeju Island

Flight operations on the southern island of Jeju, which was hit by heavy rain and strong winds for two days, partially resumed Friday, airport authorities said. A domestic flight departing from Seoul arrived at Jeju International Airport at 10:10 a.m., they said. The airport had reported the cancellation of 488 flights as of 10 a.m. As of 6 p.m. Friday, 64 flights had departed from Jeju and 77 others had landed on the island. Airlines had added 45 extra domestic flights and two international fli

May 6, 2023

Heavy downpours cause flooding, damage in southern regions; multiple flights canceled

Heavy rainfall in the southern part of South Korea caused property damage Friday, the Children's Day holiday, while also forcing multiple flights and ship services to be canceled. According to municipal officials in Gwangju, some 270 kilometers south of Seoul, the platform at Airport Station on Gwangju Metro Line 1 was flooded with muddy water Friday afternoon, forcing trains to pass without stopping at the station for over an hour, starting at around 4:45 p.m. Gwangju said its western dist

May 6, 2023

WHO declares end to COVID-19 global health emergency

LONDON (Reuters) -- The World Health Organization on Friday declared an end to COVID-19 as a global health emergency, marking a major step toward the end of the pandemic that has killed more than 6.9 million people, disrupted the global economy and ravaged communities. The WHO's Emergency Committee met on Thursday and recommended the UN agency declare an end to the coronavirus crisis as a "public health emergency of international concern," which has been in place for over three ye

May 6, 2023

Lawmaker's call to abolish ‘no kids zones’ sparks controversy

A South Korean lawmaker's call for the abolition of “no kids zones” in certain restaurants and venues met a divided response from the public Friday. Rep. Yong Hye-in of the minor progressive Basic Income Party on Thursday claimed that many private restaurants and public venues adopt “no kids” policies without reasonable grounds. “Today, popular cafes and restaurants on Instagram and even public libraries have become ‘no kids zones,’” Yong said

May 5, 2023

Seoul's noncompliance with child abduction convention will pressure Yoon: lawmaker

South Korea's continued noncompliance with the Hague Abduction Convention designed to prevent the international abduction of children by a parent might pressure the Yoon Suk Yeol administration which seeks to bolster ties with the US, a lawmaker said Friday. The continued failure of Seoul to enforce the return of children to the US in international abduction cases could spark diplomatic trouble between Seoul and Washington, according to Rep. Park Yong-jin of the main opposition Democratic P

May 5, 2023

Construction firm ruled responsible for deaths of hundred of parrots

The Supreme Court judged that a construction company was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of parrots in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, Yonhap News reported Friday, citing legal sources. The plaintiff, who runs a parrot farm, filed a lawsuit against the construction company, claiming that noise and vibrations from a construction site nearby caused the deaths of parrots. From January 2017 to December of the same year, total 427 parrots died on the plaintiff’s farm. The plaintiff filed 16 c

May 5, 2023

'Sharenting' is growing problem in Korea

A growing number of parents around the world are recording the lives of their children and posting them on social media to cherish and proudly share their kids' most precious moments. But from the perspective of the children, such practices often lead to the unwanted exposure of their identities on the internet. South Korea has been working to create legal frameworks to ensure children's rights are not forgotten on the internet. Only when they grow up will they begin to fully comprehen

May 5, 2023

Bill to allow undercover drug probes proposed

Amid growing concerns over drug crimes, lawmakers suggested a bill amendment to allow the police to conduct undercover investigations in drug-related cases. Rep. Lee Jang-seop of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea proposed a bill revision Wednesday, noting that foreign countries including the United States and Germany have introduced undercover investigation systems to effectively manage drug crimes. Nine other lawmakers of the party signed up for the bill proposal. Under the current

May 5, 2023

Blustery Children’s Day disrupts flight operation on Jeju Island

Scores of flights were grounded at Jeju International Airport for two straight days due to strong winds and heavy rain, turning Children's Day into one of gloom and frustration. According to the Jeju Island branch of the Korean Airports Corp., 183 domestic flights to and from Jeju airport -- 92 departures and 91 arrivals -- had been canceled as of 8 a.m. A total of 488 domestic flights -- 238 arrivals and 235 departures -- and 15 international flights -- seven arrivals and eight departures

May 5, 2023

Number of Seoul daycare centers down by 24% in five years

The number of daycare centers in Seoul, which accommodate infants and toddlers under age seven, has decreased by 24 percent in the last five years as the country has continued to record the world's lowest fertility rate, data showed Friday According to statistics from the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Friday, the number of daycare centers in Seoul was 4,712 as of the end of 2022, which decreased by 24.3 percent from 6,226 in 2017. The number of daycare centers by year has been steadily

May 5, 2023

Daegu hospitals who refused teen patient to face punishment

Four general hospitals in Daegu are to be penalized by the Ministry of Health and Welfare for refusing to accept a severely injured teenager on March 19, which led to the girl’s death after two hours of driving from hospital to hospital in an ambulance. The ministry determined that the hospitals -- Daegu Fatima Hospital, Keimyung University Dongsan Hospital, Kyungpook National University Hospital and Daegu Catholic University Medical Center -- unreasonably refused to treat an emergency p

May 4, 2023

Children want parents say ‘I love you’ most on Children’s Day: survey

Elementary school students would love to hear “I love you” the most from their parents and teachers on Children’s Day, according to a survey released Wednesday. According to the survey conducted by Chungcheongnamdo Office of Education, 37.8 percent of respondents said they wanted to hear "I love you" while 24 percent said they want to hear "you can do it.” From their friends, some 40 percent of respondents said they want to hear "let's hang out

May 4, 2023

Civic activists stage rallies over Kishida’s visit

With less than two days until a summit between the leaders of South Korea and Japan on Sunday, civic activists across the country took to the streets to stage protests, demanding a formal apology from Tokyo on Thursday. In the late morning, a group of students from 12 colleges in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province was the first to hold rallies over Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to Seoul. Jang Ji-won, a 19-year-old student majoring in law at Sookmyung Women’s University, was

May 4, 2023

Yoon celebrates opening of children's garden on ex-US military base

President Yoon Suk Yeol celebrated the opening of the Yongsan Children's Garden on what was formerly part of the US' Yongsan Garrison military base on Thursday. The 300,000-square-meter site is open to the public for the first time in 120 years, as the central Seoul site had been used for military facilities by Qing troops in the late 19th century, the Imperial Japanese army during the colonial era and US Forces Korea after Korea's liberation in 1945. The ceremony to celebrate t

May 4, 2023