Seoul education chief challenges opinion in anti-corruption agency’s 1st case

Seoul Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon filed an objection on Tuesday after the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials’ review committee decided Cho should face charges of abuse of power in connection with a hiring decision. Cho’s legal representative, Lee Jae-hwa, filed the official request with the chief of the CIO on Tuesday, arguing that the previous day’s review committee meeting was biased and it should reconvene. “(The review committee&rsq

Aug. 31, 2021

[Graphic News] Number of seniors living alone soars 36% over 5 years

　The number of seniors living alone has surged nearly 36 percent over the last five years amid the country's rapid population aging, data showed. 　A total of 1.66 million South Koreans aged 65 and older lived by themselves in 2020, up 35.8 percent from five years earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. 　The number accounted for 21.2 percent of local household members aged 65 and older, which numbered 7.85 million last year. 　In particular, the number of seniors living alone

Aug. 31, 2021

New cases under 1,400 on fewer tests; toughened curbs eyed ahead of Chuseok holiday

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,400 on Tuesday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but health authorities are facing hurdles in flattening the curve ahead of the Chuseok holiday. The country added 1,372 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,333 local infections, raising the total caseload to 251,421, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily cases have stayed above 1,000 for 56 consecutive days. Tuesday's tally marked a drop from 1,619 on Sun

Aug. 31, 2021

South Korean lawmakers to vote on cameras in operating rooms after surgery deaths

South Korean lawmakers will vote as early as Monday on whether to require hospitals to place surveillance cameras in operating rooms after a series of medical accidents involving unqualified staff who stood in for surgeons. If the bill is approved by parliament, South Korea will be the first developed country to require closed-circuit cameras to record surgical procedures. The push for having cameras in operating theatres intensified after a case in 2016 in which surgeons at private clinics we

Aug. 30, 2021

Panel backs indictment of Seoul education chief over hiring of fired teachers

A panel of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials on Monday issued an opinion in favor of indicting the chief educational official of Seoul over his suspected abuse of power in the reinstatement of fired teachers. Cho Hee-yeon, superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, has been under investigation by the government's independent corruption investigative body on suspicion of illegally influencing the process of reinstating five dismissed teachers, incl

Aug. 30, 2021

Korea to dole out relief funds to 88% of Koreans

  South Korea plans to provide 250,000 won ($214) for each individual in a disaster relief fund to help revive the sagging economy hit by the prolonged pandemic, officials said Monday. Subsidies worth a total of 11 trillion won are to be given to households in the bottom 80 percent income bracket. But, as special standards apply to single-person households and dual-income households, about 88 percent of the total population will receive them. As for single-person households, they are eli

Aug. 30, 2021

Suspect in murder, rape of baby girl sparks public outrage in S. Korea

DAEJEON -- Public outrage has been boiling in South Korea over a man who allegedly abused and murdered a baby girl in June, with some people planning to stage rallies calling for the death penalty. The 29-year-old man, surnamed Yang, was recently indicted on charges of sexually assaulting and abusing the 20-month-old toddler to death at his home in Daejeon, about 165 kilometers south of Seoul, on June 15. A little past midnight on that day, Yang, who was drunk at the time, allegedly covered t

Aug. 30, 2021

Justice ministry to toughen surveillance measures against convicts wearing ankle bracelets

The Ministry of Justice said Monday it will devise measures to step up monitoring of convicts wearing electric ankle bracelets, following the incident over the weekend where a man, who had cut off his monitoring device and took off, turned himself in to police and said he killed two women. The ministry said at a briefing it will make the device harder to cut off, enhance cooperation with police by swiftly sharing information on criminals wearing such a device and introduce an improved system to

Aug. 30, 2021

[Newsmaker] 7 in 10 Koreans agree with granting long-term stay visas for Afghan evacuees: survey

Nearly 7 out of 10 Koreans agree with the government’s plan to grant long-term visas for Afghan evacuees, a survey showed Monday. The government evacuated 390 Afghan nationals, including people who worked for Korean organizations and their families, and plan to grant them long-term stay visas. According to Realmeter’s survey, 68.7 percent of the respondents said they “empathize with” the government’s plan whereas 28.7 percent said they do not agree with it. By

Aug. 30, 2021

[Herald Interview] I feel totally safe now: Afghan helper

An Afghan national evacuated to South Korea five days ago has told the Korea Herald that he feels “totally safe” after arriving here. “Outside the facility where I stay now, I see a flag in my language Farsi that ‘Don’t be disappointed. Korea supports you.’ When I see these kinds of flags, these kinds of messages from Korean people, I don’t know how to thank them,” he said by phone from his accommodation at a government facility in Jincheon, Nort

Aug. 30, 2021

Man who ran away after removing ankle bracelet confesses to killing 2 women

A man, who had cut off his monitoring ankle bracelet and took off, turned himself in to police and said he killed two women, police said. Songpa Police Station arrested the 56-year-old man, surnamed Kang, on Sunday for ripping off the electronic device and allegedly murdering two -- one before he ran off and the other while he was on the run. The man turned himself over to police at around 8 a.m. Sunday, reportedly saying he feared being arrested soon for his crimes. Police had been chasing h

Aug. 30, 2021

New cases under 1,500, S. Korea to offer booster shots in Q4

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,500 on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, with the country planning to offer booster shots to those who have been fully vaccinated in the fourth quarter to cope with the variant strains. The country added 1,487 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,426 local infections, raising the total caseload to 250,051, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Monday's tally marked a drop from 1,793 on Saturday and 1,6

Aug. 30, 2021

Govt. calls for illegal foreigners to get vaccinated without worrying about getting busted

The government on Sunday called for all foreigners illegally staying in South Korea to receive COVID-19 vaccines, saying that it will not lead to deportation or other immigration measures. Seoul has allowed undocumented foreigners, including those who overstayed their visas, to get the vaccine shots, just like its own nationals, through the reservation procedures under the ongoing national inoculation program. "Even if a foreigner with an unqualified status gets inoculated, there will b

Aug. 29, 2021

2.6-magnitude earthquake hits off S. Korea's western coast

A 2.6-magnitude earthquake struck off South Korea's western coast Sunday, the state weather agency said. The quake occurred at 6:47 p.m. in waters 62 kilometers northwest of an island located in Taean, a county in the central South Chungcheong Province, the Korea Meteorological Administration said. "There will be no earthquake damage," the KMA said. (Yonhap)

Aug. 29, 2021

Korea stretching vaccine supply to prioritize first doses over seconds

South Korea is stretching its COVID-19 vaccine supply to deliver first doses to as many people as possible at the cost of potentially running short of supply for second doses, as the deadline for the government’s vaccination goal looms. Hong Jeong-ik, heading the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s COVID-19 vaccination management team, admitted uncertainty in supply for people due their second doses in late September and October during a closed-door briefing Thursday.

Aug. 29, 2021

[News Focus] Unemployment claims rise most in smaller cities, provinces

SEJONG -- The volume of government payouts for people who lost jobs has climbed sharply since COVID-19 pandemic hit the nation in January 2020, with recent monthly tallies outstripping the figures before the pandemic. All eight major cities and nine provinces in South Korea saw increases in the unemployment benefit payouts. However, there were disparities in the size of the increase. According to the Korea Employment Information Service, the number of recipients of unemployment benefits came

Aug. 29, 2021

KIS students design website on sustainability and recycling

Two Korea International School students have launched a website to educate consumers on recycling ice packs as the school offers support for its members to carry out sustainability initiatives with its commitment to applied learning and service. The website named Ice Pack Project, designed by two 12th grade students, Justin and Alex from KIS, is designed to educate consumers why it is important to recycle ice packs and where to recycle them. The duo believed more ice packs need to be recycled

Aug. 29, 2021

Suicide death rate drops in 2013-2017: data

South Korea's suicide death rate dropped steadily for over 2013 to 2017, government data showed Sunday. The data compiled by the health ministry and Korea Foundation for Suicide Prevention showed that 22.8 out of 100,000 South Koreans took their own lives in 2017, dropping from 24.4 in 2016. The country's suicide rate fell gradually from 27.4 out of 100,000 in 2013 to 25.9 in 2014 and 25.4 in 2015. The total number of suicide deaths declined for five straight years since 2013, when it stood at

Aug. 29, 2021

Korea, Singapore discuss mutual recognition of vaccine certificates

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug and his Singaporean counterpart Tan Chuan-Jin agreed on the need to mutually recognize COVID-19 vaccination certificates and to resume a reciprocal quarantine exemption arrangement at a virtual meeting held on Friday, officials said Sunday. They also shared views on the Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership Agreement and the Korean Peninsula. Park said, “We are keenly interested in the efforts of Singapore to strike the right balance between inf

Aug. 29, 2021

New cases under 1,700; number of critically-ill patients on rise

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,700 Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but the number of patients in critical condition stayed high, sparking concerns over more fatalities down the road. The country added 1,619 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,576 local infections, raising the total caseload to 248,568, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Sunday's tally compares with 1,793 on Saturday and 1,841 on Friday. Daily cases have stayed

Aug. 29, 2021