Korea to consider animals not ‘things’

The Ministry of Justice made a pre-announcement of legislation Thursday to revise the Civil Act to introduce the clause to declare “Animals are not things.” As the number of households with companion animals has increased significantly over recent years in Korean society, there is widespread social consensus that animals should be more protected and cared for as living creatures. There are also growing concerns about animal cruelty and animal abandonment. The rationale behind insu

Aug. 19, 2021

JeongSeon Forum 2021 sheds light on living together with sustainable Earth

In search of solutions to achieve carbon neutrality, the JeongSeon Forum 2021 kicked off its three-day journey Thursday at High1 Grand Hotel Convention Tower in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province. Back for its fourth edition this year, the forum, hosted by Gangwon Province, Jeongseon County and Gangwon Tourism Organization invited experts, scholars, and business representatives from both in and outside of Korea. The event has been designed to be a forum for eco-friendly culture and ecological civili

Aug. 19, 2021

Maskless Chuseok looks ‘increasingly unlikely’

The Korean government’s promise of a maskless Chuseok holiday next month is looking increasingly less likely, health experts say, with cases once again rising to record levels on Thursday. In the last 24 hours ending Wednesday midnight, Korea counted 2,152 more cases of COVID-19, up from the previous day’s 1,805, marking the second-highest one-day record behind Aug. 11’s 2,222. Over the past month, an average of 1,652 cases was posted each day. Son Young-rae, spokesperson

Aug. 19, 2021

Health workers plan strike, demanding more staff, support

With public health workers warning of a strike, concerns are rising that hospitals already struggling with surge in patients could face series difficulties. On Wednesday, 122 branches of the Korean Health and Medical workers’ Union (136 medical institutions) filed for a dispute settlement with the Labor Relations Commission. The union demanded an expansion of public health centers, medical workers, infrastructure and financial support. If the union does not settle with the government in

Aug. 19, 2021

[Newsmaker] High court okays 34-year prison term for university student in sexual blackmail case

DAEGU -- An appellate court on Thursday upheld an imprisonment of 34 years for a key member of an online sexual blackmail ring indicted on 12 criminal charges, including the violation of laws on protecting minors from sexual abuse. The Daegu High Court in this southeastern city approved the hefty prison term after convicting Moon Hyung-wook, a 24-year-old university student, of coercing 21 women and girls into sharing nearly 3,800 sexually explicit videos of themselves for distribution on a Tel

Aug. 19, 2021

Renowned Kazakh poet commemorated at Seoul Cyber University

In commemoration of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Kazakhstan, coming up next year, a bust of poet Abai Qunanbaiuly was recently installed at Seoul Cyber University. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Lee Sang-kyun, chair of the Shinil Education Foundation, unveiled the sculpture together on Tuesday at Seoul Cyber University, which is run by the foundation. “National poet Abai, with his soul-touching and beautiful lyrics, was a grateful visionary

Aug. 19, 2021

Moon pledges to expand free cervical cancer vaccination program for adolescent girls

President Moon Jae-in pledged Thursday to expand South Korea's free cervical cancer vaccination program to benefit all girls under age 18. "(The government) will enlarge the scope of beneficiaries of the free vaccination program to include girls up to the age of 17 from the current cap at age 12," Moon said in response to a civic petition submitted on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of Cheong Wa Dae's online public petition service. "I will work to entitle all female ado

Aug. 19, 2021

New cases at over 2,000 again; toughest curbs likely to be extended

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases topped 2,100, the second-largest number recorded here during the COVID-19 outbreak, following an extended weekend, as the country will likely again extend the toughest virus restrictions in the greater Seoul area and the enhanced restrictions across the country. The country added 2,152 more COVID-19 cases, including 2,114 local infections, raising the total caseload to 230,808, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily

Aug. 19, 2021

Korea’s messaging around AstraZeneca vaccine prompts confusion

AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine became available to people in their 30s and 40s this week, even though the official cutoff age hasn’t changed. This is leaving many people unsure, including medical professionals who say no real evidence was provided to support the change of policy. Officially, the vaccine is recommended only for those 50 and older, due to the higher risk of rare but serious blood clotting as a side effect in younger people. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention

Aug. 18, 2021

Appellate court rules against license revocation for Jeju for-profit hospital

An appellate court on Wednesday reversed a local court's approval of the Jeju provincial government's revocation of the business license of what would have been the nation's first for-profit hospital. The Jeju branch of the Gwangju High Court ordered the Jeju government to cancel its decision in 2019 to nullify the business license of the Chinese-owned Greenland International Medical Center as South Korea's first for-profit hospital. The appellate court ruling came after the Jeju District Cour

Aug. 18, 2021

Seoul education chief hints at allowing more in-person classes

As schools reopened for the second semester, Seoul Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon has hinted at expanding in-person classes to more students even with the toughest social distancing measures in place. “If the distancing level (in Seoul) comes down to Level 3 by Sept. 3, we can allow in-person classes for all students. Even if Level 4 continues, we can still have in-person classes for two-thirds of students,” Cho said during a visit to an elementary school in western Seoul on

Aug. 18, 2021

Cheong Wa Dae confident of reaching vaccination target despite Moderna delay

Cheong Wa Dae is confident of reaching its vaccination target for COVID-19 as planned, despite delayed vaccine shipments from Moderna, President Moon Jae-in’s senior public communications secretary Park Soo-hyun said Wednesday. "We can reach the goal if the already secured vaccines are well controlled,” he said in a radio interview earlier in the day, referring to Moon’s Liberation Day speech on Sunday, when the president said the nation was on track to inoculating 70 pe

Aug. 18, 2021

Critical cases rise among unvaccinated young people

The prime minister has urged young South Koreans to get vaccinated for COVID-19, saying more of the country’s unvaccinated young people are becoming critically ill. “We believe that some people still avoid vaccination because of concerns about side effects. And some don’t get shots because they think the coronavirus is nothing,” Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Wednesday. “However, even among unvaccinated young people, the number of severely ill patients (due to

Aug. 18, 2021

Apartment security workers could get air conditioning, 4 days off per month

Apartment security guards will get at least four days of leave every month and a better work environment if a recent government initiative succeeds. The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Wednesday that it would propose a legislative revision to improve working conditions for apartment security workers by setting guidelines on how their offices should be equipped and what benefits must be provided. Under the proposal, security workers would be guaranteed at least four days of leave every m

Aug. 18, 2021

New cases spike to over 1,800s, further rise in store after holiday

  South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases rose back to the 1,800s for the first time in three days on Wednesday, following the extended weekend, and health authorities remain vigilant against a further rise down the road. The country added 1,805 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,767 local infections, raising the total caseload to 228,657, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily infections rebounded after falling to 1,556 on Monday and 1,373 on Tuesday d

Aug. 18, 2021

Toughest Level 4 distancing rules take effect on Jeju Island

The toughest Level 4 social distancing rules went into effect on the southern resort island of Jeju on Wednesday, as authorities struggle to contain the rapid spread of COVID-19 among tourists and residents. The Jeju provincial government said the Level 4 scheme, up one notch from the previous Level 3, will be enforced throughout the island until Aug. 29, imposing strict restraints on people's gatherings and activities. Under the new rules, private gatherings of up to two people are allowed af

Aug. 18, 2021

[Graphic News] Only 5.2% of executives in Korea are women

　Women hold 5.2 percent of executive positions at publicly listed companies in South Korea, the Gender Equality Ministry said. 　According to a survey of 2,246 stock market-listed companies in the first quarter, only 1,668, or 5.2 percent, of the 32,005 executives were women, according to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. 　Vice Minister Kim Kyong-seon said that rate was far lower than the OECD average of 25.6 percent, citing the British weekly the Economist. (Yonhap)

Aug. 18, 2021

No plan yet to offer COVID-19 booster shots in Korea

Nursing homes and hospitals across South Korea are reporting outbreaks of post-vaccination infections, called breakthrough cases, with some experts suggesting a possible need for an extra shot in vulnerable people. Nursing facilities are “back in crisis mode,” according to Dr. Son Deok-hyeon, the director of Eson nursing hospital in Ulsan. Visits are restricted, and staff required to get tested regularly. For those working with elderly patients, the memory of the last surge is s

Aug. 17, 2021

[News Focus] Koreans worked 200 more hours than OECD average in 2020

SEJONG -- South Koreans were found to have worked longer by about 200 hours last year compared to the average of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. In the Paris-based organization’s analysis of annual work hours logged by its 36 members, Korea ranked No. 3. Turkey was not included in the count. The OECD defined average annual hours worked as the total number of hours actually worked per year divided by the average number of people in employment per year. Each e

Aug. 17, 2021

Moderna to provide more vaccines to Korea in August, September: govt.

Moderna has pledged to put utmost efforts to increase the COVID-19 vaccine supply to South Korea for August and September and move up the supply schedule for September, the Korean government said Tuesday.  The announcement came after a Korean government delegation of four high ranking officials visited the US pharmaceutical and biotechnology company’s headquarters over the delay in shipments of Moderna’s vaccine. “Moderna apologized for the difficulties caused by the sup

Aug. 17, 2021