Rights commission rules abuse of foreign seasonal workers as human trafficking

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea ruled Tuesday that numerous types of illegal abuse inflicted on a group of seasonal workers from the Philippines last year amount to human trafficking. It was the first time the commission recognized abuse against seasonal workers of foreign nationality as human trafficking. Pointing to loopholes in the system as well as insufficient government management and supervision as causes, the commission identified illegal abuse practices including: wage exp

Nov. 5, 2024

Drunk driver arrested for fatal collision with cyclist

A man suspected of causing a fatal car accident while driving under the influence was arrested Tuesday morning. Officers from Seongnam Sujeong Police Station took the man into custody for allegedly hitting a man in his 30s who was riding an electric bicycle in Sujeong-gu, Seongnam city in Gyeonggi Province at around 4:10 a.m. The driver reportedly fled the scene without attempting to assist the victim. The victim sustained a critical injury and died despite receiving medical treatment at a nea

Nov. 5, 2024

Man kills friend's wife in attempted theft of 100,000 won

An elderly man who tried to steal a small amount of money from an old friend ended up killing the friend's wife, according to the police in South Jeolla Province on Tuesday. Yeosu Police Station is currently investigating the suspect, a man in his 60s, on suspicion of murdering a woman in her 70s at around 11 p.m. on Sunday. The victim was found stabbed in the chest inside her home, and died in the early hours of Monday despite receiving medical treatment at a nearby hospital. The suspect

Nov. 5, 2024

Pregnant woman forced to travel 200 kilometers to give birth

A 28-week pregnant woman from Daejeon had to travel 200 kilometers to Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, for an emergency delivery after nearby hospitals turned her down citing a lack of available facilities, authorities said Monday. The Daejeon Fire Department said it received a report that a woman's water broke at around 2:52 a.m. on Monday. Emergency paramedics arrived at her home and took her to a local hospital she regularly goes to, only to be told the facility could not handle an emerg

Nov. 5, 2024

Alert issued after scrub typhus surge

A surge in cases of scrub typhus at the end of October has prompted the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency to advise caution to avoid contact with mites. There were 312 cases of scrub typhus between Oct. 24 and 30, a fivefold increase from 57 two weeks earlier according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The disease is caused by bacteria carried by the larvae of chiggers, also known as harvest mites, which suck fluids from animals including humans. The bacteria can caus

Nov. 5, 2024

Seoul eyes expanding foreign caregiver pilot program

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of Employment and Labor stated on Tuesday that it wants to expand its current foreign caregivers pilot program -- now a little over two months in -- to include more caregivers from Southeast Asian countries other than the Philippines. Since September, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has been running a six-month foreign caregiver pilot program with the Labor Ministry, with an aim to provide selected households based in Seoul with affordable chi

Nov. 5, 2024

Draft sentencing guidelines envision tougher penalties for animal abuse crimes

A draft of new sentencing guidelines unveiled on Monday calls for tougher penalties for severe and repeated cases of animal cruelty, a move widely seen as a push to end a long era of leniency in the judicial treatment of such offenses. The guidelines, drafted at a meeting of the Supreme Court’s sentencing commission on Friday, are the top court’s first formal framework for animal abuse crimes, a court spokesperson told local media. The move comes as public concern over animal cruelty

Nov. 5, 2024

[Out of the Shadows] Seoul room clubs offer drugs to compete for clientele

Room salons -- private bars that hire women to entertain guests -- are often accused of abusing their closed-door nature to provide illegal prostitution services. But recently they have been turning to drugs to compete for customers. The main substances used here are ketamine and ecstasy, according to people close to the matter and the police. “The term ‘candy,’ for example, is slang for ecstasy, and its main consumers are visitors of nightlife facilities and those working in e

Nov. 5, 2024

K-water begins hydroelectric dam construction in Solomon Islands

The construction of a hydroelectric dam has begun as a part of the Solomon Islands’ first-ever large-scale renewable energy project, according to the Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water) on Tuesday. According to K-water, a groundbreaking ceremony was held on Monday in the capital city of Honiara in the Solomon Islands to mark the start of K-water’s project to build a hydroelectric dam on the islands’ Tina River. The ceremony was attended by more than 500 individuals, inc

Nov. 5, 2024

Seoul reports positive feedback from plant distribution project

Seoul’s plant-distribution initiative has proven effective in improving the mental health of young Koreans living in social isolation and seclusion, city officials said Tuesday. In a survey of 302 Seoul residents aged 19 to 39 who received free plants such as ivy, dwarf umbrella trees, hoya lisa, and Chinese evergreens as part of the city-run program, 90.9 percent reported that growing the plants at home positively impacted their mental well-being. Participants reported increased self-effi

Nov. 5, 2024

Top court upholds teen's 20-year term for killing mother

South Korea’s Supreme Court upheld a 20-year prison sentence for a 15-year-old who killed his mother after she scolded him. The court ruled on Oct. 31 that there were no errors in the lower court’s verdict, dismissing the defendant’s claims that he was mentally ill, according to media reports Tuesday. The teenager was convicted of murdering his mother on October 1 last year, during the Chuseok holiday, at their residence in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. His mother was

Nov. 5, 2024

Bus driver saves unconscious passenger: report

A driver of a Seoul bus who resuscitated an unconscious female passenger is being praised for his quick thinking and appropriate measures, a local media outlet reported Tuesday. According to Newsis, the incident occurred at around 6:53 p.m. on Oct. 22 as a No. 3217 was waiting for the light to change. The passenger, who had been standing near the door, suddenly fainted and fell to the floor. A surveillance footage of the bus, revealed by the Seoul Bus Transport Association, showed the driver O

Nov. 5, 2024

3 out of 10 young Koreans say moving out of parents' house unnecessary

Nearly a third of young people in South Korea do not think financial or residential independence from their parents is necessary after they reach adulthood, a recent survey showed. The state-run Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs on Monday revealed the results of its survey on Koreans aged 19-34, on young Koreans' perceptions of adulthood, independence and the meaning of family. Some 30.2 percent of respondents said moving out of one's parents' home is not necessary,

Nov. 5, 2024

[Graphic News] Average lunch over 10,000 won

The average amount workers spend on lunch has risen back above 10,000 won ($7.24), according to data from food tech company SikSin. The survey found that the average amount spent on lunch at restaurants nationwide was 10,037 won. After surpassing 10,000 won for the first time in the first quarter of this year, it dipped slightly to 9,902 won in the second quarter, but has since increased again. Other statistics reflect tighter household budgets. Notably, there has been a significant rise in wo

Nov. 5, 2024

Prosecutors demand up to 10 yrs imprisonment for officials over Gwangju apartment collapse

GWANGJU -- Prosecutors on Monday demanded prison terms of up to 10 years for company officials accused of involvement in the deadly collapse of an apartment building in Gwangju in 2022. The collapse of the 39-story apartment building under construction left six workers dead and one injured in January 2022. An investigation found that deck plates and concrete supports affecting the building's bearing capacity had been installed without a structural review. During the final hearing at Gwang

Nov. 4, 2024

Man booked after nearly 100 reptiles found dead in his home

A man in his 20s was booked without detention for allegedly abandoning hundreds of pet reptiles, resulting in many of them starving to death, according to police on Monday. Heungdeok Police Station in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province said it is investigating the man on suspicion of breaking the Animal Protection Act. The police said they received a report on October 11 from the landlord of an apartment in the city’s Bokdae-dong neighborhood. The landlord said he had been unable to cont

Nov. 4, 2024

Supreme Court rules teacher pulling student's arm not child abuse

A teacher who was accused on charges of child abuse for scolding and pulling a student’s arm has been ruled not guilty, the court announced Monday. South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s ruling that had imposed a fine of 1 million won ($730) on the teacher, identified only by the surname Choi, for child abuse charges and sent the case back to the Uijeongbu District Court for review. The incident occurred on March 14, 2019, when the teacher allegedly shouted at a

Nov. 4, 2024

[Legal updates in Korea] Preventing repeat DUI offenses

● Updated law: Road Traffic Act What it does: Requires repeat drunk driving offenders to install car breathalyzers or in-car alcohol monitoring systems Took effect: Oct. 25 Punishment: Imprisonment up to 1 year or a fine up to 3 million won, driver's license revoked for failure to use the devices. South Korea has been making decisive moves in recent years to prevent drunk driving accidents and fatalities. Many celebrities and politicians have made headlines after being charged with drivin

Nov. 4, 2024

KMA hosts int'l symposium on numerical weather forecasting

Weather researchers from around the world came together Monday to discuss more measures that can be taken to improve weather forecasting in the era of climate change, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration on Monday. The three-day event, hosted by the Korea Institute of Atmospheric Prediction Systems, a research institute affiliated with the KMA, has been held annually since 2012, after South Korea established its own numerical weather prediction tool in 2011. Known as the Korean I

Nov. 4, 2024

Temperatures to drop by more than 10 C Tuesday morning

South Korea will begin to see hints of winter weather, as temperatures are expected to drop significantly from Tuesday, with some regions seeing cold wave alerts issued in the morning, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration on Monday. According to the KMA, average temperatures nationwide are expected to range from 2 to 11 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning, a 10 C difference from average temperatures on Monday. As a low-pressure trough passes over the northern parts of Korea, the K

Nov. 4, 2024