[Newsmaker] First Korean Culture Minister Lee O-young dies at 89

Lee O-young, who passed away on Saturday at 89 after a long battle with liver cancer, was Korea’s first culture minister and considered one of the foremost “intellectuals of this era” here. In 2017, Lee was diagnosed with liver cancer and underwent two surgeries. Since then, he had been refusing cancer treatment and continued writing books and conducting various interviews to share his insights. Recently, he published “Memento Mori” in January and “Where Ar

Feb. 27, 2022

[Newsmaker] South Korea drops close contact quarantine requirements altogether

Starting March 1, people who have been in close contact with a COVID-19 patient will no longer need to quarantine regardless of their vaccination status in South Korea. This includes people living in the same household as someone isolating with an active infection. Currently unvaccinated or partially vaccinated people have to quarantine for seven days following a close contact exposure, while those who are fully vaccinated don’t. A close contact requiring quarantine is defined as living

Feb. 25, 2022

[Newsmaker] Korea halts use of its only COVID-19 antibody drug Regkirona

South Korea is no longer using Celltrion’s Regkirona, the only COVID-19 antibody drug approved for use in the country, after it was shown to be ineffective against the omicron variant. Omicron now accounts for nearly all new infections here. 　 In a message to reporters Wednesday afternoon, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said it had stopped supplying Regkirona as of Feb. 18, confirming earlier media reports. The agency said the remaining stock of Regkirona will only be u

Feb. 23, 2022

[Newsmaker] Ruling party concentrates fire on Yoon over wife’s alleged stock manipulation

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea on Wednesday slammed Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate of the main opposition party, accusing him of hiding the truth about his wife’s alleged involvement in a stock manipulation case. “Yoon will lose in the presidential election because of Kim Keon-hee’s stock manipulation charges,” Rep. Woo Sang-ho of the ruling party said, speaking at a campaign committee meeting Wednesday. Woo is chief of the campaign committee for Lee J

Feb. 23, 2022

[Newsmaker] Teachers’ unions accuse Education Ministry of fanning confusion

Teachers’ unions are voicing out their concerns after the government announced schools will have the choice to provide full remote classes during the first two weeks of March. The Ministry of Education announced Monday that it has designated March 2 -11 to be a new semester adjustment period, allowing schools to hold online-only classes if needed. Previously, the ministry had warned schools to refrain from switching to an online-only class scheme. However, it changed its stance with a s

Feb. 22, 2022

[Newsmaker] Historical revisionism, political motive behind Japan’s Sado mine push as world heritage

Japan’s decision to recommend a disused gold and silver mine as a UNESCO World Heritage site has drawn backlash in South Korea, with observers accusing Tokyo of trying to distort history by nominating the mine, which was the site of forced labor in the early 20th century. 　 Located on Sado Island in Niigata prefecture, the mine highlights outstanding mining technology development before and after the industrialization, becoming one of the world’s largest sources of gold in the 17th

Feb. 21, 2022

[Newsmaker] aT CEO at vanguard of global green food campaign

Going green is not just about having more electric vehicles or shutting down old factories powered by fossil fuels, says the head of South Korea’s food distribution and export promotion agency, but also extending that eco-friendly thinking to the table. Not just reducing food waste but also choosing to eat more local production would make a greater impact on the Earth, said Kim Choon-jin, president of Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp. Kim and his agency have been taking an ini

Feb. 20, 2022

[Newsmaker] S. Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases top 100,000 for first time

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases surpassed the 100,000 mark for the first time since the country reported the first COVID-19 infection in January 2020. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the country added 109,831 new COVID-19 infections during the 24 hours of Thursday. The total caseload came to 1,755,806. Daily infection numbers have been surging due to the omicron wave. On Jan. 26, the country added 13,004 new infections, the first time that the country&

Feb. 18, 2022

[Newsmaker] Hong Sang-soo’s ‘The Novelist’s Film’ wins grand jury prize at Berlinale

Filmmaker Hong Sang-soo’s 27th feature “The Novelist’s Film” on Thursday won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at Berlin International Film Festival. The 72nd Berlin International Film Festival is being held from Feb. 10 to 20 as an in-person event. “I really didn’t expect this big prize. I’m very surprised. Thank you all the jury members for your appreciation,” Hong said in an acceptance speech in English. “I feel like I should say somethin

Feb. 17, 2022

[Newsmaker] Ruling party's attempt to link Yoon with shamanism backfires

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea's attempt to again embroil People Power Party’s presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol with shamanism allegations backfired, after photos hinted key figures within their own faction could be involved as well. Rep. Kim Eui-kyeom of the Democratic Party raised an allegation in a press conference Tuesday that Yoon and his wife were found linked to a dubious religious ritual in 2018 run by a shaman accused of being unofficially involved with Yoon’s cam

Feb. 16, 2022

[Newsmaker] Korea’s plans for COVID-19-positive voters spark voting rights concerns

South Korea has changed the rules around voting to let people infected with COVID-19 cast their ballots in polling stations, as the omicron surge places record numbers of people under self-quarantine. On the second day of advance voting, March 5, and on the day of the presidential election, March 9, eligible voters with active cases will be able to vote in person past the regular hours, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. The National Assembly passed the exceptional measure into a bill on Monday. As many as

Feb. 15, 2022

[Newsmaker] Yoon hops on ‘Passion Train’ to woo voters from rival stronghold

YEOSU, South Jeolla Province -- It is Saturday, and People Power Party presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol is making a grand entrance outside Jeonju Station in North Jeolla Province. With supporters cheering -- some chanting “President Yoon Suk-yeol” to a drum beat -- Yoon is greeted by party Chairman Lee Jun-seok who arrived at the station on the “Passion Train,” a chartered four-carriage train that the party hired for a tour of the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces.

Feb. 14, 2022

[Newsmaker] Hana eyes stronger earnings, shareholder value under new leadership

South Korea’s Hana Financial Group announced a record annual net income of 3.5 trillion won ($2.9 billion) for 2021 last week, citing successful portfolio diversification as a driving force behind the banking group’s robust profit. Exceeding market expectations, Hana’s annual net income gained 33.7 percent on-year, driven by a noteworthy increase in earnings of its nonbanking businesses, a regulatory filing showed Thursday. Brokerage arm Hana Financial Investment’s net

Feb. 13, 2022

[Newsmaker] Buying of virus self-test kits to be restricted to 5 per purchase for 3 weeks

Buying of COVID-19 self-test kits will be restricted to five units per purchase for three weeks, as the government works to stabilize the supply in light of the recent surge in at-home treatment patients, according to officials Saturday. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the purchase restriction of self-test kits will be enforced for three weeks starting Sunday. Customers, however, will be allowed to purchase additional kits at different stores if needed, according to officials

Feb. 12, 2022

[Newsmaker] After being called feminists, these women faced online harassment

The death of livestreamer Jammi, whose real name is Cho Jang-mi, made headlines this week in South Korea. It emerged that she took her own life after “suffering severe depression over malicious online comments and rumors,” according to an online post written by one of her family members. The 27-year-old who used to stream on YouTube and Twitch was accused of being a radical feminist in 2019. The accusations began after she used a pinching hand sign that some claimed to be misandri

Feb. 11, 2022

[Newsmaker] Lawmakers expected to extend voting hours for COVID-19 patients

South Korea could extend voting hours on March 9 to let voters afflicted with COVID-19 to vote in the presidential election and by-elections held that day. Legislators on Thursday agreed to revise the Public Official Election Act so that voters afflicted with COVID-19 under self-quarantine will be allowed to vote within a 90-minute window until 7:30 p.m. after voting booths close for regular voters at 6 p.m. Lawmakers also agreed to add a clause mandating voters afflicted with COVID-19 to be p

Feb. 10, 2022

[Newsmaker] Hana Financial taps man behind successful KEB merger transition as new chief

South Korea’s Hana Financial Group has nominated Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo, who led its flagship lender’s smooth operation and business rebranding after its grueling acquisition of Korea Exchange Bank seven years ago, to be the next chairman of the banking group. On Tuesday, the firm’s chairman nomination committee tapped Ham as the sole nominee for the position, citing his performance in generating profit and bolstering stability in business. Ham has also shown “extra

Feb. 9, 2022

[Newsmaker] Schools’ new COVID-19 rules clouded with uncertainty

Teacher unions are raising criticism of the Ministry of Education, accusing it of putting the burden of COVID-19 management on schools and teachers. On Monday, the Education Ministry announced that schools will move to “normalcy” in attendance measures for the new semester, flexibly responding to virus situations. Under the new measure, schools can change their attendance policy based on the new four-stage plan suggested by the ministry. Teachers’ associations, however, a

Feb. 8, 2022

[Newsmaker] Korea switches to self-reported contact tracing as COVID-19 positivity rate hits record

As the omicron variant spreads rapidly in South Korea, related figures have also hit fresh highs, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Monday. As of midnight Sunday, the percentage of tests that were positive out of all tests administered in the country reached 26 percent, up 5.2 percentage points from the previous day’s 20.8 percent. This means that 1 out of 4 people who received a PCR test got a positive result for COVID-19. The figure has been increasing r

Feb. 7, 2022

[Newsmaker] Koreans take umbrage at presence of hanbok at Beijing Winter Olympics ceremony

Hanbok has become the latest focal point in the decades-long row between Korea and China over many aspects of Korean culture that China claims as their own. A new controversy erupted when a performer wearing hanbok, or traditional Korean costume, was seen participating in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics Friday night. As people representing 56 ethnic groups in China carried the Chinese national flag into Beijing’s National Stadium, a woman in a white and pale pink hanb

Feb. 6, 2022