[Newsmaker] 17 foreigners deported for quarantine breaches

Seventeen foreigners have been deported for violating the COVID-19 self-quarantine rules and eight for refusing to be admitted to quarantine facilities upon entry, the government said Friday. Additionally, 38 foreigners were sent back for not following the entry procedures mandated since the coronavirus outbreak started. The government data on quarantine breaches shows that 531 people here broke quarantine orders between Feb. 19 and Wednesday -- 0.16 percent of the 324,160 people who have be

Social AffairsJune 12, 2020

[Newsmaker] International middle schools in Seoul may lose special status

Seoul’s two elite middle schools may lose their autonomy next year, as the city’s education office decided Wednesday to cancel their licenses. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced the decision to revoke licenses of Daewon International Middle School and Younghoon International Middle School, saying they stratify schools, deepen inequality and promote private education. The decision is not final, as it is subject to the approval of the Education Ministry, which wi

Social AffairsJune 10, 2020

[Newsmaker] COVID-19 testing free for all Seoul residents

Starting Monday, all Seoul residents, with or without respiratory symptoms, can get tested for the novel coronavirus free of charge. 　 The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced it is stepping up its campaign to stop the “silent” spread of the deadly pathogen in the capital region, home to about 10 million people. 　 Previously, asymptomatic persons wishing to receive a COVID-19 diagnostic test on their own had to pay about 160,000 won ($133) if their test results came back negati

Social AffairsJune 8, 2020

[Newsmaker] Comfort women shelter head found dead

The head of a shelter for surviving victims of Japan’s sex slavery was found dead at her apartment amid controversy surrounding the shelter’s operator for its possible misuse of donated funds and exploitation of the victims for political ambitions. Police said Sunday that Son Young-me, 60, was found dead at her apartment in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, at around 10:30 p.m. Saturday. Her body was found inside the bathroom. The cause of her death is not known as of press time, but offici

Social AffairsJune 7, 2020

[Newsmaker] Over 70 Korean-owned properties suffer damage in US protests

Over 70 cases of damage to properties owned by South Koreans in the US have been reported due to violent protests convulsing across the country, fueled by the police-involved death of an African American man George Floyd, officials here said Tuesday. 　 The Foreign Ministry said a total of 79 stores operated by Koreans reported damage -- 50 cases in Philadelphia, 10 in Minneapolis, five in Raleigh, North Carolina, and four in Atlanta -- due to looting and vandalism. 　 No casualties from Korean

Foreign AffairsJune 2, 2020

[Newsmaker] ‘Murder-suicide with child is extreme child abuse’: court

Two women on trial for killing their children ahead of suicide attempts were sentenced to prison, with a judge calling the parents’ act nothing but “extreme child abuse,” Ulsan District Court said Monday. In the two separate cases, the defendants, aged 42 and 40, were each sentenced to four years behind bars last week, according to Ulsan District Court. “This is a form of extreme child abuse. As many experts point out, ‘double-suicides’ cannot be glamorized

Social AffairsJune 1, 2020

[Newsmaker] Public masks purchasable any day of week

Government-rationed masks will be available for purchase at pharmacies on any day of the week, starting from Monday, according to the government on Sunday. People under the age of 18 will be allowed up to five masks per week, two more than adults, given the resumption of in-person classes at schools nationwide. The measure comes as part of the changes introduced to the public mask distribution system, which was first introduced in February at the height of novel coronavirus fears and has si

Social AffairsMay 31, 2020

[Newsmaker] BTS label Big Hit gears for IPO

The South Korean music label behind K-pop sensation BTS has filed for a preliminary review for an initial public offering, according to the nation’s stock market operator Korea Exchange (KRX) on Friday. Founded in 2005 by music producer Bang Si-hyuk, Big Hit Entertainment houses BTS and other K-pop singers and bands, including Lee Hyun and Tomorrow X Together. Bang, who serves as the entertainment firm’s chairman, currently holds 45.1 percent stake, while mobile gaming firm Netma

MarketMay 29, 2020

[Newsmaker] Hacking attempts targeting S. Korean military info double in 2019

Hacking attempts from abroad targeting South Korean defense information nearly doubled last year, but no data was stolen, the Defense Ministry said Thursday. The number of foreign hacking attempts involving South Korea’s defense information system -- all equipment and software related to the collection, processing, storage, transmission, reception and use of military information -- surged from about 4,000 in 2017 to 5,000 in 2018 and 9,533 last year, the ministry said. Most of the IP ad

DefenseMay 28, 2020

[Newsmaker] tvN’s ‘The Ramyeonator’ may be slapped with KCSC warning

The Korea Communication Standards Commission’s Broadcast Advertising Sub-Commission on Tuesday decided to recommend issuing a warning to CJ Olive Networks and tvN’s show “The Ramyeonator” for exposing a specific brand of Korean ramen on the show. “The Ramyeonator” featured a popular television show host, Kang Ho-dong, eating ramen with different ingredients, trying to find the tastiest ramen combination. Kang added everything from oyster, duck, clams and cra

TelevisionMay 27, 2020

[Newsmaker] Man gets jail for breaking quarantine

A 27-year-old man was sentenced on Tuesday to four months in prison for breaking self-quarantine. It was the first court ruling in a COVID-19 case since the infectious disease control law was toughened last month. It is also the first time a jail term has been handed out in South Korea for a quarantine violation. The man, surnamed Kim, was required to self-isolate for two weeks upon being discharged in early April from the Catholic University of Korea Uijeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital, whe

Social AffairsMay 26, 2020

[Newsmaker] Recycling centers face desperate battle to survive

The global coronavirus pandemic is threatening the future of plastic recycling in South Korea, as major recycling centers are incurring mounting losses amid a collapse in global demand. Many are being forced to cut costs, work hours and head counts just to stay afloat, but a quick turnaround appears unlikely, industry insiders and government officials said. “(Local) recycling centers are largely dependent on exports of collected recyclables, but trade is not happening these days,&rdquo

Social AffairsMay 25, 2020

[Newsmaker] LG under fire for inappropriate video clip

LG Electronics’ Polish unit came under fire Sunday for running a video advertisement on social media that many claimed as inappropriate. In one of the videos posted on LG Poland’s official TikTok account, an old man uses LG Electronics’ V60 ThinQ dual screen smartphone to take photos of a young woman in front without her consent. Noticing the shutter sound, the woman turns around and grabs the phone only to find the old man’s selfies. She apologizes to the old man and

Social AffairsMay 24, 2020

[Newsmaker] Five more foreigners deported for breaching self-isolation rules

Five more foreign nationals have been deported from South Korea after getting caught violating self-isolation rules, the Ministry of Justice said Friday. The violators -- two Chinese nationals and one each from Pakistan, Poland and Britain -- have been ordered to leave for their home countries after failing to comply with Seoul's mandatory self-isolation rule aimed at containing the new coronavirus. Three of the five, who entered South Korea after April 1, when the mandatory self-isolation or

Social AffairsMay 22, 2020

[Newsmaker] 2 paid members of sex abuse chatroom charged with ‘joining criminal group’

Police said on Thursday it requested court warrants to detain two paying members of an online chat room that distributed photos and videos of violent sex acts on charges of joining a criminal group as well as violating the child protection law. Police suspect that the two were heavily involved in criminal activity while knowing that the chat rooms were run not just by a single person, but by a group of people with different tasks. “We suspect that unlike other paying members, they took

Social AffairsMay 21, 2020

[Newsmaker] Korean football club get record fine over sex dolls in stands

South Korea's FC Seoul were fined a record 100 million won ($81,000) for using sex dolls to fill seats at a match held behind closed doors, with K-League officials saying the football club had "deeply humiliated women fans". With spectators barred because of the coronavirus, FC Seoul came under fire after dozens of dolls wearing T-shirts or holding placards with the logo of a sex-toy seller appeared at Sunday's game. The incident made headlines around the world. After reviewing th

SoccerMay 21, 2020

[Newsmaker] Actress denies having partied in Itaewon amid outbreak

Actress Lee Min-jung on Wednesday denied allegations that she partied in Seoul's nightlife district of Itaewon after the area emerged as a hotbed for coronavirus cluster infections earlier this month. "Lee did not visit Itaewon. Instead she went to a friend's birthday party at a cafe in Cheongdam (in southern Seoul). All she did was take a picture while dropping off a gift," a representative at MSTeam Entertainment, Lee's management company, told Yonhap News Agency over the phone on

TelevisionMay 20, 2020

[Newsmaker] Extradition hearing starts on S. Korean child porn site operator

Son Jong-woo, a South Korean national who operated the world’s largest child pornography website and is wanted by US authorities, demanded guarantees at his extradition hearing Tuesday that he will not face charges in the US for crimes he has been convicted of here.  The 24-year-old’s defense made the argument during a hearing on his extradition to the US at the Seoul High Court. The court is scheduled to reach a decision in the next two months on the US Justice Department&rsq

Social AffairsMay 19, 2020

[Newsmaker] 4 K-pop stars test negative after visiting Itaewon last month

BTS' Jungkook and three other K-pop idol singers visited Itaewon, the center of the recent outbreak of the new coronavirus in Seoul, together late last month but have tested negative for the virus, their agencies said Monday. A local internet-based daily reported earlier in the day that Jungkook, Jaehyun of NCT, Mingyu of Seventeen and Cha Eun-woo of Astro hung out at a restaurant and two different bars on April 25 in Itaewon, Seoul's most popular nightlife and multicultural neighborhood, whil

K-popMay 18, 2020

[Newsmaker] ‘World of Married’ finishes on a high

The hit drama series “The World of the Married” wrapped up its 16-episode run Saturday, setting a record as the most-watched drama series on Korean cable TV channels.  According to viewership research institute Nielsen Korea, the final episode of the JTBC series marked a record viewership of 28.3 percent, outrunning the previous record of 23.8 percent set by another JTBC hit “SKY Castle.” Drama “The World of the Married” centers around the character of

TelevisionMay 17, 2020