The Seoul High Court ruled Monday that the Korea Immigration Service under the Ministry of Justice should issue F-1 visas to foreign applicants regardless of their gender if they plan to visit South Korea to help a family member who is expecting or has given birth here. F-1 visas are issued to those visiting and joining their families. The immigration agency’s internal regulation states that only female family members of such immigrants can be granted F-1 visas.  A male Vietna

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2019

A large group of liberal protesters gathered near the National Assembly in Yeouido on Saturday chanting, “We the people must change the prosecution.”  Among their key demands was the creation of an independent body to investigate corruption allegations involving senior government officials. Similar calls also reverberated in front of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul. Conservatives also held rallies in Yeouido and Seocho-dong, protesting the

Politics Oct. 27, 2019

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk will likely face the prosecution in the coming weeks for questioning over corruption allegations involving his family. His wife, Chung Kyung-shim, was arrested early Thursday morning. Prosecutors suspect Cho was complicit in his wife’s alleged crimes, or at least was aware of them. But they are unlikely to file an arrest warrant for Cho, since the court’s usual practice is to allow only one member of an accused couple to be detained. Meanwhile,

Politics Oct. 24, 2019

Chung Kyung-shim, former Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s wife, appeared at the Seoul Central District Court on Wednesday for a hearing on her arrest. She attended the hearing with her attorney. Chung faces 11 charges, including fabricating a document to support her daughter’s university application, obstructing business, insider trading, embezzlement and withholding evidence. She has denied them. Chung submitted what appeared to be a medical diagnosis to the prosecution during the previ

Politics Oct. 23, 2019

Prosecutors on Monday filed an arrest warrant hearing for former Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s wife, Chung Kyung-shim, on charges of forging a document used to support a university application for their daughter. She also faces charges of obstructing official business, insider trading, embezzlement and withholding evidence. Two months ago, prosecutors raided multiple organizations connected with the family’s alleged malfeasance. Chung submitted what appeared to be a medical

Politics Oct. 21, 2019

The Korea Foundation, a public diplomacy arm of Seoul’s Foreign Ministry, will host its second Public Diplomacy Week at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul on Oct. 24. Open to the public for free, the three-day event brings together public diplomacy experts and foreign diplomats posted in Seoul for people to learn more about South Korea’s public diplomacy, which combines the government cooperation with the private sector to enhance foreign people’s understanding of Korea. T

Social Affairs Oct. 18, 2019

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl pledged to drastically reform his agency at a parliamentary audit Thursday.  “All of us are aware that the people are demanding prosecution reforms more strongly than ever,” he said. “We respect their voices and the parliament’s decisions and will come up with our own reforms.” He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to reform, three days after former Justice Minister Cho Kuk resigned from his post. The audit session

Politics Oct. 17, 2019

It was a de facto defeat for South Korea. In a men’s World Cup qualifier match held Tuesday in Pyongyang, South Korea, No. 37 in the FIFA world rankings, failed to score a single goal against North Korea, No. 113, even with Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min leading the charge. It was the first inter-Korean home game for North Korea in almost three decades, since the two Koreas played each other in 1990.   South Koreans couldn’t watch the Tuesday match or cheer for

Social Affairs Oct. 16, 2019

Former South Korean Consul General to Vietnam Park Noh-wan was appointed its next ambassador, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Monday. Park, currently ambassador for international relations to South Korea’s North Jeolla Province, was a minister at the South Korean Embassy in Vietnam and a counselor at South Korea’s permanent delegation to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Park replaces Kim Do-hyun as Seoul’s chief envoy to the Southeast Asian natio

Foreign Affairs Oct. 16, 2019

News of embattled Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s resignation on Monday did little to close the stark gap between liberals and conservatives still unwilling to conciliate their opposing views on the former justice minister’s appointment. Liberals were disappointed with the news. “It is highly regrettable that Cho had to resign before completing reforms he promised,” said Hong Ik-pyo, spokesperson for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea. “Despite mounting difficul

Social Affairs Oct. 14, 2019