At least eight people were killed and four were missing after torrential rains hit southern parts of South Korea over the weekend, emergency officials said Sunday. Since Friday, as much as 40 centimeters of rain has fallen in South Gyeongsang and Jeolla provinces, leaving tens of thousands of hectares of farmland submerged and nearly 90 homes flooded. On Sunday, two old women, aged 92 and 86, were

Social Affairs July 10, 2011

The number of South Korean nationals who left their home country for the purpose of permanent residence in foreign nations dropped to a record low last year, as the nation’s economy continues to improve, a report showed Sunday. A total of 899 people left South Korea to emigrate in 2010, down 22 percent from the previous year, according to the report by the Foreign Ministry. It marked the first tim

Social Affairs July 10, 2011

A Korean volunteering group was caught allegedly selling fake prizes in the name of U.S. President Barack Obama.Twenty-nine people including lawyers, businessmen and students were swindled, according to Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Friday.The police’s international division booked the 52-year-old leader surnamed Park and six others on charges of fraud.Park told police that he planned the fraud

Social Affairs July 10, 2011

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― North Korea or unidentified forces aligned with the communist nation may be preparing for full-fledged cyber-terrorism against South Korea or the United States, based on its “test” attacks in 2009 and earlier this year, a U.S. Internet security firm said Tuesday.In a special report, McAfee Inc. said North Korea or its “sympathizers” seem to have been responsible for the

North Korea July 6, 2011

North Koreans gathered Monday at a massive rally in Pyongyang to denounce the conservative government of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak as a “group of unparalleled traitors.“More than 100,000 citizens, soldiers and senior government and army officials flocked to Kim Il Sung Square, according to footage from Associated Press Television News in Pyongyang.Signs carried slogans praising North Ko

North Korea July 5, 2011

U.S. first lady Michelle Obama is expected to make her first visit to South Korea next March to join a rare gathering for spouses of world leaders during a global summit on nuclear security, an official at Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. The U.S. first lady is likely to accompany her husband, President Barack Obama, on his trip to the next Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, which leaders fro

Foreign Affairs July 5, 2011

The defense military has declared a war on smoking, unveiling a plan to lower its service members’ smoking rate by 3 percentage points this year.Some 47.2 percent of military personnel were smokers as of the end of last year, higher than the average of 39.6 percent for the country’s men, according to government data.“Under the smoking reduction goal, the defense ministry designated 100 non-smoking

Defense July 5, 2011

Safety concerns are rising as the Ministry of National Defense seeks to allow citizens including high-school students to experience live-fire drills at a training facility for reserve forces in Seoul in October.The ministry plans to commission a private organization to run the shooting facility in Seocho-gu, and allow all citizens aged 16 or older to use it to enhance security awareness, officials

Social Affairs July 4, 2011

The government plans to allow foreigners visiting the country aboard cruises to disembark here without a visa for short stays as part of efforts to attract foreign tourists.The Justice Ministry on Friday announced its proposal to ease the visa rule for foreigners arriving in Korea on cruise ships. The ministry also inserted a clause in the revised bill to help long-term foreign residents adapt to

Social Affairs July 1, 2011

The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party will visit China next week to help South Korea’s bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics and discuss regional issues, including North Korea, his party said Thursday. Rep. Sohn Hak-kyu plans to embark a four-day trip on Monday to meet China’s Vice President Xi Jinping and other high-ranking politicians to ask for support for the eastern alpine city of

Politics June 30, 2011

Representatives of employers and employees have failed to reach an agreement in negotiating the minimum wage for next year. An additional meeting was to take place Thursday, the deadline for the accord, but compromise was unlikely between employers calling for a 30 won raise from this year’s 4,320 won ($4) per hour and workers demanding a 1,000 won hike. They were expected to vote on the third par

Social Affairs June 30, 2011