Young South Korean women who have a negative body image -- those who feel unsatisfied with their physical appearance and body weight -- are more prone to mental conditions such as depression, a study showed Wednesday.The study, organized by Gangnam Severance Hospital in Seoul, analyzed government data of a total of 717 young Korean women who belong to the normal weight range -- meaning their body mass index was from 18.5 to 22.9. Among the participants, 40 percent of them inaccurately perceived

Social Affairs June 22, 2016

While the 20th National Assembly has the highest proportion of seats held by women in its history, at 17 percent, gender disparity was still prevalent during the general election in April, a study showed Tuesday.The study, organized by a group of former and current women politicians, found that only 10.5 percent of all 934 nominated candidates who ran for constituency seats were women. Among the 51 women who secured seats in the parliament, 25 of them were elected by proportional representation.

Social Affairs June 21, 2016

The reasons for divorce in South Korea have varied significantly each decade since the 1950s, changing from spouses that have gone missing to basic unhappiness, a study by the Korea Legal Aid Center for Family Relation showed Friday.The study, which analyzed a total of 1,469,900 pre-divorce counselling cases from 1956-2015, found that historical events and the social climate of each decade, such as the Vietnam War and the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, influenced couples’ decisions to part ways. F

Social Affairs June 17, 2016

The South Korean government recently launched a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program for young girls, but many women and activists in South Korea have mixed feelings about it.Starting June 20, the Health Ministry is to offer free vaccinations against HPV -- known to be the major cause of cervical cancer -- for girls aged 12. The vaccines, which are given in two shots over six months, are currently not covered by the national health insurance, and cost about 360,000 won ($307). While th

Social Affairs June 16, 2016

Kim Ji-yeon, a 25-year-old Seoulite, starts her day by checking her Instagram. She usually posts selfies, photos of food she ate and sometimes pictures of her dog. “I usually post something before I go to bed,” she said. “And it feels nice to wake up in the morning and find out how people responded. It’s like my morning ritual.”Kim said she is addicted to her smartphone “just as much as everyone else she knows.” She carries it with her everywhere, all the time, every day. She charges her phone b

Social Affairs June 15, 2016

Alina Shamsutdinova thinks she can’t dress up to her potential in South Korea. The 23-year-old Kazakhstani arrived in Seoul in 2011, as an international student, in hopes to learn about the country of her ethnic origin. Born to third-generation ethnic Koreans in Kazakhstan, she grew up thinking she was beautiful, feeling confident and comfortable in her skin.　Yet things started to change when she realized some people in Korea didn’t see her the way she saw herself. “Among the things I heard was

Social Affairs June 14, 2016

Day care centers and kindergartens in South Korea’s relatively remote villages are understaffed, have trouble recruiting teachers, and receive a higher number of children raised by their grandparents or immigrant mothers compared to those in urban areas, a study showed Monday.The study, organized by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education, found that 44 percent of all kindergartens in the nations’ farming and fishing towns had trouble hiring teachers, while 38.2 percent of the institutio

Social Affairs June 13, 2016

Back in 2014, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Journalists Association of Korea released a guideline for Korean journalists to use when reporting on sexual violence and interviewing the victims. The booklet was developed as a number of news reports allegedly inflicted secondary victimization upon sex crime victims here, including violation of privacy. Some even endorsed distortion of sexual assault – such as how the extent of a woman’s resistance should be the major factor in determining if a

Social Affairs June 9, 2016

More than 40 percent of South Korean working mothers who quit their jobs last year said it was because they did not have a reliable person or service to look after their children while they were at work, a government study showed Monday.The study, organized by the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education for the Welfare Ministry, surveyed 2,593 Korean households with children nationwide last year. Among the participants, 31.4 percent said they had quit their jobs to focus on caring for their

Social Affairs June 7, 2016

South Korea’s Health Ministry on Monday announced it would once again proceed to revise the current Medical Service Act to allow telemedicine -- the use of information technology and telecommunications in order to provide clinical health care at a distance -- in spite of fierce opposition from the largest body of physicians here.The service, once legalized, would only benefit individuals with physical disabilities, those who live in remote areas and elderly patients with chronic medical conditio

Social Affairs June 7, 2016

A number of women’s groups expressed concerns over the government’s new measures to combat crimes against women, such as forced hospitalization of the mentally ill and getting rid of public unisex bathrooms, calling them impractical and even discriminatory. In a joint press release issued by nine agencies, including the ministries of gender equality and justice, the government on Wednesday introduced a number of measures to protect women against violent crimes.They included installing more surve

Social Affairs June 1, 2016

Preparations for a foundation to support World War II South Korean sex slavery victims formally began Tuesday, but almost immediately prompted controversy with the preparatory committee chief saying Japan’s funds cannot be considered as compensation.Kim Tae-hyun, the head of the newly launched preparatory committee, said at a news conference, “We agreed that the funds provided by Tokyo were to be used to restore the victims’ dignity and heal their emotional wounds.“I think of it as chiyugeum (fu

Politics May 31, 2016