Lee Suk-hee does not know much about Halloween, but last Sunday she found herself buying her first Halloween costume for her daughter.“I don’t really know what Halloween is,” she told The Korea Herald while browsing through rows of Batman, Snow White and witch costumes at a discount store in Yongsan, central Seoul. “It is my first time buying these clothes because my daughter’s kindergarten announced that they will have a Halloween party,” said Lee, who asked for her name to be changed to preser

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2016

Civic organizations, student groups and labor unions will hold a joint rally in Seoul on Saturday, calling for President Park Geun-hye‘s resignation. Over 200,000 are expected to gather near Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul at 6 p.m., according to local media. This is the first large-scale anti-government rally since news broke that Choi Soon-sil, a confidante of President Park, meddled in state affairs. Political parties as well as the presidential office are expected to pay keen attention t

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2016

The Justice Ministry plans to outfit criminals with “intelligent” electronic anklets to monitor them in real time and deter future crimes as part of a pilot program beginning in 2018, it said Tuesday. The Intelligent Electronic Monitoring System will track wearers and collect more data about them, which ministry officials said will be used to anticipate and deter repeat crimes. South Korea requires sexual abusers, kidnappers, murderers and other criminals to wear electronic devices that track th

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2016

Koreans in their 50s are the least satisfied with life, a survey found, while men in general are more discontent than their female counterparts. According to the survey, conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, happiness peaks in your 20s, with 82.6 percent of 20-somethings saying that they are satisfied with life. However, as people get older their lust for life begins to dwindle reaching its lowest rate for those in their 50s (66.9 percent). The downward trend begins to

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2016

Antibiotics ointments are prescribed three times more often in South Korea than in the United States, research showed Monday, amid rising worries over overuse of antibiotics in the country.According to professor Kim Eun-young and her team at Chungang University’s Pharmaceutical College, Korea had over 3.5 times more prescriptions of Mupirocin, an antibiotics ointment, with 46.07 cases per 1,000 people compared to the US’ 13.10 cases. Mupirocin is used on small cuts, wounds and minor burns to pre

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2016

The average age at which women give birth has risen significantly over the past decade, with more than a quarter of mothers now aged 35 or more, while the number of women of childbearing age dropped, a study showed. According to data released by National Health Insurance Service, the average age of delivery stood at 32.2 as of 2015, up 1.9 years from 2006.Also, the proportion of mothers who were aged 35 or older soared from 13.7 percent to 27.6 percent during the same period.The total number of

Social Affairs Oct. 23, 2016

After hesitating for a long time, Choi Hyeong-tae, a 64-year-old retiree in Seoul, finally made up his mind to live in the countryside for the rest of his life. Then he faced the next question, “Where and how?”Instead of hurrying to a real estate agency to buy a rural home as many do, he visited one of the nation’s support centers for people looking to move to rural areas, where systemized directions to relocating and living in the countryside are offered. From April, Choi took a course provided

Social Affairs Oct. 21, 2016

Amid lingering confusion and doubts over a new anti-graft law, a member of the public who gave rice cakes worth 45,000 won ($40) to a police officer has become the first to face trial for a violation. According to Chuncheon District Court and local reports, the accused, identified only by surname Cho, sent a box of rice cakes to thank the officer for adjusting his or her summons on the first day of the law effectuation, Sept. 28, in the city located about 80 kilometers northeast of Seoul. The po

Social Affairs Oct. 19, 2016

The Health Ministry said Tuesday it will reconsider its plan to toughen punishment on illegal abortions after strong condemnation from women and doctors. “After the preannouncement of the revised rule (about the penalty on illegal abortions), various sectors in society have given their opinions. We decided to consider possibly nullifying the tougher punishment plan,” a ministry official said. Participants shout slogans condemning the government’s plan to toughen punishment for illegal abortions

Social Affairs Oct. 18, 2016

Kookmin University on Friday celebrated the 70th anniversary of its founding, underlining the importance of practical value in education.“The teaching philosophy of our university is practicality,” the university’s President Yu Ji-soo said during a ceremony at the Administration Hall of the school’s Seoul campus.Kookmin University President Yu Ji-soo gives an opening speech in celebration of the school’s 70th anniversary Friday. (Kookmin University)“Education needs to focus more on practical tra

Social Affairs Oct. 16, 2016

Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean star Son Heung-min was named the Premier League's Player of the Month for September on Friday, becoming the first Asian winner of the honors.The league announced on its website that Son beat out Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne, Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana, Everton striker Romelu Lukaku and Arsenal's Theo Walcott. (Yonhap)Son scored four goals and set up another as the Spurs won all three matches in September. He netted four goals all of last season, his f

Soccer Oct. 14, 2016