Environmental issues have rarely received attention in South Korean elections, but the nation’s worst-ever air pollution in the first three months of this year has changed that. With slightly over a month left to the May 9 presidential election, major contenders are releasing pledges on tackling the aggravating fine dust problem, facing conspicuously growing public awareness and voter demand. With a slew of mobile apps providing nearly real-time updates on air quality, many pollution-conscious c

Social Affairs April 7, 2017

South Korea is more shrouded in dust than ever. In three months this year, the country has seen 85 ultrafine dust advisories issued, more than double in the same period last year, which had 41. With ominously gray skies, low visibility and warnings about the health effects of airborne dust, South Koreans have become increasingly anxious.A high-rise building in downtown Seoul is shrouded in fine dust on April 3. (Yonhap)This has given rise to a breed of citizens raging their own battles against a

Social Affairs April 7, 2017

Efforts to move the retrieved Sewol ferry onshore faced difficulties Thursday as engineers failed to load the wreck, heavier than originally expected, on transporters Thursday, delaying further search operations.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said that it encountered some technical problems with modular trailers placed underneath the ferry.Sewol ferry shrouded in thick fog in Mokpo Port on Thursday (Yonhap)“We ran a test operation to carry the ferry on 480 transport trailers until this mor

Social Affairs April 6, 2017

The shocking case involving a schizophrenic teenager kidnapping and killing an 8-year-old girl in Incheon last week has highlighted the country’s failure to cope with the growing prevalence of mental disorders, as longstanding social stigmas on mental illness continue to hide the problem, experts said Monday. The Incheon murder is the latest in a series of high-profile crimes involving schizophrenic patients in South Korea in recent years.  The suspect in a kidnap and murder case of an 8-year-ol

Social Affairs April 3, 2017

MOKPO, South Jeolla Province -- The Sewol ferry had departed from Incheon on a misty morning on April 15, 2014 for a routine 13-hour voyage to the southern resort island of Jeju. But the passenger ship, now a rusted wreck, reached the end of its voyage at Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, on Friday afternoon, 1,801 days after its departure. With families of the victims of the sinking almost three years ago and ordinary citizens watching, the salvaged ferry, loaded on a transport vessel, arrived at M

Social Affairs March 31, 2017

The Sewol ferry, loaded on a transport vessel, arrived at Mokpo Port on Friday afternoon, ending its final voyage 1,081 days after it sank in South Korea’s worst maritime disaster. 　The semisubmersible transport vessel carrying the retrieved passenger ferry departed the wreck site off Jindo, South Jeolla Province, at around 7 a.m. and arrived at Mokpo at 1:15 p.m., the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said. 　Engineers have begun work to move the 6,800-ton, 145-meter-long Sewol to the port’s dry

Social Affairs March 31, 2017

A 16-year-old girl admitted to having kidnapped and killed an 8-year-old who was found dead Wednesday in Incheon, police said Thursday. The suspect, a high school dropout with records of mental illness, is currently in police custody. She allegedly met the victim at a park in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, on Wednesday afternoon and killed her with an unidentified weapon after luring the victim into her home with a phone. The suspect in a kidnap and murder case of an 8-year-old child is seen at Yeonsu Poli

Social Affairs March 30, 2017

The retrieved Sewol ferry will depart from the wreckage site Thursday and arrive at a port in Mokpo the following day, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Wednesday. “Engineers are wrapping up operations to securely fix the ferry onto the semisubmersible transport ship and remove the two remaining buoyancy tanks before heading for Mokpo Port, a process which we expect to complete by Thursday,” said Lee Cheol-jo, a ministry official in charge of the salvage operation.(Yonhap)The ferry is es

Social Affairs March 29, 2017

Preparations have been completed for the retrieved Sewol ferry to be delivered to a port in Mokpo, where its insides will be searched for the nine passengers still missing, authorities said Sunday.“It looks like there will be no significant risk in transporting the ferry to shore from now on, since it is safely placed on the balanced deck of the semisubmersible vessel,” Yoon Hak-bae, the Oceans and Fisheries vice minister, told reporters Sunday.The Sewol ferry sits on a semisubmersible vessel in

Social Affairs March 26, 2017

Part of the sunken Sewol ferry has surfaced above water, with two salvage barges lifting the vessel Thursday, almost three years after it sank in waters off Jindo, South Jeolla Province.While some of the bereaved families watched from boats near the site, salvage operators worked overnight to lift the 145-meter long, 6,825-ton ferry which had been lying at a depth of 44 meters after it sank on April 16, 2014. Among its 476 passengers, 304, mostly high school students, lost their lives. Nine are

Social Affairs March 23, 2017

Earth Hour, a worldwide grassroots movement to raise awareness of climate change, will return for its 10th edition Saturday, encouraging people to show their commitment to saving the planet by turning off the lights. The event, organized by World Wide Fund for Nature, will see individuals, communities, households and businesses switch off nonessential lights for an hour from 8:30 p.m. Saturday.  Namsan Tower in Seoul (123rf)In 2007, Earth Hour was launched in Sydney, Australia, to send a message

Social Affairs March 22, 2017

JINDO, South Jeolla Province -- The closest port to the site of the Sewol disaster is Paengmok Port, about 25 kilometers from where the ferry sank in waters off Jindo on April 16, 2014.On the day of the ferry sinking, the small provincial port was a madhouse.Beloved children's dead bodies were dragged out of the sea. Mothers cried and fainted in front of them. Reporters rushed after grieving families. Rescue officials shook their heads with no sign of additional rescue.Three years on, the madnes

Social Affairs March 20, 2017

JINDO, South Jeolla Province -- After nearly three years lying on the sea bed, the Sewol ferry is finally ready to come out of the water. And the day when the ill-fated passenger ship is brought on land would, for the victims’ families and many ordinary citizens, mark the start of a long-awaited end to bitter disputes and acrimonies over why this country that prides itself in technological prowess failed to rescue over 300 passengers from a slowly sinking ship in broad daylight. On Friday, when

Social Affairs March 19, 2017

Police said Saturday that a fire that gutted some 220 street stalls of a traditional fish market in the western port city of Incheon started from a stall in a vinyl-wrapped makeshift building.(Yonhap)The fire broke out at 1:36 a.m. and was put out two and a half hours later. Some 140 firefighters, 53 fire engines and 40 police officers were mobilized, police said.No injuries or fatalities have been reported yet. Police put property damage at around 650 million won ($574,712).Investigators found

Social Affairs March 18, 2017