While on a month-long holiday in South Korea with his wife, Englishman Andrew Jenson, 54, participated in protests against the government here over the toxic humidifier disinfectant tragedy. 　Earlier this month, Jenson and his wife Debbie Kim had met Kim Deok-jong, whose 5-year-old son died in 2009 after battling a respiratory disease, in London. Kim was there to protest in front of Reckitt Benckiser headquarters in Slough, England. The couple helped Kim arrange meetings with authorities. “I was

Social Affairs May 26, 2016

Toxic humidifier sterilizer victims who used products distributed by local brand Aekyung -- manufactured by SK Chemicals -- have demanded that the firm be included in the ongoing prosecutorial probe.The victims accused Aekyung of selling its products despite the health concerns. According to tallies, a total of 27 died allegedly from using Aekyung’s products and 101 suffered damage to their health. However, up to this point none of them have received compensation from the company. In 2011, the g

Social Affairs May 24, 2016

Shin Hyang-gi, a 51-year-old housewife, begins her day by washing piles of dishes and utensils used for breakfast. The routine is followed by laundry, toilet cleaning, changing moisture absorbers inside closets and a shower. Before stepping outside, she wears sunscreen on her face and neck and sprays deodorant on her jacket.　On an ordinary morning, Shin uses at least eight household chemical products -- detergent, bleach, toilet cleaner, dehumidifier, shampoo, toothpaste, sunscreen and deodorant

Social Affairs May 20, 2016

The total number of toxic humidifier sterilizer victims has swelled to 1,848 as of April, according to the latest available reports Thursday, with pressure building on the government to intervene. During a press conference at the National Assembly, the Asian Citizen’s Center for Environment and Health said that 566 additional victims, including 41 who have passed away, were listed at a civil complaint center from January to April 25.The complaint center, supported by the ACCEH, had operated temp

Social Affairs May 19, 2016

Danish chemical KeTox -- which allegedly supplied PGH to Korean company Butterflyeffect -- denied that it had manufactured the substance, but said that it had served as a chemical broker that distributed PGH to Danish companies. In an interview with The Korea Herald this week, the now-defunct company’s former CEO Frede Damgaard said that KeTox mainly imported PGH from Austria to Denmark for agricultural use.“We didn’t manufacture PGH, we only bought it,” Damgaard said. “(We bought it for) differ

Social Affairs May 18, 2016

The Environment Ministry announced Tuesday it will ban sales of seven household products that were found to contain toxic ingredients -- including those that were used in humidifier disinfectants -- and breached chemical content levels.The ministry said it has inspected a total of 331 products that have been distributed in the market since the second half of last year on their chemical safety. Seven of them were found to contain banned substances or exceed the permitted amount based on the Chemi

Social Affairs May 17, 2016

South Korea ranked 173rd out of 180 countries in terms of air quality, the Environmental Performance Index 2016 rankings showed Monday.Scoring 45.51 out of 100 in the air quality category, South Korea was one of the poorest performers among Asian countries, according to the EPI survey done by Yale University and Columbia University. The EPI evaluates countries’ performance on high-priority environmental issues based on 20 indicators such as air quality, health impact, climate and energy. The res

Social Affairs May 16, 2016

Nearly all, or 98 percent of chemicals used in products distributed in South Korea have not gone through government safety tests, data showed Monday.According to data provided by the National Institute of Environmental Research, the Environment Ministry conducted chemical toxicity tests on about 600 chemicals out of 37,000, as of 2015. The Toxic Chemicals Control Act took effect in 1991.The ministry reportedly explained that the rest of the chemicals were not tested as they were “general chemica

Social Affairs May 16, 2016

The Environment Ministry said Monday that it will order a recall of Japanese automaker Nissan’s Qashqai compact crossovers, as the company manipulated its emissions result.The ministry is set to charge Nissan Korea 330 million won ($280,000) in fines and suspend sales of the emissions-faked model. A total of 814 cars sold since November have been ordered to be recalled. The company should submit its recall plan within 45 days. According to the ministry, Nissan faked its emissions test results by

Social Affairs May 16, 2016

Danish chemical company KeTox -- which allegedly supplied PGH to Korean company Butterflyeffect -- has denied any links to the firm, a civic group working with the victims of toxic humidifier disinfectants said Thursday.The Danish company denied any business deals with Butterflyeffect in a meeting with representatives of the victims in Denmark on Sunday, according to Choi Ye-yong of the Asian Citizen’s Center for Environment and Health.The now closed company’s former CEO Frede Damgaard reportedl

Social Affairs May 12, 2016

Prosecutors on Wednesday sought an arrest warrant for a lawyer over allegations she illegally took money to lobby public officials on behalf of the chief of the South Korean cosmetics brand Nature Republic, officials said Tuesday.The judge-turned-lawyer Choi You-jeong is suspected of peddling her influence over the ruling on Jung's overseas gambling charges after receiving some billions of won in legal fees. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said Choi allegedly received 2 billion wo

Social Affairs May 11, 2016