The government vowed Thursday to overhaul the entire security system at government complexes in the wake of multiple break-ins by a civilian last month.The Interior Ministry announced it will fortify security levels by forming four separate task forces -- for security management, security personnel, computer security and service measures -- joined by private security experts. It also immediately blocked entrances at the basement floor of the Seoul Government Complex in central Seoul that are con

Social Affairs April 7, 2016

YonhapInternational schools in South Korea will face suspensions in enrollment if they are caught illegally admitting Korean students four times, the Education Ministry said Thursday.The Education Ministry released revised regulations aimed to strengthen the control of illegal admissions at international schools here. There are currently 43 schools and three international kindergartens nationwide.This is the first time the government has specified punishments against schools in cases of illegal

Social Affairs April 7, 2016

A sulfuric acid attack against Seoul police earlier this week exposed the lax supervision of harmful acids by the Environment Ministry. A police officer at Gwanak Police Station was attacked Monday with highly corrosive sulfuric acid by a women surnamed Jeon, who was at the station to file a complaint with the Cyber Investigation Team.A corridor of Gwanak Police Station where the attacker poured sulfuric acid on police officers. (Yonhap)Jeon reportedly told the police that she had purchased the

Social Affairs April 6, 2016

“I managed to get the last batch of tickets,” said 29-year-old Tina Hsing, a Chinese student here, standing in front of the main gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace in downtown Seoul after sunset. She said she really did not want to miss the chance to experience Korea’s royal palaces under the moonlight.“I heard tickets (to enter Gyeongbokgung Palace during night hours) are sold out in minutes for domestic visitors, which makes me glad that I am a foreigner here,” said Hsing.Visitors take a stroll arou

Social Affairs April 6, 2016

Employees head to their offices in a building in Seoul. (Yonhap)One thing that surprised Tyler Kim when he joined a South Korean company last year after nine years of working in the U.S. was that his coworkers called him “chaekimnim,” a direct translation of his job title, manager.“It was a bit awkward at first,” he said, since it was the first time he was not called by his name at work.Hierarchy has been a key aspect of corporate governance worldwide. But it means more when it comes to the Kore

Social Affairs April 5, 2016

Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office will investigate the safety data sheet of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser, one of the toxic humidifier disinfectant makers blamed for the loss of 140 lives, on suspicions that it has fabricated the document. According to the special probe team, the prosecution summoned last week analysts from Seoul National University and Hoseo University -- who created Oxy humidifier disinfectant’s safety data sheet -- to investigate whether they manipulated the test results. Fa

Social Affairs April 4, 2016

(Yonhap)The prosecution said Sunday it will summon four humidifier disinfectant makers later this month, on suspicion that their products triggered lung damages which resulted in the loss of 143 lives.The four humidifier disinfectant makers include a leading household manufacturer Oxy Ssak Ssak, Cefu, local supermarket chain Homeplus, and Lotte Mart’s in-house brand Wiselect.Their products contained polyhexamethylene guanidine phosphate, a chemical known to have powerful sterilizing power compar

Social Affairs April 3, 2016

Plastic waste is causing environmental hazards in agricultural towns in the Korean countryside, as more than half of the waste is abandoned in empty fields, data showed Thursday.In the winter, those in farming villages wrap greenhouses with plastic to prevent crops such as peppers, onions and garlic from freezing. The plastic also works as a protection from weeds. Despite serious environmental issues such as soil pollution, the number of farmers abandoning used sheets of plastic on the ground ha

Social Affairs March 31, 2016

An estimated more than two-thirds of South Koreans live in apartments, and living in such close proximity has often caused disputes between neighbors over noise and more recently – odors wafting over from nearby homes. A post on an online community went viral recently: “Is eating samgyeopsal (roasted pork belly) at home a problem?”It was written by an apartment resident in Seoul, who said that he had felt insulted when his neighbor who lives upstairs made a fuss because he had cooked samgyeopsal

Social Affairs March 31, 2016

South Koreans in their 50s are the most willing to fight against North Korea if a war breaks out, a survey released Wednesday showed.According to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, about 720 out of 1,000 respondents surveyed for the 2015 Patriotism Index said they would fight against North Korea if a war breaks out.Those in their 50s were the most willing to fight the North, with 83.5 percent saying yes, followed by those in their 60s at 81.5 percent. In contrast, only 50 percent of

Social Affairs March 30, 2016

In the hit drama “Reply 1988,” which vividly portrayed Korea in the ’80s, protagonist Deok-seon usually begins and ends her day by having a meal with her family, while watching television. This was when TV sets were becoming popular in Korea and served as the center of home life.But times have changed and it is rare to come across such a scene nowadays. A man is eating alone at a restaurant specially designed for “honbobjok,” people who eat alone, in Sinchon, Seoul. YonhapShin Hyang-gi, 50, who

Social Affairs March 29, 2016

When Google’s artificial intelligence program AlphaGo trumped Go master Lee Se-dol last week, worldwide attention soon turned to concerns that Go players would eventually be replaced by AI robots.The Korea Employment Information Service unveiled Thursday a list of jobs that could be replaced by AI robots by 2020. It mostly included jobs that involve repetitive tasks or which require less human communication.Professional Go player Lee Se-dol attends a press conference after completing the five-ga

Social Affairs March 24, 2016

Boxes are stacked to be sent in international shopping support service Malltail’s New Jersey distribution center in the United States of America. (Malltail)Choo Yun-kyung, a 28-year-old office worker in Seoul, enjoys browsing through the latest collection of bags on overseas shopping websites such as shopbop.com.But she often uses Korean international shopping support services websites to actually purchase items sold only via international websites, due to the convenience of having product descr

Social Affairs March 24, 2016

Signs of spring are budding across the country, with the southern cities already seeing the forsythia bloom in mid-March.Seoul is also expected to see the spring flowers bloom from around March 24, according to weather service provider Kweather.While a cold snap that is expected to last until this weekend may delay the arrival of spring, anticipation of milder temperatures and warmer breeze are expected to invite more Seoulites and visitors to venture outdoors in the coming weeks.Starting in Apr

Social Affairs March 23, 2016