Silas Harper Bray, a 30-year-old English teacher based in Gyeonggi Province, has never regretted marrying her Korean husband. But others weren’t so fond of her decision, and they weren’t shy about letting her know. She has found out during her three-year stay in South Korea that some Koreans do not like the idea of “mixing blood,” and they made sure she got the message, no matter how offensive it might be. “Many people have told my husband that he should have marr

Social Affairs Sept. 22, 2021

Ten teams of content creators are touring Seoul and sharing their experiences on social media to take part in the city government’s efforts and advertise the South Korean capital as a destination for international tourists once the COVID-19 pandemic ends. Five teams of foreign residents and five local ones were selected in August to go on a five-day tour around the city from Sept. 13 to Friday. The initiative, named “Viewtiful Seoul,” is to help content creators discover new t

Social Affairs Sept. 16, 2021

Seoul city government will invest 48 trillion won ($40.8 billion) through 2030 to grow South Korea’s capital into a competitive and more habitable global city. In a master plan named “Seoul Vision 2030” unveiled Wednesday, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said his government will start working to tackle growing inequality and bring regulatory reforms to make improvements in Seoul’s housing, jobs, education and social welfare. The city government is setting 78 administrative objec

Social Affairs Sept. 15, 2021

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday nominated Choe Jae-hae to head the Board of Audit and Inspection. Choe had previously served on the agency’s board. The nomination comes more than two months after the seat was vacated due to the sudden resignation of Choe Jae-hyeong, who joined the main opposition People Power Party shortly after to seek its candidacy for next year’s presidential race. The presidential office said Moon nominated Choe Jae-hae for being an “audit specialist,&r

Social Affairs Sept. 14, 2021

Subway trains in greater Seoul area started running as usual Tuesday, after unionized workers of Seoul Metro reached a deal with management just hours before the planned walkout. Shortly before midnight Monday, Seoul Metro announced that an agreement was reached and agreed to scrap sweeping restructuring plans at the core of the dispute. The last round of talks lasted for almost nine hours after it started at 3 p.m. Monday. Seoul Metro said it decided to abolish the restructuring plan that inv

Social Affairs Sept. 14, 2021

Unionized workers of Seoul’s subway authority are likely to start a full-scale walkout Tuesday as their scheduled negotiations with Seoul Metro management is not expected to yield any outcome. Representatives of the Seoul Metro workers’ union and their corporate counterparts were scheduled to hold the last round of talks at 3 p.m. Monday ahead of the union’s full-scale walkout starting Tuesday. The union is against Seoul Metro’s restructuring plan made in face of continu

Social Affairs Sept. 13, 2021

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon vowed to overhaul the city government’s financial support system for civic groups undertaken by his predecessor, as he says the city has wrongfully spent its budget for nearly 10 years. The mayor said in a press conference Monday that the Seoul Metropolitan Government has spent close to 1 trillion won ($851 million) over the past decade by directly and indirectly supplying funds to civic groups with questionable history and without noticeable progress. Support fund

Social Affairs Sept. 13, 2021

On July 3, streets in central Seoul were flooded with thousands of members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions giving voice to their cause. For the vast majority of people, however, the rally was a source of irritation and inconvenience. "They think they can take the street whenever they like, and I don’t know where that right comes from," said 41-year-old office worker Kim Seung-hye, who was in the area at the time to dine out with a friend. "I had to walk at lea

Social Affairs Sept. 12, 2021

BTS and the Seoul city government have released a video to promote tourism for the city, as the global K-pop phenomenon continues to serve as honorary tourism ambassadors for the South Korean capital. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Thursday it has worked with the K-pop stars for a fifth year to carry out this year’s promotional campaign, including launching a promotional video titled “Your Seoul Goes On.” The promotional video seeks to deliver the message that Seoul d

Social Affairs Sept. 9, 2021

Thousands of small-business owners took to the streets late Wednesday in the first nationwide protest against COVID-19 rules they claim are jeopardizing their livelihoods. They say they’ve had enough of restrictions on private gatherings and operating hours, and that the measures are drowning small businesses in debt. From 11 p.m. Wednesday to 1:15 a.m. Thursday, small-business owners in nine regions across South Korea staged a drive-past rally under the lead of a committee of small-busi

Social Affairs Sept. 9, 2021

Rep. Hong Joon-pyo of the main opposition People Power Party is quickly gaining support, rising as a potential contender for next year’s presidential election that has been largely dominated by two prominent figures from each side. A poll of 1,003 eligible voters from the Korea Society Opinion Institute showed Monday that Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung of the ruling Democratic Party was the most favored candidate with 28 percent. Gov. Lee’s lead was followed by former Prosecut

Politics Sept. 7, 2021

The conflict between the sexes -- more pronounced between feminists and anti-feminists online -- is growing, and spilling out into the real world, affecting corporate activities and even election results. The battle appears mostly limited to extreme ends of the spectrum with radical anti-feminists branding feminists as obese, socially inadequate women throwing tantrums. Those at the other end of the spectrum are just as antagonistic, with members of “feminist” online groups referr

Social Affairs Sept. 7, 2021

The Seoul city government is encouraging foreigners in the city to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as the proportion of foreign residents with COVID-19 grows. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, foreign residents accounted for 9.2 percent of all COVID-19 patients in Seoul in August, up from 6.3 percent in July. The city government said the increase could be due to language barriers preventing those who don‘t speak Korean from accessing information about the nationwide vaccinat

Social Affairs Sept. 7, 2021

The Seoul Grand Park will no longer require visitors to line up to buy admission tickets, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday. Seoul City said that the amusement park has poured 5.5 billion won ($4.75 million) into building a new front gate that allows visitors to tag their transit cards to pay for entrance. Visitors can also purchase tickets online and scan the given QR code at sensors installed by the gates to enter the park. People will still be able to purchase tickets at booths

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2021

The number of foreign patients at medical institutions in South Korea plummeted more than 75 percent last year as the COVID-19 pandemic restricted international travel and lowered demand for medical tourism. According to a report released Aug. 30 by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute, the number of foreigners who visited Korean medical institutions last year came to 117,069, down 76.5 percent from 497,464 in 2019. The patients who did seek treatment here represented fewer countries

Social Affairs Sept. 6, 2021