The South Korean prosecution on Wednesday searched the Seoul home and offices of Choi Soon-sil, the longtime confidante of President Park Geun-hye at the center of a snowballing scandal involving corruption, influence peddling and a confidential data leak. 　In an apparent move to speed up its probe after weeks of slow progress, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said it had raided nine locations, including Choi’s house, the offices of the Mir and K-Sports foundations and the headquar

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2016

Just one day before the expiration of an autopsy warrant, tension mounted Monday over the police’s plan to conduct a post mortem examination on the body of activist farmer Baek Nam-gi, who died last month after being hit by a water cannon. Baek’s bereaved family and an emergency committee vowed to block the police from taking his body for an autopsy during a press briefing in front of the Seoul National University Hospital. “We are shaving our heads and going on a hunger strike to show our deter

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2016

One Saturday morning, passers-by curiously turned their heads as a group of people in white robes began to collectively pray, strike a gong and sound a wooden percussion instrument in central Seoul. Signs and placards that read “THAAD to the US, Peace to Korea” and “No War, No THAAD” were seen at the scene as they prayed and practiced meditation in front of the country’s Defense Ministry building. They were believers of Won Buddhism -- a simplified and modernized form of Buddhism indigenous to S

Social Affairs Oct. 23, 2016

The president of Ewha Womans University stepped down Tuesday amid snowballing allegations the school offered preferential treatment to the daughter of President Park Geun-hye’s close friend. (Photo byLim Jee-song)“I decided to resign from the post in hope that members of the university continue to uphold the beautiful Ewha spirit of trust and harmony without being divided anymore,” she said in a statement.The pressure on Choi to step down intensified after allegations surfaced that Jeong Yoo-ra,

Social Affairs Oct. 19, 2016

Last week, seventh and eighth grade engineering students from Korea International School finally tested how much weight their bridges could withstand after weeks-long efforts to construct them through real-world engineering techniques. In a departure from the traditional method of learning through textbooks, students from KIS were given a chance to research, plan and design the actual bridges in their own labs as a part of KIS’ school-wide Applied Learning initiative.Through such an assignment,

Social Affairs Oct. 18, 2016

The president of Ewha Womans University came under growing pressure to step down Monday, over allegations the school offered preferential treatment to the daughter of President Park Geun-hye’s close friend.  Calls for Choi Kyung-hee to resign come amid mounting controversy that Jeong Yoo-ra, daughter of Park’s long-term friend Choi Soon-sil, was given special favors in the admission process and her academic records at the nation’s longest-running women’s university. Jeong, whose father is Presid

Social Affairs Oct. 17, 2016

Hundreds of people dressed in black marched across central Seoul on Saturday afternoon to oppose tougher punishments for illegal abortions proposed by the government nearly a month ago. In the South Korean version of the so-called “black protest” that swept through Poland in early October, an estimated 300 protestors staged a rally in front of Bosingak Bell at the heart of Seoul, demanding that the government scrap its stricter abortion ban. “I oppose the government taking control of women’s rep

Social Affairs Oct. 16, 2016

A Seoul court Friday handed down 30 years in prison to a man convicted of stabbing to death a woman unknown to him near Gangnam Station in Seoul. Calling the crime a felony committed against the whole of society, the Seoul Central District Court also ordered the 34-year-old, identified by his surname Kim, to wear an electronic anklet and receive medical treatment in custody for 20 years.  (Yonhap)Kim was arrested in May on charges of murdering a 22-year-old woman with a kitchen knife at a public

Social Affairs Oct. 14, 2016

Careless driving may have been behind a tour bus fire late Thursday night that killed 10 passengers in the southern city of UIsan, police said Friday.At least 10 people were killed and nine others were seriously injured after their bus slammed into a roadside guardrail and caught fire on an expressway near Ulsan late Thursday. Forensic investigators inspect a tour bus, gutted by fire in a tragic accident that killed 10, in Ulsan on Friday. (Yonhap)The deceased were trapped inside with smoke, as

Social Affairs Oct. 14, 2016

When a 29-year-old worker was dispatched to a factory through a recruitment agency early last year, he never imagined the job would lead to sight loss.  　 After completing his mandatory military service, the worker, who only wanted to be identified by his surname Kim, badly needed a job. Instead of going back to university, he started to work at a third-tier mobile parts supplier for Samsung Electronics. “I had no idea how dangerous a job it would be. I was told that I would have to handle alcoh

Social Affairs Oct. 12, 2016

In recent years, various reports have shed light on the “modern-day slavery” behind the global supply chain of frozen prawns and cheap clothes -- how millions of workers in Asia are trafficked into forced labor and endure excruciatingly long hours for low, if any, pay. David Knight, an international migration expert, says in combating this, Korean companies have a role to play.  “Companies may not be aware of human rights abuses in their supply chain and sometimes there is a gap between what the

Social Affairs Oct. 11, 2016

When Kim Sung-hyun, a 28-year-old reporter, went out with close journalists from other news outlets last week, no one knew exactly whether they had to split the bill in accordance with the newly enforced anti-graft act. “I made more than 10 calls to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission the next morning to clarify some of the clauses in the law,” Kim told The Korea Herald. “But I failed to reach the agency because the line was always busy.” Two weeks into the enforcement of the

Social Affairs Oct. 11, 2016