Amid the prosecution’s widening probe into Oxy Reckitt Benckiser Korea and other companies related to their toxic humidifier disinfectants, the British firm apologized on Thursday to victims and unveiled a plan to offer an additional 5 billion won ($4.4 million) in humanitarian assistance.　In a letter released Thursday afternoon, the company addressed its “social responsibility” in deaths and diseases caused by its humidifier sterilizers, saying it would cooperate with investigators to solve the

Social Affairs April 21, 2016

Maria, a 25-year-old dancer from a small country in West Africa, sustained leg injuries after falling on a slippery floor during a performance in 2012. The young migrant worker used to work for the African Art Museum in Pocheon, which later made headlines for their appalling working conditions for African workers in 2014. Her employer neither took her to a hospital nor paid for her medical expenses when she cried for help. Foreign workers attend a rally calling for protection of their rights in

Social Affairs April 20, 2016

This year’s Queer Cultural Festival will kick off on June 11 with a pride parade to be held in central Seoul, its organizing committee said Monday. The rainbow-studded pride parade will take place in Seoul Plaza for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender revelers and their supporters under the slogan “QUEER I AM.”During the nine-day Queer Festival, the main overnight party “Private Beach” will be hosted on June 11, after the parade. Films about sexual minorities will be played in major cinemas a

Social Affairs April 18, 2016

On a Sunday afternoon, fishmongers cheerfully call out to customers in several languages to lure them into buying seafood displayed in their small tanks and baskets lined up at the front -- a typical scene at the Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market located in western Seoul. (Ock Hyun-ju/The Korea Herald)But in what is a usually vibrant and lively fish market drawing some 30,000 customers a day, tension is running high. Red ribbons reading “Opposition to relocation of fish market” or “Please sa

Social Affairs April 18, 2016

A Japanese reporter cleared of defaming South Korean President Park Geun-hye last year filed a criminal compensation suit against the government recently, according to legal sources. Tatsuya Kato, former Seoul bureau chief for Japanese right-wing daily Sankei Shimbun, on March 18 demanded financial compensation to cover legal costs and transport fees incurred while standing trial in Korea. Tatsuya Kato (Yonhap)Under the country’s criminal law, the wrongly accused, whose charges are cleared in co

Social Affairs April 18, 2016

The local polling industry is in a sense of crisis after failing to forecast many of the outcomes of Wednesday’s parliamentary election, with questions growing over the validity of opinion surveys. In the election, the opposition bloc made an unexpectedly strong showing, defying the expectations of local pollsters and analysts, who thought that the ruling conservative party would easily regain the majority. Saenuri took 122 seats in the 300-member National Assembly, while The Minjoo Party of Kor

Social Affairs April 14, 2016

The provisional voter turnout in Wednesday’s election reached 58 percent, marking the highest for a general election in 12 years.More than 24.4 million of over 42.1 million eligible voters cast ballots at 13,873 polling stations to elect 300 members to the 20th National Assembly, who will serve four-year terms. The turnout is 3.8 percentage points higher than in the previous general election in 2012, according to the National Election Commission. (Yonhap)The official turnout was set to be announ

Politics April 13, 2016

The ruling Saenuri party has failed to winning the parliamentary majority in Wednesday’s general election if exit polls are correct, though it managed to stay ahead of its main opposition rival, The Minjoo Party of Korea.　The lackluster performance of the ruling party, combined with the rise of a new centrist opposition, is expected to result in a majority opposition here for the first time in 16 years.　The exit polls respectively conducted by the nation’s top three broadcasters KBS, MBC, and SB

Politics April 13, 2016

Voter turnout in South Korea’s parliamentary election stood at 16.1 percent as of 11 a.m., six hours after polls opened Friday, according to the National Election Commission.The voter turnout does not include early voting, overseas voting and absentee voting. (Yonhap)In the last general election, the voter turnout recorded 24.9 percent as of 11 a.m. The country saw the highest voter turnout in Gangwon Province at 19.8 percent, while Daejeon recorded the lowest turnout of 14.3 percent. The voter

Politics April 13, 2016

The number of asylum seekers in South Korea has steadily increased in recent years since it began accepting refugee applications in 1994, government statistics showed. With millions of people fleeing conflicts in war zones across the world, South Korea saw a surge in the number of asylum seekers from 1,574 in 2013 to 2,896 in 2014 and 4,265 last year. The number of those who were granted asylum, too, rose from 57 to 94 and on to 106 during the same period.Since 1994, the country has accepted 576

Social Affairs April 10, 2016

The police on Thursday issued an apology for causing “unintended trouble” amid mounting criticism over an open letter to Aidre Mattner, an Australian who had taken issue with its misconduct and slipshod investigation in a rape case. 　Yongsan Police Station published a post on its Facebook page in both Korean and English at around 2 p.m., expressing regret over the “unintended troubles” caused by its public letter.　 (Facebook)“We do apologize the fact that we caused some unintended troubles resul

Social Affairs April 7, 2016