A high court on Thursday sentenced former President Park Geun-hye to five years in prison for causing losses to state coffers by unlawfully receiving money from chiefs of the country’s spy agency. The Seoul High Court handed down the five-year prison term and asked her to pay 2.7 billion won ($2.3 million) in forfeitures, a reduction of one year from the lower court’s ruling and down from 3.3 billion won. The prosecution said it would appeal. It sought a 12-year term in prison for Pa

Social Affairs July 25, 2019

Police will provide protection for Kim Sang-kyo, who opened the floodgates of allegations surrounding the Burning Sun club, and his family, as requested by Kim, according to the police on Thursday.   Kim says that he has been threatened by an online group that receives and reveals tip-offs on celebrities, after he said he would disassociate himself from the group. His address will be registered in the police’s system and security will be tightened around his residence for the nex

Social Affairs July 25, 2019

South Korean civic organizations on Thursday lashed out at the Japanese government’s export curbs against the country and denial of its brutal history, calling for joint action with Japan’s civil society.  An association of 350 civic organizations called on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration to withdraw its “economic retaliation” against Korea and cooperate to responsibly compensate the victims of Japan’s wartime atrocities.“The responsibili

Social Affairs July 25, 2019

Earlier this month, a video went viral on social media showing a Korean man beating his Vietnamese wife in front of their toddler son during a more than three-hour ordeal at their home in Yeongan, South Jeolla Province. As he assaults the wife crouched in a corner, the man shouts, “Didn’t I tell you that you are not in Vietnam?” The video also shows the son, 2, crying by his mother’s side.The wife, who suffered broken ribs, has been moved to a women’s shelter. On hi

Social Affairs July 24, 2019

Twenty-two drug dealers who smuggled marijuana into South Korea by mobilizing Koreans deported from the US and selling them here have been apprehended, the police said Monday. The suspected drug dealers brought in 3.4 kilograms of marijuana from the US into Korea and sold 1.5 kilograms of it between March and September 2018 in Seoul, Incheon and the surrounding areas.A couple -- surnamed Shim and Kwon -- used those holding US-Korean dual citizenships as well as Koreans who were expelled fro

Social Affairs July 22, 2019

Plastic straws, take-away cups, spoons, chopsticks and multilayered parcels delivered at the doorstep have for long been a regular part of daily life in South Korea.However, amid the increasing awareness of the dangers excessive plastic waste has on marine life, landscapes and human health, there are growing efforts to reduce its use.According to a recent survey of 999 Koreans by Greenpeace Korea, 57.1 percent of respondents said they reduced plastic use over the past year while 41.6 percent sai

Social Affairs July 21, 2019

An Angolan family that has been stranded for seven months in Incheon Airport’s transit zone will file for a petition with the high court to see whether the government’s decision to deny them the chance to make a refugee application is constitutional, their lawyer said Friday.  The immigration office in January denied the entry of Nkuka Lulendo, his wife and four children aged under 10 into the country on grounds that the Angolans had “no clear reason” to seek asylum.

Social Affairs July 19, 2019

Free film screenings, including renowned film director Bong Joon-ho’s movies, will be held under three bridges across the Han River and a park in Seoul on Saturday evenings.  As part of the annual Han River Under the Bridge Film Festival, 23 movies spanning five themes will be screened free of charge at 8 p.m. on Saturdays from July 20 to Aug. 17, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The four locations are Cheonho Bridge in Gwangnaru; Cheongdam Bridge in Ttukseom; Wonhyo Br

Social Affairs July 19, 2019

With an aim to nurture startups and create an environment where startups can thrive, Seoul Metropolitan Government established Seoul Startup Hub in 2017. It’s designed as a place where investors, conglomerates, startups and consumers can interact and build networks. Seoul Startup Hub has since become a platform to help Koreans make their dreams of launching startups come true -- from planning to implementing their ideas -- as it provides professional consulting, lectures and prog

Social Affairs July 18, 2019

The police Thursday booked Yang Hyun-suk, former CEO and chief producer of K-pop entertainment powerhouse YG Entertainment, on suspicion of having procured sexual services for foreign investors.Yang, 49, was being investigated over suspicions that he arranged and paid for sexual services for two investors from Southeast Asia in 2014 at an adult entertainment establishment in southern Seoul. The police said they have secured evidence that could back the allegations and booked three employees of t

Social Affairs July 18, 2019

Koreans who ran illegal gambling sites from an office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, have been arrested here following extradition from Malaysia, police said Thursday.  Thirty-seven people from two gambling organizations were extradited from Malaysia between July 9 and Wednesday in the largest such operation. A man surnamed Lee and nine others are suspected of having made profits totaling 19.2 billion won ($16.3 million) by operating an illegal gambling site that handled about 384 billion won s

Social Affairs July 18, 2019

The police sent the case against a South Korean actor to the prosecution Thursday, seeking his indictment on charges of sexually assaulting two female staff members from a production company.  Kang Ji-hwan, 41, is suspected of raping a woman and sexually molesting another when they were sleeping in a room at his house in Gwangju, south of Seoul, after a drinking session July 9. Police also conducted a drug test to determine whether he used drugs to make the women fall unconscious.Kang initi

Social Affairs July 18, 2019

McDonald’s Korea was embroiled in controversy last week after a customer complained about eating a chicken burger that was almost raw.A woman, 31, had a McDonald’s chicken burger delivered to her home in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Saturday night.After a few bites of the burger, she noticed the chicken patty had a strange texture and then realized it was almost raw, Yonhap News Agency quoted her as saying. She said she then rushed to the emergency room of a nearby hospital, where tests

Social Affairs July 17, 2019

Koo Ja-doo, chairman of venture capital firm LB Investment, received a suspended prison term for fabricating bank statements to close accounts he maintained under other people’s names, a court said Wednesday.  The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Koo, the fourth son of LG Group Founder Koo In-hoi, to one year in prison, suspended for two years, on charges of fabricating documents.Koo had a total of 281 bank accounts under the names of foreign students in Seoul who received schol

Social Affairs July 17, 2019

A bus carrying participants of the ongoing world championships in Gwangju collided with a passenger car, but there were no injuries, police said Wednesday. The bus crashed into the vehicle, which was changing lanes, near Eodeung bridge in Gwangju, where the FINA World Aquatics Championships are being held, according to the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency. The bus was transporting 25 athletes from five countries from the Yeomju Gymnasium Artistic Swimming Competition Venue to the athletes

Social Affairs July 17, 2019