A Japanese television personality in South Korea, who became a single mother by choice with the help of donor sperm, shed light on the country’s severe access restrictions to assisted reproductive technologies. Sayuri Fujita gave birth to a son Nov. 4 after using donor sperm for in vitro fertilization treatment in Japan, after her doctor said spontaneous pregnancy was becoming less and less likely because of her age. Although she was near the end of her fertility, she wasn’t will

Social Affairs Nov. 18, 2020

Former four-term conservative lawmaker Yoo Seong-min reaffirmed Wednesday his intention to run for president again in 2022, dismissing speculation that he might run for Seoul mayor. Yoo ran in the 2017 presidential election on the ticket of a now-disbanded center-right party. 　 Yoo said he had never considered entering the mayoral race, which will take place in April next year. The main opposition People Power Party, to which he belongs, didn’t ask him to run for mayor, he said during

Politics Nov. 18, 2020

Chonnam National University Hospital in Gwangju has decided to impose cohort isolation on one of its buildings with more than 150 patients after a dozen new coronavirus cases were detected there. “It is difficult for us to provide normal treatment service as the hospital has been exposed to the risk of virus transmission coupled with a surge in the number of medical staff who are under self-isolation regime,” Kim Sung-jin, acting director of the hospital, said during a press confer

Social Affairs Nov. 17, 2020

Chairman Lee Nak-yon of the ruling Democratic Party will volunteer for a clinical trial for a COVID-19 cure or vaccine as South Korean firms struggle to secure enough participants, the party said Tuesday. Lee will provide his data as part of a campaign initiated by the Korea National Enterprise for Clinical Trials, a body under the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Lee has undergone four coronavirus tests, which all came out negative, after coming into contact with someone with COVID-19. Alo

Social Affairs Nov. 17, 2020

Seoul has embarked on a 79.1 billion-won ($71.4 million) project to make Gwanghwamun Square at the heart of the capital city greener and more pedestrian-friendly, city officials said Monday. The 555-meter-long, 34-meter-wide square, which is currently located at the center of a 12-lane road, is expected to turn into a more vibrant public space where people can rest and socialize, with a new park and wider pedestrian-only street. “Gwanghwamun Square, which is the heart of the city, wil

Social Affairs Nov. 16, 2020

  Located near Jeongbalsan, in the middle of Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province, a thatch house built of chestnut wood has been preserved to give a glimpse into a traditional farm house of the late Joseon Period.  The house is thought to have been built in the 19th-century in the village in Ilsan area where members of the Danyang Yi clan settled. With an abundance of chestnut trees in the village, the house used chestnut wood as its main building material, and came to be known as Bamgasi Cho

Culture Nov. 14, 2020

The screening process to select two finalists who are qualified to head an envisioned anti-corruption agency that will investigate high-ranking government officials has begun Friday amid fierce partisan strife. A seven-member panel of government officials and outside experts will choose two candidates out of 10 legal professionals they recommended to be the first chief of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, or CIO. During a day-long meeting, the panel members revie

Politics Nov. 13, 2020

New daily cases of the novel coronavirus in South Korea have increased by 146, bringing the total caseload to 27,799, marking the fourth day in a row above 100, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on Wednesday. The death toll rose by two to 487. The fatality rate stands at 1.75 percent. The triple-digit rises in COVID-19 cases are pushing health authorities to consider an elevation of social distancing measures. The country adopted Level 1 distancing rules Saturday, t

Social Affairs Nov. 11, 2020

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl emerged as the favorite to win the next presidential election, outpacing two seasoned politicians from the ruling party who had dominated similar surveys, a poll showed Wednesday. The outspoken top prosecutor’s favorability rating stood at 24.7 percent in the survey conducted by pollster Hangil Research. It was the first time that Yoon, who was appointed by liberal President Moon Jae-in but is widely supported by conservatives after feuding with the in

Politics Nov. 11, 2020

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday the incumbent government has drastically cut its special expenses in the past four years, following the main opposition party’s demand for a comprehensive review on such kind of funds spent by government bodies. 　 “The size of special activity funds has been reduced by 40.5 percent in the past four years since the current administration was launched,” Hong said during a meeting of the special committee on

Social Affairs Nov. 10, 2020

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong appeared in court for his bribery retrial Monday, in the next chapter of a corruption scandal that involves ousted President Park Geun-hye. The third-generation leader of Samsung Group arrived at the Seoul High Court at around 1:30 p.m. He entered the building without answering any questions from reporters. Four former Samsung executives, Choi Gee-sung and Kim Jong-joong, Hwang Sung-soo, Park Sang-jin and Chang Choong-ki, also attended the trial

Social Affairs Nov. 9, 2020

Health authorities are grappling with the growing burden of contact tracing as sporadic group infections continue as cold weather increases COVID-19 risks both here and abroad. Lee Sang-won, who heads epidemiological investigation analysis at the Central Disease Control Headquarters, said the country has seen a growing number of cases stemmed from small cluster infections and sporadic outbreaks led by those who had close contacts with infected people. “Small-scale group infections ar

Social Affairs Nov. 9, 2020

Now that Democrat Joe Biden has won the US presidential election, how the new president-elect and his administration will cope with North Korea is attracting keen attention here. During his election campaign rallies, Biden called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a “dictator” and a “thug,” and criticized his rival President Donald Trump for befriending Kim. But Biden left the door open for a possible summit, with the condition being that Pyongyang work to make the Kor

North Korea Nov. 8, 2020

The ruling Democratic Party’s support rating has fallen behind that of the conservative opposition People Power Party in Seoul, where the two parties seek to strengthen their support base ahead of next year’s mayoral by-elections. According to a survey released by Realmeter on Thursday, the People Power Party’s support came in at 31.4 percent among Seoul residents surveyed, up 1.0 percentage point from the previous week, while that of the ruling party decreased 3.8 percenta

Politics Nov. 5, 2020

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a life sentence for a woman who was convicted of killing her former husband, dismembering his body and dumping it into the sea. However, she was cleared of another murder charge for allegedly suffocating her 4-year-old stepson, due to lack of evidence. Koh Yu-jeong, 37, was sentenced to life in prison in previous rulings by lower courts in February and July, upon conviction for the murder of her former husband, surnamed Kang, and for hiding his body. On

Social Affairs Nov. 5, 2020