South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin met with his Japanese counterpart, urging Tokyo to make a “political decision” over wartime forced labor to mend ties soured by the long-running historical dispute, officials said Sunday. Park held a talk with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Saturday. In the 35-minute meeting, Korea’s top diplomat called for Tokyo to decide on restitutions for Koreans forced to wo

Foreign Affairs Feb. 19, 2023

Actress Park Min-young was summoned as a witness by prosecutors investigating Kang Jong-hyun, her ex-boyfriend and a businessman known to be the de-facto owner of the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb, over embezzlement charges, fraudulent transactions and dereliction of duty. According to legal professionals and local media, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office questioned Park on Monday over possible involvement in Kang’s alleged crimes, probing whe

Social Affairs Feb. 15, 2023

Argentinian police have arrested a Korean man on suspicion of killing his wife and concealing the body, saying he admitted to the crime after a suicide attempt. The Korean man, identified by his surname Kim, allegedly admitted to choking his wife to death on Thursday and secretly burying her in a farm in San Martin, in Argentina’s Mendoza province. According to Argentinian media outlet Sitio Andino, a report was dialed through 911 early Monday morning that a man had consumed poison. Police

Social Affairs Feb. 14, 2023

A man in his 20s was arrested after he removed his GPS-equipped electronic monitoring anklet to kidnap his ex-girlfriend. The Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for the accused person, only identified by his surname Kim, on Monday. The court, however, dismissed the arrest warrant for the offender’s abettor, only identified by his surname Lee, explaining that Lee’s criminal charges could not be sufficiently proven. The two offenders allegedly broke into Kim’s

Social Affairs Feb. 14, 2023

The city of Suwon, south of Seoul, is famous for the UNESCO-listed heritage site of Hwaseong Fortress, but over the years, it has fared better by becoming a city with stable governance. Suwon, the capital of Gyeonggi Province and the largest of its 31 cities, responded promptly to the COVID-19 pandemic three years ago, demonstrating its capabilities in handling the crisis and ensuring its citizens’ safety. The local government is now taking steps toward becoming a city of equal citizenship

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2023

A group of people in their 20s, who were previously sentenced to serve between two to seven years in prison for luring teenagers into sex work, have been given additional prison terms for physically abusing their friends. The Chuncheon District Court on Monday sentenced the three main convicts -- all in their mid-20s -- to between 26 months and 32 months in additional time for breaching the so-called "punishment of violences act." Seven other offenders, who allegedly tracked down and b

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2023

Five university students were killed in a single-vehicle accident after the car crashed and caught fire in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, on early Sunday morning. The students -- believed to be one female and four male students, all in their 20s -- were from Korea University, the school confirmed after the incident. They were also reportedly members of the Korea University Ski Team Association, a union ski club consisting of nearly 40 Korean universities. According to fire authorities and police

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2023

    진행: 박준희, Beth Eunhee Hong 1. LG’s symbolic headquarters to be refurbished in decade 기사 요약: LG그룹, 36년 만에 상징 여의도 사옥 얼굴 싹 바꾼다 LG Group said Monday it has kicked off the construction to renovate the lower floors of its symbolic LG Twin Towers, a landmark in Yeouido, western Seoul, where its major affiliates including LG Electronics are headquartered. *Kick off: ~를 시작하다 *Renovate: 개조하다, 보수하다 *Symbolic: 상징적인 *Headquarted: ~에 본부를 두다 Since the buildings were established in 1987,

Podcast Feb. 9, 2023

A 39-year-old father and 42-year-old stepmother were arrested by police in Incheon, west of Seoul, Tuesday, on suspicion of aggravated child abuse resulting in the death of their fifth-grade son. An investigation by Incheon Police Station found that the 11-year-old boy had sustained multiple bruises on his body, which are presumed to be wounds inflicted by physical abuse. According to police, the father himself had called 119 -- a line for emergency and rescue equivalent to 911 in the US -- at a

Social Affairs Feb. 8, 2023

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon has been elected by majority vote as vice chairman of the Steering Committee of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group for the East, Southeast Asian and Oceania regions, the city government said Wednesday. In line with the organization’s initiative to make the world’s cities greener and more sustainable, Seoul would take the lead in achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, it added. “We will seek ways to contribute to the fight against the climate crisis thr

Social Affairs Feb. 8, 2023

Following a devastating earthquake that struck central Turkey and northwest Syria, Koreans from all walks of the life on Tuesday expressed condolences to the victims and their families and showed their support for rescue missions in search of survivors. Calling for international assistance to people who lost homes and families, Koreans said they would stand in solidarity with those in Turkey and Syria struggling to respond to the biggest quake in 84 years in the area. “A disaster is not ea

Social Affairs Feb. 7, 2023

Elderly Seoulites consider those above 72.6 years old as senior citizens here, a survey by the Seoul Metropolitan Government showed Monday. The figure is the average age of the respondents who answered “yes” when asked if they consider themselves as seniors. The 2022 report on the welfare and living conditions of the elderly in Seoul compiled by the city government was based on a survey conducted from June to August, including a face-to-face survey with 3,010 respondents above 65. Cu

Social Affairs Feb. 6, 2023

Three crew were rescued from a fishing boat after it capsized off the southwestern coast late Saturday, and a search is underway for the other nine missing crew, South Korea’s Coast Guard said Sunday. The Mokpo Coast Guard received a report at 11:19 p.m. Saturday that the 24-ton fishing boat had overturned 16.6 kilometers west of Daebichido, an inhabited island in Sinan, South Jeolla Province. Two Koreans and one Indonesian were rescued by the Coast Guard and taken to the hospital. Nine ot

Social Affairs Feb. 5, 2023

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon pleaded with a disability rights advocacy group for an end to rush-hour subway protests, stressing that the yearslong rallies have caused serious disruption to public transportation and Seoul citizens’ daily lives. “Seoul citizens have gone through many inconveniences, so I’d like to ask if the disability rights advocacy group could refrain from disrupting the operation of major lines,” Oh said during a meeting with the group held at the Seoul Metro

Social Affairs Feb. 2, 2023

The Seoul metropolitan government’s Hangang Project Headquarters said Thursday that it would help fandoms, organizations and citizens create forests named after celebrities in the Han River Park. Starting this spring, the headquarters plan to build a 10,000 square meter forest dubbed the “Star Forest” in Seoul’s Nanji Hangang Park as it expects a surge in fans’ donations following the increasing popularity of Korean culture. The headquarters said it would actively s

Social Affairs Feb. 2, 2023