A new rule mandating those traveling from China to South Korea via airplane or ship to get a PCR test upon arrival was applied Monday along with visa restrictions, as Seoul expressed concerns over a spike in imported cases from the neighboring country. For the next two months, travelers from China for short-term visits of fewer than 90 days are required to get tested immediately upon arrival, and will be accommodated at the airport until their test results are known, according to authorities. Lo

Social Affairs Jan. 2, 2023

Former President Lee Myung-bak returned home from hospital Friday, after being granted a special pardon by President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday. Speaking in front of his residence in Nonhyeon-dong in Gangnam, Lee said national unity was needed to overcome the global crisis and for South Korea to become a good country. “People have suffered from COVID-19 for the past three years, and I would like to express my comfort. For South Korea to over the global crisis, we need everyone to pull togeth

Politics Dec. 30, 2022

South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Friday night that the multiple unidentified aircraft flying over the sky was a successful test of its solid-fuel space rocket. The test flight is a follow-up to another launch conducted on March 30. The ministry added that the launch was conducted to strengthen national defense capabilities in areas like independent space-based surveillance and reconnaissance. The ministry also apologized that it couldn’t inform people in advance. At around 6 p.m.,

Defense Dec. 30, 2022

A Seoul court on Friday dismissed arrest warrants sought for two reporters from Citizen Press The Tamsa TV on suspicions of trying to break into Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon’s residence. The Seoul Central District Court rejected the prosecutor’s demand to detain two YouTube reporters, Kang Jin-koo and Choi Young-min, citing the prosecution’s lack of explanation and need to guarantee the right of defense for the suspects. Last month, five reporters from the online media outlet

Social Affairs Dec. 30, 2022

Days after local media reported that volleyball player Jo Jae-sung tried to avoid his mandatory military service, OK Financial Group OKman’s opposite striker admitted his guilt in a social media post late Wednesday night, saying he had attempted draft evasion with a local broker. “I’m sincerely sorry. I’ve committed an unforgivable crime. I was ignorant because I only knew volleyball,” the Instagram post read, calling it a case of "blurred judgment." All a

Social Affairs Dec. 29, 2022

As many school-age children spend more time consuming digital media like short-form video content, there are worries that a rapid rise in technology is producing a decline in children’s literacy rates. Young children can still read, but may have difficulty fully understanding the context, which will gradually hinder skill acquisition in learning processes and their English ability. “100 Classics,” an English education service brand for children and teenagers, has drawn young pa

Social Affairs Dec. 28, 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in depression disorder among men in their 30s and 40s, especially those with a lower education level or an unmarried status, data showed Tuesday. A report on adult mental health analyzed by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency based on a Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey said groups are considered at risk when the odds ratio, or relationship between a variable and the likelihood of an event occurring, is higher tha

Social Affairs Dec. 27, 2022

A two-story redbrick house surrounded by trees in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, looks like any of the other ordinary suburban homes in the neighborhood. But residents in the house have a special purpose in common -- to put themselves on a path to recovery from drug addiction. The 165-square-meter house is the Gyeonggi branch of the Drug Addiction Rehabilitation Center, a private halfway house agency for recovery from drug addiction that aims to help drug users kick the habit without medical assi

Social Affairs Dec. 26, 2022

An elementary school teacher has been convicted of child abuse for publicly humiliating students, according to local experts and news reports Monday. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the teacher to six months in prison and two years of probation for violating the child abuse punishment act. The court also ordered the teacher to attend a 40-hour lecture on child abuse prevention and mandated a two-year restriction on employment at any child-related institutions. From August until Novemb

Social Affairs Dec. 26, 2022

South Korea reported its first case of infection from Naegleria fowleri, commonly referred to as “brain-eating amoeba,” health authorities said Monday. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency confirmed that a Korean national in his 50s had died after returning from Thailand. The man came back to Korea on Dec. 10 after a four-month stint there. He was admitted to a hospital the next day and died Wednesday last week. The KDCA said it had conducted genetic tests on three types o

Social Affairs Dec. 26, 2022

After three years of pandemic-related setbacks, the traditional bell-ringing ceremony is returning as an offline event on Saturday night at Bosingak in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, to ring in the new year. Amid growing anxiety over public safety at high-density events following the Itaewon crowd crush, the city said it would deploy 1,000 safety personnel. The roads in the Bosingak area will be fully controlled from Saturday, 9 p.m. until 1 a.m. the next day. More than 100,000 people are expected to

Social Affairs Dec. 25, 2022

Amy Lee, a former TV entertainer who goes by her first name, has been sentenced to three years in prison, according to legal professionals and news reports Sunday. The Supreme Court ruled for a three-year imprisonment for Lee for violating the Narcotics Control Act, they said. Lee, who holds US citizenship, pleaded not guilty during the trial, saying she committed the crime “involuntarily” because of an accomplice surnamed Oh, although her innocence claim was rejected. She was on tri

Social Affairs Dec. 25, 2022

The December edition of the Seoul Light show, a media facade show organized by the Seoul Design Foundation, kicked off on Dec. 17, welcoming visitors and tourists to enjoy large-scale light-emitting diode video displays woven into the exterior surface of the Dongdaemun Design Plaza. Seoul Light is an annual event that features media facade shows at the famed DDP in central Seoul, utilizing projection mapping and the curved aluminum-panel surface of the architectural building. The show comes in t

Social Affairs Dec. 25, 2022

The Korea Herald is running a series of feature stories and interviews on the evolution and rise of drug crimes, insufficient support systems and young addicts’ stories in South Korea. This is the first installment. -- Ed. Kim lived a pleasure-seeking life when he got into the nightlife scene in Seoul's Hongdae area in 2017. At the age of 20, he took methamphetamine, ecstasy, ketamine and GHB, to name a few -- all of which are illegal in Korea. Kim, who wished to be known only by his famil

Social Affairs Dec. 21, 2022

Amid fears over a spike in COVID-19 cases in the winter, reinfections due to waning immunity are rising, and the detection rate for the omicron subvariant BN.1 surpassed 20 percent. Wednesday’s total confirmed COVID-19 cases reached 88,172, including 69 cases from overseas, bringing the total to 28,390,646, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. South Korea added 59 more deaths from COVID-19 as of Wednesday midnight, bringing the total to 31,549. The number of critic

Social Affairs Dec. 21, 2022