South Korean police have launched an investigation into a fight between two gangs at a funeral in North Jeolla Province, it said Monday. According to the North Jeolla Provincial Police Agency, two gangs got into a fight at the funeral of a former triad member held in Iksan around 2 a.m. Sunday. Police officers were dispatched after local police received a call from a citizen who had witnessed the brawl. But the involved parties had already fled the scene before the officers arrived, accordin

Social Affairs Feb. 7, 2022

As the omicron variant spreads rapidly in South Korea, related figures have also hit fresh highs, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Monday. As of midnight Sunday, the percentage of tests that were positive out of all tests administered in the country reached 26 percent, up 5.2 percentage points from the previous day’s 20.8 percent. This means that 1 out of 4 people who received a PCR test got a positive result for COVID-19. The figure has been increasing r

Social Affairs Feb. 7, 2022

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 infections on Thursday hit a fresh high of 27,443 amid the omicron wave, government data showed Friday. The government also announced Friday that it has decided to extend the current social distancing restrictions for two more weeks until Feb. 20. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the daily cases went up by 4,536 from the previous day’s 22,907. The cumulative total for confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country also reached 934

Social Affairs Feb. 4, 2022

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases as of midnight Tuesday surpassed 20,000 for the first time since the country reported its first virus case in January 2020. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s announcement Wednesday, the country added 20,270 new COVID-19 infections for the 24 hours of Tuesday, due to the fast spread of the omicron variant. Of the total, 20,111 were locally transmitted cases, while the number of imported cases reached 159. Among the l

Social Affairs Feb. 2, 2022

Police are investigating a first-year teacher’s alleged sexual harassment of female students at a middle school in Busan. The Yeonje Police Station in Busan said Thursday that it launched the investigation earlier this month after the 30-something male teacher’s wrongdoings were reported. According to the police probe, the teacher had sent sexually harassing messages to a several female students. Through the messages, the teacher made inappropriate compliments about the female st

Social Affairs Jan. 27, 2022

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases topped 13,000 as of midnight Tuesday due to the rapid spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant. It was the first time that South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases surpasses 10,000 in 737 days since the country saw its first confirmed COVID-19 case on January 20. According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Wednesday, the country added 13,012 COVID-19 cases, posting a dramatic increase from that of the previous

Social Affairs Jan. 26, 2022

Chang Yong-joon, better known as rapper No:el and the son of lawmaker Rep. Chang Je-won, had insulted and assaulted a police officer after refusing to comply with a breathalyzer test that followed a car accident in September, according to a video shown in court. Prosecutors revealed the video during a trial at Seoul Central District Court on Monday, where Chang refused to admit his noncompliance with the breathalyzer test and that he had physically attacked a police officer. In the video, Ch

Social Affairs Jan. 25, 2022

South Korea‘s daily coronavirus cases hit an all-time high of 8,571 as of midnight Monday, with the quickly spreading omicron variant now dominant, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Tuesday. It is the first time the daily figure has topped 8,000 cases dating back to when the country reported the first COVID-19 infection in January 2020. The previous all-time high was 7,848 on Dec. 15, 2021. Despite the sudden increase in daily cases, the number of critically ill CO

Social Affairs Jan. 25, 2022

People who have been hospitalized due to adverse events and allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines are exempt from the country’s vaccine pass mandate, starting on Monday. 　 According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, the government will grant the exemption if people have received hospital treatments within six weeks after they received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Those people who requested the government compensate them for vaccination side-eff

Social Affairs Jan. 24, 2022

The South Korean government will lower the age minimum for COVID-19 treatment pills from 65 to 60 to better counter the spread of the omicron variant, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Friday. Kim announced the measure during the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting, along with other changes that the government will bring into the country’s COVID-19 response system. “(The government) will make several changes in the country’s response system to mor

Social Affairs Jan. 21, 2022

South Korea‘s daily COVID-19 cases stayed above 6,000 for a second consecutive day as of midnight Thursday, largely as the spread of the omicron variant picks up pace. As of midnight Thursday, the country added 6,769 new COVID-19 cases, which raised the total caseload to 719,269, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The country‘s daily caseload surpassed 6,000 on Wednesday for the first time in 27 days, after staying below the mark since Dec. 24, when the figure re

Social Affairs Jan. 21, 2022

Two men, who were convicted of selling illegal abortion pills and helping two cases of infanticide, have been sentenced to three years in prison, according to the Daejeon District Court, Thursday. The court also banned the two men from getting child-related careers for three years. In January, 2020, the two men, who are in their 30s, sold illegal abortion pills online to a woman in her 20s. However, the woman gave birth in her bathroom after the abortion pills failed. She then asked the two m

Social Affairs Jan. 20, 2022

A man in his 80s who is believed to have murdered his wife over suspicion of a possible relationship with another man has been arrested, police said Thursday. The case has been sent to the prosecutor’s office for further investigation. According to the Seoul Dongdaemun Police Station, the man is alleged to have murdered his wife on Jan. 12 at home. The man reportedly called his son and confessed to the crime. The son reported the case to police, and police arrested him at the scene.

Social Affairs Jan. 20, 2022

An appellate court on Wednesday upheld life sentence of a South Korean man who murdered three women in the same family. While upholding the lower court’s ruling, the Seoul High Court also insisted the 26-year-old murderer Kim Tae-hyun should be sentenced to life in prison without parole. “Although the judicial authority’s opinion has no binding force to parole decisions, the court should clarify its opinion regarding the opportunity of parole,” the court said. “Th

Social Affairs Jan. 19, 2022

South Korea’s daily coronavirus cases surpassed 5,000 for the first time in 20 days as the omicron variant began to spread rapidly. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s announcement on Wednesday, the country added 5,805 new COVID-19 infections as of midnight Tuesday, raising the total to 705,902. The figure was 1,733 up from that of the previous day. The figure went over 5,000 for the first time in 20 days since it reached 5,034 on Dec. 30. The number

Social Affairs Jan. 19, 2022