South Korea’s COVID-19 situation continued to deteriorate Wednesday with 2,223 new cases reported Wednesday. This is the first time Korea’s daily tally has risen above 2,000 since the pandemic began last year. The cases are unlikely to drop anytime soon as highly contagious delta variants have become the dominant strain of the coronavirus in line with holiday season and slow inoculation, experts say. Health Minister Kwon Deok-chul said a meeting on the day, “Although we hav

Social Affairs Aug. 11, 2021

Drug cases are on the rise in South Korea, with a marked surge in the number of juveniles arrested on drug charges, officials said Tuesday. According to government data, 7,565 people were arrested on drug charges and 1,138 people were imprisoned for drug offenses between January and June. Drug arrests rose 8.6 percent from the same period last year. The number of drug arrests stood at 12,613 in 2018, 16,044 in 2019 and 18,050 in 2020. The crackdown was carried out by the Ministry of Food a

Social Affairs Aug. 10, 2021

Rep. Park Jin, a four-term lawmaker vying to become the People Power Party’s presidential candidate, has urged the government to protest what he called China’s interference in South Korea’s security sovereignty. At a videoconference at the ASEAN Regional Forum, held Friday, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed opposition to the Korea-US joint exercises and called for the easing of sanctions against North Korea. On Sunday Park wrote in his blog, “Wang Yi&rs

Politics Aug. 9, 2021

Sarang Jeil Church in Seoul is again raising concerns about COVID-19 by forging ahead with face-to-face worship services and announcing a large-scale rally. Its leader, the Rev. Jeon Kwang-hoon, was indicted on charges of violating a ban on rallies in connection with a similar event last year. Since the implementation of tough restrictions in the Greater Seoul area July 12, the church has conducted four face-to-face worship services. Under the current quarantine rules, only 19 people are all

Social Affairs Aug. 9, 2021

The number of Koreans who have suffered from mental disorders and eating disorders has risen in the pandemic, data showed Sunday. Last year, the number of people diagnosed with either depression, insomnia, anorexia or bulimia stood at 1,504,181, up by 67,233, or 4.67 percent, from the previous year, according to government data. The data, from the state-run Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, was disclosed by independent lawmaker Lee Yong-ho. Depression accounted for 55.7 perce

Politics Aug. 1, 2021

After Rep. Yong Hye-in, 31, of the Basic Income Party, brought her 2-month-old son to her workplace on July 5, her photos went viral on social media. On the day, she held a press conference to urge the passage of her bill that would allow a lawmaker to enter a plenary session with an infant who needs nursing. Under the current law, only lawmakers, the prime minister, state council members and those authorized by the assembly speaker are allowed. When her photos made headlines, opinions were

Politics Aug. 1, 2021

South Korea’s already slow vaccination rollout may face a further delay with Moderna, from which Seoul purchased 40 million COVID-19 vaccines -- experiencing production issues. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said on Tuesday, “Moderna has informed us that it is inevitable to adjust the supply schedule due to production setbacks.” He added, “We are currently discussing with Moderna over the specific and definitive volume and date for vaccines in the July and August period.&

Social Affairs July 27, 2021

A majority of Koreans support the idea of granting parole to Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Aug. 15, the nation’s liberation day, a survey showed Monday. His release date is July next year. More than 66 percent of South Koreans said Lee, head of the nation’s largest conglomerate, should be released early as it would provide a boost to the economy, a nationwide survey conducted by Realmeter on Friday showed. Realmeter interviewed 500 people who were aged 18 or old

Social Affairs July 26, 2021

Ten days into the toughest level of distancing curbs in Greater Seoul, the nation has continued to see record-breaking daily case numbers. The current restrictions that end Sunday are likely to be extended to curb further spread. As of Wednesday at midnight, the number of new daily confirmed cases reached a record high of 1,842 people. The figure includes 270 infected sailors of the 301-strong Cheonghae unit on an anti-piracy mission in waters off Africa. Of the newly confirmed cases, 1,53

Social Affairs July 22, 2021

A Chinese spending spree on property and land in South Korea if left unchecked may fuel a rise in already skyrocketing housing prices, a lawmaker warned Wednesday, calling for stricter regulations on property ownership by foreign nationals. Land bought by foreign nationals increased from an area of 190 million square meters worth 24.9 trillion won ($21.6 billion) in 2011 to 253 million square meters worth 31.4 trillion won in 2020, each 1.3 times more than what it was almost a decade ago, off

Social Affairs July 21, 2021

Lee Jun-seok, 36, the youngest-ever leader of the nation’s main opposition People Power Party, has been outspoken on a number of sensitive issues since taking office last month. Sitting down with The Korea Herald on Monday, he candidly spoke about hot topics like refugees, immigrants and North. When asked about the nation’s immigration policies, Lee said that South Korea should accept immigrants who can help the nation’s economy, but should be cautious about refugees. &ldqu

Politics July 20, 2021

The Ministry of Justice said Monday that it would extend the period of stay for some 90,000 registered foreign residents and overseas Korean (F-4) residents whose authorized stay in the country is set to expire soon. The measure, effective the same day, will grant them an extension of stay for three months as part of efforts to prevent the community spread of COVID-19 as the nation raises its social distancing rules to the toughest level in the four-tier system for Greater Seoul. The minist

Social Affairs July 19, 2021

As the fourth wave of COVID-19 infections raged in Greater Seoul and spread nationwide, the government announced plans Sunday to tighten restrictions on private gatherings across the country to the same level as the capital region. “From tomorrow, we will apply the same permissions for private gatherings outside the Greater Seoul area,” Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Sunday. The government said the new measure is to unify restrictions on private gatherings to minimize travel bet

Social Affairs July 18, 2021

On Wednesday, single-person protests took place in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul calling for an apology from the Japanese government and demanding it redress its colonial sexual slavery. Unlike the 1,400th demonstration that garnered thousands of people on site, due to the pandemic the 1,500th protest was held in the form of one-person protests -- still watched by thousands of people around the world online. The Wednesday protests first began on Jan. 8, 1992 and have been held every

Social Affairs July 14, 2021

With the race for the presidential election kicking into gear, a string of senior lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party are announcing their candidacies one after another. Four-term lawmaker Park Jin on Tuesday declared his bid, becoming the third current lawmaker from the People Power Party to enter the fray, following Ha Tae-keung and Yun Hee-suk. Considered a diplomacy expert in the National Assembly, Park is known to be close to US President Joe Biden. He visited the US

Politics July 13, 2021