National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug began his nine-day visit to Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to strengthen economic ties with the three emerging Central Asian nations, the National Assembly said Thursday. During the visit, Park will discuss cooperation in areas such as health care, energy, information and communications technology, public administration, agriculture and textiles. On Wednesday, Park visited Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, to hold talks with National Assem

Politics April 1, 2021

As the April 7 by-election to choose Seoul’s next mayor approaches, a fierce battle is ongoing between the ruling and main opposition parties. At the same time, 10 minor parties and independent candidates are appealing to voters by talking about gender equality, LGBTQ rights, basic income and the environment. The 10 candidates, whose combined approval rating is less than 5 percent, are getting voters’ attention with issues that major candidates haven’t paid much attention to.

Politics March 31, 2021

Amid a growing shortage of migrant workers in South Korea, reported cases of sexual violence, assault and overdue wages among foreign workers have continued to emerge as they accuse their employers for exploiting their vulnerable status. Police said on Monday it is investigating a case of sexual assault after receiving a complaint that a Cambodian worker was sexually assaulted by a farm owner. The complaint, filed by a migrant worker rights protection civic group, alleges that the farm owne

Social Affairs March 30, 2021

With the April 7 by-election to choose Seoul’s next mayor just around the corner, the election campaigns are becoming marred by mudslinging and personal insults between candidates, which may lead to political distrust and apathy among voters. About a week to go before the election, both the ruling and opposition parties appear to be focusing more on raising personal negative issues about rival candidates than discussion of policies and pledges. Although there are several candidates, the

Politics March 29, 2021

The South Korean government and National Assembly are looking to ease regulations on employing foreign nationals and for immigration in the face of labor shortages brought on by the prolonged pandemic. On Friday, a bill to revise the act on the employment of foreign workers, which was proposed by Rep. Lee Jong-bae of the main opposition People Power Party, passed the plenary session of the National Assembly. The main focus of the bill is to increase the number of industries that can hire for

Social Affairs March 28, 2021

On Sunday afternoon, a refill station called Almang Market in Mangwon-dong, Seoul, was busy with consumers seeking plastic-free alternatives. A refill station is a shop where customers take their own containers to buy goods without packaging. Almang Market, which opened in June, sells a variety of refillable products, such as shampoo, cosmetics and detergent. Customers purchase them by weight. As well as refillable liquid products, there are also products like unpacked body and dish soap t

Social Affairs March 27, 2021

Two weeks before the April 7 by-election to choose Seoul’s next mayor, Oh Se-hoon, a former mayor and the sole candidate from the opposition bloc, is far ahead of Park Young-sun, former minister of SMEs and startups and the sole candidate from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, a poll showed Wednesday. According to a Realmeter survey of 1,042 Seoulites aged 18 or older on March 22 and 23, Oh gained 48.9 percent support and Park stood at 29.2 percent support of respondents in the two-w

Politics March 24, 2021

A photo of a white Maltese mix with a hopeless look on his face was posted on an animal adoption platform, Pawinhand, early this month. The message read, “Please take a look at this puppy whose deadline is over.” This means a monthlong period to find a new owner was over and he would soon be euthanized. The white dog was abandoned in a village this past winter with some dog supplies, according to local residents, and was rescued by an animal shelter after wandering the village fo

Social Affairs March 23, 2021

The Seoul city government on Friday withdrew an order requiring mandatory coronavirus testing for all foreign workers after facing criticism from foreigners, medical workers and the human rights commission. The Seoul Metropolitan Government released a statement on Friday afternoon, saying, “We changed the administrative order issued on March 17 after the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters requested the withdrawal of the order.” “We changed from the man

Social Affairs March 19, 2021

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug held a videoconference with US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday to discuss pending issues such as the South Korea-US alliance and North Korea’s nuclear weapons. During the meeting Park said that “the Korea-US alliance is a starting point and a crucial point of reference for Korea’s diplomacy and security and, as the US’ most successful alliance, serves as a bedrock for peace and stability in the region.” He went on t

Politics March 19, 2021

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea on Friday launched an investigation into the Seoul city government’s decision to mandate coronavirus tests for all foreign workers, after some foreigners filed a petition against the administrative order. “Foreigners have filed a petition with the NHRC, saying that they feel hatred and racism,” NHRC Chairperson Choi Young-ae said in a statement. “In response, the NHRC will quickly determine whether discrimination and human

Social Affairs March 19, 2021

Medical experts are baffled by the Seoul city government’s decision to mandate coronavirus tests for all foreign workers in the city, saying it is discriminatory, scientifically unjustifiable and may even violate human rights. The Seoul Metropolitan Government issued an administrative order on Tuesday requiring all foreign workers in the city to undergo diagnostic tests March 17-31 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Fines of up to 2 million won ($1,778) will be imposed if they f

Social Affairs March 18, 2021

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug asked Costa Rican Foreign Minister Rodolfo Solano Quiros to pay special attention to South Korean companies’ participation in the nation’s electric train project and in electronic-government projects, in a meeting held Tuesday. “I learned that Costa Rica is pushing for electric trains in the metropolitan area and e-government projects, Park said during a talk with Solano. I think there are many areas where we can work together as

Politics March 17, 2021

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles about efforts being made by the public and governments to protect the environment as the country moves towards the goal of becoming a more eco-friendly society. - Ed. In a small office full of machine and colorful pieces of plastic, staff are busily making new products with plastic waste. They wash plastic waste, categorize them by color, grind and melt them and then pour the molten plastic into a mold. Through this process, plastic waste

Social Affairs March 17, 2021

Park Young-sun, the Seoul mayor candidate of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, has vowed to strengthen cooperation with Europe to drive the city to move toward a global city at a meeting with the European Chamber of Commerce in Korea on Monday. The candidate attended a special meeting hosted by the ECCK and shared opinions with European entrepreneurs on the business landscape in Seoul and ways to further develop Seoul into a global economic hub, the ECCK said Tuesday. During the meeting

Politics March 16, 2021