The government will distribute information on missing children via Facebook starting mid-May, in hopes of bettering its chance of finding them through the popular social networking site.The National Police Agency said Tuesday that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Facebook to send alerts to its users’ mobile phones if they are in a search area where the children have gone missing. The service, called an “amber alert” in the U.S., will allow users to receive information such as mis

Social Affairs May 5, 2015

Ruling party lawmakers are putting last-ditch efforts on legislating a long-held bill to address North Korean human rights issues amid partisan differences over policies toward the reclusive regime.The Saenuri Party and the government said last week that they would consider fast-tracking the North Korean human rights bill in June to expedite the legislation unless they reach an agreement by the end of this month with the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy. “It is a shame that th

Politics May 5, 2015

A resolution condemning the Japanese government’s attempt to list wartime facilities for conscripted Korean soldiers as World Heritage was passed by a parliamentary committee Monday. The resolution will be put to a final endorsement at the National Assembly’s plenary session Wednesday.“We strongly condemn Japanese attempts to list the wartime facilities as World Heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. We believe it constitutes a diplomatic provocation an

Politics May 4, 2015

The main opposition party over the weekend struggled to contain the fallout from Wednesday’s crushing by-election defeat, attempting to keep public attention focused on the corruption scandal involving key ruling party members, accelerate party reforms and galvanize interest in its floor leadership election this week.The New Politics Alliance for Democracy continued to put pressure on the prosecution to carry out an in-depth investigation into the graft scandal involving former and incumbent pol

Politics May 3, 2015

The National Assembly passed a bill on Thursday obligating all child care centers to install CCTV.Of 190 lawmakers in attendance, 184 lawmakers voted in favor while six abstained at the plenary session held nearly a month after the bill was rejected in February. The law goes into effect starting September. The parliamentary approval ends months-long debates over child safety and teachers’ privacy and human rights.“It was a shame the bill was rejected in February,” said Rep. Shin Yee-jin of the r

Politics April 30, 2015

South Korea on Monday approved a civic group’s plan to provide fertilizers to the North, marking the first authorization of the politically sensitive aid since 2010. The decision will allow the Ace Gyeongam Foundation to shore up agriculture in Sariwon, the capital of North Hwanghae Province, by building an additional 50 greenhouses and providing 15 tons of fertilizers and other construction and farming materials. “They will provide technical support such as for establishing gardens and greenhou

North Korea April 27, 2015

Women in Korea who have a low income or are unemployed are more likely to suffer from depression, a study claimed Sunday.The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs said in the report that 16.3 percent of women over age 20 have suffered from depression for more than a two-week period in the past year, compared to men’s 9 percent.By income group, 24.8 percent of those in the lowest quartile experienced depression, compared to 13.8 percent of those in the highest income bracket.By education,

Social Affairs April 26, 2015

President Park Geun-hye and her Brazilian counterpart Dilma Rousseff on Friday discussed ways to step up business and diplomatic cooperation as the Latin American country spurs its national economic development plans. Park arrived in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, a day early for the last leg of her 12-day trip that took her to Colombia, Peru and Chile. During her three-day state visit in Brazil, she is scheduled to take part in a bilateral business forum, meet with Koreans and attend cultural

Foreign Affairs April 24, 2015

The official campaign period for this month’s by-election got off to a slow start Thursday as the nation remained preoccupied with the first anniversary of the Sewol sinking and political debates surrounding a high-profile graft scandal.Candidates for the election began low-key, opting to pay tribute to the victims of the Sewol ferry disaster, which left 295 people dead and 9 people missing.“Even though today is the first day of the by-election campaign, we will remain subdued as it is the first

Politics April 16, 2015