BERLIN -- South Korea will lift entry restrictions on people from European Union (EU) and Schengen Area countries from next week, diplomatic officials here said Thursday. Visa waiver and visa free entry programs on EU and Schengen Area countries will resume Sept. 1, according to officials of the South Korean Embassy in Germany. Seoul has suspended visa waiver and visa free entry programs of the regions since April 13, 2020, in a move to curb COVID-19 spread. The decision will allow South Korea

Foreign Affairs Aug. 26, 2021

The Seoul city government said Thursday it has rejected an application from a LGBTQ festival organizer to establish a non-profit foundation, citing concerns of social conflict if the request were to be approved. The city government sent a letter Wednesday to the Seoul Queer Culture Festival (SQCF) Organizing Committee explaining its reasons for rejecting the application filed in October of 2019. The city government said it "assessed there being factors that could disrupt the public intere

Social Affairs Aug. 26, 2021

South Korean ended its three-day winning streak Thursday as the central bank delivered its first pandemic-era rate hike. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) retreated 18.28 points, or 0.58 percent, to close at 3,128.53 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 719 million shares worth some 13.2 trillion won ($11.3 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 488 to 349. Foreigners sold a net 363 billion won, while retail investor

Market Aug. 26, 2021

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has awarded state medals to two Colombian veterans who fought for South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War in recognition of their sacrifice and devotion, officials said Thursday. Guillermo Rodriguez Guzman, 91, and Alvaro Lozano Charry, 87, were awarded the Ambassador for Peace Medal on Wednesday during their visit to Seoul on the occasion of Colombian President Ivan Duque's three-day state visit to South Korea that began Tuesday. A retired career soldier,

Diplomatic Circuit Aug. 26, 2021

Lisa, a member of K-pop girl group BLACKPINK, will debut as a solo artist next month, her management agency said Thursday. The rapper-dancer will release her first individual single album titled "Lalisa" at 12 a.m. on Sept. 10 (US eastern time), YG Entertainment said. "The upcoming album will feature Lisa's natural and authentic side as implied by its title," the agency said, though it did not elaborate on the tracklist of the album. She dropped a teaser poster for her for

K-pop Aug. 26, 2021

The number of jobs for wage workers in South Korea grew at a slower pace in the first quarter than three months earlier due to slumps in in-person service sectors amid the pandemic, data showed Thursday. The number of paid employee jobs reached 18.9 million in the cited period, up 321,000 from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea. The tally was lower than an on-year increase of 503,000 in the fourth quarter of last year. It also marked the smallest increase since the second quarter of

Economy Aug. 26, 2021

Leading automaker Hyundai Motor Co. was the top employer of physically challenged workers among 70 major firms in South Korea in 2020, with their total hiring of disabled people continuing to rise, a corporate tracker said Thursday. Hyundai Motor, the flagship of No. 5 global automaker Hyundai Motor Group, had 2,108 employees with disabilities last year, which accounted for 3.12 percent of its head count, according to Korea CXO Institute. The ratio was up from 2.95 percent in 2019, and Hyundai

Industry Aug. 26, 2021

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) said Thursday it will mount a filibuster to block a controversial media bill, which it said would suppress press freedom and gag critical media. The ruling Democratic Party (DP) plans to pass the proposed revision to the press arbitration act during a parliamentary plenary session Monday despite resistance from opposition parties and media organizations. The bill, aimed at curbing fake news, would allow the court to order punitive damages of up to f

National Aug. 26, 2021

South Korea's stage musicals have joined hands with gukak, or Korean traditional music, to meet the rising demand of Korean people for diversified cross-genre shows. Musical "Pan" has been gaining more-than-expected popularity since it premiered in July at Jeongdong Theater, a state-run venue that stages traditional performing arts. Set in the late 19th century of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), the show tells the story of Dalsu, a nobleman who wants to become the best storyteller in

Performance Aug. 26, 2021

A North Korean propaganda outlet on Thursday slammed South Korea and the United States over their summertime joint military drill, calling it "a dangerous playing with fire" that heightens tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Uriminzokkiri made the criticism as the allies were set to conclude their nine-day combined military exercise Thursday, which has been held in a scaled-back manner due to the coronavirus situation and peace efforts involving North Korea. "The joint military dr

Defense Aug. 26, 2021

The ruling party and the government on Thursday agreed on a new youth assistance program, including a monthly rent subsidy for young people in lower income brackets, party officials said. The decision was reached during a consultative meeting between the Democratic Party and the government amid the country's soaring housing costs and the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Under the special youth assistance program, the government will pay a monthly rent subsidy of 200,000 won ($171.4) for up to a ye

Politics Aug. 26, 2021

Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday South Korea will continue efforts for democracy and recovery of peace and stability in Myanmar in close cooperation with the international community. It was responding to a public petition calling on Seoul to express formal support for a political group opposing Myanmar's junta, called the National Unity Government of Myanmar (NUG). In the online message, posted on Cheong Wa Dae's website and approved by more than 268,000 people, the petitioner requested South Korea

Diplomatic Circuit Aug. 26, 2021

More than two cases of sex crimes are committed against disabled people per day on average in South Korea, a police report showed Thursday. According to the National Police Agency report submitted to independent lawmaker Lee Yong-ho, a total of 2,432 cases of sex offenses targeted disabled people from 2017-19, which roughly translates into a daily average of 2.2 cases a day. The yearly tally stood at 785 in 2017, 843 in 2018 and 804 in 2019. Of the total, a supermajority of 2,242 cases, or 92

Social Affairs Aug. 26, 2021

South Korea's standard agency said Thursday it will spare no efforts to lead the global standardization of technologies related to the metaverse as the industry is expected to further expand down the road amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "Online meetings and lectures, along with remote working, have emerged as a new norm amid the pandemic," Lee Sang-hoon, who heads the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, said during the International Display Standardization Forum held virtually on

Industry Aug. 26, 2021

Retail sales in South Korea advanced 13 percent in July from a year earlier, data showed Thursday, on the back of strong demand for food delivery services amid the prolonged social distancing measures. The combined sales of 25 major offline and online retailers reached 12.9 trillion won ($11 billion) last month, compared with 11.4 trillion won tallied in the previous year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Sales from offline stores moved up 7 percent

Industry Aug. 26, 2021