The body of a woman in her 40s had been found in the waters near the Haeundae Beach in Busan, local coast guard said Thursday. Officials at the Busan Coast Guard said they received a report of what appears to be a person floating in the water at around 8:57 p.m. on Wednesday. Officials found that it was a woman, wearing everyday clothes. Initial inspection of her body showed that she had drowned to death, and that she had no signs of physical trauma. Officials noted that it does not seem likely

Social Affairs May 23, 2024

The busiest subway station in the Seoul Metro system in terms of daily users was Jamsil Station on Line Nos. 2 and 8, the main operator of the metro system for the nation's capital and parts of the surrounding cities said Thursday. According to the Seoul Metro, 155,229 people used the Jamsil Station between January and April of this year. The state-run company surveyed the ridership for each station, based on the number of people who either entered or exited the system at the said station.

Social Affairs May 23, 2024

The municipal government of Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, Thursday is investigating an animal abuse case, in which a cat was drowned in what appears to be a deliberate attempt. The Tongyeong station of the Korea Coast Guard received a report at around 8 a.m. Wednesday, of what appeared to be an animal floating around the waters off Misu-dong in Tongyeong. The animal turned out to be a dead cat, whose body was tied to a rope that was bound to rocks beneath the surface. Investigators suspe

Social Affairs May 23, 2024

A controversy is brewing over allegations that Kang Hyeong-Wook, one of the most well-known dog trainers in South Korea, has been bullying the employees at his company. The rumor surfaced after the recent news that the 38-year-old has decided to cease operation of Bodeum Company Ltd., a training and consulting firm for dogs. Numerous users of the local job-searching platform Job Planet came across negative reviews of the company, which have since been posted online and circulated among the South

Social Affairs May 21, 2024

A local animal protection group said Tuesday it has requested a police investigation into a possible case of animal abuse after six newborn puppies were found at a beach, apparently thrown away by the owner. According to the Taean Dongmul Boho Hyeophoi (Taean Animal Protection Society), the animals were found inside a garbage bag thrown away along a beach in Taean-gun in South Chungcheong Province. Trash such as empty bottles of soju and beer cans were also found inside the bag. Some of the pupp

Social Affairs May 21, 2024

South Korean police on Tuesday said they were investigating a hacking attack on the personal email accounts of high-ranking military officials, with North Korea the likely suspect. The Cyber Investigation Bureau of the National Police Agency recently found that the email accounts of several military generals and officials of the Defense Ministry have been hacked. Officials declined to reveal the number or specific posts of the victims, but it has been reported that vice minister-level officials

North Korea May 21, 2024

Yonsei University said Monday that it will conduct safety inspections of a dormitory on its Seoul campus, responding to rumors of a possible collapse that caused several tenants to vacate the building over the weekend. Several students of the prestigious school evacuated the building over the weekend after an anonymous post on the Yonsei University page of the online college student community Everytime claimed that the dormitory "seems to be tilting." The post included a photo showing

Social Affairs May 20, 2024

Starting Monday, an identity verification process has been mandated for those wishing to receive national health insurance benefits for medical services in South Korea. The recent revision to the National Health Insurance Act came into effect, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as patients are required to carry a certified form of identification with them when they visit medical facilities. Those who do not must pay the entire medical fee, even if they are subscribed to the Nationa

Social Affairs May 20, 2024

The South Korean government announced that a recent revision of the Youth Protection Act related to poker-themed businesses, which stipulates that teenagers shall be banned from entering or working at such establishments, will take effect Friday, "Hold 'em pubs" and "hold 'em cafes" refer to establishments that allow users to engage in games categorized by the law as casino-type games, including the poker variant Texas hold 'em, which gave such enterprises thei

Social Affairs May 17, 2024

A woman in her 20s has fallen to her death from an acquaintance's home, Incheon police said Friday, after displaying what officials have described to be abnormal behavior. The Incheon Namdong Police Station received a report at around 7 p.m. Thursday about a young woman hanging from a balcony of the 12th-floor unit of a residential building in Namdong-gu, Incheon. Officers dispatched to the scene were installing an air mattress below her when she fell. An investigation found that the unit f

Social Affairs May 17, 2024

The price of five out of eight major dishes at local eateries in Seoul increased again in April, as the cost of eating out continues to rise in the nation's capital. The Korea Consumer Agency, an affiliate of the Korea Fair Trade Commission, compiles the monthly average prices for eight major dining options in South Korea, in a bid to provide the public with an understanding of the changing costs of dining out. Of the eight, the prices of gimbap, jajangmyeon, kalguksu, naengmyeon and kimchi

Consumer May 17, 2024

Choi Jin-young, the CEO and publisher of Herald Corp., was selected as the eighth president of Korea's Foreign Language Newspapers Association at its executive directors' meeting, the group said Monday. He will serve until 2025 as chair of the association, which consists of The Korea Herald, The Korea JoongAng Daily, The Korea Times and The Aju Daily. The Foreign Language Newspapers Association was established in 2015, with goals for joint research and collaboration among foreign-langu

People May 13, 2024

South Korean consumers’ satisfaction with processed food dropped in 2023 compared to the year before, a report showed Monday, marking a decline in the price category for the third-straight year. The Korea Rural Economic Institute conducted a survey of 2,000 households across the country between August and October last year, asking them to rate their satisfaction with processed foods on a scale of 1 to 5. The respondents gave a 3.6, after marking 3.9 for three consecutive years from 2020 to

Consumer May 13, 2024

More than a quarter of Korean couples aged between 25 and 39 were childless in 2022, a study showed Monday, with a substantial increase in the ratio of DINK -- double income, no kids -- couples among young South Koreans. The Korea Labor Institute report analyzed the trend of young married couples, particularly related to households with the head of the family aged between 25 and 39. The study showed that the percentage of couples without kids in the 25-39 age group came to 27.1 percent, up almos

Social Affairs May 13, 2024

An autopsy has confirmed that a man in his 50s was beaten to death, with local police suspecting the perpetrators to be the man's wife and teenage daughter. The National Forensic Service conducted an autopsy on the victim on Saturday and submitted its opinion on the victim's cause of death, according to Yangju Police Station in Gyeonggi Province. The NFS will perform toxicology tests on the victim to check for drugs, the results of which will take another two to three weeks. The vict

Social Affairs May 13, 2024