A Seoul high school recently set up a screen golf facility inside its premises which is mostly used by the staff, sparking complaints from students and their teachers over whether it was a proper use of school funds. According to a report by local broadcaster MBC, the school based in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul shut down the school's snack bar after the government enforced social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The area was turned into a screen golf zone that is not regularly open to st

Social Affairs May 8, 2024

The Supreme Court recently overturned a lower court ruling that found three men guilty of group rape, based on the written confession left by another man before his death. South Korea's highest court said the note left by the deceased cannot be used as evidence of the sexual crime in a criminal case, saying its credibility has not sufficiently been verified. The deceased, who died at his apartment in Seoul in 2021, had apologized in what is thought to be a suicide note that he and three oth

Social Affairs May 7, 2024

Half of South Korean workers in their 20s said they are "addicted to watching short videos" on mobile or online platforms, according to a recent survey by job search platform Incruit. In the survey conducted of 870 employees across the country between April 29 and May 1, 27.4 percent of all respondents said they are "addicted" to watching short-form videos. Per age group, 49.8 percent of the respondents in their 20s and 30.8 percent of those in their 30s said they were addict

Social Affairs May 7, 2024

The National Police Agency said Tuesday it will supply police officers with advanced protective gear starting in June, responding to the 1,000-plus injuries of officers that have occurred in the last few years. The new gear that will be provided for police officers are four types of stab-proof body armor and mid-sized tactical shields, which will be provided to 17 divisions of the police force including the detective, rapid response team, traffic and other branches of regional police forces. The

Social Affairs May 7, 2024

The wholesale price of gim, or dried seaweed, in South Korea in April nearly doubled from last year, rising to its highest-ever level. A 100-sheet package of gim was traded at an average of 10,089 won ($7.4) in April, soaring by 80.1 percent compared to the same month in 2023, according to the state-run Korea Maritime Institute. It was the first time that the wholesale price of gim surpassed the 10,000-won mark, and the institute projects that the price will keep climbing to 10,875 won by Octobe

Consumer May 7, 2024

Hodu, a three-year-old female Pomeranian, was the talk of the town last week in the nation’s capital as Seoul citizens expressed their affection for a member of the Dog Patrol Program that provides civilian patrol activities across the city. "I'm not so cold-hearted as to enjoy such a sight by myself," wrote Seongdong-gu chief Chung Won-oh on his X account, as he shared the photos and videos of Hodu. The dog and her owner recently joined Seoul's patrol program that of

Culture May 5, 2024

The South Korean government downgraded the COVID-19 crisis level to the lowest level on May 1, but a recent report indicates that the years of the pandemic have nonetheless left a lasting mark on people here in the form of depression. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's report on depression in South Korea, 7.3 percent of the adult population experienced depression in 2023. The study was conducted on 230,000 adults across the country, and defined depression as &quo

Social Affairs May 5, 2024

South Korea has seen a continued decrease in the average age of teenagers caught gambling in the past five years, reaching 16.1 years old in 2023, according to the National Police Agency. The country also saw a substantial on-year increase in the number of those aged between 14-18 years who were subject to criminal investigation for gambling, which more than doubled from 74 in 2022 to 171 in 2023. The figure does not include those who were caught but received a summary trial or a warning from po

Social Affairs May 4, 2024

South Korea has been seeking to curb an increasing number of false emergency reports that hinder police duties, with a law revision for stricter measures set to take effect in July. The recently revised law on 112 emergency call services passed last year will kick in on July 3, allowing the court to hand out an administrative fine of up to 5 million won ($3,600) for false reports to the police, even to first-time offenders. Prank calls to the police had previously been dealt with mostly under th

Social Affairs May 4, 2024

Children and teenagers in South Korea have not only gotten taller compared to 10 years ago but also tend to mature at an earlier age, a recent report from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed. The ministry-affiliated Korean Agency for Technology and Standards conducted research on the body measurements of 1,118 South Koreans aged between 7 and 19, the results of which were presented at Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul on Thursday. The report showed growth among all age groups and

Social Affairs May 3, 2024

Gwangyang City Council Member Park Chul-soo, who made headlines in March by publicly proposing to his girlfriend during a general assembly meeting, will get married next month. According to the council in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, the 46-year-old council member is set to tie the knot with 41-year-old city official Song Eun-seon on May 25 at a church in Gwangyang. Park, a member of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, made the surprise proposal to his girlfriend when he took to

People April 30, 2024

A former South Korean baseball player who beat his debtor to death with a baseball bat recently appealed the 15-year prison term he was sentenced by the court on Thursday, challenging the fairness of the punishment. The prosecution, which initially requested a 20-year prison term, also appealed the ruling, contending the punishment was too lenient. It said that given the brutal nature of the murder and the bereaved family's demands of a strict punishment, the court should issue the defendan

Social Affairs April 30, 2024

A medical professor was recently handed a suspended prison term for making and distributing cards, falsely claiming that they would function as a vaccine to prevent and even cure COVID-19. Seoul Central District Court sentenced the defendant surnamed Kim to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, for violating the Medical Devices Act. "It was necessary to punish (the defendant) as his actions presented risks for the public health, endangering the people's lives and safety,&quo

Social Affairs April 29, 2024

The number of South Koreans working multiple jobs surpassed 500,000 in the first quarter of this year, with older people taking up a large proportion of such workers. A total of 552,000 people here had at least one additional job while working full time in the first quarter, according to Statistics Korea data. This marked a 22.4 percent increase compared to the 451,000 tallied in the same period in 2023. While the overwhelming majority of the working population still only has one job, the perc

Economy April 29, 2024

Police in Busan on Monday said they are investigating 10 men in their 30s in connection to a violent incident that took place near Haeundae Beach last week. Police suspect the men are members of a local gang. According to the Busan Haeundae Police Station, a fight broke out between two men in the entertainment district near the beach on April 24. The situation escalated as the two men called for back up and more men joined in the brawl about 90 minutes later. The men reportedly fought in group

Social Affairs April 29, 2024