South Korea's largest doctors' association is set to hold a vote of confidence against its controversy-ridden president, who has been at the center of controversy for his comments and actions, as well as bribery allegations. The operating committee of the Korean Medical Association held an emergency meeting Tuesday evening and decided on an assembly of representatives on Nov. 10 at 2 p.m., with a motion of no confidence in KMA chief Lim Hyun-taek included in the agenda. They will als

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2024

South Koreans' most preferred length for an animated video is between 20 and 29 minutes, a report by a state-run content industry agency showed Wednesday. The Korea Creative Content Agency released the 2024 Animation Industry White Paper, in which they surveyed 3,500 Koreans between the age of 10 and 69 who watched an animated video regularly -- at least once in two to three months -- in the past year. When asked what was their most preferred length of an animation, 33.6 percent of the resp

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2024

Roughly half of public educational institutes across South Korea have at least one convicted sex offender living within a 1-kilometer radius, data showed Wednesday. Over half of the day care centers and high schools in the country -- 59 percent and 53 percent, respectively -- have one or more sex offenders living within 1 kilometer, according to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family data submitted to Rep. Baek Seung-a of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. Some 51 percent of ki

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2024

A 15-year-old boy is being investigated for assaulting a senior citizen and causing his death. The Muan Police Station in South Jeolla Province said it is investigating the middle school student for death resulting from violence, punishable by up to three years in prison. The suspect is accused of using fatal violence against a neighbor in his 70s at around 5:40 p.m. on Oct. 13. The suspect told police that he punched the victim when he saw him arguing with his mother. The victim fell to the gro

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2024

Multiple people in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, aided in bringing jewelry thieves to justice, according to local police, chasing one thief on foot and also identifying him and his accomplice. The National Police Agency on Friday posted a video of their recent arrest, in which two men who stole gold jewelry with an estimated value of 35.7 million won ($25,800) were arrested. In the video posted on the NPA's official YouTube page, a customer apparently took a gold necklace while pretending t

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2024

Incheon International Airport Corporation said Sunday it is retracting a much-disputed plan to provide designated security lanes for celebrities in order to prevent overcrowding by onlookers, after a backlash from the general public and lawmakers against preferential treatment for famous people. Officials at South Korea's main gateway said the airport will not be implementing the plan to permit celebrities to use security lanes such as those for flight crews, diplomats and disabled passen

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2024

As many as 1.1 million Christians in South Korea participated in a mass rally in Seoul on Sunday to oppose the legalization of same-sex marriage and legislation of an antidiscrimination ordinance that has been floating around for over a decade. One of the largest religious gatherings in the country's history occurred across the country's capital in Seoul Plaza, Gwanghwamun Square, Seoul Station and Yeouido, with organizers claiming some 1.1 million participants, while police have estim

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2024

A dispute has emerged surrounding Lim Hyun-taek, chair of South Korea's largest doctors' association, that he had alleged requested to be paid by a member doctor as a settlement for dropping a defamation lawsuit. Local media outlets here reported that Korean Medical Association chief Lim had recently sought to file a defamation suit against the member, who had criticized him online. The member, who is public relations director of the Seoul Medical Association, sent Lim a written lett

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

Some 44.9 percent of the medical residents who resigned en masse to protest the government's medical school admissions hike have been rehired at other medical institutions, a Ministry of Health and Welfare data showed Thursday. Of the 9,163 residents who have walked of the job in the nationwide medical strike, 4,111 have been reemployed as doctors as of Sunday, according to the ministry data submitted to Rep. Kim Yoon of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. The data showed that

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

A woman who filed around 2,000 false reports, petitions and complaints against the authorities has been arrested, Busan police said, as her case was forwarded to the prosecutors Thursday. According to the Busan Sasang Police Station, the suspect is accused of filing multiple complaints and petitions against 16 officers at the station from February to April. This included false claims of officers physically abusing or harassing her. She reportedly admitted to filing the false claims in the police

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

Busan police on Thursday presented a certificate of appreciation to a bank employee who prevented a voice phishing scam against an elderly woman. According to the Bukbu Police Station in Busan, the employee of the north Busan branch of Nonghyup Bank received a request from a woman in her 70s to withdraw 8 million won ($5,750) from her account, at around 3:50 p.m. on Oct. 14. She had told the employee that she needed cash to buy home appliances, but the employee grew suspicious and checked to f

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

A man is being considered for commendation after intervening in an assault against a convenience store clerk, local media outlets reported Thursday. According to the local broadcaster YTN, the attack occurred at a convenience store in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The suspect, identified only as a foreign national in his 20s, attempted to buy a bottle of soju but the store clerk in his 60s repeatedly refused to sell it, citing that the suspect needed an ID to

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2024

Han Kang's historic win of the Nobel Prize in literature appears to have sparked a reading boom across South Korea, with data showing that locals have bought substantially more books following the Oct. 10 announcement. BC Card, one of the biggest credit card companies here, analyzed online and offline sales at major book outlets in recent weeks. It found that book sales of BC Card users for the period of Oct. 10-16 jumped by 39.2 percent compared to the previous week. Book sales in that sev

Books Oct. 24, 2024

A young man on the run for allegedly dodging his mandatory military service survived a fall from a building while trying to evade prosecutors, officials said Thursday. The suspect, in his late 20s and wanted for violating the Military Service Act, was visited at his home in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province by officials from the Namyangju Branch of the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors' Office at around 12:40 p.m. on Monday. One investigator knocked on the door while the other was standing by outsi

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2024

Controversy over tattoos is brewing again, following reports about several five-star hotels in Seoul banning customers with "excessive tattoos" from using some facilities. One hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, reportedly has a clause allowing it to restrict gym and swimming pool access to customers with "an excessive amount of tattoos, to the extent of causing anxiety or discomfort to others." Another hotel in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, was reported to ban pool use for those with tatto

Social Affairs Oct. 23, 2024