Most Popular
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Korea enters full election mode
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Seoul bus drivers go on general strike, cause morning rush hour delays
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Immigrant woman stabbed to death by Korean husband
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Lee Jong-sup resigns as envoy to Australia
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Yellow dust engulfs S. Korea, advisory alert issued
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Official campaigning kicks off for April 10 elections
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S. Korea to boost support for single-parent families
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Court upholds jail term for man who attempted to murder ex-girlfriend
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Kia EV9 wins world car of year
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Korea misses out on global bond index boost
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Indonesian sailor commended for saving woman in sea
A 37-year-old Indonesian man who saved a woman from sea received a certificate of appreciation from the Ulsan Coast Guard Station on Wednesday, according to the officials. Riyanto, a sailor of the 29-ton fishing vessel Dongchang, saw a 30-something woman fall into the water at the Bangeojin Port in Ulsan last Thursday. He jumped into the water and held onto her until the coast guard arrived for rescue. The woman was resuscitated and was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. It was found that
Jan. 25, 2024
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Man acquitted after placing 'no parking' sign on illegally parked car
A South Korean court recently cleared criminal charges for a man who had been fined for placing a "no parking" signboard on a car that had been blocking the entrance to an underground parking at an apartment complex, the Korea Legal Aid Corporation said Wednesday. In a case made public by the state-run company, the defendant had sought out the group's help after a local court handed him a fine of 700,000 won ($520) for property damage. The owner of the car had filed charges agains
Jan. 25, 2024
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Ministry extends after-school programs
South Korea announced plans to dramatically extend after-school care and reform education programs for elementary school students in an effort to combat the country's low birth rate. Under the extension plan announced by the Ministry of Education on Wednesday, before and after-school child care programs provided by elementary schools will be extended, opening from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and closing at 8 p.m., officials said. Previously, after-school programs were provided to some 50.3 percent of
Jan. 24, 2024
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Length of hospital stays in S. Korea to increase by 45% in 2035: report
The number of days South Koreans spend in hospitals is expected to increase by 45 percent by 2035 when compared to 2022, government data showed Wednesday. The Ministry of Health and Welfare recently conducted a study based on recent data from the National Health Insurance Service and Statistics Korea. The findings indicated that South Koreans are expected to be admitted to hospitals for an accumulated 200.5 million days in 2035, compared to 138 million days in 2022. The ministry also speculated
Jan. 24, 2024
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Cab driver caught going the wrong way on expressway, blames passenger
A taxi driver was caught after driving 37 kilometers on the wrong side of an expressway, saying that he turned the car around because his passenger said he had been going the wrong way, local police said Wednesday. According to the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency, the 65-year-old driver is being investigated on the charge of violating the Road Traffic Act at the Gyeongsan Police Station in North Gyeongsang Province. The suspect's car had been on the Seoul-bound side of the Gyeongbu Expre
Jan. 24, 2024
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Apgujeong Rolls Royce case driver gets 20-year prison sentence
A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced a man to 20 years in prison for killing a pedestrian while driving under the influence of illicitly prescribed drugs. The 28-year-old driver, surnamed Shin, who ran over a woman while driving a Rolls-Royce in Apgujeong, Gangnam, Seoul in August 2023, was charged with murder via hit-and-run. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the man to 20 years in prison on Wednesday. “The defendant caused the car accident after ignoring the doctor's instru
Jan. 24, 2024
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Health insurance criteria for foreigners, overseas Koreans to become stricter in April
Following an amendment to the Health Insurance Act that goes into effect on April 3, foreign nationals and overseas South Koreans must reside in the country for at least six months to receive health insurance coverage as dependents of the actual subscribers. The new measures, however, will allow children under the age of 19 or spouses of foreign workers to be covered by the national health insurance before residing in Korea for six months so that families of diplomats and expatriate employees ca
Jan. 24, 2024
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Extreme cold temperatures to continue until Fri. morning
As a cold continental high pressure extends from northern China, temperatures will remain below freezing nationwide on Wednesday and continue until Friday morning, said the Korea Meteorological Administration. In the central region, eastern parts of North Jeolla Province and inland regions of North Gyeongsang Province where a cold wave warning has been issued, temperatures were recorded to be as low as minus 10 degrees Celsius, while other regions’ temperatures recorded as low as minus 5 C
Jan. 24, 2024
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S. Korean food agency warns against eating … toothpicks, seriously
South Korea's food and drug safety authorities on Wednesday issued a warning not to eat toothpicks -- specifically the green ones made of corn starch. In response to a growing social media trend of cooking and eating the toothpicks, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said the starched toothpicks are supposed to be used only for sanitary purposes. The officials explained that the toothpicks are hygiene items, just like cups and straws, and are not subject to the safety regulations that app
Jan. 24, 2024
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Court sentences 2-year jail term for concert ticket scam
Seoul Eastern District Court on Wednesday sentenced a 29-year-old man to two years in prison for pretending to sell concert tickets and making some 12.4 million won ($9,200) in illegal profit. From April of August of last year, the defendant surnamed Lee posted notices on various websites that he was selling tickets for concerts, amusement parks and gift certificates at a discounted price, scamming 67 people. He lured the victims by saying he was selling tickets that had already sold out, using
Jan. 24, 2024
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Talent agency chief gets suspended term for embezzlement
The head of a local talent agency has been sentenced to a suspended prison term for illegally transferring the profit from the firm to the parent company, also run by him, a local court said Wednesday. Seoul Western District Court recently sentenced the 57-year-old defendant surnamed Ahn to three years in prison, suspended for four years, on charges of embezzlement. Investigation found that Ahn, formerly the chief of the now-defunct K-Stars, used the profit from the agency to operate K Stars
Jan. 24, 2024
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Reality check: How diverse is Korea really? Disabilities and politics (3)
As of 2022, individuals with disabilities make up 5.2 percent of South Korea's population. Using basic arithmetic, this percentage corresponds to approximately 15 seats in the country’s 300-member unicameral parliament. In reality, just four seats are currently occupied by individuals with disabilities, constituting only 1.3 percent. The first person with a disability to win a parliamentary seat as a constituency representative was Lee Chul-yong. In 1988, on the ticket of the libera
Jan. 24, 2024
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Court acquits ex-Yonsei professor who calls comfort women 'prostitutes'
A former Yonsei University professor indicted for making disparaging remarks against Korean victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery was acquitted of defamation charges by a court on Wednesday. The Seoul Western District Court said it found Lew Seok-choon, who previously taught sociology at the prestigious university in Seoul, not guilty of defaming the Korean sexual slavery victims, euphemistically called "comfort women," during a lecture five years ago. Lew, a 69-year-old right
Jan. 24, 2024
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Bail granted to ex-Ssangbangwool head accused of illegal remittance to N. Korea
A local court on Tuesday granted bail to the former chairman of South Korean underwear maker Ssangbangwool who had been arrested for embezzlement and illegal remittance to North Korea. The Suwon District Court allowed former Ssangbangwool Chairman Kim Sung-tae to be released on bail on condition that he pay 100 million won (US$75,000) and carry a real-time location tracking device with him until trials are over. The former chairman is expected to be released late Tuesday evening when the depos
Jan. 23, 2024
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Man gets suspended jail term for assaulting disabled spouse
A 69-year-old man who assaulted his disabled wife and threatened her with a wooden stick was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for three years, a local court said Monday. The defendant surnamed Choi has been charged with physical abuse against a disabled person and "special threat," which Article 284 of the Criminal Act defines as imposing a threat with a weapon and can be punished by up to seven years in prison or a 10 million won ($7,500) fine. Investigators found that Choi
Jan. 23, 2024
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S. Korea mandates permit for 'aggressive' dogs
South Korea recently implemented a system mandating owners or would-be owners of particularly aggressive dogs to have their pet ownership permitted by their regional government, as part of the measure to prevent accidents involving pets. The two-part measure for "maenggyeons," or aggressive dogs, will be effective starting in April 27. Those wishing to own any of five breeds of dogs categorized as "aggressive" by the ordinance of the Animal Protection Act must receive a permi
Jan. 23, 2024
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Nearly 140,000 register as organ donors in 2023, up 18% on-year
Nearly 140,000 South Koreans expressed their intention to donate their body parts and organs after death last year, up 18 percent from the previous year, according to government data released Tuesday. Data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare showed that new registrations for the donations of organs, tissue and eyes reached 139,090 in 2023. New donor registrations recorded 115,517 in 2020, 158,940 in 2021 and 117,584 in 2022. In South Korea, the procurement of organs and tissues is restrict
Jan. 23, 2024
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Cold wave halts airplanes, freezes water meters
With a heavy snow advisory in effect centered on the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces, frozen water meters, canceled flights and restricted ship operations have been reported across the country. No human lives have been lost due to the cold wave and snowfall, but there were damages to facilities across the country as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters. There were 58 cases of damage related to water facilities, including water me
Jan. 23, 2024
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Free condoms at Youth Olympics spark protest
The Gangwon 2024 Organizing Committee’s decision to make 3,000 condoms freely available to some 1,800 athletes aged between 13 and 18 participating in this year’s Youth Olympics has sparked debate, with some arguing that it encourages teenagers to have sex, while others say it is an effective part of safe sex education. The committee said Tuesday that it had distributed 2,500 condoms to the Gangneung-Wonju National University athletes village, while the remaining 500 were sent to the
Jan. 23, 2024
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Police, media raided for possible leaks involving Lee Sun-kyun case
South Korean police on Tuesday raided the Incheon police agency over allegations of leaks related to the drug investigation into actor Lee Sun-kyun, whose death in December sparked criticism of how the case was handled. A media outlet that revealed detailed information about the Lee case also being investigated, reports said, with the focus on whether the police had given them the information. Investigators from the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency on Monday procured evidence from the Inc
Jan. 23, 2024