Most Popular
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1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
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Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
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US 'incredibly concerned' about suspected NK-Iran military ties
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K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
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K-pop singer lost consciousness after being hit by foul ball, cancels show
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Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
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Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
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Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
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Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
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Seoul says Fu Bao loan 'not going to happen'
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SNU head hassled over school reform plan
The president of South Korea’s leading university was trapped in his office almost overnight on Friday when a group of staff and students staged a protest outside his door to demand a role in the school’s process of gaining independence from state control.Some 400 staff and students at Seoul National University sat in the hallway outside President Oh Yeon-cheon’s office for almost 12 hours until 3
April 1, 2011
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Rights watchdog opposes U.S.-style plea bargaining
South Korea’s human rights watchdog said Friday it is against the government’s move to adopt a U.S.-style plea bargain system.The proposed system would allow prosecutors to either drop an indictment or give a lenient sentence to a suspect in return for his admission of wrongdoing and testimony.The decision by the National Human Rights Commission came after the Justice Ministry in December asked th
April 1, 2011
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Fines help cut April Fool’s prank emergency calls
The penalty system has cut the number of false fire alarm calls made on April Fool’s Day, according to the National Emergency Management Agency.A total of 98 prank calls were made on last year’s April Fool’s Day, down from 475 in 2004, showed the agency’s data submitted to Rep. Yoon Seok-yong of the parliamentary health and welfare committee.The Fire Services Act was revised in 2004 to impose a ma
April 1, 2011
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Korea pension fund to expand portfolio
Minister Chin says that fund will also seek long-term partnership with companiesThe investment of the 340-trillion-won ($300 billion) national pension fund will be diversified into emerging markets, green industries and overseas bonds over the next three years, Health and Welfare Minister Chin Soo-hee announced Friday. Overseas investment will rise to 20 percent of the total from the current 12.6
April 1, 2011
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25% of Seoul households single-person
Almost one in four households in Seoul consisted of just one person last year, the city’s census found Thursday. Single-person households jumped from 4.5 percent in 1980 to 23.8 percent in 2010, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.Their number increased more than 10-fold between 1980 and 2010, while the total population of Seoul nearly doubled in the same period. “A growing number of si
April 1, 2011
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‘Gangwon Province residents smoke, drink the most’
Adult males in Gangwon Province showed the highest smoking and drinking rates while those in the Jeolla provinces stayed the most sober and smoke-free, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. The more stable a region’s economy, the more likely its residents will refrain from an unhealthy lifestyle, the institute said.According to its research based on data collected fro
April 1, 2011
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Ministry to help foreign spouses find work
The Ministry of Employment and Labor will help foreign spouses here find jobs through a set of programs in April. During the month, the candidates can receive subsidies for job training fees up to 3 million won ($2,600) and tailored job consultations. Successful candidates will then be able to work at social enterprises, as care-givers, factory workers and more.The applicants should visit their lo
March 31, 2011
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Student suicides call KAIST competitive policy into question
A student of KAIST was found dead Tuesday in a suspected suicide, the third this year at the nation’s top university in science and technology, raising questions about the competitive environment there.According to police, a 25-year-old KAIST senior surnamed Jang was found in a parking lot of an apartment complex in Jamwon-dong, southern Seoul. He appeared to have fallen from the building. He was
March 31, 2011
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Buckle up or pay up on expressways
Starting in April, all vehicle passengers on expressways here will be required to wear seatbelts, said the National Police Agency on Thursday.Under a revised traffic law, drivers on expressways including Olympic and Gangbyeon Expressway risk being fined 30,000 won ($27) when carrying passengers not buckled in.The law originally stated that only front-seat passengers of private vehicles and all pas
March 31, 2011
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Court upholds ban on gays in military
The Constitutional Court ruled the law which penalizes homosexual relations in the army as being in accord with the Constitution.“The corresponding clause may be regarded neither ambiguous, nor unnecessarily discriminative against homosexual individuals,” said the court in its ruling on Thursday.“Anyone with common sense may judge what the clause signifies by ‘homosexual relations and other sexual
March 31, 2011
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Heliport renovation on Dokdo under way to counter Japan's territorial claims: sources
South Korea has already begun work to renovate a heliport on its easternmost islets of Dokdo in an effort to reinforce the country's sovereignty over the territory amid Japan's continued attempts to lay claims to the islets, officials said Thursday."It is difficult to make a public announcement on this, given the issue's sensitivity, but the heliport repair work has already been launched and is qu
March 31, 2011
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Is your smartphone bad for your relationship?
(iPhone 4 /Yonhap News)Smartphones, with more than 10 millions users in South Korea, are changing the dating culture of people in their 20s and 30s, a survey conducted by marriage consulting agency Duo showed. Duo asked 294 unmarried people aged between 20 and 39 years old how smartphones affected their relationship with their boyfriend or girlfriend. A whopping 79.6 percent of those surveyed said
March 31, 2011
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All passengers on motorways required to wear seat belts
A compulsory seat belt-wearing law for all passengers on motorways nationwide will take effect on Friday, the National Police Agency (NPA) said Thursday. Under the new law, all passengers of vehicles, including those sitting in the back seats, must put on seat belts when they are on a motorway, a measure aimed to reduce casualties in traffic accidents, said the NPA. NPA officials said offen
March 31, 2011
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English contest offers Asians scholarships
Cambridge University’s English language department has launched a competition to find the best young Cambridge English speaker in Asia. Open to 18- to 25-year-olds, winning candidates will be awarded with prizes including an MBA scholarship in London.All those studying Cambridge English programs in Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and India are eligible to ap
March 30, 2011
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Civic groups slam Japanese textbooks
Civic groups Wednesday expressed disappointment with Japan’s adoption of textbooks that claim its sovereignty over Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo.“Educating young students would be the important aspect of Japan’s strategy to seize Dokdo,” said Koh Chang-keun, head of Dokdo Network. “The young people who will lead Japanese society in 20 to 30 years would understand that Dokdo is currently domi
March 30, 2011
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Treating demons and diseases of defectors
Counseling facility offers N.K. refugees a place free from judgment and prejudiceIt is nearly 10 minutes until new-patient registration closes, but people continue to file into the counseling center.The patrons, quiet and reserved at first, engage in small talk with their neighbors. Their faces, hardened moments before, light up the tiny medical office.At first glance, they could be good friends k
March 30, 2011
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Radiation fears boost seaweed, dried kelp sales
A customer takes dried seaweed at a local discount store. (Yonhap News)Sales of foods perceived as a defense against radiation exposure have increased sharply in South Korea on concerns over contamination from Japan's crippled nuclear plant, industry sources said Wednesday.South Korea said Tuesday that it has detected traces of radioactive iodine in the air above Seoul and other regions of the cou
March 30, 2011
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More places detect trace radiation
Amounts remain below permissible levels: agencyTraces of radioactive material are being detected across the nation following a widening nuclear crisis in Japan, but the minuscule amounts pose no health risk, officials said Tuesday. “Tiny doses of iodine 131 were detected at all 12 monitoring stations nationwide Monday. There were also traces of cesium 137 detected at the Chuncheon center,” Yun Cho
March 29, 2011
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Visa rules eased for South Asians
The Justice Ministry will ease visa regulations for South Asian visitors, who have become a major group for the Korean tourist industry, according to officials Tuesday.Under regulations to come into effect next week, nationals from 11 major South Asian countries will be issued a double-entry visa, which allows them to freely revisit Korea within six months, in between or after transits to other co
March 29, 2011
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Medical fees W5.8m higher for obese men
The obese and smokers are likely to die before their peers, a state-run institute said Tuesday, stressing the importance of staying fit and smoke-free. The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs said Tuesday that overweight people are likely to die 2.6 years before those of healthy weight, while smokers die 5.6 years earlier on average than non-smokers, based on analysis of the National Hea
March 29, 2011