Most Popular
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Russia sent more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to N. Korea in March: White House
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Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
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Seoul alerts overseas missions to NK terror threats
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[Graphic News] Number of coffee franchises in S. Korea rises 13%
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S. Korean children, teens grow taller, mature faster than before: study
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Some junior doctors are returning: Health Ministry
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Public backlash against division of Gyeonggi Province under 'corny' name
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Army takes group action against Hybe for neglecting BTS
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[Robert J. Fouser] AI changes rationale for learning languages
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[Today’s K-pop] Stray Kids go gold in US with ‘Maniac’
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Expressway plans spark safety concerns for Namiseom tourist boats
People living and doing business on Namiseom, a popular tourist site in Gangwon Province, are voicing doubts about plans to build a new expressway to mitigate heavy traffic between Seoul and Chuncheon, the second-largest city in the province by population.Their main concern is that tourist boats could crash due to a new bridge that would be constructed over the Bukhan River, a Han River tributary that runs through both North and South Korea, then westward to the Yellow Sea. The bridge would cut
July 14, 2019
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Kim Basinger joins demonstration against dog meat consumption in Seoul
American actress and singer Kim Basinger on Friday urged South Korea to stop dog meat consumption, joining a protest organized by a local animal rights group.“It (South Korea) is the only country that raises dogs for consumption. You have companion animals here as well. … It boggles the mind that you can raise them to eat for human consumption and then you walk them,” Basinger said at a press conference Thursday.“I chose Seoul because you have a great opportunity to ring
July 12, 2019
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Two French tourists booked for burgling cafe to fund trip
Two tourists of French nationality have been booked without detention on suspicion of burglary, the police said Friday.According to Busan Jin Police Station, the French tourists are suspected of breaking and entering a cafe in Busan and stealing money from the cash register. Police said the suspects, aged 25 and 23, broke into the cafe at 4:12 a.m. on June 23, and stole some 300,000 won in cash. They were found and arrested near a nightclub in Itaewon.The two French nationals entered the country
July 12, 2019
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Umbrella unions oppose 2.9% minimum wage hike next year
Umbrella unions lambasted the Minimum Wage Commission’s decision on Friday to raise minimum wage by 2.9 percent next year to 8,590 won per hour.The Federation of Korean Trade Unions called it “a minimum wage disaster,” and said it was the lowest increase rate since 2.7 percent in 1998 during the Asian financial crisis and 2.75 percent in 2010 just after the global financial crisis. “If it continues like this, it would be difficult to reach a minimum wage of 10,000 won wit
July 12, 2019
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Smuggled drugs down 41% in H1: data
Drug smuggling caught by the South Korean authorities dropped sharply in terms of volume in the first half of 2019, customs data showed Friday, although illegal attempts for drug smuggling continued to rise. A total of 86.8 kilograms of drugs were confiscated in the Jan.-June period, down 41 percent from 146.9 kg posted a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.Despite the on-year decline, the agency said the figure is still the second highest in a decade. By type, the
July 12, 2019
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53,900 opt out of life-prolonging treatment since adoption of Death with Dignity Act
A year and five months since the enactment of Death with Dignity Act, nearly 54,000 have decided to opt out of life-prolonging treatments, according to government data.The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday the number of individuals who either withheld or withdrew from receiving life-prolonging treatment totaled 53,900 as of June 30. The end-of-life care legislation allowing terminally ill patients to abandon life-prolonging medical care went into effect on Feb. 4, 2018.Life-prolongin
July 11, 2019
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[Newsmaker] Entry ban on Korean American singer illegal: top court
The top court ruled Thursday that an entry ban on a Korean American singer who obtained US citizenship in an apparent attempt to evade military conscription here is illegal, paving the way for him to come to South Korea 17 years after it was prohibited.The Supreme Court found that refusing an entry visa to Steve Yoo, 43, who was a highly popular singer until the early 2000s and is better known as Yoo Seung-jun, is in violation of “administrative procedures.” In 2002, the Ministry of
July 11, 2019
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Migrant woman can maintain residency after divorce: top court
The top court ruled Wednesday that a marriage migrant can maintain her residency status after divorcing her South Korean husband even if she is partly responsible for the breakup, overturning earlier rulings that required the Korean spouse to be 100 percent at fault. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Vietnamese woman, 23, who filed a suit against the immigration office that refused to authorize an extension of her stay in the country after a divorce, seeking a revocation of the ad
July 10, 2019
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Man faces arrest for stabbing wife, daughter to death
Police have sought an arrest warrant for a 60-year-old man on charges of murdering his wife and daughter, according to Masan Dongbu Police Station on Wednesday.Police said the man, identified only by his surname Lee, is accused of fatally stabbing his wife, 56, and daughter, 29, at their home in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, at around 8 a.m. Sunday. Police were alerted to the case Tuesday by the wife’s brother and friend, who visited Lee’s residence and saw the bodies. The wit
July 10, 2019
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Police arrest actor suspected of raping production staff member
Actor Kang Ji-hwan was arrested Tuesday over suspected sexual assault. Gwangju Police Station said the actor was arrested without a warrant at around 10:50 p.m. at his home in Gwangju, a city southeast of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province.According to police, Kang is suspected of raping a staff member of a production company and molesting another at his home on Tuesday evening. Kang and the two women had gone to the actor’s place for a second round of drinks after a company dinner. One of the two
July 10, 2019
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Rush-hour trains run on schedule on first day of Busan subway strike
Subway workers in Busan began an indefinite strike Wednesday at 5 a.m., but services during commuting hours will not be affected.State-run Busan Metro is required to keep at least 1,010 workers on duty even during a strike, per public service corporation laws.During daytime hours, the trains will run less frequently -- at 10- to 11-minute intervals, rather than the usual six minutes. The subway service is expected to operate at 70-75 percent capacity during non-commuting hours on weekdays a
July 10, 2019
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[Newsmaker] Busan's subway workers go on strike over wage dispute
Unionized subway workers in Busan, a major southern port city, went on indefinite strike Wednesday over a pay dispute.The walkout by Busan Metro's labor union began at 5 a.m. after its last-minute wage hike negotiations with management fell through the previous night. The union said about 2,400 of its 3,402 members, including train drivers, station employees and technicians, were taking part in the strike. According to the law governing public service corporations, Busan Metro is required to kee
July 10, 2019
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[News Focus] Working-age population falls to 2013 level
SEJONG -- South Koreans have expressed significant fears about the nation’s workforce and growth potential in the coming decades, and it appears that recent demographic changes lend weight to those concerns.Two or three years ago, people aged between 15 and 64 began declining in number after a long period of continuous growth.People in this age group are classified as members of the working-age population, according to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development criteria. At pres
July 9, 2019
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[Herald Interview] ‘We can also become something’: Congolese refugee
For anybody, living in a foreign country as a migrant or refugee far away from home is challenging enough. For a refugee woman in South Korea, it is a constant struggle to fight prejudice, isolation and a lack of opportunities. “Living in Korea, for men, I think it is easier to find a job. But for women, they cannot do or learn many things, especially when they have children to take care of,” said “Miyah,” head of EcoFemme, during an interview with The Korea Herald last
July 9, 2019
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[Newsmaker] ‘Other men are same’: Korean man accused of beating wife
A Korean man in police custody for assaulting his Vietnamese wife told reporters on Monday that he believes “other men are the same.”“Things began weighing on my mind since (my wife and I) speak different languages, and so we think differently. But I believe other men are the same,” he told the press, adding that he hopes such circumstances are taken into consideration. The 36-year-old suspect, identified only by his surname Kim, made the comments as he was escorted
July 9, 2019
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Education authorities cancel licenses for 8 elite high schools in Seoul
The Seoul education office decided Tuesday to cancel licenses for eight out of 13 "autonomous private high schools" in Seoul, as the education authorities and the government push for scrapping the privileged category of schools and bringing equality to public education. The cancellation came after the eight high schools -- Kyunghee, Paichai, Sewha, Soongmoon, Shinil, Choongang and two high schools affiliated with Ewha Womans University and Hanyang University, respectively -- failed to
July 9, 2019
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Murder suspect jumps to death after 16-hour police standoff
A 45-year-old murder suspect surnamed Park jumped to his death in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province.According to the police, Park is suspected of stabbing a man, 57, to death at 2:17 p.m. Monday. Park was identified as a key suspect in the murder in the ensuing investigation. The victim was the CEO of a company where Park’s ex-wife worked.Park ran to a rooftop of an apartment in Okpo-dong, a neighborhood along the eastern coast of the island.Police deployed a SWAT team, crisis negotiation t
July 9, 2019
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Foreigners defaulting on state health insurance fees required to cover full medical cost
Foreign residents in South Korea who default on state health insurance fees will be required to personally pay for all medical costs, the health ministry said Tuesday.Under changes made to the National Health Insurance Act that will go into effect on July 16, foreign nationals who reside in the country for more than six months must mandatorily join the public health insurance plan, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. "Those that are in arrears will not receive support unt
July 9, 2019
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1 dead, 5 saved after fishing boat capsizes off south coast
One fisherman died after a fishing boat with six people aboard capsized off the south coast of South Korea on Tuesday, maritime police said.The 8.55-ton Minseong-ho capsized in waters 22 kilometers southeast of Maemul Island in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, around 3:42 a.m. The 24-year-old Sri Lankan fisherman was found dead inside the boat, while the remaining five fishermen were rescued. After hearing a radio call from the Tongyeong Fishery Communications Bureau that the boat had overt
July 9, 2019
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Gender minister pledges support for Vietnamese assault victim
South Korea’s gender minister pledged Monday to provide support for a Vietnamese woman assaulted by her husband last week. During her visit to the victim’s hospital, Gender Minister Jin Sun-mee said the government would redouble its efforts to ensure her recovery. “In order to help her families in Vietnam stop worrying about it, we would do our best to help our recover as soon as possible,” Jin said via a press release. The ministry also vowed to establish an &
July 8, 2019