Most Popular
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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KT launches new mobile plans for foreign residents
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Koreans drink less hard liquor, more soft alcohol: data
The amount of alcohol consumed by South Koreans is decreasing, with fruit-flavored soft alcohol gaining in popularity, government data showed Friday. According to the report released by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, which surveyed 2,000 Koreans aged 15 or over, Koreans on average drank 4.9 cups of beer (about two pints) and 6.1 shots of soju, a popular grain-based liquor, at a time in the first half of this year.These findings are a slight decrease compared to 2013 when the average beer
Aug. 26, 2016
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Ex-sex slaves protest gov't decision to provide Japanese cash to victims
South Korean victims who were sexually enslaved by Japanese troops during its colonial occupation period (1910-45) protested against the government's decision to give them money that will be provided by Japan.On Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the government will provide 100 million won ($90,000) to surviving victims who were forced to serve in military brothels and 20 million won to family members of victims who have already died.The money will be offered once Tokyo tra
Aug. 26, 2016
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Environment minister nominee questioned over expertise
The new environment minister nominee faced the parliamentary confirmation hearing on Friday, with questions mainly focusing on his eligibility to steer the government environment policies.While he is expected to pass the hearing process without much difficulty, his lack of expertise in the environmental sector was raised, with him having mainly served in financial departments.“It is questionable whether the nominee can have a comprehensive view on dealing with environmental issues,” said Rep. Ha
Aug. 26, 2016
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Korean lawmakers' average wealth is 3.4 bln won
South Korean lawmakers' average assets have been estimated at 3.42 billion won ($3.06 million), data showed Friday, with the richest figure holding a whopping 234.1 billion won.According to the data compiled by the ethics commission of the National Assembly, lawmakers of the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea held 5.2 billion won on average, trailed by those of the ruling Saenuri Party with 2.6 billion won.The research was conducted on 154 newly listed lawmakers, who did not serve in the prev
Aug. 26, 2016
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Migrant fishermen vulnerable to abuse
Foreign and local experts, as well as government officials addressed Thursday human rights abuses faced by migrant workers in South Korea’s fishing industry and exchanged suggestions to improve the situation. Hosted by the National Assembly Human Rights Forum, Advocates for Public Interest Law and International Organization for Migration’s Korea office, scores of human rights lawyers, activists and government officials came together for a regional conference in Seoul on ethical recruitment and p
Aug. 25, 2016
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50% of Koreans stressed by family holiday commitments
Half of Koreans have at least once thought about taking an alternative trip to avoid the “holiday stress” that comes with family holidays such as “Chuseok,” a survey by Expedia has revealed. According to the survey “holiday stress,” such as nagging family members, cooking for an enormous crowd and driving long hours back to remote hometowns, makes for restless few days.The online travel agency targeted more than 1,000 Korean men and women between ages 20 and 50 on Aug. 19 and found that 50 perce
Aug. 25, 2016
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Korea's urban population continues to rise in 2015
South Korea's urban population continued to increase last year with more than 90 percent of the total population living in less than 17 percent of the total land here, a government report showed Thursday.According to the report from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the number of people living in urban areas came to just short of 47.73 million as of end-2015, up nearly250,000 from the previous year and accounting for 91.79 percent of the total population.The total size of land
Aug. 25, 2016
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Stabbing in Anyang leaves one dead, another injured
One woman has died and another was left injured after a man stabbed them with a knife in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province on Thursday. A 33-year-old man, identified by his surname Lee, stabbed the two senior janitresses at around 8 a.m.Both women were taken to the hospital, however, only one regained consciousness. Police used a taser gun to bring Lee under control. He then claimed to have taken cyanide poison, however, a medical check proved this statement to be false and found that he had been drinki
Aug. 25, 2016
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Parents study English to teach their children
A survey showed Thursday that a majority of Korean parents have tried teaching their children English, with many of them having studied the language themselves to enhance their teaching ability. According to the survey on 527 parents by private institute Yoons English School this month, 87.7 percent of them said they have tried teaching their own children English.Models demonstrate using an English learning kit during the Educare exhibition in Seoul in April. (Yonhap)Most, or 69.3 percent, prefe
Aug. 25, 2016
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Korea prepares emergency measures to bolster birthrate
The South Korean government will mobilize short-term emergency measures to fight the country’s staggeringly low fertility rate such as by expanding state subsidies for couples’ seeking infertility treatment.The government will also raise the paternity leave allowances for families welcoming their second child.The Ministry of Health and Welfare released these and other measures to fight the low birth rate during a state policy meeting presided by Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn.Health and Welfare Mi
Aug. 25, 2016
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South Korea confirms second cholera case
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that it has confirmed this country’s second case of cholera in Geoje, South Gyeongsang province.The confirmation comes two days after the discovery of South Korea’s first case of cholera in 15 years.According to the health authorities, a 73-year-old woman was confirmed to have been infected with cholera after she ate defrosted raw Spanish mackerel for lunch on Aug. 14.The woman reportedly told health care officials that she share
Aug. 25, 2016
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50 Beijing high schoolers arrive at Seoul schools, aspire to study at Korean universities
As many as 50 students from a Beijing high school have transferred to four separate high schools in Seoul en masse as they aspire to study at South Korean universities, school officials said Thursday, amid Chinese parents'increasing zeal for a high level of education in their neighboring country.The third-year students majoring in the Korean language at Beijing Newbridge Foreign Language High School have been recently enrolled in the four schools -- Myungduk and Daewon foreign language high scho
Aug. 25, 2016
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Gov't announces measures to tackle low birthrate
The government on Thursday rolled out a set of measures to tackle the nation's chronic low birthrate, aiming to increase the number of newborns by additional 20,000 next year.Under the measures finalized in a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn and announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the government will provide subsidies for infertility treatments to couples from all income brackets starting next October. Also, the government will provide up to 2 million won ($1,80
Aug. 25, 2016
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Korean-Algerian couple found dead in suspected murder suicide
Police on Wednesday said that they were investigating the case of a dead Algerian-Korean couple whose bodies were found in Jeongseon County, Gangwon Province, Tuesday. The dominant presumption at the moment is homicide and suicide by the husband, but the possibility of murder by another person has not been ruled out, according to the police. (Yonhap)An investigation from the National Forensic Service found that the Algerian wife, 32, had been strangled to death. Based on this, Gangwon Yeongwol
Aug. 25, 2016
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PM pledges constant efforts to tackle low birthrate, promote work-family balance
Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Thursday pledged "constant efforts" to tackle the low birthrate and promote a work-family balance, outlining the government's comprehensive package of programs to back the efforts.During the government's policy coordination meeting, Hwang stressed that the government would strive harder to resolve "structural problems" that have caused the nation's birthrate to fall, such as unemployment, high education costs and housing-related issues.The country's fertility rate
Aug. 25, 2016
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Korea's childbirths slide to 6-month low in June
The number of childbirths in South Korea dropped to a six-month low in June on a low birthrate and late marriage trend, government data showed Thursday.About 32,900 babies were born in June, down 7.3 percent, or 2,600, from 35,500 a year earlier, marking the lowest monthly tally since December last year, when it hit 31,900, according to the data from Statistics Korea.The June figure also recorded the steepest on-year drop since January 2014, when the number of new babies declined 3,000 on-year.T
Aug. 25, 2016
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Seoul court orders Japanese firm to compensate forced labor victims
A Seoul district court on Thursday ordered a Japanese firm to compensate 14 South Koreans subjected to forced labor during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.The Central District Court ruled in favor of the South Korean victims who filed a suit in 2013 based on their claim that they were forced by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to work at a Hiroshima-based weapons factory for about a year from September 1944. The court ordered the Japanese firm to pay 90 million won ($80,292) each to the victims.Mitsubi
Aug. 25, 2016
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Korea confirms 2nd cholera infection
South Korea has confirmed an additional case of cholera, raising the number of people infected with the water-born disease here to two, local health authorities said Thursday.A 73-year-old woman residing in the southern coast of the country is presumed to have contracted the disease from eating seafood, the South Gyeongsang Provincial Government said, adding that she had already been cured. The provincial government said she had no contact with the patient of the first infection case.Earlier thi
Aug. 25, 2016
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Prosecutors seek 7 years for wife accused of rape
Prosecutors on Wednesday asked for seven years in prison for a woman charged with raping her husband. Shim, 41, is being tried in Seoul Central District Court for confining her husband for 29 hours in a flat in Jongno-gu, Seoul, in May 2015. She is also accused of duct-taping the victim’s limbs and raping him. The verdict is due Sept. 9.The two were reportedly going through a divorce suit. (Yonhap)The victim was allegedly pressured to speak into a voice recorder that the reason he was seeking d
Aug. 25, 2016
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NHIS shares Korea's successful health insurance model with the world
The National Health Insurance Service, a public corporation managing health care here, is reaching out abroad with South Korea’s health insurance models to share its expertise and accomplishments. For decades, the NHIS has provided low-cost access to quality health care for citizens and its health insurance system has also gained recognition as one of the most efficient in the world.It attracts an average of 250 health policy officials from 30 countries each year, providing them with customized
Aug. 24, 2016