Articles by Yoon Min-sik
Yoon Min-sik
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com-
Residents of border regions feel anxious over inter-Korean tensions
North Korea's latest provocations on Friday have worsened tensions in the already-stressed inter-Korean relations, heightening worries for residents of the northwestern border islands. Residents of the islands of Baekryeong and Yeonpyeong were ordered to evacuate after North Korea on Friday morning fired some 200 artillery shells into the sea off its western coast. The shells fell in the maritime buffer zones just north of the de facto maritime border between the two nations, with no injuri
Social Affairs Jan. 5, 2024
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Stabbed opposition leader hit by favoritism allegations
Liberal politician Lee Jae-myung is facing accusations of favoritism over his treatment after he was stabbed in the neck Tuesday in Busan, with the focal point being why he was transferred to Seoul for an emergency operation. Lee, the 60-year-old leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, was stabbed in the neck by a 67-year-old man who initially posed as a supporter. Lee is currently recovering at Seoul National University Hospital. The medical staff of Pusan National University H
Social Affairs Jan. 5, 2024
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Seohyeon killer claims to have been mentally ill during rampage
The lawyer of Choi Won-jong, the 23-year-old South Korean man on trial for a fatal stabbing rampage last year near Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, claimed in court Thursday that his client had been suffering from schizophrenia at the time of the crime, citing a recent psychiatric evaluation. Suwon District Court revealed the results of the National Forensic Hospital's evaluation of Choi, in which the hospital suggested that "the defendant's ability to distinguish o
Social Affairs Jan. 5, 2024
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Lee Sun-kyun's alleged blackmailer also may have threatened another blackmailer
A woman suspected of blackmailing the late Lee Sun-kyun was found to have had threatened a 29-year-old bar worker who also coerced money from the late actor, police said Thursday. Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency recently discovered the complicated relationship between the two suspects while investigating Lee's claims that he had been blackmailed by the two women. The bar host, who worked at a high-end bar in Gangnam, southern Seoul, that Lee frequently visited, reportedly received 300 mi
Social Affairs Jan. 4, 2024
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Nearly half of S. Koreans live alone: report
The percentage of single-person households in South Korea reached a new all-time high last year to account for 42 percent of all households in the country, government data showed Thursday. As of December 2023, the number of single-person households increased to 9.93 million from 9.72 million the year before, according to the resident registration service of the Ministry of Interior and Safety. In the span of just one year, the number of households consisting of one person jumped by 211,344. The
Social Affairs Jan. 4, 2024
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Justice Ministry notification system backfires, leaving crime victims vulnerable
A female victim of dating violence recently requested to be added to a state service that notified victims of violence about when their assailant will be released after serving time, but the authorities only notified her after her perpetrator had already been freed, local media outlets reported Thursday. According to reports, the unnamed victim received a call from legal authorities on Dec. 1 that her ex-boyfriend had been released from prison. The culprit, surname Jeong, assaulted her in Octobe
Social Affairs Jan. 4, 2024
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Child abuse accusations in school plunge after teachers' protests
In the months after the mistreatment of teachers and the protection of their rights became a major social issue in the wake of the suicides of several teachers here, the number of child abuse accusations filed against school staff drastically dropped from before, government data showed Thursday. According to the Ministry of Education on Thursday, there have been 150 cases in which teachers were accused of child abuse in the three months following Sept. 25. That was when the ministry mandated reg
Social Affairs Jan. 4, 2024
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No. of 'daily smokers' plunged over the past decade
The number of South Koreans smoking every day has dropped significantly over the past 10 years, with government statistics showing Thursday that 15.4 percent of the population aged 15 or over were daily smokers as of 2021. The joint study by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention defines daily smokers as people aged at least 15 years who smoke every day, and have smoked at least 100 cigarettes (five packs) throughout his or her life. The la
Social Affairs Jan. 4, 2024
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Why won't S. Koreans have kids? Costly housing, report says
The biggest factor influencing South Korea's families in deciding whether or not to have children is the cost of housing, a state research institute-issued report published Wednesday shows, in an analysis of various economic and labor factors. Researchers at the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements analyzed the country's birth rate patterns, using data from Statistics Korea, and concluded that declines have been particularly profound during housing cost spikes. They noted tha
Social Affairs Jan. 3, 2024
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‘Suspicious’ bloody helmet turns out to be rigged evidence at industrial accident site
South Korean prosecutors said Wednesday they recently discovered that an official of a maintenance company had placed a blood-covered safety helmet at the site of an industrial accident in a bid to hide the fact that an employee of the company had been working without proper safety gear. The suspect, a midlevel manager of the company charged with management of an apartment complex in Gyeonggi Province, had been accused of death by negligence in the incident that took place in July of 2022. The e
Social Affairs Jan. 3, 2024
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Lee Sun-kyun’s alleged blackmailer accused of child abuse
A local civic group on Wednesday filed a complaint of child abuse against the alleged blackmailer of late actor Lee Sun-kyun, saying that the suspect had mistreated an infant by taking the baby to court. The suspect, recently arrested for extorting 50 million ($38,000) from the world-renowned actor, was seen carrying an unidentified baby when she arrived at Incheon District Court on Dec. 28 for her warrant hearing. "While appearing in court, (the suspect) brought along a child who had no re
Social Affairs Jan. 3, 2024
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Conspiracy theories about stabbing of opposition leader fan outrage
Conspiracy theories suggesting that Tuesday's stabbing of Korea's main opposition party leader, Lee Jae-myung, was orchestrated by the victim himself have been spreading on the internet here, sparking outrage from the public and those in political circles in both the liberal and conservative camps. The 59-year-old leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea was stabbed in the left side of the neck by a 67-year-old man in Busan during a visit to the southernmost port city, s
Social Affairs Jan. 3, 2024
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Police arrest man for murder threat on ruling party leader
South Korean police said Wednesday that a man in his 40s has been arrested for threatening to murder Han Dong-hoon, the chairman of the emergency leadership committee of the ruling People Power Party. The suspect wrote the online post at around 9:40 p.m. on Tuesday, vowing to attack the ruling party's interim leader during his visit to Gwangju, according to Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station. Han is slated to visit the southwestern city on Thursday. The suspect was arrested without a warrant a
Social Affairs Jan. 3, 2024
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S. Korea to release criminal suspects' identities starting Jan. 25
A law on releasing the identities of criminal suspects will take effect on Jan. 25, allowing police to release a recent photo, the name and age of individuals charged with a range of crimes, such as sexual violence against minors, certain drug crimes, arson, armed revolt and being part of an organized crime ring. In October 2023, the National Assembly passed the so-called "mug shot law," which provides legal grounds for authorities to release to the public the identities of criminal su
Social Affairs Jan. 2, 2024
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Singer-turned-actor Lee Na-eun denies dating soccer star Lee Kang-in
South Korean actor Lee Na-eun, who was formerly part of girl group April, denied rumors that she is in a romantic relationship with soccer player Lee Kang-in on Tuesday. Lee's agency, Namoo Actors, said that she and the Paris Saint-Germain player "just know each other," responding to earlier reports the two are dating. The agency said that the two had had a meeting, but it was merely for the actor to receive tickets to a game. Lee Kang-in's representatives did not comment. Ea
People Jan. 2, 2024
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