Medical professors at Seoul Nat'l Univ. hospitals to end indefinite walkout

Medical professors serving as senior doctors at Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) and its affiliates decided Friday to end an indefinite walkout, saying they could not put patients at risk any more, officials said. On Monday, senior doctors at SNUH in Seoul and its three affiliates began an indefinite walkout in protest against the government's increase of the medical school admissions quota. Around 530 senior doctors there, or 54.8 percent of the total, have joined the collective a

June 21, 2024

Man puts plastic bag over face of comfort women statue

Seoul Seobu Police Station said Friday it has sought charges against a man for placing a plastic bag over a statue symbolizing comfort women, the euphemism for the tens of thousands of women coerced into sexual slavery by imperial Japan during World War II. The man surnamed Kim, who is a leader of a controversial civic group calling for the abolishment of the act on supporting former comfort women, has been accused of violating Article 3 of the Punishment of Minor Offenses Act for placing the

June 21, 2024

Over 10m people flew between S. Korea, Japan in Jan-May, most in history

A total of 10.15 million took international flights between South Korea and Japan from January to May of this year to mark an all-time high, government data showed Friday. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the number of passengers who flew between South Korea and Japan in that period increased by 46.2 percent compared to the same period the year before, which was 6.94 million. The previous high in this category was marked in the Jan.-May of 2019, which was 9.38 m

June 21, 2024

Gyeongju likely to host 2025 APEC summit

Gyeongju in South Korea's North Gyeongsang Province has been recommended to host the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government's host city selection committee voted to recommend Gyeongju as the candidate city for next year's APEC Summit at its fourth meeting. The upcoming APEC summit is to be hosted in South Korea for the first time in 20 years since its previous one was

June 21, 2024

Jeju taps Indonesian influencer as new ambassador to boost tourism

Jeju Special Self-Governing Province is set to expand its reach into the Southeast Asian tourism market by appointing a popular Indonesian influencer as its new promotional ambassador. Jeju’s provincial government said Friday it officially designated Anang Hermansyah, an Indonesian influencer with 6.56 million YouTube subscribers and 2.58 million Facebook followers, as its promotional ambassador. On the day, Governor Oh Young-hun met with Anang Hermansyah and his wife, Ashanty Ash, along

June 21, 2024

Passengers come to rescue of bus driver who fell ill while driving

Passengers recently aided an Incheon bus driver who fell ill while driving, helping him to safety and making sure he received medical care, the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency said Thursday. In a video posted on the National Police Agency’s official YouTube page, the driver of an Incheon bus was seen swaying in his seat while driving in Michuhol-gu, Incheon. After he stopped the bus, concerned passengers came up to him and asked how he was, He replied, "I'm fine. I just need t

June 21, 2024

Hacking of public organizations rises: data

Amid a recent surge in spam messages, hacking has emerged as the leading cause of personal information leaks. Notably, data revealed Friday that information leaks resulting from public organization hacks have significantly increased. According to data released by Rep. Park Chung-kwon from the People Power Party, obtained from the Korea Internet & Security Agency, information leaks through hacking stood at 151 cases, accounting for nearly half of the total 318 cases last year. Work mishap

June 21, 2024

Abandoned golden retriever recovering well: group

A golden retriever that was recently found severely injured after being abandoned is recovering well, a local animal protection center said Thursday. The Gangreung-based shelter Miso-Sarang posted a picture update of the dog now named Daru, saying the shelter is wrapping up the fundraiser it held to cover the dog's medical costs. According to the group, Daru was found abandoned near a freeway rest area in Gangreung, Gangwon Province, last week. The dog was lying on its back and its body w

June 21, 2024

N. Korean defectors send anti-Pyongyang leaflets again to N. Korea

A North Korean defectors' group said Friday it has sent more balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets to North Korea the previous day, after the North warned of counteractions against such a leaflet campaign and Seoul's propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts. The Fighters for a Free North Koreasaid it sent 20 balloons carrying some 300,000 leaflets, USB sticks and US dollars across the border on Thursday night in the border city of Paju. The group said the USB sticks contained hit K-drama

June 21, 2024

Arrest warrants issued for 2 accused of defaming Yoon in media interview

Two men were arrested Friday on charges of defaming President Yoon Suk Yeol in a media interview engineered to discredit him as a presidential candidate, following a Seoul court's issuance of arrest warrants. Kim Man-bae, a journalist-turned-property developer, and journalist Shin Hak-lim are accused of engineering a media interview that falsely suggested Yoon's involvement in a high-profile development corruption scandal. The interview, conducted in September 2021, was published by Sh

June 21, 2024

Doctors launch pan-alliance committee

South Korean doctors launched a pan-alliance committee comprised of medical professors, junior doctors, students, and community doctors Thursday, seeking to take unified action against the government's plan to expand medical school quotas. "The medical circle's demands, including rediscussing the quota hike, remain unchanged. If the government dismisses such, the committee will collect the opinions of hospitals and clinics nationwide on staging walkouts and discuss them during its

June 20, 2024

Korean universities seek to lure more foreign students

YEONGJONGDO, Incheon -- As more and more universities in South Korea face financial crises due to a shrinking student population, four-year colleges are eyeing attracting and educating international students to secure successful operations of their institutes. A survey result conducted with some 130 presidents of universities showed such a trend, where 52.7 percent of respondents were interested in securing foreign students, which came as the third on the agenda of their interests, following fin

June 20, 2024

S. Korea to expand visa, job options for foreign students

South Korea seeks to adopt plans that will make it easier for its some 163,000 international students to live and work here, including expanding the visa types and job options offered to them, officials said Thursday. In a bid to plug job vacancies across key industries here, the government plans to allow foreign students who graduate in Korea to apply for E-9 nonprofessional employment visas, according to the Office for Government Policy Coordination and Prime Minister’s Secretariat. The

June 20, 2024

Scorching heat to continue, but rain expected over weekend

Hot temperatures from Wednesday continued into Thursday, and are expected to continue into the weekend, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration on Thursday. Heat wave advisory warnings that had been issued in 92 regions across South Korea consinued through Thursday. Four cities in Gyeonggi Province -- Gapyeong, Goyang, Yongin and Anseong -- raised their heat warning level to the second-highest level in the four-tier system. While the first-level heat wave alert is issued when th

June 20, 2024

Innovation, cooperation key to Korea's export strategy: Industry vice minister

Exports are vital for South Korea to generate national wealth, and boosting them requires a collaborative effort between the government and businesses, First Vice Industry Minister Kang Kyung-sung said at the Global Business Forum in Seoul on Wednesday. “As Korea remains one of the world's most export-dependent industrialized nations, more exports mean more people living well. Therefore, the raison d'etre of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is to increase exports,"

June 20, 2024

Woman indicted for filming judges, police with camera hidden in glasses

A woman in her 30s, who is undergoing criminal trial for firing a gas-powered self-defense weapon at a doctor, is now facing additional charges for secretly filming her interrogations and court proceedings According to the prosecution in Daegu on Wednesday, the suspect, detained and prosecuted in the assault case, has been indicted for violating the Protection of Communications Secrets Act by filming the hearing using glasses fitted with a hidden camera. The woman was apprehended at a Daegu cl

June 20, 2024

Top court dismisses doctors' call to halt gov't's med school quota hike move

The Supreme Court on Wednesday turned down an injunction filed by doctors seeking to stop the government from raising the number of medical school admissions, a ruling expected to affect several similar pending court proceedings. The top court upheld and finalized the appellate court's decision to reject the injunction filed by trainee doctors and medical professors calling for the suspension of the government plan to increase the medical school quota by 2,000 starting next year. The court

June 19, 2024

Man, now father of two, says he regrets killing mom 13 years ago

A man who at age 18 killed his mother and lived with her decaying body for eight months in a shocking matricide case in 2011 spoke of regrets over his actions, appearing on a TV program on Monday. The ex-convict, now in his 30s and a father of two children, said he is preparing for the time when he will have to tell his kids the truth. “If there are any 18-year-olds going through similar situations as I did, I hope they do not make the same decisions I did,” he said on a show that ai

June 19, 2024

Anyang transforms from commuter town to smart city

The city of Anyang, located in the heart of Gyeonggi Province, has now set a new course in aiming to become a globally recognized smart city through innovative development, the mayor says. Due to its proximity to Seoul, Anyang was once regarded primarily as a commuter city. However, it now wants to position itself as a self-sufficient city. "Anyang aims to enhance its competitiveness by swiftly incorporating the 'fourth industrial revolution' technologies. This will ensure the saf

June 19, 2024

Surge in spam messages sparks calls for authorities' response

Spam text messages promoting stock investment information, gambling, shopping and loan services have surged this year, data shows, while authorities have struggled take appropriate measures. According to data released by Rep. Hwang Jung-ah from the Democratic Party of Korea, obtained from the Korea Communications Commission, approximately 168 million text messages received via smartphones were identified as spam between January and May. The five-month tally surpassed the figure for the correspon

June 19, 2024