Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl on Tuesday announced his bid to compete in the presidential race next year, officially launching a political career 118 days after stepping down from the top prosecutorial post. During a press conference in southern Seoul on Tuesday, Yoon vowed to rebuild justice and the rule of law, saying the Moon Jae-in administration has destroyed South Korea’s founda...

The chief of the state-run audit agency offered to resign Monday, potentially as a precursor to a presidential bid, marking the start of another important chapter ahead of next year’s election. Choe Jae-hyeong, chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, told reporters Monday morning that he had conveyed his intent to resign earlier and now planned to “spend time contemplating what role I can...

South Korea is slated to officially put local governments in charge of regional police forces from next month, in the biggest reform of the police force since its launch in 1945. The National Police Agency said Sunday that the change would take effect on July 1, with many duties handed over from the national police. The plan, introduced by the Presidential Committee on Local Autonomy Developmen...

A bill aimed at expanding the substitute holiday system is gaining support at the National Assembly, as the ruling party pushes to ensure it goes into effect in the coming weeks. The substitute holiday system at the moment provides an extra day off when the Lunar New Year, Chuseok or Children’s Day holidays fall on weekends. The bill seeks to expand this rule to all holidays that may fall on wee...

Education workers have raised concerns over South Korea’s plans to resume in-person classes from fall, as COVID-19 continues to spread and authorities have not clarified how they would deal with a virus outbreak in a classroom setting. Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae said Sunday that students from all grades would be allowed to fully attend in-person classes starting next semester while daily num...

The obstacle-strewn journey to setting next year’s minimum wage level has effectively kicked off, with those representing labor and business presenting starkly different views on how the rate should be set to assist those suffering from COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing economic setback. This year’s negotiation is the last one to be held during the Moon Jae-in administration, which the labor side ha...

The ABB FIA Formula E Championship, an electric car racing series, is coming to Seoul for the first time in August next year for a global event the city believes will help revive its tourism sector, which has been struggling for months amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The final round of the 2021-22 season of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship will be held on the streets around Jamsil Stadium in south...

Getting a tattoo is not illegal in South Korea, but having one done by an artist without a medical license is -- legislation that activists are fighting to fix, as they say it is outdated and does not fit today’s growing attitude of acceptance. Rep. Ryu Ho-jeong of the minor left-wing Justice Party joined tattooists and advocates for a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul on Wednes...

Starting next month, people vaccinated abroad will no longer be required to lock themselves up for two full weeks. The South Korean government opened the doors to greater freedom in international travel on Sunday, when it announced that starting in July it would waive its self-quarantine requirement for fully vaccinated passengers arriving here under certain circumstances, regardless of their ci...

The official launch of a new educational governance body is in sight as demand grows for comprehensive reform of South Korea’s educational system. The National Assembly’s Education Committee approved a bill Thursday to install a new body tentatively called the National Education Commission. The bill is expected to be put to a vote at a plenary session within this month in hopes of the commission...

During his visit Moon also met with Pascal Soriot, executive director and CEO of the Britain-based AstraZeneca, to reaffirm the importance of continued cooperation in the global production and supplying of COVID-19 vaccines. In the 27-minute meeting, Moon pledged to actively cooperate with the international community to ensure that enough COVID-19 vaccines are provided globally, according to the...

Artists from different parts of the globe joined Herald Corp.’s first H.eco Forum on Thursday to showcase their artistic approach in responding to the looming climate crisis and to communicate with the public through data. Five artists came together from different time zones for an hourlong session to present their experimental works of art from “Heartbeat of the Earth.” The series was created i...

Following the presentation from Santos, John Murton, the UK government’s envoy for the 26th round of vital UN climate talks, called COP26, discussed his country’s efforts to persuade other nations to strengthen their carbon-neutrality goals ahead of the COP26 in November. The years leading up to 2030 will be the most decisive for delivering on the Paris Agreement, Murton said, stressing that COP...

Unionized delivery workers in South Korea launched a full-scale strike Wednesday following the failure of talks with the government and logistics firms on improving working conditions. The Parcel Delivery Workers’ Solidarity Union announced Tuesday that 2,100 of its 6,500 members would stage an indefinite walkout starting Wednesday, as the dialogue fell through due to the absence of the associat...

With almost everything centered in Seoul, for many South Koreans born outside the capital the “Korean Dream” has meant packing their bags and making their way to the city, whether it be for education, a career or a new life. The capital city, home to a fifth of Korea’s population, has been a dream destination for Koreans yearning to blend into a crowd of 10 million people. But once they are with...