The government issued fine dust emergency measures for all parts of the country except Jeju Island on Friday, as fine dust blanketed Korea for three consecutive days.The fine dust levels nationwide are expected to reach “bad” or “very bad” levels except for some parts in Gangwon Province and Jeju Island throughout the day. (Yonhap)Under the newly implemented Special Act on Particulate Matter Reduction and Management, the government can restrict the operations of plants and vehicles when the emer

Social Affairs Feb. 22, 2019

A court on Thursday found the medical staff of Ewha Womans University Medical Center not guilty of the deaths of four infants.Seoul Southern District Court found malpractice by the seven medical workers, who poorly managed infection control, but said there were no causal relationship between the misconduct and deaths.On Dec. 16, 2017, four newborn babies died one after another between 9:32 p.m. and 10:53 p.m. while being treated at the intensive care unit’s incubators in the hospital. Forensics

Social Affairs Feb. 21, 2019

A new policy mandating the inscription of the egg-laying date on eggshells will be implemented starting Saturday, the government said Thursday.Under the new policy, egg farms must indicate the four-digit code of the date the egg was laid in front of the six-digit code that represents the farm and breeding environment.  (Yonhap)The policy aims to prevent old eggs from being distributed in the market and reassure people they are consuming fresh eggs. Hitherto, some farms calculated a carton of egg

Social Affairs Feb. 21, 2019

It’s easy to spot beautiful palaces when you walk around Seoul, a city that blends modern and traditional Korean cultures. Changdeokgung, a royal palace built in 1405, is among them. Donhwanum is the main gate of Changdeokgung, the second royal palace built in 1405. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)The palace Changdeokgung viewed from above. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)Visitors clad in traditional Korean hanbok take pictures in front of Donhwamun. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)The main gate

Culture Feb. 21, 2019

HONGSEONG, South Chungcheong Province -- On a rainy Friday morning, howls filled the cold, foggy air around a recently decommissioned dog farm in a remote corner of South Chungcheong Province. Here some 200 dogs had been confined in filthy cages with inadequate food, water and care. Friday was the third day of Humane Society International’s dog rescue project, which kicked off on Feb. 13 as part of the organization’s efforts to save dogs from Korea’s puppy mill trade and dog meat industry. The g

Social Affairs Feb. 20, 2019

A YouTuber found a corpse over the weekend while streaming a show at an abandoned hospital in Gwangju.According to Gwangju Police on Monday, the 30-year-old YouTuber surnamed Park entered the hospital at midnight Saturday as part of his show about exploring abandoned places.  This photo is not related to the article.Although the hospital is fenced off, as it was shut down 10 years ago, Park sneaked into the premises and was exploring the place when he discovered the body on the floor in a ward.

Social Affairs Feb. 19, 2019

An elementary school student was found unconscious in a swimming pool at a hotel in Busan, local media reported Monday.According to Busan Haeundae police, the 13-year-old student surnamed Lee was spotted at the children’s pool at around 5:17 p.m. Sunday with his left arm stuck between the rungs of a pool ladder. The pool is about 60 centimeters deep.  This photo is not related to the article. (Yonhap)Lee was rushed to a nearby hospital after receiving CPR at the pool but remains unconscious. Lee

Social Affairs Feb. 18, 2019

Rushing to a business meeting, Kim Ha-min, 34, took a taxi. The fare on the taximeter showed 6,100 won ($5.42), but the driver told him to pay extra money as the fare has been raised.“I don’t remember exactly, but I had to pay some extra 1,000 won,” Kim said.“I couldn’t really check the fare table hung at the front seat, as I was in a hurry, but I’m not sure the calculation was right.” A table hung behind a taxi’s front seat shows new cab fares. (Yonhap)The basic taxi fare in Seoul has increased

Social Affairs Feb. 17, 2019

The key to resolving South Korea’s low fertility rate is to understand that women have the right to choose pregnancy, rather than just pushing them to have more babies, the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund said Thursday.“The low fertility is not just about data and numbers. It’s about people. It’s about choices. And it’s about women’s rights to choose how many children, when and how to space them. It’s not about a national target of X amount of people either too high or t

Social Affairs Feb. 17, 2019

An explosion occurred at a Hanwha plant in Daejeon at around 8:42 a.m., killing three people. The casualties are believed to be workers from the factory, the fire authority said.The fire was extinguished at around 9:27 a.m.(Yonhap)Fire authorities are investigating the exact cause of the fire.A fire in May 2018 at the same plant, which handles explosives, killed two people and injured five. By Park Ju-young (jupark@heraldcorp.com)

Social Affairs Feb. 14, 2019

When 71-year-old YouTuber Park Mak-rye tried a fast-food restaurant’s self-ordering service for the first time, the challenging process took longer than anticipated to complete.Park first pushed the “order” button on the screen, then slowly read the menu’s tiny letters and scrolled down. As she struggled to find the bulgogi burger combo she wanted for lunch, the ordering session reached its time limit.“What’s wrong with this machine?” Park shouted, saying she would never use the kiosk again.YouT

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2019

A 30-year old pedestrian was killed by a 96-year-old driver on Tuesday in Seoul, sparking concerns over elderly drivers. According to police, the driver surnamed Yoo caused the accident in front of the parking garage of a hotel in Cheongdam-dong at around 6:20 p.m. (Yonhap)Yoo hit a wall of the garage by accident before crashing into a vehicle behind while backing up. However, the driver did not stop reversing and the car rammed into a 30-year-old woman. The victim was sent to a hospital but she

Social Affairs Feb. 13, 2019

Eleven dog carcasses were found at a studio apartment in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, local media outlets reported Tuesday.According to Cheonan city government and police on Tuesday, a manager of the building first spotted the dead dogs at the studio apartment on Jan. 21 while he visited to meet the tenant who had long overdue rent. (Yonhap)The 11 Maltese carcasses were scattered in the apartment, while one dog was found still alive. The dog was rushed to an animal hospital, but is suffe

Social Affairs Feb. 12, 2019

The Seoul High Court ruled that the import of sex dolls should not be prohibited on grounds that that it corrupts public morals.In 2017, a company made an import declaration of a 159-centimeter-tall headless sex doll made of silicon that resembles a female body, but Incheon Customs put the entry on hold, saying it corrupted public morals. (Yonhap)The company filed a complaint against the chief of Incheon Customs and the first trial ruled in favor of the Incheon Customs chief, based on the reason

Social Affairs Feb. 11, 2019

A former Seoul National University graduate student has publicly accused a professor of sexual misconduct and condemned the school for lack of punishment for the perpetrator, stoking the flames of the #MeToo movement on the campus.The student posted flyers written in Korean, English and Spanish at the campus Wednesday, calling for students’ attention to wrongdoings committed in the Department of Hispanic Language and Literature.  (The student council of the College of Humanities Facebook)“During

Social Affairs Feb. 8, 2019