The average cash gift for weddings in South Korea has reached 90,000 won ($65), marking an increase of around 20 percent over the past three years, according to data released by Kakao Pay on Monday. Based on transaction data as of September, Kakao Pay, the online payment service of Korean tech giant Kakao Corp., found that the average wedding gift money has increased 23 percent from 73,000 won in 2021 to 90,000 won in September. The amount has steadily risen in between, from 80,000 won in 2022

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2024

A 28-week pregnant woman from Daejeon had to travel 200 kilometers to Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, for an emergency delivery after nearby hospitals turned her down citing a lack of available facilities, authorities said Monday. The Daejeon Fire Department said it received a report that a woman's water broke at around 2:52 a.m. on Monday. Emergency paramedics arrived at her home and took her to a local hospital she regularly goes to, only to be told the facility could not handle an emerg

Social Affairs Nov. 5, 2024

South Korea’s Supreme Court upheld a 20-year prison sentence for a 15-year-old who killed his mother after she scolded him. The court ruled on Oct. 31 that there were no errors in the lower court’s verdict, dismissing the defendant’s claims that he was mentally ill, according to media reports Tuesday. The teenager was convicted of murdering his mother on October 1 last year, during the Chuseok holiday, at their residence in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. His mother was

Social Affairs Nov. 5, 2024

A man in his 20s was booked without detention for allegedly abandoning hundreds of pet reptiles, resulting in many of them starving to death, according to police on Monday. Heungdeok Police Station in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province said it is investigating the man on suspicion of breaking the Animal Protection Act. The police said they received a report on October 11 from the landlord of an apartment in the city’s Bokdae-dong neighborhood. The landlord said he had been unable to cont

Social Affairs Nov. 4, 2024

A teacher who was accused on charges of child abuse for scolding and pulling a student’s arm has been ruled not guilty, the court announced Monday. South Korea’s Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s ruling that had imposed a fine of 1 million won ($730) on the teacher, identified only by the surname Choi, for child abuse charges and sent the case back to the Uijeongbu District Court for review. The incident occurred on March 14, 2019, when the teacher allegedly shouted at a

Social Affairs Nov. 4, 2024

About 270 individuals, including medical professionals, brokers and fake patients, have been busted by police for their alleged involvement in an insurance fraud scheme to falsely claim a combined 1 billion won ($729,000) in payouts by faking cosmetic procedures as medical treatments. The Financial Supervisory Service on Sunday said Busan Nambu Police Station had apprehended the scammers last month. The scheme was uncovered after the FSS received several reports on the insurance fraud to its rep

Social Affairs Nov. 4, 2024

A 38-year-old civil servant, who died just two months after being hired, was found to have been bullied at the workplace by a superior, according to the findings of a provincial audit Thursday. The North Chungcheong Province audit office concluded that the deceased, identified only by the surname Kim, was subjected to an excessive workload and inappropriate treatment by his immediate superior at the Goesan Country Office. As a result, the provincial office requested the county office to enforce

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2024

Blackpink’s Rose is making waves with her latest single, “APT,” a collaboration with American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, which is not only topping global music charts around the world but also boosting related stock prices. South Korea’s leading soju maker, HiteJinro, saw its stock price climb by 6 percent to 21,200 won ($15.26) on Thursday, marking its biggest gain since February. Trading volume surged past one million shares -- over eight times the previous day&rsquo

Market Oct. 25, 2024

A man who defrauded 100 investors of about 20 billion won ($14.4 million) by impersonating an investment adviser for the state-run housing developer and selling apartments in Seoul’s affluent Gangnam area was sentenced to 20 years in prison, slightly reduced, on Friday. The defendant, a man in his 40s identified only by his surname Seo, was sentenced to 20 years and 10 months in April, but the Seoul High Court cut the sentence by 10 months. The court noted that the defendant’s meth

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

The average pretax annual salary in South Korea came to 41.23 million won ($29,709) last year, with the vast majority of high-paying jobs concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area, highlighting the need to solve significant salary disparities between average and top earners, as well as between regions. According to data from the National Tax Service released by Rep. Ahn Do-geol of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Friday, the nation’s total number of salaried workers reach

Social Affairs Oct. 25, 2024

Rapper-singer Jessi apologized Wednesday following heavy backlash after a fan was assaulted by a man who was with her at that time. In a statement posted to her Instagram account, the Korean-American singer expressed regret and apologized. “I deeply apologize to the victim and his family for causing pain,” she said. “From the moment the incident happened until now, I have hurt many, including the victim, and left them feeling betrayed and angry due to my wrong actions, attitude

Social Affairs Oct. 24, 2024

A South Korean doctor is facing backlash for allegedly describing a patient’s fat tissue as “pig lard.” The incident was revealed Tuesday on JTBC’s current affairs show “Scandal Supervisor." A patient who had been diagnosed with hyperthyroidism visited a local hospital after experiencing heart palpitations and shortness of breath. For further assessment, the doctor ordered a CT scan and she paid around 800,000 won ($579). When reviewing the scan results, the pa

Social Affairs Oct. 23, 2024

The Gangbuk-gu office has apologized after coming under fire for releasing a video parodying K-pop group NewJeans’ Vietnamese-Australian member Hanni, who recently appeared at a parliamentary audit. The video, which was released last Thursday, was taken down on Sunday, following backlash from viewers criticizing the video of discrimination against foreign nationals. “We humbly accept the concerns and criticisms that the video’s content could be seen as discriminatory toward for

K-pop Oct. 23, 2024

Three employees of subsidiaries of Hybe, parent company of the agency representing K-pop superstars BTS, denied insider trading during the first hearing of their trial on Tuesday, claiming they were unaware that BTS member Jin's enlistment is considered "material, non-public information." The Seoul Southern District Court held its first hearing for the three defendants, who include a former employee of BigHit Music, a former employee of Belift Lab and a current employee of Source

Social Affairs Oct. 22, 2024

Police on Tuesday requested an arrest warrant for the head of an obstetrics hospital and the doctor who performed an abortion on a 36-week fetus, facing murder charges. The Seoul Metropolitan Agency said it has sought warrants to detain the head of the hospital where the abortion took place and the surgeon who operated on a woman in her 20s. The Seoul Central District Court are to review the police request on Wednesday. The case became known in June when a woman posted a video on YouTube, purpor

Social Affairs Oct. 22, 2024