Articles by Shin Ji-hye
Shin Ji-hye
shinjh@heraldcorp.com-
Korea sees record daily cases despite toughest distancing rules
Ten days into the toughest level of distancing curbs in Greater Seoul, the nation has continued to see record-breaking daily case numbers. The current restrictions that end Sunday are likely to be extended to curb further spread. As of Wednesday at midnight, the number of new daily confirmed cases reached a record high of 1,842 people. The figure includes 270 infected sailors of the 301-strong Cheonghae unit on an anti-piracy mission in waters off Africa. Of the newly confirmed cases, 1,53
Social Affairs July 22, 2021
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Chinese land-buying spree raises speculation concerns
A Chinese spending spree on property and land in South Korea if left unchecked may fuel a rise in already skyrocketing housing prices, a lawmaker warned Wednesday, calling for stricter regulations on property ownership by foreign nationals. Land bought by foreign nationals increased from an area of 190 million square meters worth 24.9 trillion won ($21.6 billion) in 2011 to 253 million square meters worth 31.4 trillion won in 2020, each 1.3 times more than what it was almost a decade ago, off
Social Affairs July 21, 2021
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[Herald Interview] Opposition leader against opening up to refugees
Lee Jun-seok, 36, the youngest-ever leader of the nation’s main opposition People Power Party, has been outspoken on a number of sensitive issues since taking office last month. Sitting down with The Korea Herald on Monday, he candidly spoke about hot topics like refugees, immigrants and North. When asked about the nation’s immigration policies, Lee said that South Korea should accept immigrants who can help the nation’s economy, but should be cautious about refugees. &ldqu
Politics July 20, 2021
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Korea to grant visa reprieves
The Ministry of Justice said Monday that it would extend the period of stay for some 90,000 registered foreign residents and overseas Korean (F-4) residents whose authorized stay in the country is set to expire soon. The measure, effective the same day, will grant them an extension of stay for three months as part of efforts to prevent the community spread of COVID-19 as the nation raises its social distancing rules to the toughest level in the four-tier system for Greater Seoul. The minist
Social Affairs July 19, 2021
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Gatherings limited to four people nationwide
As the fourth wave of COVID-19 infections raged in Greater Seoul and spread nationwide, the government announced plans Sunday to tighten restrictions on private gatherings across the country to the same level as the capital region. “From tomorrow, we will apply the same permissions for private gatherings outside the Greater Seoul area,” Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Sunday. The government said the new measure is to unify restrictions on private gatherings to minimize travel bet
Social Affairs July 18, 2021
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[Herald Interview] ‘Japan never admitted a thing’
On Wednesday, single-person protests took place in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul calling for an apology from the Japanese government and demanding it redress its colonial sexual slavery. Unlike the 1,400th demonstration that garnered thousands of people on site, due to the pandemic the 1,500th protest was held in the form of one-person protests -- still watched by thousands of people around the world online. The Wednesday protests first began on Jan. 8, 1992 and have been held every
Social Affairs July 14, 2021
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Park Jin from opposition party to run for president
With the race for the presidential election kicking into gear, a string of senior lawmakers from the main opposition People Power Party are announcing their candidacies one after another. Four-term lawmaker Park Jin on Tuesday declared his bid, becoming the third current lawmaker from the People Power Party to enter the fray, following Ha Tae-keung and Yun Hee-suk. Considered a diplomacy expert in the National Assembly, Park is known to be close to US President Joe Biden. He visited the US
Politics July 13, 2021
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Pope awaiting invitation to visit North Korea
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s second in command, said Pope Francis wants to visit North Korea and is waiting for an official invitation. He conveyed the message during talks with National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug, who visited last week, officials said Monday. Park met with Parolin at the Vatican Apostolic Palace on Friday, the last day of his 10-day visit to Greece and Italy, according to the statement released by the National Assembly. During the talks with Parolin,
Politics July 12, 2021
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Assembly speaker urges Italy to include Korea in COVID ‘Green Pass’ travel list
National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug, who was on an official visit to Italy and Greek, discussed with the two countries’ politicians ways to bolster cooperation in areas of travel, smart city development, energy and infrastructure, officials said Friday. Park visited Italy on Thursday and met with Senate Speaker Elisabetta Casellati and House Speaker Roberto Fico to exchange opinions on pending issues between the two countries. He urged Italy to include Korea in their Green Pass s
Politics July 9, 2021
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[Herald Interview] Korea needs a leader who can handle external issues: Lee Nak-yon
Rep. Lee Nak-yon, a Democratic Party of Korea heavyweight who announced his presidential bid Monday, believes South Korea now needs a new leader befitting its raised status. “South Korea’s status has risen to a high level,” Lee said in an interview with The Korea Herald. “The public has gained a lot of confidence both internally and externally, but at the same time we face a lot of challenges. “We need a leader who is worthy of strengthening the nation’s s
Politics July 6, 2021
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Former ruling party leader Lee Nak-yon runs for president
Former Democratic Party leader Rep. Lee Nak-yon announced his presidential bid Monday. With Lee’s announcement, the race among the ruling bloc’s “Big Three” -- the others being Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung and former Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun -- began in earnest. In a video clip released on YouTube at 10 a.m., the former prime minister and Democratic Party leader presented a five-point policy blueprint for South Korea that consisted of a new approach to social welf
Politics July 5, 2021
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Police probe organizers of massive rally in Seoul
Police have set up a special team to investigate the organizers of Saturday’s rally held by the umbrella labor union, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. Police said they plan to seek charges against organizers and key participants of the KCTU on suspicion of holding illegal rallies and marches, traffic obstruction and violation of the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. The Seoul Metropolitan Government also plans to file a criminal complaint against the KCTU for violatin
Social Affairs July 4, 2021
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Immigration to limit period of stay to passport validity period
South Korea’s Ministry of Justice said Wednesday that when foreign nationals get permission to stay in Korea, starting July 1 the period of stay will not exceed the passport validity period. Up to now, foreigners whose passports expired during their stay in Korea could get new passports and report the change to the immigration authorities later. But some faced difficulty when entering or leaving the country, and some were fined for failing to report their new passport information within 1
Social Affairs June 30, 2021
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Korea to show ‘zero tolerance’ for quarantine violations in Seoul
The government will toughen quarantine inspections in the Seoul metropolitan area for two weeks starting Thursday, when relaxed social distancing rules begin to take effect, officials said Tuesday. The confirmed cases in the Seoul metropolitan area made up 73.9 percent of the nationwide total in the fourth week of June, up from 63.5 percent in the fourth week of May. The daily number of new cases in Greater Seoul averages 363.4. “More than 70 percent of domestic infections are concent
Social Affairs June 29, 2021
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Gangwon Province marks 71st anniversary of Korean War
The regional government of Gangwon Province in the northeastern part of South Korea hosted a ceremony on Friday to commemorate the 71st anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. The ceremony took place near the Peace Dam in Hwacheon County, and its theme was “Precious sacrifice, engraved deeply in the heart.” Some 220 local and foreign guests attended, including veterans, Gangwon Province Gov. Choi Moon-soon and former members of the US House of Representatives. “To
Social Affairs June 28, 2021
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