Most Popular
-
1
1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse
-
2
Korea, Japan finance chiefs vow to tame rampant FX market volatility
-
3
US 'incredibly concerned' about suspected NK-Iran military ties
-
4
K-pop group's manager dismissed for setting up spycam in theater dressing room
-
5
K-pop singer lost consciousness after being hit by foul ball, cancels show
-
6
Korean Muslim YouTuber's plan to build mosque in Incheon goes viral
-
7
[Kim Seong-kon] Democracy and the future of South Korea
-
8
Why is Apple Pay struggling to get purchase in Korea?
-
9
Yoon's office denies considering liberal figures for key posts
-
10
Seoul says Fu Bao loan 'not going to happen'
-
Seoul to make all public facilities earthquake-resistant by 2030
The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Sunday announced its plan to complete seismic reinforcement of all public facilities by 2030. The "Comprehensive Plan on Earthquake Disaster Prevention" is a response to public concerns about the nation's earthquake preparedness, particularly in the aftermath of the recent powerful and fatal earthquakes in western Japan, according to the Seoul city government. Under the plan, the Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to raise the percentage of 2,
Jan. 7, 2024
-
One in two Koreans physically inactive: report
Almost half of Korean adults are not moving their bodies enough, failing to meet the physical activity standards set by the World Health Organization, a health report revealed on Sunday. According to the “Physical Activity Guidelines for Koreans Revised Edition,” released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as of 2021, 47.1 percent of Korean adults fell short of recommended physical activity levels, compared to the global average of 72 percent who meet the WHO's recommended p
Jan. 7, 2024
-
Mayor Oh Se-hoon vows to make Seoul happier city
The Seoul Metropolitan Government aims for 2024 to be the “Year of Great Transformation,” with the goal of shaping Seoul into a happier city, said Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon during the city government’s New Year’s meeting on Friday. “With South Korea ranking 57th in the 2023 World Happiness Report, Seoul’s ultimate goal for 2024 is to ensure citizens’ happiness,” said Oh. “For policies that guarantee citizens’ happiness to be realized, Seou
Jan. 5, 2024
-
SBA evaluation reveals Korea's worst judges as picked by lawyers
The Seoul Bar Association on Friday revealed its annual list of the best- and worst-ranked judges in South Korea, based on an evaluation of its members. The list evaluated 1,402 judges across the country whom the SBA lawyers faced during their respective trials, selecting 109 judges with the highest marks and 20 who scored the lowest. Of some 22,000 members of the association, 2,341 lawyers participated in the assessment. Gang Gyeong-pyo, a judge of the Daejeon High Court, led all categories
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Police investigate two murders of female coffee shop owners
South Korean police said Friday they are investigating two potential murder cases in northern Gyeonggi Province, both of which targeted elderly female owners of local coffee shops and occurred within the past week. Officials are considering the possibility that the same person may be behind the two killings. Earlier Friday, a woman in her 60s who ran a cafe in Yangju, some 29 kilometers north of Seoul, was found dead in what appeared to be murder. A cafe employee left the venue late the previous
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Residents of border regions feel anxious over inter-Korean tensions
North Korea's latest provocations on Friday have worsened tensions in the already-stressed inter-Korean relations, heightening worries for residents of the northwestern border islands. Residents of the islands of Baekryeong and Yeonpyeong were ordered to evacuate after North Korea on Friday morning fired some 200 artillery shells into the sea off its western coast. The shells fell in the maritime buffer zones just north of the de facto maritime border between the two nations, with no injuri
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Public alcohol consumption faces fines starting in New Year
"Chimaek," a beloved combination of fried "chicken" and "maekju" (beer), could no longer be allowed in public parks across South Korea. Local governments in South Korea have started banning the consumption of alcohol in public spaces, and fines of up to 100,000 won ($76) could now be imposed. The measures were announced in 2023, with municipalities providing a grace period for a ban on public drinking. However, starting from the New Year, drinking alcohol in most
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Stabbed opposition leader hit by favoritism allegations
Liberal politician Lee Jae-myung is facing accusations of favoritism over his treatment after he was stabbed in the neck Tuesday in Busan, with the focal point being why he was transferred to Seoul for an emergency operation. Lee, the 60-year-old leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, was stabbed in the neck by a 67-year-old man who initially posed as a supporter. Lee is currently recovering at Seoul National University Hospital. The medical staff of Pusan National University H
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Seohyeon killer claims to have been mentally ill during rampage
The lawyer of Choi Won-jong, the 23-year-old South Korean man on trial for a fatal stabbing rampage last year near Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, claimed in court Thursday that his client had been suffering from schizophrenia at the time of the crime, citing a recent psychiatric evaluation. Suwon District Court revealed the results of the National Forensic Hospital's evaluation of Choi, in which the hospital suggested that "the defendant's ability to distinguish o
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Korean tourist shot dead in Guam
A South Korean national was killed in a gun attack in the US territory of Guam on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday. According to the ministry, a South Korean tourist visiting Guam was taken to a hospital, where he died, after being shot in a robbery. Local media outlets reported the shooting happened at Gun Beach in Tumon at around 8 p.m. Thursday. The victim, assumed to be in his 50s, was promptly taken to a hospital in the area. The beach is located at the northern end of
Jan. 5, 2024
-
Bereaved family files damages suit over prisoner's death amid mass COVID-19 infections
The bereaved family of a late prisoner who died of COVID-19 when a mass infection hit a detention center in Seoul has filed a damages suit, accusing the state of failing to protect high-risk inmates like him and neglecting the problem of overcrowding at the facility. The deceased, who was in his 70s at the time and was suffering from diabetes, died in December 2020, when nearly 800 new cases of COVID-19 infections were reported at the Seoul Dongbu Detention Center. His family filed a lawsuit sui
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Court issues arrest warrant for suspect in stabbing attack against opposition leader
The suspect in the stabbing attack against opposition leader Lee Jae-myung was formally arrested Thursday on charges of attempted murder. The Busan District Court issued an arrest warrant for the 67-year-old assailant, surnamed Kim, citing the risk of him fleeing. The warrant, which was issued just two hours after the court's arraignment of him, allows the police to continue holding the suspect, who was detained at the scene. Lee, the chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), w
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Lee Sun-kyun's alleged blackmailer also may have threatened another blackmailer
A woman suspected of blackmailing the late Lee Sun-kyun was found to have had threatened a 29-year-old bar worker who also coerced money from the late actor, police said Thursday. Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency recently discovered the complicated relationship between the two suspects while investigating Lee's claims that he had been blackmailed by the two women. The bar host, who worked at a high-end bar in Gangnam, southern Seoul, that Lee frequently visited, reportedly received 300 mi
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Nearly half of S. Koreans live alone: report
The percentage of single-person households in South Korea reached a new all-time high last year to account for 42 percent of all households in the country, government data showed Thursday. As of December 2023, the number of single-person households increased to 9.93 million from 9.72 million the year before, according to the resident registration service of the Ministry of Interior and Safety. In the span of just one year, the number of households consisting of one person jumped by 211,344. The
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Justice Ministry notification system backfires, leaving crime victims vulnerable
A female victim of dating violence recently requested to be added to a state service that notified victims of violence about when their assailant will be released after serving time, but the authorities only notified her after her perpetrator had already been freed, local media outlets reported Thursday. According to reports, the unnamed victim received a call from legal authorities on Dec. 1 that her ex-boyfriend had been released from prison. The culprit, surname Jeong, assaulted her in Octobe
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Namsan toll fees to be charged for northbound traffic only
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has announced that it will charge the 2,000 won ($1.53) congestion toll fee at Namsan Tunnel Nos. 1 and 3 for northbound traffic only, beginning Jan. 15. The city government stopped collecting toll fees for the first time in 27 years from March 17 to May 16 last year as a temporary pricing model to decide whether to scrap the toll collection system. For the first month, toll fees were exempted for southbound traffic only, while for the second month toll fees wer
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Birth rate-boosting bills should be passed: Assembly Speaker
South Korea’s National Assembly speaker on Thursday called for solutions to the nation’s low birth rate and declining population to be legislated, highlighting the need for more long-term policies. “The government and the political circles should see the ongoing population decline as a serious national crisis,” Kim Jin-pyo said in a New Year’s briefing held at the National Assembly. “The issue should be dealt with as a long-term agenda and solutions tied t
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Verdict upheld against disclosing names of deadbeat dads
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a guilty sentence for the operator of a website that discloses the names of uncooperative parents refusing to pay child support. The Supreme Court found Koo Bon-chang, 61, who runs the name-and-shame website Bad Fathers, guilty of naming and publicly sharing personal information, such as the name, facial picture, age, residence and workplace, of men and women accused by their former partners or spouses of refusing to pay child support. The court upheld the se
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Child abuse accusations in school plunge after teachers' protests
In the months after the mistreatment of teachers and the protection of their rights became a major social issue in the wake of the suicides of several teachers here, the number of child abuse accusations filed against school staff drastically dropped from before, government data showed Thursday. According to the Ministry of Education on Thursday, there have been 150 cases in which teachers were accused of child abuse in the three months following Sept. 25. That was when the ministry mandated reg
Jan. 4, 2024
-
Opposition leader recovering after Tuesday’s knife attack: surgeon
Main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung was on the mend after being stabbed in the neck during his visit to Busan on Tuesday morning, a surgeon who operated on him at Seoul National University Hospital said Thursday. Lee sustained a knife wound on the left side of his neck that was about 1.4 centimeters wide and had surgery to close the wound, according to vascular surgeon Min Seung-kee, who performed the surgery. “About 60 percent of the anterior part of the internal jugular vein was c
Jan. 4, 2024