An ill-fated replica of Korea's 16th century turtle-shaped warship was sold for 1.5 million won ($1,100), less than 0.1 percent of the money spent for its creation, officials at Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province, said Thursday. According to Geoje, the sale of the recreated Geobukseon took place on Tuesday during the eighth round of bidding, starting from the initial bidding price of 117.5 million won in February last year. Built in 2010 with 2 billion won of taxpayers’ money, the woode

Culture May 18, 2023

The story of two middle-school students who walked 11 hours through the night to reach Everland for a school trip went viral after it was shared on social media recently. The reason for their arduous journey? A bet proposed by their friends with a reward of 70,000 won ($52). According to the person who shared their story in an online community, the two teenage boys were found wandering in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, by residents on May 12. The teenagers said they were from Hanam, a city just ea

Social Affairs May 17, 2023

Families that communicate in group chat rooms on mobile messaging apps are more likely to have stronger bonds compared to those who don’t, a study showed Sunday. “There is a higher chance that families with group chat rooms feel more satisfaction due to in-depth communication,” according to a report released by the research team led by Sogang University communications professor Cho Jae-hee. “Family members who are part of such chat rooms are more inclined to accept shared

Social Affairs May 14, 2023

The mid-80s were a harrowing time for South Koreans, marked by traumatic events that shook the entire nation. The shock of the Korean Air Flight 007's shot down by a Soviet missile on Sept. 1, 1983, which killed all of its passengers and crew, was compounded by another horror, just a month later, at the hands of communist forces in the northern part of the peninsula. On Oct. 9, in Myanmar’s capital of Yangon, a bomb went off, killing key members of South Korea’s economic team le

Social Affairs May 10, 2023

In the country with the highest suicide rates in the world, a disturbing new trend may be emerging: the live broadcasting of suicides on social media. On April 16, a teenager livestreamed her death by suicide on Instagram. Such content has been of international concern for some time, but the girl’s death marked the first known case of its kind in South Korea. Further jolting the nation, two teenage girls were stopped by the police from taking their own lives while livestreaming last Friday

Social Affairs May 9, 2023

As their knowledge and understanding of Korea, its culture and language deepen, some Korean learners choose to come to Korea to pursue further studies at Korean universities or graduate schools, with the hopes of starting a career and life here. But visas and job opportunities are limited, which leads many students to feel that, regardless of the efforts they put into studying here, Korea does not welcome them or want them to stay. Some of these foreign students end up giving up on their Korea

Social Affairs May 8, 2023

Treating oneself to a full course meal and a laser skin treatment at a high-end dermatologist sounds like something out of the life of the superrich. In South Korea, it’s a reality for some of the country's luckiest pets. Luxury laser treatments La Peau Claire, a skin clinic located in Seoul’s affluent Cheongdam-dong, provides laser treatment services for cats and dogs. The clinic, which opened last month, is a trailblazer in Korea’s pet dermatology industry. It’

Culture May 6, 2023

A South Korean lawmaker's call for the abolition of “no kids zones” in certain restaurants and venues met a divided response from the public Friday. Rep. Yong Hye-in of the minor progressive Basic Income Party on Thursday claimed that many private restaurants and public venues adopt “no kids” policies without reasonable grounds. “Today, popular cafes and restaurants on Instagram and even public libraries have become ‘no kids zones,’” Yong said

Social Affairs May 5, 2023

The South Korea-US alliance, formed 70 years ago in the wake of the Korean War, has evolved to be more than a military pact. It is a cornerstone for all aspects of the Seoul-Washington ties, encompassing the economy, culture and shared values. The alliance’s beginning dates back to Oct. 1, 1953 when two sides signed the Korea-US Mutual Defense Treaty. It was in the aftermath of the 1950-53 war on the Korean Peninsula, during which some 37,000 Americans died alongside South Koreans. When th

Defense April 27, 2023

A teenage girl livestreamed her death by apparent suicide on Instagram on Sunday, prompting several viewers to alert the police, officials said Monday. Seoul Gangnam Police Station said the victim, whose name and exact age was withheld, died after falling from a 19-story building near Gangnam Station at around 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. She reportedly suffered from severe depression. It is unclear how many watched the suicide livestream, but police said they received “several” reports from

Social Affairs April 17, 2023

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office said it has indicted four people for growing cannabis at home and selling it. One of them, a 37-year-old man surnamed Park, cultivated cannabis in his apartment where he lived with his pregnant wife, officials said. The four suspects consisted of two groups. The first duo -- Park and his friend Jung, 38 -- allegedly sold marijuana grown in their respective apartments located in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, from May last year to February t

Social Affairs April 14, 2023

For many Koreans, the name Min Byoung-chul rings a bell. In the 1980s, his “Practical English” book series introduced learners to “wanna” and “gonna” instead of “want to” and “going to," which were taught in local textbooks. An educational TV show bearing his name attracted millions of people who aspired to learn “real” English as spoken by Americans. Over the past some 15 years, the man who was once a household name in Korea

Social Affairs April 11, 2023

A recently hired civil servant in Guri, Gyeonggi Province, killed himself after handling a complaint from a resident, officials said Wednesday. Local police are investigating the case of the 31-year-old victim, whose name was withheld. The person worked as a grade 9 civil servant at an administrative welfare center, the lowest grade in the smallest unit of the municipal government. The rookie staff member had only recently completed six months of probation. He was found dead at around noon on Tu

Social Affairs April 5, 2023

In 1977, a little over two decades after the war that hardened the division of the peninsula ended, South Korea celebrated an economic milestone with much fanfare: $10 billion in yearly export volume. It had been just a year since the country had stopped receiving US aid worth a colossal $12.6 billion from 1946 through 1976, which helped rebuild most modern infrastructure there had been before the war. “Our achievement of $10 billion in exports has a bigger meaning than just its size in

Industry March 29, 2023

Seven South Korean lawmakers, 25 diplomats and 15 envoys from 40 different countries as well as a Seoul-based civic group have joined forces to launch a pro-diversity campaign, calling for the equal treatment of multicultural families and diverse ethnic groups here, officials said on March 28. According to the Sunfull Foundation, which has been campaigning against online hate speech and cyber bullying and is now leading a movement called, “Respect for Multicultural Families and All Ethnic

Social Affairs March 29, 2023