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Thu, July 20, 2017 | 21:41

National > Diseases & welfare >

Moms can change politics: ex-lawmaker

Jang Ha-na, a former lawmaker of the Minjoo Party of Korea - the predecessor of the now-ruling Democratic Party of Korea - gave birth in February 2015 while she was at the National Assembly. This experience led her to a new life chapter. She is now seeking solidarity among mothers to spur positive changes in politics. Last month, Jang established a civic group “Political Mama...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-19 15:20

Korean politics still behind on female representation

Despite the Moon Jae-in administration’s efforts to increase female ministers in his Cabinet, the percentage still falls short of the OECD average. Moon has improved representation by appointing four female ministers among 16 so far _ Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, Environment Minister Kim Eun-kyung, Land Minister Kim Hyun-mee and Gender Equality Minister Chung Hyun-back. Once the final minister nominee, a male, is appointed, the four will account for 23.5 percent of the Cabinet. This falls short of the OECD average of 29.3 percent for 2015 _ the most recent available figure.

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-18 16:41

'8,000 irregular workers may be offered regular status'

President Moon Jae-in’s pick for minister of health and welfare, Park Neung-hoo, said Monday he would support giving about 8,000 irregular workers at 22 ministry-supervised organizations regular worker status. In a letter sent to the National Assembly ahead of his confirmation hearing scheduled for today, Park said the change would improve job security and working conditions. “Continued use of irregular workers is the root cause of many social ills in Korean society including low birthrate, job insecurity and discrimination,” he said. “Public institutions should take the initiative to reduce...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-17 15:01

More fathers take paternity leave; 5,101 in first half

The number of fathers taking time off work to take care of their children is growing continuously, encouraged by the government policy that aims to further boost support for family leave, government data showed Monday. A total of 5,101 men signed up for paternity leave in the first half of this year, up 52.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Employment...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-17 14:17

Suicide attempts viewed as immoral, selfish, unfilial

Koreans regard people who attempt suicide as immoral, selfish and unfilial, according to a research published in a Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs report on Sunday. The researchers, from Ewha Womans University, said this view was one of the “main reasons Korea ranks low among the world providing mental health services despite the country’s high suicide rate.”

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-16 16:36

Frequent brain exercises can help prevent dementia

One of the greatest benefits of the advances of our society is that we now live longer. The flipside of that benefit is that as a society, we are aging faster than ever and there are associated health concerns, and dementia is one of such growing concerns. Dementia is one of the top 4 causes of premature death in Korea with heart disease, cancer and stroke making up the rest....

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-16 16:27

Adoptees call for end to international adoption

Adoptee-led organizations called on the Korean government to immediately end the industrialized international adoption system here during a press conference in central Seoul, Wednesday. The joint declaration, written at the University of California Irvine and addressed to the Moon Jae-in administration, was submitted at 3:00 p.m. at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul. In lig...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-12 18:19

Court denies Egyptian refugee status for homosexuality

An Egyptian man lost a suit he filed for refugee status, citing he would be persecuted in his home country for being homosexual. The 26-year-old man, whose identity was withheld, filed a suit against the chief of the Seoul Immigration Office in May 2014. The Supreme Court said Wednesday it overturned the Seoul High Court’s ruling and sent the case back.

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-12 16:33

Law revision sought for better protection of migrant kids

A lawyers’ group is seeking to revise a law to allow unregistered migrant children to report cases of abuse without fear of being deported. Migrant children refer to those under the age of 18 who do not have Korean nationality. They are those who have either come to Korea with their parents or children who are born to foreign parents here. In Korea, about 20,000 out of over 1...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-11 16:51

Gov't hit for bungling over refugee policy

Yosaf is one of the very few to have been granted refugee status in Korea. Born in 1990, he escaped Eritrea, the horn of Africa, during a war at age 12 after both his parents died. In 2014, he obtained refugee status in Korea - a great fortune in a country that has accepted less than six percent of applicants over the last two decades. Despite this, he struggles to get by because of the first six digits of his alien registration card number: 910000. As more people seek asylum in Korea, this is likely to become increasingly problematic and in need of government attention. The alien registrati...

Diseases & welfare | 2017-07-03 17:29

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Park's impeachment