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Bahk Eun-ji

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.

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Health

Children, parents weigh side effects, bullying with choice to get vaccinated

Students get tested for the coronavirus at a high school in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiConcerns are growing among parents as children aged 12 to 17 will be allowed to get COVID-19 vaccines starting next month. Their main concerns are related to possible side effects, but they are also worried about the social disadvantages caused by not being vaccinated. According to a detailed plan for vaccination of this age group released Tuesday by the Korea Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, vaccination will not be compulsory for children, and will be carried out based only on the consent of a parent or a legal guardian.However, the public health authorities believe that the benefits of vaccinating children do not outweigh the risks of infection overwhelmingly, unlike with other age groups.The probability of developing a serious case of COVID-19 is significantly lower for children than for other age groups. As well, the parents cited fears of their children developing heart problems after vaccination, citing a report published by the Journal of Korean Medical Science earlier

Sep 30, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Children, parents weigh side effects, bullying with choice to get vaccinated
Politics

Dog meat ban gaining momentum

Members of the Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) rally in Seoul to call for the enactment of a law banning the trade and consumption of dog meat in this July 9 photo. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiFollowing President Moon Jae-in's reference to a possible ban on the sale of dog meat, the country is likely to jump on the bandwagon of ending the yearslong debate over the practice of eating meat from the animals, with presidential contenders approving it. In Korea, the number of pet owners stands at nearly 15 million, so presidential hopefuls are keen to court those voters in the next election, scheduled for March 9, 2022“Hasn't the time come to prudently consider prohibiting dog meat consumption?” Moon asked Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum during a weekly policy consultation session, Monday, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee.The President made the remark while being briefed by the prime minister on the government's plan to improve the care system for abandoned pets, she added.Kim reported to Moon that the administration would put more effort into raising the regist

Sep 28, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Dog meat ban gaining momentum
Society

Controversy rises over palm tree photo zone on Gyeongpo Beach

Palm trees are planted in rows on Gyeongpo Beach in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, to attract tourists, Sept. 17 photo. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiControversy is brewing over palm trees planted by Gangneung City on Gyeongpo Beach for the purpose of providing a unique tourist experience. The city government of Gangneung in Gangwon Province said Thursday that it had planted the 46 palm trees, including Washington filifera and Phoenix canariensis, around Gyeongpo Beach and the Gangneung KTX Station to provide a unique attraction for residents and tourists.It said it planted the palm trees, commonly found on the southern resort island of Jeju and southern regions here, to raise awareness of climate change and create an unusual urban landscape.The problem is that Gangneung in winter is not warm enough for the palm trees to survive. For this reason, the city plans to uproot the trees and transplant them elsewhere in November when the temperature drops.It has rented these trees from a private company, and the cost of planting and maintaining them on Gyeongpo Beach for about two months is around 15 m

Sep 24, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Controversy rises over palm tree photo zone on Gyeongpo Beach
Health

Korea sees growing number of breakthrough infections

By Bahk Eun-jiThe Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Thursday that more than 5,000 COVID-19 breakthrough  infections, mostly among young men who received Johnson & Johnson's Janssen vaccine, have been detected as of Sept. 12. Janssen COVID-19 vaccine / YonhapAccording to the KDCA, 5,880 people tested positive for COVID-19 after being fully vaccinated with the one-shot vaccine.This means 40.2 people per 100,000 fully vaccinated patients have been subject to breakthrough infections. By age group, people in their 30s made up the largest ratio, of up to 110.1 per 100,000.From Aug. 29 to Sept. 11, 10.2 percent of new cases, or 20,895, were believed to be breakthrough infections.By vaccine type, people getting Janssen shots made up the largest portion, with 161.2 out of 100,000 testing positive, followed by 33.5 people receiving Pfizer jabs, 27.6 receiving AstraZeneca and 24.2 receiving Moderna.In Korea, Janssen was mostly given to men in their 30s after the United States provided 1 million doses of the vaccine in June to be used for military-related personnel

Sep 23, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Korea sees growing number of breakthrough infections
  • Government devises measures to boost COVID-19 vaccination among migrant workers
Health

Fear grows over resurgence of infections due to Chuseok gatherings

People wait to take COVID-19 tests at a testing site set up at a public health center in Jeju, Wednesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiConcerns are growing over the possibility of the current fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic worsening, as the number of infections is feared to surge again following family gatherings during the Chuseok holidays. While infections in Seoul and the surrounding area still account for 77 percent of the nation's total, a further spike in cases in areas outside of the capital area is expected, as many residents of the Seoul metropolitan area visited their hometowns during the holiday period.According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), Wednesday, the number of daily new infection cases during the holiday period, from Saturday to Tuesday, ranged between 1,604 and 1,909, which is much higher than the range of 1,375-1,485, which has been tallied on weekends for the past month before the holidays.For Tuesday, 1,720 new infections were reported, out of some 100,000 people who were tested for the virus. Considering the fact that 160,000-180,000 te

Sep 22, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Fear grows over resurgence of infections due to Chuseok gatherings
  • New cases in 1,700s for 3rd day; post-holiday resurgence in store
Health

Gov't on alert over Chuseok gatherings

Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae speaks during a meeting with vice superintendents of 17 metropolitan and provincial education offices at the Government Complex in Sejong, Wednesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiThe health authorities are urging citizens to refrain from gathering and traveling, amid growing concerns that the country's virus cases are likely to reach a peak during the Chuseok holiday, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving, which runs from Sept. 20 to 22 this year.Ahead of the traditional holiday, the numbers of daily new cases of COVID-19 are hovering around 2,000.Experts are concerned that the virus spread will gain speed after Chuseok, and predict that infections will continue to increase especially in the capital area. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 1,943 new infections for Wednesday, including 1,921 local transmissions, raising the aggregated total to 279,930.Daily cases were down from the previous day's 2,080, but quarantine authorities remain vigilant over a series of mass infections centered on the metropolitan area where the country's pop

Sep 16, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Gov't on alert over Chuseok gatherings
Society

Seoul City to set up investment agency

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon speaks during a press conference at City Hall, Wednesday, to announce the city government's Seoul Vision 2030 plan. YonhapMayor Oh unveils Vision 2030 to make Seoul into digital financial hubBy Bahk Eun-jiSeoul City will set up an organization in charge of attracting foreign investment into the city, similar to the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, as a part of its bid to increase the city's competitiveness and establish the city as Asia's digital financial hub, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said, Wednesday. This is a core part of the mayor's Seoul Vision 2030, a master plan for the city government's policy direction through 2030.This vision is the result of discussions of a committee of 44 experts in various sectors and 78 Seoul citizens, which Oh set up in May, the month after he was elected mayor. One of the main goals is to restore Seoul's global urban competitiveness.“I will make all-out efforts to turn the capital into a top-tier and globally competitive city,” Oh said during a press conference at City Hall, Wednesday. The city governme

Sep 15, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Seoul City to set up investment agency
Health

Parents hesitant about vaccinating children over safety concerns

Students walk toward an elementary school in Seoul, Sept. 6. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiDebate is arising over the government's plan to allow COVID-19 vaccinations for children aged 12 to 17 starting next month. Some parents say the inoculations will ensure their children's safety and allow them to be more active, while others say they are concerned about potential side effectsThe health authorities said, Monday, they plan to start offering vaccinations for children in that age group in the fourth quarter and will announce details within this month after consulting with the education ministry.They are considering providing the Pfizer vaccine as recommended by the Korea Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, adding the vaccine has been proven safe for use for the age group in various countries including Japan and the United States.The government's plan to vaccinate children seems to have been affected by the recent uptick in cases among them. According to the education ministry, Monday, the average daily number of confirmed new cases in elementary, middle and high schools from Sept. 2

Sep 14, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Parents hesitant about vaccinating children over safety concerns
  • New cases under 1,500 for 2nd day
Society

Educators, city gov't at odds over 'Seoul Learn'

Students take part in online classes at an elementary school in Seoul, in this July 15 photo. YonhapQuestions emerge over free online private academy lecture service for underprivileged studentsBy Bahk Eun-jiSeoul Learn, one of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's campaign promises to provide underprivileged students with online lectures from well-known private academies (“hagwon” in Korean) for free, began operating officially at the end of last month. Although the goal is to bridge the educational disparity between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds, a controversy has arisen as the education community is raising questions about whether it is effective and criticizes it for promoting education via private academies instead of supporting public schools.Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon / YonhapThe Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) officially launched the free online lectures on Aug. 27 for 110,000 students from households in various low-income and social minority categories, ranging from elementary, middle and high school students, to children from mixed heritage families and c

Sep 14, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Educators, city gov't at odds over 'Seoul Learn'
Society

Contactless holiday reduces stress: survey

A table for ancestral rite for Chuseok / Korea Times fileBy Bahk Eun-jiKoreans are experiencing less than they used to have due to family gatherings during traditional holidays, as the number of get-togethers with relatives has decreased due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey showed, Friday.According to the survey of 3,033 adults conducted by recruiting platform Saramin, 40.2 percent of respondents said they felt stressed about the upcoming Chuseok holiday, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving, which runs from Sept. 20 to 22 this year.This is down 18.1 percentage points from a survey conducted ahead of Seollal, the Lunar New Year holiday, in January last year before the COVID-19 outbreak erupted here. Seventy-seven percent said their stress level was down because “there is a good reason to avoid gatherings with relatives.” The percentage of people saying this was higher among women, 81.9 percent, than men, 72.4 percent.The reasons for being under holiday stress differed depending on marital status.When multiple answers were allowed, 52.7 percent of unmarried people said

Sep 11, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Contactless holiday reduces stress: survey
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