my timesThe Korea Times
ejb

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.

Go to Email

Read more

Society

Yeongdeungpo opens market to provide free food to needy residents

A resident picks up food and daily necessities at Yeong Won Market in Yeongdeungpo District Office building in Seoul. The district office runs the market where needy residents can receive the necessities for free. Courtesy of Yeoungdeungpo District OfficeBy Bahk Eun-jiThe ongoing coronavirus pandemic is putting financial pressure on people, while some low-income families living in Korea, the world's 10th-largest economy, have apparently been unable to afford groceries.Local governments have been working to help people who have been hit hardest and Yeongdeungpo District in southwestern Seoul has set up a store called “Yeong Won Market,” which can be translated as “zero-won store,” to extend a helping hand to residents whose livelihoods have been threatened by the prolonged pandemic. The district office opened three Yeong Won Market stores in spaces where it had been running food banks for low-income families.The district office also explained that the name “Yeong Won” was chosen to signify a market for residents in Yeongdeungpo district, as well let

Feb 22, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Yeongdeungpo opens market to provide free food to needy residents
Society

Gov't to expand learning support for children of multicultural families

An elementary school student of a multiracial family watches an online learning program on television in this Aug. 27, 2020 photo. Korea Times photo by Bae Woo-hanBy Bahk Eun-jiThe government has decided to strengthen Korean language learning support for children from multicultural families this year, according to the education ministry, Sunday. The measure comes out of concerns that such children have difficulty adapting to school life and developing Korean language skills as they were provided mostly with online classes along with the shutdown of schools amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. “Children from multicultural families can better develop their Korean language skills and adapt to school life here when they interact with their teachers and classmates. But they have had difficulty in doing so since last year, taking online classes at home due to the pandemic,” a ministry official said. “Some of them also had problems in using the online classes due to insufficient Korean language abilities.”The ministry plans to produce and distribute additional Korea

Feb 22, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Gov't to expand learning support for children of multicultural families
Health

Doctors' group threatens to strike over planned law change on medical license

Korean Medical Association chief Choi Dae-zip speaks during a virtual meeting with senior members of the group at KMA headquarters in Seoul, Saturday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiA doctors' association has threatened to launch a strike and boycott the government's COVID-19 vaccination plan to protest the ruling party's attempt to revise the Medical Act, revoking the medical licenses of doctors who are sentenced to prison or receive heavy punishment for felony crimes. The threat marks the latest clash between the government and the Korean Medical Association (KMA). During the previous clash last August and September, trainee doctors held a strike to protest the government's plan to increase admissions quotas at medical schools. The government was forced to put the plan on hold as it was essential for doctors to return to work as coronavirus infections continued to grow.The KMA, which represents 130,000 doctors, issued a statement Saturday, expressing anger and saying it would never accept the revision to the Medical Act.According to the bill, a doctor sentenced to imprisonment or heavy punish

Feb 21, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Doctors' group threatens to strike over planned law change on medical license
  • Korea to start administering 117,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine on Feb. 27: PM
Health

Namyangju factory with foreign workers emerges as virus hotbed

People stand in line for COVID-19 testing at a temporary screening station set up in an industrial complex in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiOver 100 workers have been infected with COVID-19 at a plastic manufacturing plant located in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, putting the health authorities on high alert over another large infection cluster. According to the Namyangju city government, Thursday, 123 people linked to the plant in the city's Jingwan Industrial Complex, about 40 kilometers from Seoul, have been diagnosed with the coronavirus.Of them, 119 are workers at the factory, three are family members of the workers, and one is an employee at another factory there. Among the 119, 110 are migrant workers from 17 countries, and most of them have lived as well as dined together at the company dormitory.All workers at the plant were tested following an employee from Cambodia testing positive at a hospital in central Seoul last Saturday after developing a fever.Fears of community transmission have grown as many of the foreign employees had social gatheri

Feb 18, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Namyangju factory with foreign workers emerges as virus hotbed
  • New COVID-19 cases over 600 for 2nd day
  • COVID-19 cases fall back in 500s; infections at workplaces on rise
  • South Korea makes final check on vaccine deployment plan in mock drill
Health

Korea sees resurgence of coronavirus cases ahead of new social distancing rules

People stand in line to get COVID-19 tests at a temporary screening station in front of Seoul Station, Wednesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiKorea is seeing a resurgence in COVID-19 cases after the Lunar New Year holiday, with mass infection clusters emerging nationwide. Concerns are rising that another big outbreak could hit the country after eased social distancing rules were applied from Monday, following the holiday. The situation is likely to cause a setback to the government's plan to present new social distancing guidelines from March aimed at minimizing forcible measures such as business operation bansAccording to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), Wednesday, the country added 621 more COVID-19 cases, including 590 local infections, for Tuesday, raising the cumulative  total to 84,946.The daily caseload was a large increase from the 457 the day before, and also the highest in 38 days since Jan. 10 when 657 cases were reported. The authorities remain vigilant as a series of group infections have taken place at religious facilities, hospitals and industrial c

Feb 17, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Korea sees resurgence of coronavirus cases ahead of new social distancing rules
Politics

Gov't to allow birth registration for children of undocumented foreigners

Justice Minister Park Beom-kye speaks with experts during a video conference of the ministry's policy committee at his office in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiKorea will seek to allow undocumented foreign nationals to register their children's births here in specific situations, to prevent them from being deprived of child-related rights and benefits. Justice Minister Park Beom-kye discussed the issue in an online meeting with experts, Monday, to establish a special law to give such children legal status regardless of their parents' status.Under the current law, foreign parents cannot register their children if they are not legally staying in Korea. Some situations in which children cannot be registered here include: when a child is born after the parents have overstayed their visas or lost their legal status here; when a foreign woman came to Korea after marrying a Korean, then divorced, and gave birth to a child while staying here as an undocumented foreigner; and if a foreign woman gives birth to a child out of wedlock.The number of children in Korea who

Feb 16, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Gov't to allow birth registration for children of undocumented foreigners
Trends

1 in 4 workers taking parental leave are men

More men are choosing to take paternity leave, reflecting cultural and policy changes. GettyimagesbankBy Bahk Eun-jiAhn Chang-yeong, a 35-year-old office worker and father of an eight-month-old boy in Seoul, said he will begin his paternity leave early next month when his wife is scheduled to return to work after her nine months of maternity leave. “I realized the social atmosphere and workplace culture have been changing drastically after my colleagues encouraged me to take parental leave, even though I was the first male employee on my team to do it,” Ahn said.“It took a long time for me to make my decision, but I thought I should share the child-rearing responsibilities and prevent my wife from having to take a long-term career break,” he said. Like Ahn, a growing number of male employees are taking time off to raise their children, mostly due to a cultural shift in which couples are now expected to raise their children together, unlike in the past when stricter gender roles put the responsibility of raising children solely on women.The government's increas

Feb 16, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
1 in 4 workers taking parental leave are men
Law & Crime

SoCar in hot seat for refusing to give sex offender's information to police

A sign indicates a designated parking space for vehicles owned by SoCar, a car-sharing service provider. Korea Times fileBy Bahk Eun-jiSoCar, a car-sharing app operator, is facing public backlash over its initial refusal to provide the police with the information of a user who was suspected of kidnapping an elementary schoolgirl, citing the “law on personal information protection.”In response, the girl's mother filed an online petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website, calling for a revision of the law.According to the petition and media reports, Monday, the man in his 30s, who rented a car from SoCar on Feb. 6, picked up the 13-year-old girl from Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, after they met through an online chat room.The man allegedly took her to his house in Gyeonggi Province and raped her. He released the girl the next day and she returned home.The mother said she reported the girl missing to the police at 11:20 a.m. on the day she was taken. Police were able to connect the abduction to the driver of the rental car. When the police requested SoCar to provide GPS inf

Feb 15, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
SoCar in hot seat for refusing to give sex offender's information to police
Society

Seoul City releases vegetarian restaurants guidebook

A guidebook for restaurants, cafes and bakeries in Seoul offering vegetarian or vegan options /Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentBy Bahk Eun-jiWith a growing number of people opting for vegetable-based diets, Seoul City has released a list of restaurants, cafes and bakeries offering vegetarian food in the capital area. The guidebook has information on a total of 948 restaurants ― 580 franchise outlets and 368 independent restaurants. They include both vegetarian restaurants offering only vegetarian or vegan dishes, and general restaurants that include such options.While there are 1,555 restaurants in Seoul offering vegetarian options, the 948 listed were those that agreed to provide information to the city government.The guidebook categorizes these eateries based on the vegetarian classification of the International Vegetarian Union (IVU), and people can check whether the dishes of the listed restaurants are suitable for various diets such as vegan, lacto-ovo vegetarian and pescatarian.Copies of the guidebook were distributed to local health centers in each district. It also p

Feb 11, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Seoul City releases vegetarian restaurants guidebook
Health

Korea OKs use of AstraZeneca vaccine for all adults

Food and Drug Safety Minister Kim Gang-lip speaks during a press conference at the ministry in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, Wednesday, on the conditional approval of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine for all age groups including people aged 65 or older. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiThe Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said Wednesday it has approved the use of the COVID-19 vaccine made by AstraZeneca for all adults despite lingering concerns over its efficacy and safety especially for the elderly. The decision is contrary to that made by a dozen other countries which have either not approved use of the vaccine from the British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm and Oxford University or have recommended against giving shots to people aged over 65.Following the decision, anti-coronavirus inoculations are set to begin Feb. 26, with the AstraZeneca vaccine being the first to be administered before vaccines from other companies arrive.The ministry said that it decided to approve the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine for adults aged over 18 on condition that the pharmaceutical company submits further

Feb 10, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Korea OKs use of AstraZeneca vaccine for all adults
previous page
6970717273
next page

Top 5 stories

Korea Times
About Us
Introduction
History
Contact Us
Products & Services
Subscribe
E-paper
RSS Service
Content Sales
Site Map
Policy
Code of Ethics
Ombudsman
Privacy Policy
Youth Protection Policy
Terms of Service
Copyright Policy
Family Site
Hankookilbo
Dongwha Group
FacebookXYoutubeInstagram
CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.