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More than 50 mil. use Incheon airport

By Kim Jae-heunThe number of people who used Incheon International Airport this year surpassed 50 million, Tuesday, its operator said, Friday.According to the Incheon International Airport Corp, (IIAC), it took 268 days before 50 million travelers used the airport _ the shortest period of time to reach the number. In 2017, it occurred on Oct. 23. The IIAC is expecting the number of travelers to reach a record 68 million by the end of the year, up from 62 million last year. Since the airport opened in 2001 and 1.45 million used it, the IIAC has witnessed the number increasing steadily, posting an annual growth rate of 9.5 percent. In 2016, it topped the 50 million mark for the first time. The operator is expecting over 100 million people to travel through the airport soon, so it plans to expand Terminal 2 by 2023 and construct a fourth airstrip.

Sep 28, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Foreign Affairs

Embassy staffer jailed for issuing illegal visas

By Kim Jae-heunA Korean embassy staff member in Malaysia has been jailed for issuing unauthorized visas to Pakistanis over the past three years.Seoul Central District Court said Friday it sentenced the staffer to 18 months in jail for fabricating the official documents and violating the Immigration Control Law.The staff member allegedly forged more than 20 visas to help Pakistanis travel to Korea illegally from April 2015 to January this year. Only a consul can issue a visa.The staff member reportedly used the consul's ID and password to fabricate the visas for Pakistani friends.The requirement for Pakistanis to obtain visas is strictly enforced because there are many Pakistani illegal immigrants here.“As a staff member assisting the consul at an embassy, he was virtually given a duty to issue a visa, but he forged the document for unqualified foreigners,” the judge said. “He breached his trust and caused havoc in immigration administration. Therefore he cannot avoid punishment.“However, he did not pursue any personal interest through this crime and he acknowl

Sep 28, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Society

Hair regulations at schools to be abolished next year

The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon speaks of his plan to abolish hairstyle regulations at middle and high schools, during a press conference at the SMOE building in Seoul, Thursday. /YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunMiddle and high school students in Seoul will be allowed to not only grow their hair as long as they want but also have their hair dyed or permed, as the regional education authority is moving to break hairstyle regulations at schools starting with the fall semester next year. The move ends a decades-long debate about hairstyle control, which is a vestige of the Japanese imperial era and later dictatorial governments and has been criticized for infringing on students' human rights.Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon said Thursday he is declaring the abolition of hair regulations at all schools in the capital.“I have received many demands and complaints from students to free up the dress code and hair regulations. Choosing which hairstyle to adopt is a part of the right of self-determination and it

Sep 27, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Hair regulations at schools to be abolished next year
Foreign Affairs

Philippines immigration office arrests 21 Korean

By Kim Jae-heunThe Philippines' Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested 21 Koreans there earlier this month for working and staying illegally, according to the Korean Embassy in the Philippines, Wednesday. Eight out of 21 Koreans have been released, eight are still being detained, while five are being questioned. The BI conducted a crackdown mainly in the Paranaque region, where many Koreans reside. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs took immediate action to request an impartial investigation with the Philippine immigration office.“We sent our consul stationed there to help the Koreans and provide interpretation services while talking with the local investigators about the case,” said a ministry official, Wednesday. The Korean Embassy in the Philippines held a public hearing inviting 20 representatives of the Korean community there to talk about the crackdown by the local immigration office and check their visa status. “Four of eight being held are confirmed to be illegal aliens whose stay periods have expired. The other four allegedly worked at places where they were not

Sep 26, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Global Community

Chinese spouses most popular

By Kim Jae-heunAmid growing interracial marriages in Korea, Chinese spouses were found to be the most sought-after as of the first half of the year, according to the Ministry of Justice, Wednesday. The ministry, in cooperation with the Korean Immigration Service, released a report on the nationality of foreign spouses which indicated 12,356 Korean women married Chinese men, followed by Americans at 2,618 and Vietnamese at 1,955. Japanese at 1,299 and Canadians at 1,114 rounded out the top five.For men, Chinese women topped the list as 45,521 tied the knot with them, followed by 39,506 Vietnamese and 12,304 Japanese. Filipinas ranked fourth with 11,506 and Cambodians were fifth with 4,247.Most of the foreign spouses ranged in age from 30 to 34, followed by those between 35 to 39 years old and between 25 and 29. Also, most of the interracial couples reside in Gyeonggi Province with 44,056, followed by 27,571 couples living in Seoul and 10,250 in South Gyeongsang Province. The number of foreign spouses increased by 12.2 percent from 125,087 in 2009 to 142,654 in 2010 to surpassing the 1

Sep 26, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Society

Dispute grows over killing of escaped puma

A condolence flower, messages and a picture of “Pporongi” the puma is attached to the main gate of O World Zoo in Daejeon, two days after the animal was killed following its escape from an enclosure. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunAfter a puma escaped from a zoo in Daejeon and was shot dead, a dispute is growing over whether killing it was the only option.The eight-year-old female puma named “Pporongi” was killed Tuesday, four-and-a-half hours after it escaped from its cage, which a zookeeper forgot to lock after the morning clean-up. After its escape, the animal was first found nearby the reservoir in the O World Zoo and a member of the emergency response services shot it twice with a tranquilizer gun. However, Pporongi ran away before staff could capture her. Then the emergency team and zoo staff decided to kill the puma for the safety of town residents. When the animal was spotted again, they shot it dead with live ammunition.The killing provoked a backlash as many people felt sorry for the puma, saying it had done nothing wrong and it was the zookeeper's fault for l

Sep 20, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Dispute grows over killing of escaped puma
Society

Education minister nominee hit at confirmation hearing

Education Minister Nominee Yoo Eun-hae answers questions from lawmakers during her confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, Wednesday. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunNew education minister nominee Yoo Eun-hae faced fierce questioning from lawmakers over various corruption allegations during her confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, Wednesday. Some lawmakers said her alleged illegal acts were so serious they could disqualify her from the position. According to the Rep. Kwak Sang-do of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), Yoo abused her power by opening an office in the building of an organization under her supervision. In 2016, Yoo was a member of the Assembly's education and culture committee, and she opened an office in a public facility owned by the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation's (KSPO) subsidiary. She used the office for her campaign for the general election that year and is still using it. Six foundation officials, who were in charge of making the lease contracts at the time, were punished for violating the foundation's leasing guidelines. The foundation req

Sep 19, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Education minister nominee hit at confirmation hearing
Society

Kyung Hee University opens Peace BAR Festival 2018

Kyung Hee University President Choue In-won delivers the opening speech during last year's Peace BAR Festival held on the campus in northeastern Seoul. / Courtesy of Kyung Hee UniversityBy Kim Jae-heunKyung Hee University is hosting its Peace BAR Festival (PBF) 2018, an annual conference commemorating the United Nations International Day of Peace, on its campus in northeastern Seoul. Global think-tanks _ the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationships with the United Nations and the World Academy of Arts and Sciences _ co-organized the three-day event which will run through Thursday.Participants of this year's conference are discussing the future of a sustainable global community under the theme “The Korean Peninsula in an Age of Transformative Civilization: Values and Philosophy.”Prof. Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University began the conference with the topic “Farewell to Ice: Climate Change and Global Peace.” Wadhams warned about the global warming issue and talked about how seriously it was affecting the world. The scholar said the world has to take imm

Sep 19, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Kyung Hee University opens Peace BAR Festival 2018
Law & Crime

Man kills himself at shooting range in Myeong-dong

By Kim Jae-heunA man in his 30s committed suicide Sunday, shooting himself with a pistol at a live ammunition shooting range in Myeong-dong, central Seoul. Namdaemun Police Station said it checked surveillance cameras at the shooting range which showed the man shooting himself in the neck with a revolver. When they arrived at the scene, he was already dead.No other customers were there at the time, just than the owner and staff.All customers have to be accompanied by one staff member while shooting according to safety rules. A staffer went into the shooting room with the man, but was hit by a stun gun the customer was carrying.He ran out of the room to seek help, but the man then killed himself. The staffer told police that the man appeared to be sober and wasn't acting suspiciously.

Sep 17, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
Man kills himself at shooting range in Myeong-dong
Society

Chuseok holiday no break for women

By Kim Jae-heunOnly women are forced to perform domestic labor during the Chuseok holiday, according to a survey by the Seoul Foundation of Women and Family, Monday.The foundation conducted the survey of over 1,170 people on sexist customs practiced on the major holiday, which falls on Sept. 24 this year.Over 80 percent of female respondents said they have experienced sexist remarks or customs, while 70 percents of male respondents said they have, too.More than 53 percent of the respondents said the most unfair custom is that only women are forced to prepare food for ancestral memorial services and take care of other chores afterward including cleaning up. And this was not just the women's opinion, as 43.5 percent of the male respondents said they want to change the custom and help their female family members prepare the food.Another 9.7 percent of the respondents said it is also a sexist practice that parents or relatives enforce gender stereotypes or gender roles, followed by 8.1 percent whose relatives ask about marriage plans.Women said they feel uncomfortable when they are separ

Sep 17, 2018By Kim Jae-heun
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