The Korea Times

7-month-old baby brain-dead following abuse

North Jeolla Provincial Police Agency building / Korea Times fileBy Lee Hyo-jin A woman has been arrested for assaulting her seven-month-old baby in Iksan, North Jeolla Province. The North Jeolla Provincial Police Agency said Tuesday that she has been charged with the attempted murder of the baby and the case will be sent to the prosecutors' office. She is accused of beating the baby in the face and throwing her on the floor multiple times, resulting in critical injuries leading to brain death.During the police investigation, the woman said she acted out of frustration because the baby would not stop crying, amidst excessive stress from the labor of childcare. According to the police, she was almost solely responsible for care of the baby, as her husband frequently worked overtime. The police found that she had been abusing the baby for about three months since December, during which at least 21 instances of assault were confirmed. She deliberately dropped the baby dozens of times from a height over one meter. The baby's father, who found it strange that his daughter was sleeping lon

Mar 30, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

7-month-old baby brain-dead following abuse

Health

Korea's global image tarnished due to marginalization of foreigners, LGBT

People stand in line at a temporary COVID-19 testing center set up for foreign workers in Geumcheon District, Seoul, March 21. YonhapGov't faces growing criticism over poor response to minority human rights issuesBy Lee Hyo-jin South Korea, a country with an advanced democracy in terms of guaranteeing basic political freedoms and civil liberties, generally respects the individual political and civil rights of its citizens, offering protection of their fundamental human rights. However, discrimination against marginalized groups such as sexual minorities, foreigners, women and the disabled remains severe inside the country. Human rights activists in and outside of the country have been criticizing the government for showing very little effort to address a recent series of human rights violation issues concerning various minorities.Outcry of discrimination over mandatory COVID-19 testing order for foreign nationalsBeginning with the Gyeonggi provincial government's mandatory coronavirus testing order for all foreign workers, implemented on March 8, other local governments around the co

Mar 30, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Korea's global image tarnished due to marginalization of foreigners, LGBT

Society

Stranded foreign workers amid COVID-19 allowed to extend stay

Migrant workers on a farm in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, Jan. 22. Korea Times photo by Lee Han-hoBy Lee Hyo-jin Migrant workers who are stranded in Korea due to a lack of flights amid the coronavirus pandemic have been allowed to extend their employment period by one year.Following the National Assembly's passage of a revised Foreigner Employment Act, Friday, foreign workers facing difficulties returning to their home countries due to travel restrictions in case of natural disasters or infectious diseases can have their employment period extended by an additional year.The bill, proposed by Rep. Lee Jong-bae of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), was aimed at introducing supportive measures for foreign workers and business owners struggling from labor shortages amid the prolonged global health crisis.While non-Korean workers stranded here have been calling for job opportunities until they are able to return to their countries, local employers suffering from a shortage of workers have asked the government to address the labor issue.Also, the revised bill has added th

Mar 29, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Stranded foreign workers amid COVID-19 allowed to extend stay

Law & Crime

Japanese man throws money out of quarantine hotel window

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Hyo-jin A Japanese man threw money worth around 900,000 won ($795) out of the window of a hotel at Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, where he was staying under self-quarantine. According to Yongin Dongbu Police Station, Sunday, the man in his 60s threw a bunch of banknotes out of the window of a room on the 13th floor of the hotel, around 10:40 a.m., Saturday. The hotel was a designated 14-day self-isolation facility for overseas entrants, part of the government's anti-coronavirus measures.He threw a dozen 50,000 won banknotes, six 10,000 won banknotes, one 5,000 won bill, and three 10,000 yen banknotes, adding up to around 900,000 won in total. It is thought the man, who had checked in the day before, threw the cash out of anger after an argument with hotel staff as he was required to make a payment of some 1.6 million won in advance of the stay.Police collected most of the cash from the street, and returned it to the hotel staff who will in turn return it to the man when he checks out.

Mar 28, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Japanese man throws money out of quarantine hotel window

Health

Gov't ups efforts to solve organ donation shortage

Organ donation activists hold a campaign in Jung-gu, Seoul, to encourage public participation in organ donation while calling on the government for better treatment of donors after organ procurement, Dec. 8, 2017. Korea Times file Health ministry announces comprehensive plan to boost organ donation by 2025By Lee Hyo-jin Kim Myung-seung, 58, a security guard at the Korea Airports Corp., fell unconscious on his way to work, March 1.During hospital treatment, he was declared brain dead due to heart failure. Upon his family's consent, Kim's organs ― lungs, liver, kidneys, and eyes ― were donated through the Korea Organ Donation Agency (KODA), to six patients in dire need of transplant surgery.The same month, a 54-year-old woman surnamed Kim in Busan was pronounced brain dead during nasal polyp surgery. Based on her consent form which she had submitted in 2008, her family agreed to donate her heart, lungs, liver and kidney, to five people in need.But such humanity-affirm

Mar 25, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Gov't ups efforts to solve organ donation shortage

Politics

Conspiracy theory targets Moon's vaccination

A nurse extracts the AstraZeneca vaccine from a vial to a syringe, ahead of the inoculation on President Moon Jae-in at a public health center in Jongno District, Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapHealth authorities file police reports against conspiracy theoryBy Lee Hyo-jin Rumors have been spreading online that the nurse who inoculated President Moon Jae-in for COVID-19 deliberately switched syringes right before the injection. In preparation for his attendance at the G7 summit set for June in Britain, Moon and first lady Kim Jung-sook received their first shots of the AstraZeneca vaccine at a public health center in Jongno District, Seoul, Tuesday. The inoculation was made public as Moon's early vaccination was partially aimed at easing public anxiety on vaccine safety. But rumors began the next day, when an internet user wrote on an online community that the nurse who inoculated Moon deliberately switched the syringe filled with AstraZeneca's vaccine and used another syringe in order to avoid his injection of the “controversial” vaccine. “After extracting the vaccine from t

Mar 25, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Conspiracy theory targets Moon's vaccination

Trends

Cartoonist 'doodles' about realities of racism in Korea

Yerong, whose real name is Ko Ye-sung, draws cartoons about the realities of racial discrimination that foreigners in Korea experience in their daily lives. Courtesy of Ko Ye-sungBy Lee Hyo-jin Yerong, whose real name is Ko Ye-sung, draws cartoons about the realities of racial discrimination that foreign nationals in Korea encounter in their daily lives. The 29-year-old cartoonist's minimal drawings ― black and white with only minimum details ― are mainly uploaded on her social media channels. And they are quite popular among foreign residents here who find the stories totally relatable. Cartoonist Yerong, whose real name is Ko Ye-sung / Courtesy of Ko Ye-sung“I began to draw cartoons in 2018, when I first encountered racial discrimination in the country during my relationship with a Black man from Ghana. I felt the stares in the streets and came across some uncomfortable experiences,” Ko told The Korea Times. After realizing the seriousness of racism that foreigners face here, Ko began to upload the “doodles” based on her own experiences, with a hope that the

Mar 24, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Cartoonist 'doodles' about realities of racism in Korea

Law & Crime

Police investigate obstetrician accused of performing C-section while drunk

A public petition posted on the Cheong Wa Dae website, Sunday, demands heavy punishment of an obstetrician who allegedly performed a C-section operation under the influence of alcohol, during which one of the twin babies died. / Screen captured from the Cheong Wa Dae websiteBy Lee Hyo-jinThe police have launched an investigation into the allegation that an obstetrician of a maternity clinic located in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, performed a C-section operation while drunk, resulting in the death of one of the patient's twin babies. Cheongju Heungdeok Police Station said Tuesday that they have confirmed that the doctor was drunk during the surgery, performed on Oct. 9, 2020, and are conducting a further investigation into the case.Police had booked the doctor for driving under the influence on his way to the hospital on the same day. To determine whether there had been any medical malpractice during the operation, the law enforcement authorities have requested an investigation at the Korea Medical Dispute Mediation and Arbitration Agency, as well as the Korea Medical Associa

Mar 23, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Police investigate obstetrician accused of performing C-section while drunk

Health

AstraZeneca vaccination to go on as planned; Moon to get jab Tuesday

Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyeong speaks during a briefing at the agency office in Osong, North Chungcheong Province, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin Korea' s coronavirus vaccinations using AstraZeneca's doses will continue as planned, as the health authorities did not identify any causal links between reported cases of blood clotting after inoculation and the vaccine. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Monday that the AstraZeneca vaccine, which had been under scrutiny following two cases of blood clots found in individuals who received their first shots, has no correlation with such symptoms. The authorities confirmed that public vaccinations for the second quarter will roll out as planned without major adjustments to its initial scheme. According to the KDCA, a vaccination committee consisting of medical experts and infectious disease specialists has thoroughly reviewed the correlation between blood clots and the vaccine, and it found no links between the vaccine and the blood clots detected in two people who had

Mar 22, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

AstraZeneca vaccination to go on as planned; Moon to get jab Tuesday

Health

Controversy rising over limiting disabled person to take dog-groomer exam

Groomers take part in a dog grooming contest held in KINTEX, Gyeonggi Province, Oct. 30, 2019. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin Controversy is rising after a hearing-impaired person was not allowed to take an exam for a state-certified dog groomer license, as the test organizer stated that disabled people are not qualified to take the test.During a practical skills test for a groomer license held on Feb. 7, a 43-year-old woman with hearing disabilities was ordered to leave the testing site after the proctor found out about her condition. “I showed my disability registration card to the exam supervisor to ask for understanding in case I miss any audio announcements, but I was told to leave the testing site as 'disabled people cannot undergo the exam,'” she said.The woman, who acquired the hearing disability while giving birth, stated that it is unfair to bar her from taking the exam when she has no problem communicating and her disability does not affect her performance or capabilities as a groomer. She had passed the written test last November, and took several months of training cou

Mar 22, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin

Lee Hyo-jin

Read more

7-month-old baby brain-dead following abuse

Korea's global image tarnished due to marginalization of foreigners, LGBT

Stranded foreign workers amid COVID-19 allowed to extend stay

Japanese man throws money out of quarantine hotel window

Gov't ups efforts to solve organ donation shortage

Conspiracy theory targets Moon's vaccination

Cartoonist 'doodles' about realities of racism in Korea

Police investigate obstetrician accused of performing C-section while drunk

AstraZeneca vaccination to go on as planned; Moon to get jab Tuesday

Controversy rising over limiting disabled person to take dog-groomer exam

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