Health
Dealing with medical waste
Staff at Keimyung University Dongsan Medical Center in Daegu load medical waste containers onto a truck, Sunday./ Yonhap
Mar 29, 2020
Kim Se-jeong
Korea Times K-Culture Reporter
I am covering trend, food and fashion. Previously, I covered diplomacy, city, environment and unification.
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Society
Retired biology teacher fights for wetland conservation
By Kim Se-jeong Park June-log Park June-log is a retired high school biology teacher from Busan who is passionate about conserving wetlands in the city and protecting the migratory bird species that visit them.Eulsuk Island, located at the estuary of the Nakdong River, is a sizable wetland and one of the largest migratory bird habitats in Korea. It is home to black-headed gulls, swans, snipes, Japanese cranes, storks and other species, including endangered ones. For the last 17 years, he has been bird watching and recording data on the migratory birds of the island.In the early 2000s, Park led a fight against the Busan Metropolitan Government over the construction of the Eulsuk Bridge. The prolonged fight ended when the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the city government. The bridge opened in 2009. Yet, he persuaded the city to alter the construction plan so that the bridge could go around a crucial habitat spot for swans on the island, instead of going over it. Ask
Mar 27, 2020
Law & Crime
Telegram sex crime suspect extorts from high-profile figures
By Kim Se-jeong Sohn Seok-heeCho Ju-bin, 24, accused of blackmailing women and minors to make sexually abusive videos, is also facing fraud allegations involving two journalists and a former politician, according to police Thursday.Outside Jongno Police Office in Seoul, Wednesday, Cho mentioned Sohn Seok-hee, a former journalist and CEO of cable news channel JTBC; Yoon Jang-hyeon, a former Gwangju mayor; and Kim Woong, an independent journalist, in his public apology.The unexpected statement by Cho made many speculate that these three mentioned have some involvement in his crimes. The police quickly dismissed the speculation, saying the three had nothing to do with the sex crimes, briefly adding that the three could be fraud victims of Cho and that the police force was investigating.Details of fraud involving Sohn was made public the same day, as the CEO released a statement explaining what had happened. According to the statement, “Cho approached me through Telegram, saying he was running a private detective agency and one of his clients was K, with whom I had a legal fight. H
Mar 26, 2020
Law & Crime
'Thank you for stopping my life as the devil'
Cho Ju-bin, a suspect who allegedly blackmailed women and minors to make sexually abusive videos and sold them, has his face go public outside Jongno Police Office in Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulBy Kim Se-jeong Cho Ju-bin, 24, who allegedly blackmailed minors and women to create sexually abusive videos and distributed the material in secret chat rooms on Telegram, appeared in front of the press Wednesday, outside Jongno Police Station in Seoul. “Thank you for putting a brake on the life of a devil that couldn't be stopped,” he said unapologetically, drawing outrage from women's rights group activists and other citizens who were watching him speak outside the station. “You're a murderer,” said an online commenter. “From the chat room to prison,” said another, adding, “Find all men who watched the videos and prosecute them.”Cho was wearing a neck brace and had a Band-Aid on his forehead. Earlier, police said he had attempted to injure himself, claiming he was innocent. During his statement to the press, he mention
Mar 25, 2020
Society
As people practice social distancing, Seoul Library's e-books gain popularity
Seoul Library offers e-books in English. /Screen capture from lib.seoul.go.krBy Kim Se-jeong As social distancing becomes the new norm amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Seoul Metropolitan Library is offering free e-books and audiobooks to entertain people at home.The library's e-book section has 11,000 books including 600 in English. Titles include the complete “Harry Potter” series by J.K. Rolling; the “Game of Thrones” series by George R.R. Martin; “Me Before You” a novel by Jojo Moyers and others. When it comes to audiobooks, the library has a total of 150 titles in stock. It's not necessary to download the audiobooks as they can be streamed. The list of titles available includes “The Vegetarian” and “A Boy Comes” by International Booker Prize winner Han Kang and books by other prominent Korean writers. No English audiobooks are available.E-book and audiobook services are available for library members. The membership application process can be completed online, though applicants not proficient in Korean will need the ass
Mar 25, 2020
Health
Seoul seeks 200 million won in compensation from Shincheonji
Lee Man-hee, the founder of Shincheonji Church of Jesus speaks during a press conference held on March 3 in Gyeonggi Province./ Korea Times fileBy Kim Se-jeongThe Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday it had filed a compensation suit against the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a religious sect blamed for the faster spread of the COVID-19 outbreak in Korea, and its founder Lee Man-hee. “We believe the church responded slowly to the city's request to hand out a contact list of its members and that caused us serious problems,” a city official said. The local government is demanding at least 300 million won in order to have the case heard by a three judge panel. Claims up to 200 million won are adjudicated by a single judge.Seoul has become the first local government to file a compensation suit against the sect. Separately, the prosecution is currently investigating to see if the founder Lee ordered the church administration to delay the disclosure of its membership. As the confirmed cases skyrocketed among Shincheonji followers in Daegu last month, the central government
Mar 25, 2020
Society
Seoul City supports late-night animal rescue
An employee of Korea Animal Rescue and Management Association (KARMA), a non-profit organization based in Seoul, transports rescued animals from a river outside Seoul in 2006. KARMA has been active for two decades and the Seoul Metropolitan Government is now supporting KARMA to expand its rescue operation in Seoul during late night. Courtesy of KARMABy Kim Se-jeong What would you do if you saw a dog that had been hit by a car in the middle of the road in Seoul?You could either call 120 DASAN Seoul Call Center for help or the district office of the area where the accident occurred. Animal rescue staff from Korea Animal Rescue and Management Association (KARMA), a non-profit organization commissioned by district offices to carry out animal rescue, would arrive on the scene. One problem that has beset this otherwise functional operation was that rescue staff wasn't available from midnight to 9 a.m. But, this is changing now.Last week, the Seoul Metropolitan Government started support of KARMA's late-night and holiday rescue operations so that the emergency services can reach those anima
Mar 25, 2020
Entertainment
Singer Psy remains quiet on connection to Shincheonji
By Kim Se-jeong Psy during a performance/ Korea Times fileSinger Psy said Tuesday he had nothing to say about the allegation that his father-in-law had connections with the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a religious sect blamed for the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak in Korea.The singer, famous for the international hit “Gangnam Style” married his current wife in 2016. According to local newspapers and magazines, her father Yoo Jae-yeoul was the founder of a religious sect in 1966. Yoo was only 18 years old when he started it and called himself one of eight “angels” that received divine revelations.The sect grew rapidly over the years, drawing followers including Lee Man-hee, the founder of the current Shincheonji Church of Jesus, who was then 36 years old. Yoo predicted the end of the world would come on Nov. 1, 1969 and Jesus would return right after. He also said the chosen 144,000 people would be saved, encouraging followers to move near to the sect's main sanctuary located on Mount Cheonggye near Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province.According to news reports, his me
Mar 24, 2020
Health
Calls grow for coronavirus tests on all arrivals from US
Passengers from Europe at the Incheon International Airport mote to take a bus which would take them to a quarantine facility, Monday. / YonhapBy Kim Se-jeongCalls are growing among medical experts for the government to quarantine and conduct coronavirus testing on people arriving from the United States, as the number of confirmed cases there has soared in recent weeks.The total number of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. was 46,145 as of Monday (local time), with 582 deaths. On Monday, eight people who had recently returned from the United States to Korea were confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus ― the Korea Center for Disease Control and prevention (KCDC) said four additional cases from the U.S. were confirmed Tuesday.“As the number of cases in the U.S. is increasing quickly, the government should conduct virus test on all arrivals from North America,” said Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious diseases medicine at Korea University Guro Hospital. Currently, arrivals from the U.S. get tested only when they show symptoms. For arrivals from Europe, the government is
Mar 24, 2020
Law & Crime
Police consider revealing child porn suspect's identity
Child pornography suspect leaves the Seoul district court in Seoul, Thursday. He was later arrested./ YonhapBy Kim Se-jeongPolice in Seoul are considering revealing the identity of a man who convinced minors to record pornographic videos of themselves which he then distributed using the Telegram messenger service.The suspect was caught Monday and arrested Thursday. Since information about his actions was released, public demand has been growing for his face to be revealed.In most cases, the law prohibits the identity of criminals from being made public in order to protect their rights, but allows for exceptions when the extent of the crime is deemed grave enough or when the police believe it would be in the public interest to disclose the identity. On Wednesday, a petition was filed on Cheong Wa Dae's website asking the police to reveal the suspect's face and other personal information. The petition drew the support of more than 210,000 people as of Thursday. “Please make his face known to the world. He deserves it because he ruined the lives of so many young girls,” the
Mar 20, 2020