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Korea reports record-low childbirth in February

gettyimagesbankThe number of babies born in South Korea fell to a record low in February, data showed Wednesday, underscoring the country's chronically low birth rate.A total of 21,461 babies were born in February, down 5.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.It marked the lowest for any February since 1981, when the statistics agency began compiling related data.South Korea is struggling with a sustained fall in childbirths as many young people delay marriage or give up on getting married or having babies amid a prolonged economic slowdown.The country's total fertility rate ― the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime ― hit a new record low of 0.84 last year. It marked the third straight year that the rate was below 1 percent.The number of deaths came to 23,774 in February, down 6.5 percent from a year earlier.This resulted in the country's population declining by 2,313, marking the 16th straight month of fall.South Korea reported the first natural decline in population last year as the number of deaths outpaced that of n

Apr 28, 2021
Korea reports record-low childbirth in February

Home-owning newlyweds have more children than couples without homes: data

PixabayNewlywed couples who have owned a home since getting married had a greater chance of having children than newly married couples without homes, data showed Sunday, indicating that owning houses may affect childbirths.Of 212,000 first-time and newly married couples who tied the knot in 2014 and maintained their marital status through 2019, 60,949 couples, or 28.7 percent, had their own home during the five years after getting married, according to the data by Statistics Korea.Among the couples with houses, 83 percent had at least one child or an average of 1.16 children, the data showed.In comparison, 40.7 percent of the newlyweds did not possess houses in the cited period, and 80.7 percent of them had an average of 1.13 kids.In land-starved and densely populated South Korea, owning a home has been long regarded as the key way to inflate assets. Many newlywed couples here start marriage life by renting houses amid skyrocketing home prices.South Korea is struggling with a sustained fall in childbirths as many young people delay marriage or give up on getting married or having bab

Apr 25, 2021
Home-owning newlyweds have more children than couples without homes: data

Portion of cyberbullying sharply increases as pandemic turns classes online: survey

gettyimagesbankCases of cyberbullying involving elementary to high school students increased sharply last year as the new coronavirus pandemic turned many classes online, a survey showed Sunday.According to the survey released by the Blue Tree Foundation, cyberbullying accounted for 16.3 percent of all school bullying cases experienced by respondents last year, up more than threefold from 5.3 percent in 2019.The survey canvassed 6,230 students attending elementary, middle and high schools in 17 cities and provinces from December to January.Verbal abuse was tallied as the most frequently experienced type of school violence last year, accounting for 32.1 percent. Group bullying was the third, making up 13.2 percent, the survey also showed. Of the all polled students, 6.7 percent said they experienced school bullying last year, down 4.5 percentage points from the previous year. The survey also showed that online verbal abuse was the most common form of cyberbullying, accounting for 37 percent, followed by defamation at 16.7 percent and ostracization at 10.5 percent. According to the res

Apr 25, 2021
Portion of cyberbullying sharply increases as pandemic turns classes online: survey

Six out of 10 young Koreans think marriage unnecessary

gettyimagesbank Six out of 10 young Koreans think it is unnecessary to get married and have children, a government survey showed Saturday. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family conducted the triennial poll on 7,100 people aged between 9 and 24 and 4,800 parental caregivers from November through February.The survey showed that 60.9 percent of those aged between 13 and 24 said they did not think marriage was necessary, up from 49 percent tallied in the poll carried out in 2017.Among them, 65.1 percent of female respondents agreed that marriage was unnecessary, while 57.1 percent of their male counterparts had the same opinion.Also, 60.3 percent believed it was not necessary to have children after marriage, again up from 46.1 percent in 2017.Among the parents and guardians, however, 59.7 percent said marriage was necessary, although 47.2 percent thought having children was not necessary after marriage.The gender ministry said the survey showed young people have be

Apr 24, 2021
Six out of 10 young Koreans think marriage unnecessary

Church group vows to support democracy in Myanmar

So Kang-suk, right, co-leader of the United Christian Churches of Korea (UCCK), one of the largest associations of Protestant churches in Korea, speaks during a video call with Mahn Win Khaing Than, the prime minister of the National Unity Government (NUG), newly formed government of Myanmar and opponents of the Myanmar's military coup, Wednesday. Courtesy of UCCKBy Park Ji-wonThe United Christian Churches of Korea (UCCK), one of the largest associations of Protestant churches in Korea, said that its chief pledged to support the establishment of democracy in Myanmar during a call with Mahn Win Khaing Than, the prime minister of the National Unity Government (NUG), the newly formed government of Myanmar and opponents of Myanmar's military coup, which took power in February, and urged further support from Korean and international communities.The UCCK said in a statement that So Kang-suk, a pastor and the group's co-leader, had a conference call with the NUG's prime minister on Wednesday afternoon and said, “I pray that the spring of Myanmar's democracy would come fast.”Stre

Apr 23, 2021By Park Ji-won
Church group vows to support democracy in Myanmar

Cardinal reaffirms opposition to same sex marriage

By Park Ji-wonCardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung of the Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul / Courtesy of Catholic Archdiocese of SeoulCardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung of the Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul has reaffirmed his opposition to same-sex marriage while also opposing discrimination due to sexual orientation.According to a statement titled “Lesson from Catholic church on family and marriage” released by the archdiocese Wednesday to celebrate “Life Week,” which is set to raise awareness on human life, Cardinal Yeom said “Gender ideology is defined as views that people can refuse the biological sex of man and woman and choose their individual sexual orientation. This is going against Divine Providence in which the creator made men and women differently and let them help with each other.”He added, “Living together without marriage and common-law marriage are considered as homosexuality and hurt the definition of family which is made with lifetime love and unity between husband and wife and to give birth and raise children.”However, the cardinal m

Apr 22, 2021By Park Ji-won
Cardinal reaffirms opposition to same sex marriage

1 in 3 households own pets in 2020: survey

gettyimagesbankAbout 1 in 3 South Korean households raised pets in 2020, a survey showed Thursday, with the number of pet dogs and cats here reaching 8.6 million.The number of households raising pets was estimated at 6.38 million in 2020, up 8 percent from the previous year's 5.91 million, according to the survey conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.The figure roughly translates into 28 percent of the country's 23 million households. The calculation was based on the annual survey carried out on 5,000 respondents in October last year.According to the survey, the number of dogs raised by local households came to 6.02 million, and that of cats came to 2.58 million. On average, pet owners spent 176,000 won (US$157) monthly on their dogs, while that of cats reached 149,900 won.Around half of the respondents also said South Korea has lax punishment for those who abuse animals.Starting this year, those who slaughter animals cruelly will face imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of 30 million won. It compares with the previous ceiling of two years.Around 80

Apr 22, 2021
1 in 3 households own pets in 2020: survey

Korea Creative Content Agency promotes Korean fashion in greater China

Seen is a screen capture of shows held online during the K-fashion Digital Festival held by the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) / Courtesy of KOCCABy Park Ji-wonThe Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) has held online trade shows for Korean fashion brands targeting China since March to help COVID-hit fashion brands and expand their footprint in the area.With the title “K-fashion Digital Festival (KFDF),” KOCCA came up with online promotional videos via various channels for five fashion brands ― Lee Chung-chung's LIE, Cho Eun-ae's tibaeg, Hong Hye-jin's The Studio K, Kim Jin-young and Lee Su-yeon's DEW E DEW E and Im Dong-joo's STIGMA.For example, the tiktok challenge by singer Haha went viral, while Seoul-themed fashion films by the brands were distributed via various online channels such as YouTube and Weibo, attracting viewers to the respective platforms.In Yizhibo, a live video streaming mobile app in China, the agency also held live commerce streaming events where it introduced those brands to influencers from April 15 to 17, ending up attracting 8.23 million v

Apr 21, 2021By Park Ji-won
Korea Creative Content Agency promotes Korean fashion in greater China

#MeToo creates new job in film industry: Intimacy coordinator

gettyimagesbankIn Hollywood, actors get support from professionals during the filming of sex scenes; but in Korea, there is still no such professional support for actors By Kang Hyun-kyungIn 2018, the Supreme Court upheld the lower court's decision, ruling against actor Cho Deok-je, who was accused of sexual harassment during the filming of a sex scene for the 2016 movie, “Analog Human.” He was sentenced to a one-year jail term, which was suspended for two years for his inappropriate physical contact with actress Ban Min-jeong in a scene that was filmed in April 2015. Ban claimed Cho put his hands in her pants without prior consent, an allegation the male actor denied. The Supreme Court sided with the actress, confirming that Cho was guilty of sexual harassment. Despite the court ruling, Cho claimed he was innocent and posted several messages on the internet to clarify what actually happened during the filming. In January, he was put behind bars for defamation. The case shows that, whether intended or not, actors can be exposed to sexual harassment or other types of sexua

Apr 21, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung
#MeToo creates new job in film industry: Intimacy coordinator

Buddhist monks call for leniency on jailed Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong

The head monks of Jogye Order's 24 branch temples in a meeting in this 2018 file photo / Korea Times fileBy Kang Hyun-kyungThe head monks of the 24 branch temples of the country's largest Buddhist sect, the Jogye Order, pleaded with President Moon Jae-in and two other key politicians to give jailed Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong a second chance.Although they stopped short of asking for a pardon, they said Lee deserves such a chance to repent his past and take action to fulfill his commitments. “We understand that Mr. Lee has made plenty of efforts to repent on his past and even released a public apology prior to the court's ruling. In the statement, he admitted Samsung didn't play by the rules and was unethical. He also said he was sorry for being unable to respond to the heightened social norms of society,” they said in a joint statement. The statement was delivered to President Moon, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun and National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug. The Buddhist leaders called on the Korean public to observe whether Lee lives up to his past co

Apr 20, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung
Buddhist monks call for leniency on jailed Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong
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