South Korea - The Korea Times

Intolerance of LGBTQ community troubles foreign residents

Christians protest against U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg outside the Seoul Queer Culture Festival last July 16. Korea Times photo by Jon DunbarBy Ellie GoodwinDiscrimination towards the LGBTQ community is a countrywide issue, with fears of ostracism and abuse motivating many individuals to hide or repress their sexual identity. It's a prejudice that foreign sexual minorities also face after arriving in Korea.Though Korea currently has no law explicitly criminalizing homosexuality, this should not be perceived as an expression of tolerance or acceptance. Same-sex marriage has not been legalized and the anti-discrimination law has not been passed, which leaves this community vulnerable to discrimination with the awareness that legal retribution is out of reach. “Dating is an issue for me,” Tom, a German national who has identified as gay since the age of 14, told The Korea Times. “I wish I could just go out on a date and act freely without the worry of being verbally attacked. It was something that I took for granted back home.” Culture shock is inevi

Jun 25, 2023

KOREA ENCOUNTERS US Embassy evacuates Seoul in June 1950

A woman assumed to be an employee of the Naija Hotel poses for Shirley Dawes' camera on the hotel's roof in Seoul in the late 1940s or early 1950. Courtesy of Lynn ThompsonBy Matt VanVolkenburgThe founding of the Republic of Korea in August 1948 brought the U.S. occupation of southern Korea to an end. As U.S. military administrators left, the new State Department-run American Mission in Korea (AMIK) was organized. According to John Caldwell, who worked for the United States Information Service (USIS) in Korea from 1947 to early 1950, “AMIK, and its component parts ― the embassy proper, the Economic Cooperation Administration, the Joint Administrative Services, the Korean Military Advisory Group, and the [USIS] ― totaled some fifteen hundred Americans.” AMIK was “one of the first, and certainly the largest, of the 'coordinated missions' where all parts of the American program were united under one head and for one purpose,” which was “to help a fledgling nation to its feet, to help build its economy and its political structure, and to arm it sufficiently

Jun 25, 2023By Jon Dunbar

[KOREA ENCOUNTERS] US Embassy evacuates Seoul in June 1950

LIFE'S OLLE TRAILS 4 Going full white lady in the woods

Alone by the ocean along Jeju Island's Olle Trail / Courtesy of Rachel StineBy Rachel StineAll right, we started this series with a secret. Do you want to know another??Initially, I wasn't going to write all this. The premise seemed too…“Eat, Pray, Love on Jeju Island.” And unlike Elizabeth Gilbert of Eat, Pray, Love fame, I wouldn't receive a $200,000 book advance to finance my spiritual awakening.Instead, I'd get what all Korea Times contributors used to get ― free dinner once a month. Which is fine, really. I like lobster rolls.…except I was on Jeju Island and couldn't even get a lobster roll.So in the time-honored tradition of journalist ladies trauma-dumping into the internet for free, let's talk.On July 5th, 2021, the longest romantic relationship of my life ended. Given that I've been vulnerable here on screen, one might expect that I'm about to unload a whole kitchen cabinet of post-breakup spice.I've already disclosed my OCD. As any Korea-based expat knows, disclosing a serious mental health condition like that can put both jobs and visas in danger.

Jun 24, 2023By Jon Dunbar

[LIFE'S OLLE TRAILS 4] Going full white lady in the woods

Korean hardcore punk band the Geeks reunites

Korean hardcore punk band the Geeks / Courtesy of the GeeksBy Jon DunbarThis newspaper has published a high amount of articles about Korea's underground music scene, and it may seem frivolous to many readers. Some of the articles maybe are. But the return of the Geeks, Korea's first youth-crew hardcore band and the first in the local music scene to tour internationally should be a big deal. If you're a K-pop snob, well, these guys are technically K-pop, having played the first ever “K-Pop Night Out” Korean music showcase at SXSW in Austin, Texas, in 2013 (since renamed “Korea Spotlight”) along with Galaxy Express, No Brain, Guckkasten, f(x), Jeong Cha-shik and Yi Sung-yol. But the Geeks held their own among this crowd, due to having built up a U.S. following by touring the DIY circuit in the U.S. years earlier, a feat the other bigger-name acts hadn't pulled off yet. “I personally love K-pop and what it did to promote Korea,” said Geeks lead vocalist Seo Ki-seok, known widely among his hardcore friends worldwide as Ki. “It may sound strange &

Jun 21, 2023By Jon Dunbar

Korean hardcore punk band the Geeks reunites

PINNACLE'S ITAEWON Rooftop bar reopens; club offers chicken feet

A night at Itaewon's Sinju Chicken Feet Club / Courtesy of Sinju Chicken Feet ClubBy Pinnacle TheHustlerSinju Chicken Feet Club: yes, that's correct, a chicken feet clubFlames rise high at Sinju Chicken Feet Club in Itaewon. / Sinju Chicken Feet ClubIf you're seeking an authentic taste of Korea, a thrilling experience and the chance to rub elbows with famous Korean hip-hop artists and celebrities, look no further than Sinju Chicken Feet Club. Positioned in a safe, brightly lit back alley in Itaewon, this unique restaurant combines the fiery delights of spicy chicken feet with the pulsating beats of a small club. Sinju Chicken Feet Club is a place where traditional flavors meet contemporary culture. The restaurant is a brainchild of the owner, who is ethnically Korean, but hails from Suriname, and is supported by a South African chef who adds a cultural culinary twist to the menu. The result is a fusion of diverse influences that provide what many people are seeking in South Korea ― a unique experience.The star of the show at Sinju is, of course, the spicy chicken feet dish, known as

Jun 20, 2023

[PINNACLE'S ITAEWON] Rooftop bar reopens; club offers chicken feet

Ruling party head pledges to take away voting rights of Chinese residents

Ruling People Power Party Chairman Kim Gi-hyeon speaks during a plenary session of the National Assembly in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapImmigration expansion possible alternative solution to low birthrate By Nam Hyun-wooRep. Kim Gi-hyeon, chairman of the ruling People Power Party, pledged, Tuesday, to scrap the voting rights of Chinese nationals in Korea, stressing “the principle of reciprocity” between Seoul and Beijing.The move appears to be an attempt to exploit growing anti-China sentiment among Koreans, which has been escalating following Chinese Ambassador to Seoul Xing Haiming's recent comment that Seoul is making the “wrong bet” by leaning toward the United States.“There is a national assignment that we must achieve to protect our people's interests,” Kim said in a speech during a negotiation group meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul. “It is building foreign relations based on the principle of reciprocity. We need to reorganize our relations with China.”He said that more than 100,000 Chinese nationals here had the right to vote

Jun 20, 2023By Nam Hyun-woo

Ruling party head pledges to take away voting rights of Chinese residents

Refugees' rights under threat in Korea amid World Refugee Day 2023

Refugee rights activists in Korea / Courtesy of Bereket AlemayehuBy Bereket Alemayehu June 20 was declared in 2001 as World Refugee Day, a day to celebrate and honor refugees everywhere, in recognition of the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. But refugee rights advocates and activists in Korea are fighting back against the Refugee Amendment Bill, introduced by the Ministry of Justice in 2021 to amend the current Refugee Act. “The bill, which was initiated in 2018 as an answer to the xenophobic sentiments of those who were unfamiliar with Yemeni refugees, has been opposed by refugees and civil society organizations, as well as the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), UNHCR and lawyers' groups, including the Korean Bar Association and the Lawyers for a Democratic Society,” the Korean Refugee Rights Network said in a recent press release. “The Ministry of Justice went ahead with the proposal despite opposition and is now trying to force it through the National Assembly. The Refugee Amendment Bill is aimed at provi

Jun 20, 2023

Refugees' rights under threat in Korea amid World Refugee Day 2023

Seoul Culture Club to offer performing arts in 8 languages

Members of Seoul Culture Club rehearse on stage at Eulji Space in downtown Seoul last Saturday. / Courtesy of Bereket AlemayehuBy Bereket AlemayehuA performing arts festival, titled Seoul Culture Club, is coming to downtown Seoul, featuring short performances by artists of diverse cultural backgrounds and languages who currently live in Korea. Scheduled for June 23 to 24 at Eulji Space, an independent theater in downtown Seoul's Euljiro area, the event will feature 10 performers from eight countries on five continents, representing nine different cultures and performing in eight different languages, comprised of singers, actors, filmmakers, photographers and stage performers.“Korea is becoming more and more multicultural, with a growing influx of people from diverse cultural backgrounds who find their home here for work, education or family relationships,” Uncertainty Principle Creative Collective (UP Collective), the event's organizers, said in a press release. “But while 'K-culture' is trending up in far corners of the world, the mainstream Korean society has not

Jun 20, 2023By Jon Dunbar

Seoul Culture Club to offer performing arts in 8 languages

Haebangchon, Seoul's most diverse neighborhood, faces uncertain future

Central Seoul's Yongsan-dong 2ga, also known as Haebangchon, Nov. 13, 2018. / Korea Times photo by Jon DunbarThis article is the first part in a three-part series about the past, present and future of central Seoul's Haebangchon (HBC) neighborhood. By Jon DunbarOnce the sun goes down and city lights start to go on, it becomes apparent how few lights are on behind the windows of apartments lining Sinheung-ro, the main road running through central Seoul's Haebangchon (HBC) neighborhood. Gentrification is hitting this area, and many of its residents are worried.“Since I came here, a lot of the places that I used to enjoy going to have either closed or gotten smaller,” said Sarah Mack, an American resident of HBC. “These community spaces that people had been gathering at for years and years have been just disappearing overnight.”She estimated that since 2019 there have been about 40 to 50 changes in businesses along the lower 500 meters of Sinheung-ro where various businesses are concentrated. Already this year, there have been numerous closures along the lower st

Jun 18, 2023By Jon Dunbar

Haebangchon, Seoul's most diverse neighborhood, faces uncertain future

LIFE'S OLLE TRAILS 3 Carrying a grandma through Yaksu Station

An alley in central Seoul's Haebangchon i April 2019 / Courtesy of Rachel StineBy Rachel StineI'm sure anyone who continues to suffer through this slog of a travelog ― or an editorial, or whatever it is ― is eager to hear about the breakup drama I alluded to in my last entry. We all love breakup drama. That's why we invented an entire YouTube genre dedicated to LA influencers crying on bedroom floors.Well, perhaps we'll get into the breakup drama and perhaps we won't … but let's instead take a detour to provide some context about “jeong” in South Korea, and how it's faded out of Seoul life in the past decade.I was very hesitant to publish this anecdote, because I don't want to seem like a self-aggrandizing clown. But without context, it's difficult to understand what, exactly, the Olle Trail can help us rediscover.Since I'm writing in English, I'm going to assume that not all readers are familiar with the Korean concept of “jeong.” So in the spirit of clarity, here's an explainer:Have you ever cyberstalked the Facebook page of someone you didn't get on

Jun 17, 2023By Jon Dunbar

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