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Death on the Imjin

Courtesy of Royal Asiatic Society KoreaBy Steven L. ShieldsWhen the weather is clear and the sun shines bright, one can see for several kilometers to the north from the trenches on the slopes of “Hill 235.” In the valley below, the Imjin River flows westerly until it joins the Han River on its journey to the Yellow Sea. When the spring and summer foliage is lush, it's difficult to see that one is standing on the edge of the world. The Imjin River is a place where death and destruction once rained down on a few thousand heroic defenders of the South. The southern banks of the Imjin run along the DMZ. Closer inspection reveals barbed wire and other warlike construction. One can see across the DMZ into North Korea, and realize that this watery boundary is still a place where the war has only been halted, but not resolved.The Battle of the Imjin River was then, and is today, the largest Communist offensive in war. It was preceded only by a few years when the Soviet Army launched its attack on Berlin at the end of World War II. On that spring day in April 1951, almost 1 millio

Apr 21, 2020

Long-standing Korea expat, Thomas Pinansky, passes away

Thomas PinanskyBy Jeffrey D. BohnThomas Pinansky, a pillar of the international legal community in Seoul, passed away on April 8, 2020 in a Portland, Maine hospice at the age of 61 after a battle with cancer. Pinansky, who was a Senior Foreign Attorney for Barun Law LLC since 2005, will be buried in a small cemetery next to his late wife in his hometown of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. A long-standing expat, he lived and worked in Korea for over 30 years.His death has shocked and saddened many in the international community in Seoul as he was quite active in the local business community and international chambers of commerce. He held several high-profile public service roles including being a member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea since 1988, most years of which he served on the board of governors or held other top leadership positions. He was chair from 2001-2003 of the American Chambers of Commerce in Asia, a group of 31 American chambers in the region. He also served as a member of the board of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce since 2005 and as Special Advisor for the New Ze

Apr 20, 2020

Long-standing Korea expat, Thomas Pinansky, passes away

Gyeonggi mulls giving universal basic income to foreign spouses, permanent residents

Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung / Korea Times fileGyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, is considering granting marriage immigrants and permanent residents the right to disaster basic income, which it will pay to citizens to help cope with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, its governor said Wednesday.The province announced last month that it will provide 100,000 won (US$81.99) per person to all citizens beginning in April. Foreigners were excluded from the benefit. "We are positively considering paying marriage immigrants and permanent residents," Gov. Lee Jae-myung said on Twitter."We did not give deep consideration to certain aspects because speed mattered more than content," he added. Earlier this month, non-Korean residents filed petitions with the National Human Rights Commission, Gyeonggi Province and other local governments against their decisions to exclude them from the handouts even though they pay taxes.Gyeonggi had 48,705 foreign spouses and 60,167 permanent residents as of the end of February. (Yonhap)

Apr 15, 2020

Gyeonggi mulls giving universal basic income to foreign spouses, permanent residents

Expats ask for universal basic income amid COVID-19 crisis

Gov't extends visas for 18,000 foreign workers amid COVID-19 pandemic

A person wearing protective clothing exchanges currency at Incheon International Airport on March 26. Employers say they are struggling to replace foreign workers. Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulBy Jung Min-hoThe government has extended visas for more than 18,000 foreign workers as employers here are struggling to replace them due to the coronavirus pandemic.The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Tuesday that the 50-day extension will apply to 18,508 foreign workers under the Employment Permit System (EPS) ― most in labor-intensive industries ― whose visas are set to expire in three months.With many countries strengthening border restrictions over COVID-19 fears, employers say they are struggling to replace foreign workers whose visas are expiring soon. Among 16 countries that signed up for the EPS, nine have suspended the program as part of efforts to prevent the spread of the disease.“It is a necessary measure for employers and foreign workers alike as the pandemic makes it difficult for everyone to travel between countries,” Minister Lee Jae-gap said in a statement. &

Apr 14, 2020By Jung Min-ho

Gov't extends visas for 18,000 foreign workers amid COVID-19 pandemic

Jeju Island's Haenyeo, A User's Manual

Author Joey Rositano talks with one of the female free divers on a boat. /Courtesy of Tanner Jones By Hallie Bradley“Since there are so many representations of the 'haenyeo' geared at ultimately drawing tourism to Jeju Island, I decided to interview three generations of women divers about how they felt about their new fame and what their lives are really like in this time of commercial development on Jeju and the pre-COVID- 19 tourism boom,” began author Joey Rositano. An American resident of Jeju Island since 2006, Rositano has been enthralled with the local culture and traditions for some time and has documented this fascination for others to read and learn from. His most recent work is titled “Jeju Island's Haenyeo, A User's Manual” which documents the past lifestyles of Jeju's female divers and compares them to the way the haenyeo live now. The book also looks at the gentrification of Jeju Island, environmental concerns, women's rights issues and religion throug

Apr 14, 2020By Kim Ji-soo

Crazy Multiply hosts zine exhibition

A group of people attend a Crazy Multiply event in this file photo. Courtesy of Crazy MultiplyBy Hallie BradleyCrazy Multiply, a local art collective that promotes contemporary and Korean artists, is hosting their next exhibition soon in downtown Seoul's Euljiro district and they're doing it in what might be considered the “new normal” for art museums and exhibitions. The exhibition is titled “Yeokseunghwan: A Zine Exhibition” which is a play on the Korean-language words of their one-day zine market, “Transfer Station” and a nod to the name of the gallery Gasamrojieul which is Euljirosamga, the nearest subway station, with its five syllables in reverse order. Euljiro 3-ga is one of the remaining historic commercial neighborhoods in Seoul known for print and hardware shops, and in recent years a new wave of young artists and gallery owners has dispersed in the area. As Euljiro 3-ga sits at the center of a creative, business and cultural hub, the curators of Crazy Multiply landed on the name “Transfer Station” in honor of the exchange of

Apr 14, 2020By Jon Dunbar

Korea Encounters Containing the cholera epidemic in 1960s Korea

A photo carried on The Korea Times edition of Sept. 24, 1963 / Courtesy of The Korea Times archiveBy Matt VanVolkenburgEfforts to prevent a disease “from invading this country,” The Korea Times reported, “have been intensified by public health officials” in “sanitation, vaccination, and quarantine works at all ports and airports. Vaccinations will be given to all passengers and port workers” from a stockpile of 378,000 doses distributed to the nation's ports by the health ministry. Passengers from abroad found to be lacking valid vaccinations were to be strictly controlled.While this might sound like a headline taken from today's news, it describes Korea's successful attempt to stop a cholera outbreak in 1962.cholera cartoon/Courtesy of The Korea Times archiveKorea experienced its first outbreak of cholera in 1821 and suffered from at least a dozen serious outbreaks over the next 100 years, including two in 1919 and 1920 which collectively infected 41,000 people and killed over 25,000. The last outbreak of “classical” cholera was in 194

Apr 14, 2020

[Korea Encounters] Containing the cholera epidemic in 1960s Korea

Virus-beating Chinese donates W1.2 million in thank-you gift to Korean medical workers

The handwritten letter and cash that the Chinese woman left at her treatment room in a show of appreciation to medical workers who treated her. Courtesy of NHISBy Park Si-soo A Chinese national has donated 1.2 million won ($985) to the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) in a show of appreciation to South Korean medical workers who helped her fight the coronavirus. The woman, 35, also promised to make an additional donation of 10 million won in coming days to help other affected people. She was released from a NHIS-run quarantine/treatment center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on April 5, ending an 11-day coronavirus treatment, the cost of which the South Korean government fully covered. Seven doctors and four nurses committed themselves to treating her in rotation, according to the institute. The woman lives in Seoul with her Korean husband and two children and runs an online cosmetics shopping mall. She decided to make the donation after talking with a health worker who consoled her, saying: “We have to help each other with the entire nation in trouble.” “I was

Apr 8, 2020

Virus-beating Chinese donates W1.2 million in thank-you gift to Korean medical workers

Holiday in North Korea Exploring traditional liquor in North Korea

An array of liquor that is made in North Korea is on display  Korea Times photo by Jon DunbarBy Jon DunbarA close-up look at the snake-liquor  Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar“Has anyone seen my pet snake?” I shouted, running through the bus. It alarmed some of my fellow travelers, but the snake I was talking about was safely contained in a bottle full of 60 percent alcohol. I'd bought a bottle of baemsul (snake liquor) at a souvenir shop on the North Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone, and had to give it to the bus driver to get it back on our tour bus. The bottle turned up, and our anxiety was relieved ― mine, at least.When I showed my North Korean guide, he scrunched up his face in disgust. “It smells terrible,” he warned me. I'd first heard of baemsul in a song by the now-defunct South Korean rockabilly band Assignment 27, named after a North Korean action movie. All I knew was it came with a snake in the bottle, sort of like the worm in a bottle of tequila, only much bigger and more venomous. I had no intention of drinking the stuff; it still

Apr 7, 2020By Jon Dunbar

[Holiday in North Korea] Exploring traditional liquor in North Korea

Smell test: US base in South Korea tries new way to sniff out coronavirus

U.S. Forces in Korea personnel carry out “smell test” at the entrance to once if its sites. Stars and Stripes reported that the U.S. Army garrison in Daegu is carrying out an olfactory test to gauge whether a person might have COVID-19 or not. / YonhapSEOUL, South Korea ― The Army garrison in Daegu, the center of South Korea's coronavirus outbreak, is trying a new way to sniff out people who may have the respiratory disease ― a smell test.Beginning Friday, people trying to enter U.S. installations in the southeastern city were being randomly asked if they can smell apple vinegar as part of the health screening process that has been in place since the outbreak began on Feb. 20."We are now performing random smell tests at the entrance gates of Camps Walker, Carroll and Henry to help better detect personnel who may be infected by COVID-19," the garrison said Friday on its Facebook page, using the virus' official name. "Those personnel who cannot detect the screen will be further screened."Officials said Sunday the test began on an experimental basis at Camp Walker this weeke

Apr 7, 2020

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