South Korea - The Korea Times

Drinking at Cheonggye Stream? It could cost you $70

Having a cold beer by the water at Cheonggye Stream may soon come with an unexpected price tag. Foreign tourists as well as local visitors could face fines for drinking or smoking along Seoul’s Cheonggye Stream, as the city moves to crack down on unruly behavior following a series of incidents that drew public criticism. Drinking, smoking, entering the water, cooking, sleeping outdoors, urinating and bringing pets to the stream area are already prohibited. But there has been no legal basis for imposing fines, leaving safety officers from the Seoul Facilities Corp. with little option beyond warning violators. A team of 40 safety officers currently patrols the full length of the stream in shifts. The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to formally designate the entire 8.12-kilometer stretch from Cheonggye Plaza to where the stream meets Jungnang Stream as a no-smoking and no-drinking zone under the National Health Promotion Act and revise related ordinances so district officials can directly enforce the rules and begin imposing fines by the end of the year. Fines for drinking and smoking

Aug 13, 2026By Bahk Eun-ji

Drinking at Cheonggye Stream? It could cost you $70

Gov't rolls out plan to supply 230,000 new homes in Seoul metro area

The government unveiled a plan Thursday to add more than 230,000 homes across Seoul and surrounding Gyeonggi Province, as well as accelerating construction of already planned housing units, as part of President Lee Jae Myung's struggling efforts to tame rising home prices and rents. The government will designate new public housing districts and construct approximately 27,000 units in three locations. Western Seoul's Gangseo District will be the site of about 1,000 new units, while Namyangju and Gwangju in Gyeonggi Province will receive roughly 21,700 and 4,500 homes, respectively. The ministry plans to begin construction at the three sites within three to four years, and announce the remaining sites as soon as possible. The government also said it will move up the construction of 89,000 homes already scheduled to be built at sites including the Taereung military golf course in Nowon District, Seoul, and Seoul Racecourse Park in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. It will also cut the time needed to begin construction on public housing sites to 37 months from the current 68 months by streamlinin

Aug 13, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee

Gov't rolls out plan to supply 230,000 new homes in Seoul metro area

Teacher disciplined for filming noisy students for 5 seconds, sparking 'emotional abuse' debate

A contract middle school teacher received disciplinary measures after filming a student making noise during class for five seconds, an action that education authorities concluded constituted emotional child abuse. The Office of Education in North Gyeongsang Province said Wednesday that a child abuse complaint was filed early last month against a contract teacher at a middle school in Yeongju. A subsequent investigation by education authorities found that the teacher, who had been working at the school since May and identified only as A, used a smartphone to film the classroom two to three times when students repeatedly refused to follow instructions and made noise during class. The teacher reportedly told the students that the videos, each lasting around five seconds, would be sent to their parents. However, the videos were not sent to the parents and were later deleted. After receiving the complaint, the education office convened a personnel advisory committee, during which A is said to have defended the action as an attempt to calm the class after the students continued to disobey ins

Aug 13, 2026By Hankookilbo

Teacher disciplined for filming noisy students for 5 seconds, sparking 'emotional abuse' debate

Fire trucks, military deployed to combat drought in southeast

Firefighting water tankers and military vehicles from across the nation were mobilized Thursday to supply water to South Gyeongsang Province as a deepening drought grips the nation's southeast. Fire authorities deployed 200 water tankers and some 400 personnel nationwide to deliver water to the province under a national firefighting mobilization order issued Tuesday, according to the South Gyeongsang firefighting headquarters. An additional 14 vehicles from the Army, Air Force, Navy and the forestry service joined the effort to supply water to farms and households across the drought-hit area. As of 6 p.m. Wednesday, fire authorities had delivered nearly 4,770 tons of water to the province. The situation has escalated as all 18 municipalities in South Gyeongsang officially entered drought stages Thursday. Hamyang County, which had been the sole unaffected area, was placed under a drought watch. The average water storage rate of the province's 18 municipalities currently stands at 32.8 percent, far below the long-term average of 70.8 percent. It marks the second time a nationwide firefightin

Aug 13, 2026By Yonhap

Fire trucks, military deployed to combat drought in southeast

Korea to award 283 independence fighters on 81st anniv. of Liberation Day

Korea will confer state medals and awards on 283 late independence fighters to honor their roles in the resistance movement against Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula, the veterans ministry said Thursday. The ministry plans to confer the Order of Merit for National Foundation on 65 people, the National Foundation Medal on 29 and the Presidential Commendation for National Foundation on 189 people on the occasion of the Aug. 15 Liberation Day. Among them were three miners who led an independence protest with some 100 miners in March 1919 by marching toward a Japanese police post, before they were shot to death. Choe Jun-nye, wife of renowned independence fighter Kim Koo, will be recognized for her role in supporting her husband while he was imprisoned for four years and for leading a female enlightenment movement by serving as a teacher at a girls' school. The ministry will also award Kim Duk-rin, a Korea-born Chinese actor better known as Jin Yan, for starring in many movies that encouraged anti-Japanese sentiments in the 1930s. The ministry said it seeks to shed light

Aug 13, 2026By Yonhap

Korea to award 283 independence fighters on 81st anniv. of Liberation Day

Koreans live long, but not happily, OECD data shows

Korea ranked first in housing among 38 OECD countries but placed near the bottom in social connections and life satisfaction. The country ranked 19th overall, placing in the middle tier, as weak social ties and poor labor conditions dragged down quality of life despite generally strong material conditions. The findings were published Monday in an independent well-being assessment titled "Trends and Implications of the OECD Better Life Index" by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs. The calculation, based on the updated Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Better Life Index, compares quality of life across 11 dimensions, including housing, health, education, environment and social connections. The results varied widely across categories. While Korea ranked first in housing and second in knowledge and skills, it landed in the bottom tier in other areas, ranking 35th in subjective well-being, 36th in job quality and 37th in social connections. The housing domain was evaluated based on overcrowding and housing affordability. Korea scored 8.97 points to r

Aug 13, 2026By Hankookilbo

Koreans live long, but not happily, OECD data shows

Seoul urges transit riders to trade in climate cards ahead of Sept. 1 overhaul

Seoul is ramping up outreach urging users of its Climate Card transit pass to switch to a new nationwide discount program before a major overhaul takes effect Sept. 1, the city government said Wednesday. The new offering, known as the Climate Companion Card — and marketed locally as "Everyone's Card" — combines the national government’s K-pass discount system with Seoul-specific perks, including extending youth fare discounts to residents up to age 39. Launched in January 2024 as Korea's pioneering unlimited transit pass, the Climate Card is now being folded into the broader national framework after the central government introduced its own unlimited-style transit pass under the K-pass umbrella this year. Seoul said it is consolidating the programs to offer nationwide usability, stronger cash-back benefits and its own city-specific perks under a single system. Since the city announced the transition June 17, usage of the original Climate Card has dropped sharply. The number of active 30-day pass holders fell to roughly 530,000 as of Monday from about 900,000 on June 29 — a 41 pe

Aug 12, 2026By Jhoo Dong-chan

Seoul urges transit riders to trade in climate cards ahead of Sept. 1 overhaul

Incheon airport tells homeless people sheltering from heat to leave

Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC) has issued notices ordering homeless people seeking refuge from a severe heatwave to leave the terminals. A human rights advocacy group demanded an end to the evictions, condemning the move as rushed and procedurally flawed. The airport operator said Monday it has been posting notices on the belongings of homeless people since July 30. The notices warn that sleeping or lodging in airport facilities is prohibited under the Airport Facilities Act, ordering recipients to stop immediately and leave the passenger terminals. It added that those who fail to comply could face fines, detention and other penalties, and could be held liable for damages. In response, Homeless Action issued a statement on Aug. 3 arguing the notices violate the legally required grace period under the Framework Act on Public Administration. The group demanded an immediate halt to moves to remove vulnerable people from one of their last public refuges. "The operator has a public duty to provide necessary protection to homeless people in cooperation with local governments," the

Aug 11, 2026By Hankookilbo

Incheon airport tells homeless people sheltering from heat to leave

First 10 days of August rank as hottest on record

Korea saw a record hot summer this year with the nationwide average temperature, excluding Jeju Island, coming to 29.1 C in the first 10 days of August, the highest on record, the state weather service said Tuesday. The reading is on par with the 10-day average of August 2018, making it the hottest first 10-day period of August in 53 years since 1973, when the weather observation network was expanded nationwide, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The average daily maximum temperature in the first 10 days of this month was 34.4 C, the second highest after 34.7 C recorded in 2018, the KMA said. The average daily minimum temperature, which is an indicator of night heat, was 24.8 C for the same period, the third highest on record following 25 C in 2022 and 24.9 C in 2018. The highest temperature recorded during the 10-day period was 42.5 C observed in the southeastern city of Yangsan at 1:26 p.m. on Aug. 2. It was also the highest temperature recorded in the country since 1904, when modern meteorological observations began, according to the KMA. In total, the daily ma

Aug 11, 2026By Yonhap

First 10 days of August rank as hottest on record

Fire at chemical warehouse in Pyeongtaek comes under initial control

A massive blaze at a chemical warehouse in Pyeongtaek was brought under initial control Tuesday, about nine hours after it broke out, firefighting authorities said. The fire at the warehouse in Pyeongtaek, some 60 kilometers south of Seoul, was declared under initial control at 9:08 a.m. by the Gyeonggi Province firefighting headquarters. No casualties have been reported. Fire authorities had deployed 255 personnel under a national firefighting mobilization order after the blaze broke out at the warehouse storing more than 1.9 million liters of chemicals, including flammable materials, at 12:03 a.m. The single-story structure located inside a warehouse complex operated by logistics company PJK contained over 100 types of hazardous materials, including flammable liquids. The fire damaged two of seven structures at the complex. "As a result of focusing on preventing the blaze from expanding to nearby warehouses and facilities, (we) were able to stop the blaze from growing," a firefighting official said. Fire authorities plan to investigate the exact cause of the blaze once it is fully broug