Fifty children died of child abuse last year in Korea, most of it committed by their parents, government data showed Thursday. By cause of death, 17 of them died of physical abuse, 14 of them were murdered right before their parents committed suicide, and five of them were the victims of infanticide, according to statistics from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. By age group, 56 percent of children who were killed last year were under 3. A total of 27,971 child abuse cases were confirmed last

The bereaved family of a 23-year-old elementary school teacher who reportedly died by suicide in July filed a claim to the Seoul Gangnam Seocho District Office of Education on Thursday to have her death recognized as work-related, claiming that she died due to an excessive workload and complaints from parents. The late teacher, who was a first grade teacher at an elementary school in Seocho-gu, southern Seoul, struggled with a large workload and a student who had allegedly misbehaved in class, a

South Korea will have a six-day Chuseok holiday this year, as the government plans to designate Oct. 2 as a one-off temporary holiday in a move aimed at shoring up domestic economy. President Yoon Suk Yeol confirmed the plan on Thursday at the 19th Emergency Meeting on Economic Affairs for Examining Economic Promotion Strategies held in his office in Seoul. If the plan proceeds as planned, all Korean citizens will be eligible to enjoy a six-day break spanning from Sept. 28 to Oct. 3. The Chuseok

In a bid to tackle a dwindling youth population, South Korea’s southeastern province of North Gyeongsang is trying a new strategy: inviting Asian teens to enroll at its high schools as a means to cultivate potential future residents. North Gyeongsang Province is currently in the process of selecting 72 teens from six different countries in Asia for admissions to schools within the province for the upcoming school year thatstarts in March 2024. Eligible countries are Vietnam, Thailand, Ind

Police said Wednesday it will maintain the number of school zones on a trial run with a relaxed speed limit at night, in an about-face of its earlier announcement that it will apply the same rule across the country starting next month. The abrupt retraction came only a day after the police said the school zone speed limit will be eased to up to 50 kilometers per hour from the current 30 kph during the night and early morning hours, and it will be applied nationwide. "The school zone speed

South Korea's fertility rate has dropped to a record-low 0.70 in the second quarter of 2023, according to the latest government report, in yet another stark indicator of the deepening demographic crisis in a nation already grappling with the world's lowest birth rate. According to the monthly demographic and census report released on Wednesday by Statistics Korea, the country's statistics body, there were 56,087 newborn babies in the second quarter, a 6.8 percent drop from the sam

  Proposals to develop the Saemangeum, a reclaimed tidal flat area in North Jeolla Province, have been sent back to the drawing board after the projects' budget for next year has shrunk by nearly 80 percent compared to this year. Plans by 2030 to build an airport, a sea port and highways, among other infrastructure facilities, as part of the basic plan running through 2050 on the site, which is two-thirds the size of Seoul, are to be "completely overhauled," officials said. It cam

A controversy has opened up over whether a dog was abused at a pet grooming salon in Wonju, Gangwon Province. Animal protection group Korea Animal Rights Advocates said on social media on July 29 that they analyzed CCTV footage from the salon and found evidence of the owner using a leash to inflict pain on the dog, named Gibok. KARA asserted it was an act of animal abuse. The footage shows a man, who appears to be associated with the salon, dragging Gibok using a leash for about 20 minutes. Gibo

Most will have to pay for tests, except for high-risk groups; critics raise concerns over testing hesitancy

Taejae University, South Korea’s first future innovation university, is set to open with 32 students on Monday. The college is a benchmark of US-based Minerva University, an online institution with no home campus that requires every student to travel to seven countries to complete their degree. It is also Korea’s second four-year accredited cyber college, following only Konyang Cyber University, which launched its program in 2012. Students at Taejae University will start their first

The National Human Rights Commission said Wednesday that banning a child below 10 years old from a department store’s VIP resting area discriminates against children. The state human rights watchdog ruled that restricting children under 10 in such spaces based on age is not legitimate, citing Article 11 of the Constitution, which guarantees “equality for all citizens.” In March last year, a mother of a 100-day-old child filed a petition to the NHRC after she was denied entry in

Overseas Korean teens whose families originate from North Gyeongsang Province on Monday visited the provincial government and Hahoe Folk Village in Andong as part of K-Diaspora, a program for people of Korean ethnicity living overseas to explore their Korean roots. According to K-Diaspora, there are over 7.5 million overseas Koreans living in over 193 countries, and those between the ages of nine and 24 number about 2 million. Forty-four teens from the US, Australia, Canada, the UK, South Africa

Nighttime and early morning speed limits in "school zones" – child protection zones on roadways adjacent to schools – will be raised to 50 kilometers per hour from the current 30 kph starting from Sept. 1, the National Police Agency of South Korea announced on Tuesday. Effective from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m., the new speed limit aims to accommodate traffic during times when fewer students are present on the streets. The decision follows last year's pilot testing in specific ar

Defense South Korea's Defense Ministry has proposed to raise expenditures by around 17 percent to advance the development of an indigenous three-axis defense system, aimed at countering North Korean missile and nuclear threats and retaliating in the event of an attack. Total defense spending is estimated at approximately 59.6 trillion won ($45.1 billion), a 4.5 percent increase from last year, according to the ministry. An estimated 41.8 trillion won is earmarked for expenditures related to

Men pick 'lack of generosity' and women 'lack of sweetness' as top regrets