Three male graduates of Kyung Hee University will face legal action over their sexually abusive comments about their female peers and professors in a group chat. It was reported Tuesday that about 20 female students and professors were the subject of sexually suggestive comments such as: "Surely you can't imagine yet because you haven't undressed her," and "You met a female peer? Did you enjoy the meal?" In Korea, eating a meal is used as a euphemism for sexual rela

Eating soy products such as tofu and soybean paste can decrease the risk of gastric cancer, research showed Wednesday. A joint research team led by Kang Dae-hee and Shin Woo-kyoung, professors at Seoul National University’s Department of Preventive Medicine, showed that higher consumption of soy or bean-based products may be linked to a reduced risk of developing stomach cancer. The finding was based on research conducted over an average of nine years with 139,267 participants -- 46,953 ma

South Korea will lift the coronavirus testing requirements for entrants from China beginning in March, the government said Wednesday. From March 1, mandatory PCR testing for coronavirus upon arrival at the airport for entrants from China will no longer be in place. The measure will also permit China entrants to arrive at airports other than Incheon. This means such measures effective through the end of February will not be extended, and flights between, for example, Jeju Island and places like C

The presidential office building is set to undergo a partial renovation to create a space to better receive visiting foreign leaders and guests, officials said Wednesday. The former defense ministry building in Yongsan has been transformed into the presidential office in line with a campaign pledge of President Yoon Suk Yeol to relocate the top office out of the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae. Planning recently began to remodel the first-floor entrance and lobby in a way that will

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases stayed above 11,000 for the second straight day Wednesday amid a downward trend in recent months. The country reported 13,082 new infection cases, including 32 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30,458,857, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. The daily caseload slightly rose from 11,880 a day earlier but remains at low levels amid eased virus curbs. Daily infections have been on the decline despite worries that the removal of the

Three South Koreans were arrested for smuggling 167 billion won ($127 million) worth of methamphetamine into the country in December, the prosecutors' office said Tuesday. The Busan District Prosecutors Office said Tuesday it has arrested and indicted three suspects on charges of smuggling 50 kilograms of methamphetamine through a port in the southern city of Busan from Thailand. The suspects face allegations of hiding the contraband in seven plastic pallets to clear customs. A pallet is a

Fraudulent phone calls and text messages, also known as phishing, in South Korea have caused nearly 1.7 trillion won ($1.3 billion) in damage over the past five years, data showed Tuesday. According to data received by Rep. Kang Min-kuk of the People Power Party from the Financial Supervisory Service, a total of 227,126 scams were reported from 2018 to 2022, and the expense of reported loss from these scams was some 1.66 trillion won, with the number of such crimes seeing an uptake since 2020. V

A 15-year prison sentence has been confirmed for a mother in her 20s who killed her two-month son by pressing the child with her body. The Daejeon High Court said the 25-year-old mother, who had been convicted of child murder, did not file a petition for appeal. She confessed that she pressed him for a significant time because he wouldn't stop crying. The defendant committed the crime while undergoing an appeals trial over another child abuse case involving her two other children, who were

A South Korean high court ruled on Tuesday that the spouse in a same-sex partnership is eligible for national health insurance coverage under his partner’s subscription. The landmark ruling overturns a lower court's decision in January 2022 that rejected the same-sex couple's petition to cancel the National Health Insurance Service's decision to demand back-payments from the non-earning partner. A spouse without a source of income is exempted from making a health insurance c

South Korea's new COVID-19 cases continued their downward trend Tuesday as the spread of the coronavirus has markedly slowed down in recent months. The country reported 11,880 new infection cases, including 25 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 30,445,775, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The figure fell from 14,368 cases a week earlier and from 16,112 two weeks earlier. In the past three months, the daily caseload for a Tuesday peaked at 87,528 on Dec

Feeding kids well through smart division of labor will be key welfare for working parents

President Yoon Suk Yeol has signed off on a request for parliamentary consent to opposition leader Lee Jae-myung's arrest, his office said Tuesday. The president's endorsement is a procedural step that comes before the justice ministry submits the request for consent to the National Assembly. By law, prosecutors need parliamentary consent to arrest a lawmaker while the assembly is in session. Lee, the chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party, faces charges of corruption and bri

The number of South Korean workers who took time off to take care of their children rose 18.6 percent in 2022 from a year earlier on the back of more government support for parental leave, government data showed. A total of 131,087 workers took parental leave to take care of their children last year, up 20,532 from the previous year, according to the data by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. Women accounted for 71.1 percent of the workers on leave last year, far outnumbering their male count

President Yoon Suk Yeol warned Monday of "firm action" against labor unions that refuse to disclose their account books while receiving large amounts of government subsidies, his office said. Yoon's warning came during a weekly meeting with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo as they discussed ways to increase labor unions' accounting transparency and regulatory reforms, according to presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon. "The president stressed once again that the starting poin

Three draft-eligible Russians have been left stranded at Incheon Airport for about four months as they await the South Korean government’s decision on their refugee claims. The Russian men -- aged 26, 34 and 38, respectively -- first got here in October and applied for refugee protection after initially reporting their purpose of visit as tourism. Their applications were rejected by the Ministry of Justice, however, which stated that fleeing military service would not qualify as a reason t