South Korea’s top court confirmed on Monday a suspended jail term for a Korean lawyer, who was charged with helping Chinese citizens file fraudulent refugee applications. The Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision that had sentenced the lawyer one year in prison, suspended for two years, on charges of violating the Immigration Control Act. The law firm where the lawyer belongs was slapped with a fine of 5 million won. Upon a request from a refugee broker, the lawyer, only

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Monday that social distancing rules that are considered either unfair or ineffective must be changed, suggesting that authorities may soon revise the state-mandated distancing scheme to address growing complaints among small business owners. "While mandating strict adherence (of distancing rules) in high-risk areas, bold revisions should be made on measures that are either unfair or ineffective," Chung said during an interagency meeting on the COVID-

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Monday it is currently investigating another suspected case of highly pathogenic bird flu traced to poultry farms amid growing concerns over wild birds carrying the disease into the country over the winter season. Authorities are currently investigating the suspected case of the HN58 strain of bird flu from a duck farm in Muan, 385 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Since late November, South Kor

South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun left for Iran Sunday to seek the release of an oil tanker and its crew that were seized by Iranian forces in the Persian Gulf last week. 　 Choi left early Sunday and was to arrive in Tehran via Doha the same day. He is expected to meet with counterparts and other high-level officials at the Iranian Foreign Ministry to negotiate the return of the ship and its crew members, along with a government delegation that has already been in Tehran s

JAKARTA (AP) -- A jet carrying 62 people lost contact with air traffic controllers minutes after taking off from Indonesia’s capital on a domestic flight on Saturday, and debris found by fishermen was being examined to see if it was from the missing plane, officials said. Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said Sriwijaya Air’s Flight SJ182 was delayed for an hour before it took off at 2:36 p.m. The Boeing 737-500 disappeared from radar four minutes later, after the pilot

A Navy officer was found dead Saturday after going missing while on duty aboard a patrol boat off the western border island of Baengnyeong, military authorities said. 　 The chief petty officer disappeared at around 10 p.m. on Friday in waters south of the island in the Yellow Sea, as the 450-ton patrol killer he was aboard was sailing for night guard operations, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). 　 After hours of search operations, the authorities found the man at around 10 a.m. Satur

Business owners expressed discontent and dissatisfaction toward the government for making “unrealistic” and “nonsensical” exceptions to let indoor sports facilities operate in a limited capacity. Starting Friday, indoor sports facilities were allowed to reopen their doors with a cap of nine children at a time, an exception the government made to address the gap in child care. Indoor sports facility owners are frustrated with the response, as the revised rules do not add

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ), a Korean American congressman, received wide attention and praise on Thursday for helping clean up the mess from the previous day's insurrection at the US Capitol. Thousands of angry protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday while the Senate and the House of Representatives were trying to certify the outcome of the Nov. 3 presidential election. One person was shot to death while three others died of medical issues, while many protesters breac

The Seoul city government came under fire after it published sexist and gender-stereotyped guidelines on its website for pregnant women suggesting household chores and child care are women’s responsibility. According to the guidelines, a pregnant woman needs to prepare food, clothes and daily necessities for her family so that they are not inconvenienced by her absence while she is in hospital to give birth. The guidelines also suggested a woman should take care of her appearance during

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday and forced lawmakers into hiding, in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Democrat Joe Biden from replacing Trump in the White House. The nation’s elected representatives scrambled to crouch under desks and don gas masks, while police futilely tried to barricade the building, one of the most jarring scenes

Coffee shops, bars and internet cafes have joined a growing list of businesses protesting the government's coronavirus restrictions, with shop owners lighting signboards, staging demonstrations and petitioning the Constitutional Court. The shop owners say the restrictions are applied unfairly, allowing some businesses to reopen while shuttering others, and without any promise of proper compensation for their losses. The complaints have grown since the government extended Level 2.5 social dista

South Koreans were almost evenly divided on the idea of granting pardons to two former presidents currently in prison for corruption charges, a hotly debated topic recently brought up by the ruling party chief, a survey showed Wednesday. In a one-day survey by Realmeter conducted on 500 voters nationwide on Tuesday, 47.7 percent of respondents said they were in favor of providing amnesty to Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye, while 48 percent said they were against the idea. The remaining 4.3 perc

Experts fear movement may stall without consistent push for bolder changes

A growing number of gym owners have reopened their businesses this week in defiance of the government's coronavirus restrictions, claiming the rules are unfair and putting their livelihoods at stake. Indoor gyms in the capital area are subject to an assembly ban under Level 2.5 social distancing measures, which were recently extended by two weeks until Jan. 17. In announcing the extension, however, the government allowed ballet and taekwondo schools to hold classes of up to nine people, sparkin

Adoptive parents to face trial on child abuse on Jan. 13