SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Korea Bizwire) – Song, a 32-year-old bride-to-be, was taken aback by a series of unexpected additional costs for her wedding, which exceeded her initial budget by millions of won. She had initially estimated about 30 million won for the venue, “Ssudeme” (a package including studio photoshoot, dress, and makeup), and honeymoon, but the [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — The doctors’ association vowed Tuesday to launch a nationwide strike if the government “unilaterally” pushes for raising the medial school enrollment quota. The health ministry is widely expected to announce a plan later in the day to increase the number of medical students by up to around 2,000 starting [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — President Yoon Suk Yeol said Tuesday more than 450,000 people will be granted special pardons on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, including five businesspeople and seven politicians. Yoon did not name the beneficiaries, saying only that the list was drawn up with a focus on reviving the [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — A professor is facing a prosecution probe on charges of defaming Korean victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery by calling them prostitutes during a lecture, police said Tuesday. The Seoul Dongdaemun Police Station said it referred Choi Jung-shik, a philosophy professor at Kyunghee University, to the prosecution without detention [...]
MUAN, Feb. 6 (Korea Bizwire) – In Seoul, Park Jae-jin (a pseudonym), a professional is his 50s, feels uneasy every time he talks to his mother living alone in Damyang, South Jeolla Province. His mother, despite her advanced age and health issues, including surgeries on both knees and back problems, volunteers to prepare meals for her [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Korea Bizwire) – A recent analysis has revealed that the average cost of getting married in South Korea now exceeds 300 million won, with the price of a new couple’s home making up 79% of the total expenses. Despite this, additional costs such as dowries have also proven to be significant, exceeding 20 [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – Prosecutors on Friday sought a one-year prison sentence for O Yeong-su, the winner of a 2022 Golden Globe award for his role in “Squid Game,” on charges of sexually harassing a woman in 2017. The 79-year-old O was indicted in November 2022 over allegations that he hugged a woman [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – The government’s move to push for a special law that would exempt doctors from criminal prosecution in the event of medical accidents has sparked controversy among patients and civic groups, raising concerns about privilege. On February 1, the government unveiled a new medical policy package that includes a proposal to [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — Two former senior aides to ousted President Park Geun-hye did not appeal recent court rulings convicting them in connection with an artist blacklist scandal, leading to the finalization of their prison sentences. In a retrial last week, the Seoul High Court sentenced Kim Ki-choon, a former chief of staff [...]
JEJU, Feb. 1 (Korea Bizwire) – For the first time in 14 years, Jeju Island, once a popular destination for new settlers, has experienced a higher number of people moving out than moving in. According to Statistics Korea, last year saw 81,508 people move to Jeju, while 83,195 left, resulting in a net outflow of 1,687 [...]