From now on, South Koreans are not allowed to visit dangerous countries. The government said Koreans can’t enter Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia from August 7. If Koreans visit those countries without government permission, they will face punishment. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade외교통상부, Koreans will be fined up to three million won or face imprisonment of up to one year if they visit those ＂off-limits＂without permission. Previously, it was ok to enter those countries freely. The government initially banned Koreans from traveling to Iraq and Somalia. But it included Afghanistan, following the Taliban’s kidnapping of 23 Koreans on July 19. The government also asked Koreans who are staying in those countries to leave as soon as possible. The decision was made by 11 experts from the Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry, the Ministry of Justice법무부, and the
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The weather is very hot these days. Sometimes it? very hard to walk around in the sun. When it? too hot, we can easily feel tired. In fact, strong summer heat wave can be dangerous for you. This is because you can fall ill or suffer from a terrible headache. To protect children from the heat wave, the Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development교육인적자원부 introduced a new law on August 1. It said that schools will either be closed or outdoor classes banned when the heat wave is too strong. The ministry will put the new law to the test this year, and will start practicing it from next year. ＂It is said there are more
As we all know, all healthy Korean men have to serve in the military for about two years. However, young men with special skills can replace their period of service by working at high-tech companies. Some famous singers, including Psy (Park Jae-sang), Lee Jae-jin and Kang Hyun-soo, worked at such companies instead of joining the army. But recently the Military Manpower Administration(MMA)병무청 ordered the three singers to join the army again. The office said they were found to have avoided their duty. However, the popular singers said it’s unfair to order them to serve in the military again because they worked hard at the companies. They said the MMA is responsible for making the wrong decision. Now they
Recently, more and more elementary school students are going abroad alone without any guardians. Over 4,500 children went overseas alone during the first half of this year. And as the summer vacation has already started, more children are expected to leave the country. On July 18, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines said that 4,503 children between the ages of five and 12 left Korea by themselves between January and June this year. The number was a 23.8 percent increase from 3,637 during the same period last year. Airline officials say most of the children go overseas to study English for either a short-term or long-term stay. Some of them go visit their relatives. ＂The main destinations elementary schoolchildren head for are the
According to a recent government report, South Korea will see one of the fastest population declines in the world. The report said our population will fall nearly one percent every year from 2045 onward. South Korea’s population stands at 48 million in 2007. But the Korea National Statistical Office통계청 said the figure is likely to decrease 0.96 percent every year from 2045 to 2050. The report said there would be 1,222 newborns and 712 people who die every day from 2005 to 2010. During the same period, another 106 people would move to another country every day. Currently, South Korea is ranked 26th in the world in population size. However, it would rank 44th in 2050. Year after year, birthrate is falling and aging population is increasing. This can cause serious problems in our society. If we don’
The Seoul government announced on July 4 that it would nearly double its aid to developing countries, increasing its monetary contributions to 1 billion dollars from last year’s 600 million dollars. Aside from increasing the amount of aid given overseas, the government also promised to reshape how the money was given. They promised to better use the funds so that more countries could get out of poverty. Critics have said Korea’s commitment to helping nations overseas was poor among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)경제협력개발기구. Over the last 20 years, Korea has extended only 2.8 billion dollars in total aid, much lower than other countries in the OECD. Most advanced nations give somewhere between 0.15 to 1.05 percent of their entire GNI (Gross National Income). Korea
Have you ever loved a sports team so much that nothing could stop you from learning more about them? Well, one American by the name of Dan Kurtz fell in love with the Doosan Bears so much that he decided to build a website about them. Kurtz, who is a Korean-adoptee, grew up in America and couldn’t speak Korean. But during an international program at Yonsei University, he got hooked on Korean baseball. The only problem was, everything about Korean baseball was written in Korean! So to help others and himself learn more about Korean baseball, he built a website to promote how much he loves the Doosan Bears. To his surprise, many major newspapers and magazines from America contacted him last year during the Baseball Classic because they couldn’t find enough information about Korean baseball players from Korean websites. Kurz says writing about Korean baseball
A computer hacker was recently arrested for hacking into BoA’s homepage and threatening to post pictures of her personal life on the Internet unless BoA paid him 35 million won. An unidentified criminal used his knowledge of computers to download pictures and stories of Korean pop star BoA. He then asked her to pay him 35 million won to not post it on the Internet. Fellow singer Danny from the former Korean boy-band g.o.d. was also targeted. BoA’s manager initially gave the hacker the money to stop the man from spreading vicious rumors about BoA and Danny on the Internet. But when the hacker tried doing the same thing to Danny, police were ready. By tracing the man’s cell phone, the police was able to arrest him before he could take another
Lee Hyo-ri is probably the most popular female entertainer in Korea today. And when most Koreans are asked what they think of her, they say things like she is sexy, a great dancer, an amazing singer, or a talented actress. But few would ever describe her as being a good student! Recently, Lee Hyo-ri said she is going back to school! After getting her bachelor’s degree from Kookmin University (which took 8 years), she says she is now ready to hit the books again. She said she will attend Kyung-Hee University in September and major in Journalism and Communication. Lee also told the media that she would not appear on TV so she can focus on her studies. Lee has had very little free time to herself after debuting in 1998 as a member of Fin.K.L., but I think it’s amazing
The Korean legend of Imoogi, where a serpent tries to turn into a dragon, will soon be making its way into American and Korean theaters later this year. Titled D-War, the new monster film will be released to both Korean and American box offices in August. The sci-fi monster pic is directed by Shim Hyung-rae and reportedly cost about 70 million dollars to make! The movie will be released in over 1,500 U.S. theaters, making it the biggest-ever release by a Korean film. It will also use special effects, developed and made by a Korean company called Younggu Art, which was founded by Shim. D-War is set in Los Angeles and stars American actors Jason Behr and Amanda Brooks. The story follows the serpent-like monster smashing
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