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East Asia
Gov’t Estimation: More Than 2.5 Million South Koreans Addicted To Smartphones
In this Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2012 photo, passengers operate their smartphones on a subway in Seoul, South Korea. Across the entire population, South Korea’s government estimated 2.55 million people are addicted to smartphones, using the devices for 8 hours a day or more, in its first survey of smartphone addiction…
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East Asia
Tibetans Enhance Self-Immolation, Other Forms Of Protests Against Chinese Rule
In this Oct. 23, 2012 file photo released by London-based rights group Freetibet.org, Dorje Rinchen, a farmer in his late 50s, runs after setting himself on fire on the main street in Xiahe, in northwestern China’s Gansu province. A surge in self-immolations and large demonstrations by Tibetans in western China…
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East Asia
Trip to Nami Island presents foreign tourists with exotic experience
My vacation plan to Korea was merely dealt with my interest with Nami Island as a perfect tourism destination, located at Chuncheon District. My plan was realized when I arrived in Korea for my five day trip. Packed with necessary information, four of my friends and me started our journey to…
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Conscientious objectors
Time to consider introducing alternative service For decades, the issue of conscientious objection has been a taboo in this country where constant military tension has been the norm along the heavily fortified border with North Korea. In 2007, the then Roh Moo-hyun administration announced a plan to introduce an alternative…
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Red card for prosecution
Sex-for-leniency argument for wanton prosecutor doesn’t hold Questions have been raised over whether it is proper for the prosecution to bring “bribery” charges against a trainee prosecutor for allegedly having sex with a suspect in return for favors in an investigation. The public expressed bewilderment over why the prosecution has…
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East Asia
Election hot online, cool offline
The storm of opinion stirring up on Facebook and Twitter signals that polling day is near. However, it’s questionable whether a traveler arriving in Seoul today would recognize that Koreans are preparing to elect a new president when the streets, buildings and houses provide almost no hint. This is a…
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East Asia
Korea ranks second on global education index
South Korea ranked second in global ranking out of 50 countries surveyed by Pearson Education on a new global education index called the Learning Curve. But, the country remains notorious for the amount spent on higher education, a fact that weighs heavily on parents. The Learning Curve is a new…
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East Asia
Unification Church eyes new engagement with NK
The Unification Church Foundation in South Korea has told the government that it intends to fold its joint auto-venture in North Korea, an official said Wednesday, confirming earlier reports. But the church founded by the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon, appears to want to continue its engagement with Pyongyang, one…
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East Asia
‘Lower voting age below 18’
17 year-olds can serve in military but denied vote Are you 18 years old? If so, you cannot vote in any elections in South Korea. You can neither join political parties nor express your views on a certain candidate because to do so is regarded as a form of political…
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East Asia
Addiction vs. distraction
These days, many smartphone users in Korea are busy playing Anipang, a cyber game on Kakao Talk. In a crowded subway train, teenagers are absorbed in whipping their fingers to match three of the same animals in a row, a completely different scene from subway trains in countries in the…
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