Former Korean dictator Chun Doo-hwan dies, Korea’s artificial sun, and Donald Trump is now a 9th dan black belt
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K-NEWS BITES
Wed 2021-11-24 (KST)
Chun Doo-hwan: Symbol of bloody, divided past (4 min read)
Chun Doo-hwan, who was the former president of South Korea from 1980 to 1988, died Tuesday at the age of 90. He was one of the most controversial figures in South Korea’s recent history. “He leaves behind a bloody and troublesome legacy largely due to his involvement in a 1979 military coup leading to the bloody crackdown of the 1980 Gwangju Democratic Uprising… While the military dictator is mostly remembered for orchestrating the bloody crackdowns and gross human rights violations perpetrated by the state, Chun also brought significant policy reforms and achieved notable diplomatic achievements, most of which are rarely mentioned due to his dark past.”
Public distrust of police mounts due to poor response to crimes (3 min read)
“Police are facing mounting criticism over inappropriate responses to two recent violent crimes which led to serious injury and death.” In one of the cases, in central Seoul, a woman under police protection was stabbed to death by her stalker. In another incident in Incheon, a woman was stabbed by a neighbour during a dispute over noise when the female police officer present ran to ‘request for assistance.’... President Moon Jae-in also rebuked the police, saying the highest priority for law enforcement officers is to protect citizens' lives and safety....”
Moon's 'talk with citizens' fails to restore public trust (3 min read)
“President Moon Jae-in held a ‘town hall meeting’ Sunday to answer questions about his policies, but ended up facing criticism that he only shared blind optimism and fell short of suggesting tangible plans and measures to tackle pending issues during the remainder of his presidential term… During the 100-minute ‘town hall,’ the President apologized to the public for the government's real estate policies that failed to stabilize home prices in Seoul and its surrounding cities, but added his government has provided more homes than any other administration.”
Korea grapples with hospital bed crisis (3 min read)
“According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as of Sunday, 907 patients in the greater capital area had been waiting for more than one day [for a hospital bed], the highest number since the outbreak of the pandemic here. Among them, 137 people had been waiting for more than four days to be hospitalized. In November, six people have died while waiting, according to the ministry. Intensive care unit (ICU) beds available for critically ill patients are also running out at a rapid pace.”
Daily infections stay below 3,000, but critical cases hit all-time high (1 min read)
“South Korea's new coronavirus cases stayed below 3,000 for the second straight day Tuesday, but the number of critically ill patients hit an all-time high, raising concerns over a shortage of hospital beds for treatment. The country reported 2,699 new COVID-19 cases… raising the total caseload to 420,950… The country added 30 more deaths from COVID-19, bringing the death toll to 3,328, with the fatality rate standing at 0.79 percent. The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients hit an all-time high of 549, up 34 from a day earlier, breaking the previous record of 522 reported last Wednesday.”
General COVID Information for residents in Korea:
Ministry of Health and Welfare, South Korea
Coronavirus Statistics for South Korea
Middle power diplomacy essential to secure Asia against big power rivalry (5 min read)
“If the middle powers, who constitute the major third force, stand by and let the United States and China carve up the world, they will surrender their national interests and international public good to a duumvirate of big power interests… These big geopolitical and economic fault-lines “that threaten global prosperity and security today run through East Asia’s backyard. The middle powers — Australia, Japan, South Korea and ASEAN among them…”
S. Korea, Japan hold working-level talks amid renewed spat over Dokdo (1 min read)
“The talks between Lee Sang-ryol, the foreign ministry's director general for Asian and Pacific affairs, and his Japanese counterpart, Takehiro Funakoshi, came after tensions resurfaced following Japan's protest over the recent visit to Dokdo by South Korea's police chief… Despite their differences over historical issues, the two sides shared the view on the need for continued communication to address those issues, the ministry said. On the same day, South Korea's top nuclear envoy, Noh Kyu-duk, met Funakoshi who doubles as Japan's chief nuclear negotiator.”
North Korea calls for glorifying Kim's era as mass movement conference closes (1 min read)
“The 5th Conference of the Frontrunners in the Three Revolutions, which kicked off in Pyongyang on Thursday, closed with… [with an appeal] for the glorification of ‘the great era of Kim Jong-un,’ according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The three-revolution movement is a mass movement devised under Kim Il-sung, the North's late founder and grandfather of the current leader Kim Jong-un, to continue ‘the revolution in the realms of ideology, technology and culture even after the establishment of the socialist system.’... The conference took place as North Korea has been continuing to elevate Kim's political status ahead of the 10th anniversary of Kim's leadership.”
N. Korea holds nationwide computer programming competition (1 min read)
“North Korea has opened a nationwide computer programming competition aimed at cultivating talents to lead the country's information and technology development, a propaganda outlet said Tuesday… ‘We have drawn outstanding researchers who showed great performances in international programming competitions to successfully hold this event which is aimed at boosting our programming capabilities critical for information and technology development and the national economy,’" said the vice president of Kimchaek University of Technology, where the recent 11-day semi-final was held. “North Korea is known to have 6,800-strong cyberwarfare specialists in operation and working to boost its cyber capabilities based on the latest technologies.”
'Artificial Sun' Sets New World Record at 100 Mln. Degrees for 30 Seconds (1 min read)
“A superconducting fusion device known as South Korea's artificial sun has set a new world record for 30 seconds of continued ultra high temperature plasma operation at 100 million degrees… Maintaining plasma at 100 million degrees is a core condition in nuclear fusion technology… The research headquarters of Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR)... reached the temperature mark for the first time in 2018 and has been extending the retention time every year. Last year's 20 seconds of operation was also a world record.”
Disney Plus subscribers complain about low quality subtitles (1 min read)
“It has only been a few weeks since Disney Plus launched in Korea, but a negative sentiment is building around the U.S. entertainment giant's video streaming service, based on sub-par Korean language subtitles. Posts are flooding online such as on Twitter and Naver, with screenshots of absurd subtitles that were translated from English into Korean.” Some examples include: in ‘The Simpsons show,’ "GOAT," (aka: "greatest of all time") was translated into the Korean word for the animal "goat." In ‘Olaf's Frozen Adventure,’ the line "You're welcome to join us in the castle" was translated into "Be together with crotch" in Korean.
South Korean horror Hellbound takes over Squid Game as most popular Netflix series globally (1 min read)
“According to FlixPatrol analytics, Hellbound became the world’s most watched Netflix television series on 20 November, topping the streaming ratings in more than 80 countries within 24 hours of the show’s debut. The series centres around the graphically violent actions of a team of demons, who hunt down sinners who have been previously visited by a celestial being who has informed the victim of their date and time of death. The giant hairy creatures incinerate their victims and send them to hell, prompting an outbreak of public hysteria and religious zealotry.”
Donald Trump awarded highest taekwondo rank - despite never practising the sport (2 min read)
Despite never having practised the sport, former US president Donald Trump was given an honorary ninth dan certificate - the highest level in the sport. “The former president was handed the honorary rank by president Lee Dong-sup at his home in Mar-a-largo, Florida… The award means he now has the same rank as Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was made an honorary ninth dan in 2013. President Putin had also not practised taekwondo at the time of the award. This means both now rank higher than US martial artist Chuck Norris, who is an eighth dan black belt.”
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