Korea headed to the bottom in youth population, booster shots to start, and Islamophobia emerges in Korea
K-NEWS BITES
Tue 2021-10-05
[News Focus] Korea to rank bottom in youth population in OECD (3 min read)
“Korea recorded 12.2 percent in the percentage of youth population -- or those aged between 0-14 -- in 2020, placing 37th of the 38 OECD members. This was the second lowest, next to 12 percent in Japan, far falling short of the OECD average at 17.7 percent, the average of Group of 20 at 20.7 percent, and the average of the European Union at 15.1 percent.” Korea will likely fall to 38th of OECD members as early as in the first half of 2022.
Hijab question in job interview discriminatory: rights watchdog (2 min read)
According to The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), and multiple media reports, a “woman… said she was rejected from the position in June 2019 after the organization chief, who was the interviewer, told her that a person wearing a hijab would not be accepted by other workers from different countries.” Although the employer said the “hijab issue was not the basis on which she was not hired” the NHRCK said “the question related to the woman's wearing of a hijab was discriminatory in and of itself...”
First booster shot appointments open up (3 min read)
“Starting Tuesday, the first appointments for COVID-19 booster shots will open… [and] the administration of booster shots will begin Oct. 25… Members of high-risk groups will have access to the country’s first booster jabs. These include people aged 60 or older and health care workers at hospitals for coronavirus patients.” Reservations can be made either through the KDCA (Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency) website, phone call to the KDCA or local health authorities, or visiting a nearby community center.
“Also beginning Tuesday, the country will open up the vaccine reservation system for young people aged 16 and 17. The system will stay open for that age group through Oct. 29. Vaccination appointments for young people aged 12 to 15 can be made Oct. 18 to Nov. 12.”
Fewer tests send S. Korea's new infections below 2,000s (2 min read)
“The country added 1,673 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,653 local infections, raising the total caseload to 319,777, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA)... The country added six more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,513.” This corresponds to a fatality rate of 0.78%.
General COVID Information for residents in Korea:
Ministry of Health and Welfare, South Korea
Coronavirus Statistics for South Korea
Park Ji-sung urges Manchester United fans not to sing chant with ‘racial insult’ (1 min read)
“Park told the club’s official podcast that the song, which includes a reference to Koreans eating dog meat, caused him ‘discomfort’ while he was at United. He was prompted to speak out after hearing United fans sing the song at Molineux in August when Wolves unveiled their new South Korean striker, Hwang Hee-chan.‘I know that United fans don’t mean any offence to [Hwang] for that song but still I have to educate the fans to stop that word, which is usually these days a racial insult to the Korean people,’ Park said.”
North Korea threatens top UN body after emergency meeting (1 min read)
“On Sunday, Jo Chol Su, a senior North Korean Foreign Ministry official, warned the U.N. council it ‘had better think what consequences it will bring in the future in case it tries to encroach upon the sovereignty” of North Korea.’ Jo also accused the U.N. body of a ‘double-dealing standard’ because it doesn’t equally take issue with similar weapons tests by the United States and its allies, according to the statement circulated by state media.”
Inter-Korean hotlines restored after 55 days (3 min read)
“Communication between South Korea and the North was restored Monday about two months after Pyongyang unilaterally cut off contact in August, raising cautious hopes of an inter-Korean rapprochement. Liaison officials from both Koreas held two phone calls via a cross-border channel on Monday, one at 9 a.m. and one at 5 p.m., the Unification Ministry said, after previous calls from the South went unanswered. The two sides agreed to hold regular phone calls twice a day as they had in the past.” The article contains a photo of the phone at the Seoul bureau of the Inter-Korean liaison office that connects to the North Korean side.
[Feature] AI job interviews are booming, but doubts linger (3 min read)
“Artificial intelligence programs that screen or evaluate job candidates are booming in Korea, as well as elsewhere in the world… A typical AI-operated interview usually requires candidates to sit through a set of online games and video interviews that are monitored and evaluated by an AI system… the AI system monitors their biometric signals like their voice pitch, facial expressions, eye movements and measures their problem solving skills.. The program assesses their skills and personalities to flag the most promising candidates for further review...”
Online-only lender Toss Bank commences operation (1 min read)
“The country’s third internet-only lender Toss Bank is slated to begin operation Tuesday, heating up the competition in the fast-growing online banking market… [and] will start its banking services, including offering credit loans, savings and deposits, with a primary focus on expanding mid-range interest rate loans.” Earlier this year in June, “the lender vowed to extend more than 30 percent of its credit loans to borrowers with low to moderate credit scores like young people and small-business owners by the end of this year.” Korea’s first and second online lenders are Kakao Bank and K bank.
[Us and Them] Islamophobia emerges in Korea (6 min read)
“Despite Koreans being ostensibly tolerant of Islam, psychological bias remains... Lee Hee-soo, a professor in the Department of Cultural Anthropology of Hanyang University, said there is a lack of understanding about Islam among Koreans. Lee said Koreans still look at the Middle East using a 20th-century set of keywords, such as ‘oil’ and ‘terrorism.’ ‘Because we lack channels to access the substance of their culture, we do not look into the humanistic values of their society, the level of history and culture,’ he said.”
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