Seoul to be more foreigner-business-friendly, pets contract COVID-19, and North Korea in 12 pictures
K-NEWS BITES
Thu 2021-10-06
African Swine Fever Reported in Inje, 550 Pigs to be Culled (1 min read)
“Multiple cases of the African swine fever (ASF) have been reported at a pig farm in Inje, Gangwon Province, leading to an order to cull more than 500 pigs… The fatal swine disease broke out in Inje in August as well, when 17-hundred pigs had to be culled… ASF does not affect humans.”
Seoul to provide one-stop support to attract foreign investment (4 min read)
Seoul “has been losing its attractiveness as an investment destination due to a wide range of factors, including strict regulations, an unattractive tax regime and the inflexible labor market.” Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon “believes that to increase the capital's financial competitiveness, improving Seoul's attractiveness as a destination friendly to foreign workers and businesses is the most crucial. Using London, New York, Hong Kong and Singapore not only as role models but also as competitor cities, Oh said the city government will set up the Invest Seoul Center dedicated to this goal next year.”
Gov't Decides to Disclose COVID-19 Reservation Rate for Teens (1 min read)
“The state vaccine task force said Tuesday that the decision to announce related figures for those aged 12 to 17 every day was reached through discussions with the Education Ministry, adding that disclosures will start Wednesday. An explanation for the decision was not given, but the move was reportedly out of concerns that no disclosure could hamper parents or their children in making a decision on vaccination… “ Some have been against this “amid debate over whether vaccine benefits outweigh risks for young people.”
New infections back in 2000s after long weekend (2 min read)
“South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases surged to over 2,000 again after three days on Wednesday following a long weekend, amid concerns over the spread of the pandemic ahead of another extended weekend. The country added 2,028 more COVID-19 cases, including 2,002 local infections, raising the total caseload to 323,379, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA)... The country added 12 more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,536. The fatality rate stood at 0.78 percent.”
General COVID Information for residents in Korea:
Ministry of Health and Welfare, South Korea
Coronavirus Statistics for South Korea
A peek behind the curtain: inside North Korea – in pictures (3 min read)
“Hong Kong native Ted Lau’s new book tries to understand everyday life in the ‘dystopian utopia’ of a totalitarian country shrouded in mystery.”
“The title of this book, Between Doors, is about the idea that a government’s grand promises to its people only hold up if you don’t look beyond the veneer. I felt an immense sadness that North Koreans are not the masters of their fate”
“What I offer you here is my perspective of North Korea. This is a beautiful land, with a beautiful people. We all have the same basic needs and the same want for happiness and comfort...”
The article includes 12 (amazing) photos taken from within North Korea.
FM Chung stresses end-of-war declaration in talks with Blinken (2 min read)
“South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong stressed the need to declare an official end to the Korean War in his talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, amid recent signs of potential discrepancies between Seoul and Washington in their approaches to Pyongyang. The two envoys held a pull-aside meeting Tuesday on the margins of a meeting of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris.”
US urges full implementation of North Korea sanctions by all UN members (2 min read)
“The U.S. State Department on Tuesday called on all members of the United Nations to faithfully implement U.N. sanctions on North Korea. The call came after a panel of experts on U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea noted some member states continue to allow sanctions evasion activities by the North.” A department spokesperson said, “"We note that the PRC and Russia figure prominently in the report as two Member States who continue to condone sanctions evasion activities by the DPRK and other actors..."
Toss Bank still inaccessible to foreign customers (2 min read)
“Toss Bank failed to fulfill its previous promise to embrace Korea's residents of foreign nationality, at least in time for the day it kicked off its operations… The current non-face-to-face identification system for financial institutions only accepts residence registration and drivers' licenses of Korean nationals, but not foreign customers' residence cards...Toss Bank was initially anticipated to address such outstanding issues… Some industry insiders expect Toss Bank will start offering its services to foreign customers later this year.”
Naver CEO vows to overhaul workplace environment (2 min read)
“Naver CEO Han Seong-sook apologized Wednesday for incidents of workplace bullying that led to the suicide of an employee in May, vowing to improve the working environment of the nation's largest internet platform company… This year, the internet giant has been criticized for being embroiled in a series of scandals surrounding its work environment and governance issues.” It was also reported that Naver “only took disciplinary action in one of 18 workplace harassment cases since the government revised the so-called Workplace Anti-Bullying Law in 2019.”
89 pets test positive for COVID-19 (1 min read)
“A total of 89 dogs and cats have tested positive for the coronavirus in Korea as of September… animals can be infected with the virus, mostly during close contact with confirmed human patients, but the risk of pet-to-human transmission is considered to be low… If an owner is confirmed to have been infected by the virus, the local government may test their pet if it shows coronavirus-like symptoms… and if positive, will be placed under a 14-day mandatory quarantine under the care of a family member who has not contracted the virus.”
Busan film festival to open in near normal after downsizing in 2020 (2 min read)
“The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) will open… on Wednesday for a 10-day run with a bigger emphasis on offline events and screenings after a pandemic-disrupted year… All visitors and participants will be required to present proof of vaccination or a negative result upon arrival, while every screening session will run at a maximum of 50 percent capacity… The opening ceremony will be held at the outdoor theater of the Busan Cinema Center with some 1,000 people in the filmmaking industry to attend. It will be co-hosted by South Korean actors Song Joong-ki and Park So-dam.”
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