Author: GIKorea

Picture of the Day: Fake Brand Smugglers Caught

Smuggled fake brands
Smuggled fake brandsOfficials display smuggled foreign fake brand items at Incheon Maritime Police Agency in Incheon, 27 kilometers west of Seoul, on Nov. 7, 2023. (Yonhap)

Seoul Subway Union Decides to Go On Strike to Stop Workforce Reductions

If you use the Seoul subway to get to work be ready for alternate transportation means if you ride these subway lines:

Unionized workers of Seoul Metro, the operator of Seoul subway lines No. 1-8, will stage a strike starting Thursday in protest of the company’s manpower reduction plan, officials said Wednesday.

The labor union has threatened to take the collective action after the company announced a plan to reduce its workforce by 2,212, or 13.5 percent, by 2026 to overcome its chronic deficit and normalize management.

The labor and management of the company, run by the Seoul city government, have held rounds of talks since July, but failed to narrow differences, the officials said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

South Korean Intelligence Sees Signs that Russia is Assisting North Korea with Upcoming Rocket Launch

If the North Koreans cannot get their rocket to work after receiving assistance from the Russians they might as well give up trying:

This file photo, taken Oct. 18, 2023, shows Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho speaking in an interview with Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV. (Yonhap)

This file photo, taken Oct. 18, 2023, shows Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho speaking in an interview with Yonhap News Agency and Yonhap News TV. (Yonhap)

North Korea appears to have been receiving technical assistance from Russia over the launch of a military spy satellite, and there is a “very high” chance for the North to press ahead with it once the country completes fixing technical glitches, South Korea’s unification minister said Monday.

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho made the remark during a meeting with a group of reporters amid speculation that North Korea is in the final stage of its preparations to make a third attempt to put a military spy satellite into orbit after its failed attempts in May and August.

“It is hard to predict when North Korea will make the third attempt for the launch. But there seem to be signs of the North receiving technical assistance from Russia,” Kim said in a meeting marking his 100th day in office.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Korean Women with Short Hair Show Support for Beaten Convenience Store Worker

This was a horrible crime that happened to the woman just trying to do her job at a convenience store:

This image captured from X, also formerly known as Twitter, shows an ongoing campaign in which women with short hair share their photos, which began after a female part-timer in her 20s, who was working at a convenience store, was assaulted by a man in his 20s simply because of her short hair. Captured from X

Should women with short hair be labeled as feminists? And do feminists harm men?

Such questions, which sound a bit peculiar, have been raised in Korea, once again, following a recent incident, in which a female part-timer in her 20s, who was working at a convenience store, was assaulted by a man in his 20s simply because of her short hair. 

The incident immediately led to an online campaign encouraging women with short hair to share their photos under #women_shortcut_campaign.

According to police, the assailant was caught assaulting the part-timer at the convenience store in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, on Saturday. The man also assaulted a male customer in his 50s who was trying to stop the attack.

At the time of the attack, the attacker said to the victim, “You must be a feminist as you have short hair. The feminist should get punished,” according to the police.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Tweet of the Day: South Korean Convenience Store Worker Beaten for Having Short Hair

Picture of the Day: U.S.-ROK Space Forum

S. Korea-U.S. space forum
S. Korea-U.S. space forum
South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin addresses the opening ceremony of a space forum between South Korea and the United States at a Seoul hotel on Nov. 6, 2023, to discuss ways to boost cooperation in space-related policies, diplomacy, security and other areas. (Yonhap)

President Yoon Travels to Daegu to Visit Park Geun-hye’s Home

Is it politically smart for someone with approval ratings as low as President Yoon to be seen spending so much time with someone who was impeached?:

President Yoon Suk Yeol traveled to the conservative stronghold of Daegu on Tuesday and visited former President Park Geun-hye at her home, in what appeared to be a bid to unite conservatives ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections.

The visit came only 12 days after the two met during a memorial ceremony for Park’s late father and former President Park Chung-hee. It was not on the president’s official schedule and only disclosed afterward.

Park greeted Yoon outside her home’s entrance, whereas during Yoon’s previous visit in April last year, she greeted him inside her home, according to presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

82% of South Koreans Want Mandatory Camera Shutter Noise Regulation Removed

Only Japan and Korea mandate that cameras have a shutter noise. This is supposed to help prevent people from taking unwanted photos of others. However, there are plenty of third party camera apps that remove the shutter noise which makes this regulation worthless. It seems the vast majority of Koreans now realize this:

Eight in 10 South Koreans think they should be able to decide whether to mute or enable their camera shutter sound on their phones, a survey showed Sunday.

According to a survey conducted by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission from Oct. 23 until Saturday on 3,476 respondents, 86.2 percent of those polled answered “yes” when asked if they think individuals should be able to adjust the camera shutter noise settings. Muting the camera shutter sound is disabled for all devices manufactured in Korea.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Huge Indoor Archery Range Opens Near Osan Airbase

This facility looks like a pretty fun place to check out:

One of the more esoteric attractions in this part of South Korea is designed to appeal to aficionados of the shooting arts, namely archery. 

The Shooting Zone: Archery Theme Park is the first attraction of its kind in South Korea and features a 200-meter indoor archery range, an on-screen archery simulator, and a café with coffee, tea and snacks.

The facility accommodates three archery disciplines: recurve, compound and hunting bows. You can rent or buy all three types here. 

There are 20 lanes for archery practice. Renting a bow with 24 arrows costs 15,000 won, or about $11. You can get 36 arrows for 20,000 won.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Tweet of the Day: Secret Bookstore in Itaewon