Category: Korea-General Topics

The Iranians though their Houthi rebel proxies in Yemen may have just sent a message to South Korea with this drone attack in the UAE:

The Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen attacked the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in an apparent drone strike Monday that killed three people while President Moon Jae-in was in the country. The Blue House confirmed the safety of the Korean leader.    
   
UAE authorities said that three transport tankers exploded at an oil facility, and another fire broke out at an extension of Abu Dhabi International Airport. Two Indians and one Pakistani were killed at the oil facility, while at least eight people were injured, including two airport employees, according to Abu Dhabi police.    
   
Moon had been visiting the UAE since Saturday, as a part of an eight-day tour of the Middle East, and had been attending an event in Dubai, some 100 kilometers (62 miles) away from the Abu Dhabi airport, at the time of the attack.    
   
Moon expressed to Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the de facto ruler of the UAE, “deep condolences and sympathy” for the victims of the suspected drone attack in a 25-minute phone call Monday evening. 

“We express our serious concern over acts that threaten peace and stability in the Middle East region, including the UAE, and we strongly condemn attacks on civilians and the taking of lives as unacceptable acts of terrorism,” he added.    
   
The two leaders’ summit meeting in Abu Dhabi was unexpectedly canceled shortly before Moon’s arrival in the country, upon the request of the UAE side. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but the UAE and South Korea have a close defense relationship which includes a $3.5 billion deal to sell surface to air missiles to the UAE that was signed on Sunday. Those missiles are clearly being bought to protect the UAE from Iranian aggression and this attack is arguably sending a message to the Moon administration that the mullahs in Tehran are unhappy about this.

I wonder if this Pfizer anti-viral pills will become a subject of conspiracy theories like their vaccine?:

The first batch of Pfizer Inc.’s antiviral COVID-19 treatment pills arrived in South Korea on Thursday as the country is working to stem the spread of coronavirus infections, health officials said. 

The U.S. pharmaceutical giant’s oral pills for 21,000 people landed at Incheon airport, west of Seoul, at around 2 p.m. and were delivered to a logistics center in Ochang, 120 kilometers south of the capital, at 5:25 p.m., according to the authorities. 

The Paxlovid pills will begin being administered to patients with compromised immune systems and those aged over 65 on Friday. 

“They will be delivered to designated pharmacies and treatment centers across the country by tomorrow, or the day after,” Lim Sook-young, a senior official at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest controversy with the cancel culture crowd, it is now controversial to be anti-communism:

There are signs of a boycott movement against Starbucks Korea sparked by Shinsegae Vice Chairman Chung Yong-jin’s recent anti-communist remarks on social media. Shinsegae is the parent company of E-mart, which owns 67.5 percent of Starbucks Korea.

On Monday, some netizens started spreading images on various online communities calling for a boycott. 

On Jan. 6, Vice Chairman Chung had uploaded on Instagram an image of an article from Korean daily Chosun Ilbo that had a picture of Chinese President Xi Jinping and was criticizing the Korean government’s silence toward a high-level Chinese official who had referred to Korea as a “minor country.” Chung tagged the image with the hashtag, “destroycommunism” (“myeolgong” in Korean), and it set off controversy. Later that day, the vice chairman replaced the image with a photo of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The vice chairman has uploaded anti-communist posts on social media five times in recent months.

The incident spread to the political circle and the spokeperson for ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung subsequently tweeted that he will not drink Starbucks coffee anymore. Supporters of the DPK showed their intention to join the boycott of Shinsegae. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but maybe I missed something here; what is controversial about being anti-communist? Is it now inappropriate to be against regime’s with horrible human rights records?

It will be interesting to see how long this vaccine pass system lasts:

Criticism is mounting over the COVID-19 vaccine pass mandate for large supermarkets, discount outlets and department stores, which came into effect from Monday, with critics calling on the government to justify the scientific grounds for implementing the new measure. 

The vaccine pass system, which requires either proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test result to be presented to enter multiuse facilities, has been expanded to shopping malls, retail outlets, department stores and bookstores measuring 3,000 square meters or more in floor space.

These large stores have been freshly added to the list of multiuse facilities subject to the vaccine pass system, including eateries, cafes, libraries and indoor gyms. 

But criticism is escalating over the system, among people who find it unscientific and excessive. 

According to government data, 427 and 327 infections occurred at large retail stores and department stores, in 2021, respectively, whereas 7,491 cases were linked to churches. But religious facilities still remain excluded from the vaccine pass since it was introduced on Dec. 6. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but oddly the employees at these stores do not have to get vaccinated due to work place laws. Additionally it seems like at this point if the government wants to discourage the spread of the omicron variant than they should be requiring people to get a booster which has more efficacy against the virus. They of course will not do this because that would inconvenience the ~80% of the population that is vaccinated before this Spring’s elections. This means the vaccine pass system arguably an inconvenience imposed on the ~20% of the population that hasn’t been vaccinated yet to encourage more of them to get vaccinated.

Condolences to the friends and families of these firefighters:

Three firefighters that went missing Thursday at the scene of a fire in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, were found dead Thursday afternoon.   
   
Two were found at 12:22 p.m. on the second floor of a seven-story refrigeration warehouse construction site and the other at 12:41 p.m. nearby, according to the fire department.   
  
Communication with the three was cut off around 9 a.m. after they searched for people inside the construction site for about an hour. Two other firefighters with them got out and were sent to the hospital for smoke inhalation.  
   
The three were found with emergency safety equipment including an air tank that could last up to 50 minutes. They are believed to have been trapped by flames. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

Hagwon owners are probably breathing a sigh of relief right now because the vaccine requirement was probably going to put many of them out of business:

South Korea on Tuesday suspended the vaccine pass mandate for cram schools and other private education facilities following a court ruling that the system infringes on people’s right to learn.

The Seoul Administrative Court ordered the suspension of a rule that requires adults to show proof of vaccination before accessing private institutes, public study rooms, study cafes and vocational training institutions, pending a trial on a complaint that parents and the industry have filed against the measure.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the Korean government plans to appeal the court ruling and force hagwons to require COVID vaccinations for its students.

The Omicron is coming:

Health authorities and experts are warning of another upsurge of COVID-19 infections in the spring months due to the fast spread of the omicron variant. 

Park Hyang, a senior official of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency(KDCA), at a regular media briefing on Tuesday said expectations are that the nation will not be able to deal with the omicron strain in the same way it did with the delta, given the sheer speed at which omicron spreads. 

Accordingly, Park said, officials are considering changes to the current COVID-19 testing systems, and not ruling out the possibility of allowing small-size medical clinics to treat COVID-19 patients, given a possible spike in mild COVID-19 patients. 

KBS World

You can read more at the link.

It will be interesting t see how this lawsuit turns out:

 Over 1,000 people have jointly filed a lawsuit against the government’s requirement of presenting proof of vaccination in multiuse facilities on concerns over discrimination against unvaccinated people, sources said Sunday. 

A total of 1,023 plaintiffs filed the suit Friday with the Seoul Administrative Court against Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyeong, and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to challenge the so-called vaccine pass.

Under an administrative order, people are required to present their vaccine records when entering restaurants, cafes theaters, cram schools and other indoor multipurpose facilities. 

Unvaccinated people must show negative COVID-19 test results issued within 48 hours in order to use such facilities. 

The plaintiffs, including doctors, accused the government of forcing people to get vaccine jabs by barring unvaccinated people from much of public life and requested an injunction to nullify the administrative order. 

“The government is effectively forcing people to get COVID-19 vaccines that lack clinical trials by imposing serious restrictions on unvaccinated people in their use of public facilities,” the petition said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

In South Korea those without a booster shot are essentially being treated as being unvaccinated now:

Proof of vaccination required for access to multiuse facilities will be valid only for six months after the primary series or booster doses starting Monday, health authorities said as they seek to stem the latest upsurge in virus cases.

Under the tightened measure, those who completed the primary series on July 6 last year or before will not be allowed to use those facilities starting Monday if they are not administered with a booster shot, officials said.

The so-called vaccine pass is required for people to enter restaurants, cafes, theaters, cram schools and other indoor multipurpose facilities. The measure will be applied to department stores and large discount store chains Jan. 10. 

Unvaccinated people should present negative COVID-19 test results that were issued within 48 hours in a bid to use such facilities. The government plans to adopt the pass system for youths in March after a one-month grace period.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it looks like getting a booster shot every six months could become the new normal in South Korea.