Category: Korea-General Topics

I wonder if any of these people knew there were going to be arrested as soon as they got on the airplane:

South Korean nationals who had been detained in Cambodia arrive at Incheon International Airport, just west of Seoul, under police escort on Oct. 18, 2025. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

 A total of 64 South Koreans who had been detained in Cambodia over alleged online scams arrived home early Saturday on a chartered flight and most of them would face criminal probes as suspects, police officials said. 

The large-scale repatriation came after the torture death of a South Korean college student who was lured to work by a criminal ring in Cambodia that triggered public outrage in South Korea. 

The Korean Air plane carrying them arrived at Incheon International Airport at 8:35 a.m., about five hours after leaving Techo International Airport near Phnom Penh.

Their arrival came days after a South Korean government response team was dispatched to Cambodia to assist the Korean nationals implicated in online scams run by local crime organizations.

The South Korean nationals were reportedly placed under arrest once they boarded the plane and were set to be taken to police stations nationwide for investigations about their alleged involvement in criminal activity.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it appears these Koreans are suspected of helping the Chinese gangs to lure Koreans to Cambodia to be exploited. Their defense will probably be that they were forced to it by the gangs. This is definitely a mess for the ROK authorities to figure out.

It makes sense that both these leaders would want to make official visits with President Lee since they will both be in Gyeongju for the APEC summit:

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are both likely to pay state visits to South Korea during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering later this month, diplomatic sources said Thursday. 

Seoul is in talks with Washington and Beijing over the arrangements for the highly anticipated trips by the two leaders and is fine-tuning details to host both with a state visit, the sources said.

A state visit is the highest form of diplomatic visit by a foreign head of state, during which the host country extends the utmost ceremonial protocol, including an elaborate official welcome with military honors and a state banquet.

If realized, their visits would take place in Gyeongju, the host city for APEC in southeastern South Korea, rather than Seoul, possibly in a simplified manner in terms of the protocol, considering the schedules coinciding with the multilateral gathering, the sources said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Could we end up seeing a repeat of the 2008 mad cow riots in South Korea if Trump pressures the ROK to accept wider US beef imports?:

 The owner of a high-profile cow farm in South Gyeongsang Province is opposed to wider imports of U.S. beef. 

Byun Jung-il believes that allowing the import of some kinds of American beef would increase the risk of Korean consumers being exposed to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a zoonotic infection also known as mad cow disease. Korea has had a ban on the import of beef from U.S. cows aged 30 months or older in place since 2008, following widespread protests over the safety of such imports. 

The Donald Trump administration, amid ongoing tariff negotiations with Korea, is seeking to turn the tables by demanding that Seoul lift the ban. Both countries reached an initial agreement in late July to leave the bilateral livestock trade conditions intact. However, subsequent ministerial meetings between Seoul and Washington suggest that the issue remains on the table.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but who in the US is dieing from mad cow disease? ROK consumers should probably be more concerened about the hormones and antibiotics given to US cattle than mad cow disease. However, the ROK ranchers probably give their cattle the same shots.

This bill is coming from the same party that supported unions such as the KCTU conducting violent protests during the prior Yoon administration, but now wants to criminalize protests by citizens speaking out against China:

Korea’s ruling party has introduced a new bill that would prohibit rallies considered to promote hate or discrimination, in response to an increase in anti-China protests ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s anticipated visit to Seoul later this month.

The bill, proposed by Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and 12 other progressives, seeks to outlaw rallies aiming to “incite or promote discrimination or hatred” targeting specific races, nationalities or other groups.

This follows a spike in anti-China protests in areas like Seoul’s Myeong-dong and Daerim, where demonstrators have chanted slogans such as “China Out.” Tensions fueled by such gatherings prompted the Chinese Embassy in Seoul to recently issue a safety advisory for its nationals, sparking diplomatic concerns as government officials here prepare for the first visit by a Chinese leader in over a decade for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

The real question is why has it taken the ROK government so long to respond to the enslavement and torture of its citizens in Cambodia?:

This photo provided by a reader shows a man whose hands are believed to be tied to an iron bed in a Cambodian criminal compound.

Lawlessness, assaults, torture and deaths are commonplace in Cambodia’s notorious criminal compounds, witnesses and their acquaintances told Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday, amid numerous reports of South Koreans being victimized by online scammers operating in the Southeast Asian country.

Testimonies have also surfaced that about one victim dies daily from torture and assaults in the Cambodian criminal camps, called “Wenchi.”

Some of the victims are sold to organized crime syndicates operating in Cambodia’s border towns, such as Poipet and Bavet, and have their organs removed when they can no longer work or have no money to extort.

According to the interviews with the witnesses who had worked for Cambodian crime rings, torture, such as pulling out fingernails or cutting off fingers, is carried out in their compounds and human trafficking, where victims are sold to other camps for money, frequently occurs. (……..)

“If victims go into debt and fail to produce a certain performance, they are forced to sell their organs. They first have their eyeballs removed because corneas are relatively easy to transplant and their unit price is quite expensive,” the witness said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I always thought of Seoul’s City Hall area as Korea’s equivalent of Times Square where people tend to congregate, just without all the flashy screens:

Local governments across Korea are rushing to create their own versions of New York’s “Times Square,” unveiling massive outdoor screens and digital media facades in an effort to boost tourism and revitalize local economies. 

Inspired by iconic landmarks such as New York’s Times Square, London’s Piccadilly Circus, Toronto’s Dundas Square and Osaka’s Dotonbori, municipalities are competing to establish high-tech media zones that double as urban attractions.

According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on Sunday, Seoul’s Gangnam District around Coex was first designated as a “free outdoor advertising zone” in 2016, followed by Gwanghwamun Square, Myeong-dong and Haeundae District in Busan in 2023.

The government’s easing of regulations — once tightened to curb light pollution and visual clutter — has triggered what officials describe as a “new era” in the outdoor advertising market.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Instead of the Korean government complaining about the US government deporting workers that committed visa fraud; it looks like they finally found the time to address Koreans being used as slaves in Cambodia:

National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac on Monday stressed the need to swiftly repatriate South Koreans from Cambodia amid a rise in job scams and illegal detentions targeting nationals, the presidential office said.

Wi made the remarks while presiding over the inaugural meeting of a pangovernment task force established to devise countermeasures amid public outcry and safety concerns, especially following the torture and death of a South Korean college student in the Southeast Asian country in August.

“Wi said that the immediate return of citizens in danger must be prioritized on humanitarian grounds, urging the authorities to respond without delay, while legal action against any criminal activities committed by detained individuals is to be expected,” presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung told a press briefing.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.