This ruling from the South Korean human rights watch dog recommends improving the living the conditions for three Russians hiding from military service in the departure area of Incheon International Airport:

Three draft-eligible Russians, who have been stranded at Incheon International Airport for over one year unable to get asylum approval from the South Korean government, deserve humanitarian assistance from local authorities, the state human rights watchdog said Monday.

The three Russian men have been living in the airport’s departure waiting area since October 2022 after fleeing to avoid being drafted to fight against Ukraine. They applied for asylum after landing at the airport, but the Ministry of Justice rejected their applications, saying a simple evasion of military service does not constitute grounds for refugee status.

The Russians then filed a lawsuit to nullify the ministry’s decision, and the Incheon District Court ruled in favor of two of them in February. The ministry then appealed to a higher court, leading the Russians to continue to live virtually homeless somewhere within the airport terminal.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I did not know Seoul had that many neighborhoods for this Youtuber to visit:

Bart van Genugten wants to visit every neighborhood of Seoul. The city has 467 administrative divisions, known as “dong,” in Korean, and the Dutch national has already checked a decent number off his list, in his YouTube video series, “Welcome to My Dong.”

“Once I promise myself to do something, I tend to keep that promise,” he told The Korea Times about his prospects of reaching that goal. “It may take me four to six years without any distractions.”

He’s already visited 50 dongs creating 35 videos and 36 shorts on his YouTube channel, iGoBart, which has over 193,000 subscribers.

“All I have discovered, being 50 neighborhoods into the project, is that every dong has something interesting, no matter how small, they all have something worthy of a visit, and I want to show this to the world,” he said. “Seoul is more than only the famous landmarks and has so much more to offer if you’re curious. I wish more creators did so.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Here is the DP once again demagoging a tragic accident to score political points. There was clearly poor planning at the local level that contributed to this tragedy, however the opposition makes it seem like President Yoon should of been out there leading crowd control that tragic night:

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, delivers a speech at Seoul Plaza in the capital city during a memorial event to mark the first anniversary of the deadly Itaewon crowd crush that killed 159 people during Halloween celebrations last year, in this photo taken on Sunday. (Yonhap)

The main opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung vowed Sunday to get to the truth about the deadly Itaewon crowd crush and work to hold those accountable to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

Lee made the pledge during a memorial event held to mark the first anniversary of the deadly crowd crush that took the lives of 159 people during Halloween celebrations in the popular hangout district of Itaewon.

“It has been one year since 159 universes, and 159 worlds collapsed, but nothing has changed. The desperate appeals by the bereaved families are again ignored today, and those in power are only bent on covering up the truth,” Lee said in a speech at Seoul Plaza.

“We will reveal the truth by quickly passing special legislation on the Itaewon tragedy, hold those responsible accountable and make sure something like this won’t happen again,” Lee said.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

It will be interesting to see how long it takes the North Koreans to rescue the people on this ship:

This file photo, taken Oct. 27, 2017, shows a South Korean patrol ship departing a port in Sokcho, 151 kilometers northeast of Seoul. (Yonhap)

A South Korean patrol ship on Sunday spotted a North Korean vessel stranded near the de-facto inter-Korean sea border in the East Sea and provided humanitarian assistance, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The patrol ship was dispatched after a maritime patrol aircraft spotted the distressed vessel drifting in waters 200 kilometers east of the coastal town of Jejin and around 3 km north of the eastern Northern Limit Line (NLL) at 2:16 p.m., according to the JCS.

The South Korean ship initially deployed one inflatable boat to approach the vessel and confirmed it as a North Korean ship.

The North Korean vessel is suspected to be a small commercial ship some 10 meters long, according to an informed source. The military reportedly did not inspect the identities of those on board as the ship was in waters north of the NLL.

The people on board the North Korean ship said they have been adrift for 10 days and wished to return to their homeland, requesting assistance with food and water.

The South Korean military provided food and water “on humanitarian grounds,” and notified the North of the situation through the United Nations Command and international maritime communication channels for its assistance.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I also wonder what this so called commerical ship was transporting and where from?

It makes sense that people would not be in a festive mood only one year after the deadly Itaewon crowd crushing tragedy:

This photo, taken Oct. 28, 2023, shows safety fences set up in an alley of Seoul’s Itaewon to prevent a possible increase in people ahead of Halloween. (Yonhap)

 South Koreans avoided boisterous Halloween celebrations Saturday, the eve of the country marking one year after the deadly crowd crush in Seoul’s Itaewon district that claimed 159 lives, with people mourning the death of the victims.

The crowd crush, the deadliest ever in South Korea, took place in the nightlife district of Itaewon on Oct. 29, 2022, a Saturday night when about 100,000 people flocked to the area for Halloween celebrations.

Late Saturday, Seoul’s crowded entertainment areas, including Itaewon and Hongdae, were bustling with citizens and foreign tourists, just like any ordinary weekend, but there seemed to be no uproarious Halloween celebrations.

“I used to enjoy Halloween parties, but I’ve decided to spend this year’s Halloween quietly due to last year’s accident. I think it would be difficult to enjoy Halloween in Itaewon,” said Kim Hyung-seok, 28, who visited Itaewon with his girlfriend.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.

Just when you thought you had heard it all then you read this:

Former Olympic medalist Nam Hyun-hee said Thursday that she had been deceived by Jeon Cheong-jo, who was engaged to the 42-year-old fencer before being revealed as a con artist.

Nam, who became the first South Korean woman to win a fencing Olympic medal by winning silver in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, said in a media interview that she learned Wednesday that her boyfriend had swindled money from her acquaintances.

She said Jeon instigated everything in their relationship, including their marriage, and even tricked her into believing that she was pregnant.

Jeon supposedly showed her positive pregnancy tests, despite this being impossible as he was transgender.

In a subsequent interview with local media, Nam said that she had known that Jeon had had sex reassignment surgery. When asked why she thought she could get impregnated by a transgender man, who cannot produce sperm, Nam said she “thought it was strange.”

Korea Herald

Keep reading at the link because it keeps getting stranger.