Instead of fines and sternly worded letters why doesn’t the Lee administration seize these ships and sell them? That would be a real deterrent to the illegal Chinese fishing fleet that has literally for decades plundered Korean waters:

President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday instructed maritime police to take stern measures against illegal fishing by Chinese vessels in South Korean waters.

During a policy briefing by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Lee asked whether the Korea Coast Guard was shifting its approach from simply repelling or blocking Chinese fishing boats to actively detaining them when they operate illegally in South Korea’s exclusive economic zone in the Yellow Sea.

Lee criticized what he described as violent resistance by some Chinese vessels against Korean law enforcement, including acts of intimidation and the installation of iron window bars, calling such behaviors “too mean.”

“If they act violently while engaging in illegal fishing to avoid enforcement, shouldn’t they face much stronger sanctions?” Lee said during the briefing held at the ministry’s new headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan.

Lee said fines should be raised to levels that would increase the financial burden and risk of illegal fishing in Korean waters.

He added that tougher enforcement would have a stronger deterrent effect, noting that selective crackdowns have been less effective because Chinese fishermen often pool money to pay fines imposed by Korean authorities.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is one of the best good news stories from the Korean War when Chaplain Russell Blaisdell and Staff Sergeant Mike Strang helped to organized a large airlift of orphans to Jeju:

Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Russell Blaisdell, left, and Staff Sgt. Merle “Mike” Strang in an undated photo. (U.S. Air Force)

U.S. Air Force chaplains at two sites in South Korea recently marked the 75th anniversary of a humanitarian airlift that saved hundreds of children at a critical moment in the Korean War. Operation Kiddy Car began Dec. 20, 1950, as Chinese and North Korean forces advanced toward Seoul, forcing United Nations troops to withdraw, leaving hundreds of orphaned children without a safe way out of the city.

Nearly 1,000 children were flown to safety at Jeju Island aboard 16 Air Force transport planes thanks to the operation organized and led by Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Russell Blaisdell, according to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force website. Ceremonies at Osan Air Base on Dec. 17 and at South Korea’s Gwangju ChoonHyun Babies Home Memorial on Thursday recognized the operation’s historical significance and the Air Force’s humanitarian role. In a short speech at Gwangju, Kyung-Ae Lim provided a personal perspective, shifting focus from official history to a child affected by the war.

“My name is Kyung-Ae Lim, and I stand before you as one who was once a Korean War orphan,” Lim said in the frigid air at the Gwangju memorial. Lim was 10 years old when Blaisdell helped her evacuate, an experience she said changed her life. Lim spoke for about five minutes next to a statue of Blaisdell. “We were transferred by U.S. C-54 cargo planes to Jeju Island,” Lim said. “Even now, 75 years later, the memories of those days remain vivid in my heart.” The Skymaster aircraft eventually carried about 955 children and several dozen caregivers to Jeju Island, in what historians consider a rare example of a chaplain-led humanitarian evacuation during active combat.

Blaisdell “saved many orphans from near certain death by collecting them from the streets” with the help of Staff Sgt. Merle “Mike” Strang and Korean social workers, according to the museum. Blaisdell found shelter and medical care for the children, while he and Lt. Col. Dean Hess arranged contributions of food, money and clothing.

Lim said that after arriving on Jeju, the children were sheltered by U.S. and Korean caretakers, and that Blaisdell remained a constant presence during a time marked by fear, displacement and uncertainty. “We may be from different countries, but I sincerely thank Chaplain Blaisdell for taking care of us with God’s love,” Lim said. “I sincerely thank Chaplain Blaisdell for giving me a second chance at life.” 

Stars and Stripes

You can read more at the link or check out my prior posting about Chaplain Blaisdell that is part of my Heroes of the Korean War series below:

It looks like the DPK now has their kangaroo court to jail all their political enemies with:

The ruling Democratic Party on Tuesday pushed through a bill to establish special tribunals for insurrection and treason charges linked to the Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration, ending a daylong filibuster by the main opposition People Power Party.

Lawmakers first adopted a motion to cut off the filibuster, which passed 185-1. The Assembly then approved the bill 175-2, including two abstentions, with 179 of 298 lawmakers voting. Lawmakers from the People Power Party boycotted the vote.

The revised bill requires the Seoul Central District Court and the Seoul High Court to set up at least two dedicated panels each to handle insurrection, treason and rebellion cases tied to the martial law declaration by ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

The facial recognition requirement is supposed to help stop crime:

Face recognition will be mandatory when setting up a new smartphone starting Tuesday, local media reported.

Under the new rule, new users must verify their identity through facial recognition when they buy a new smartphone, whether online or in person, according to relevant authorities.

The requirement applies to the country’s three major mobile carriers, SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus, as well as low-cost mobile carriers.

Previously, users were required only to present an identification card to activate a smartphone. Under the revised system, an additional step has been added that requires users to take a photo of their face through the PASS authentication app.

The government said the measure is aimed at preventing crimes such as voice phishing and smishing that are often carried out using smartphones activated with stolen or forged identification.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

This is going to be pretty awesome once it is built. California could only dream of building something like this:

The government has completed the development of core technologies for a next-generation high-speed train capable of operating at 370 kilometers per hour, making it the world’s second-fastest in terms of commercial operating speed, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Monday.

The train, named EMU-370, has a technically designed maximum speed of 407 kph. Developed under a national research and development program led by the Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI) with participation from seven public and private organizations, the project ran from April 2022 to December 2025.

A total of 22.5 billion won ($15.23 million) was invested in the project, including 18 billion won from the government and 4.5 billion won from private firms.

The government plans to begin manufacturing the first EMU-370 vehicles next year and conduct test operations in 2030, with commercialization expected after 2031. Once deployed, the EMU-370 would rank second globally in commercial operating speed, following China’s CR450, which is undergoing tests at 400 kph ahead of its planned commercial launch in 2027. Major high-speed trains in France, Germany and Japan currently operate at around 320 kph.

Compared with Korea’s current fastest train, the EMU-320, known as KTX-Cheongyong, the EMU-370 features a 47.4 percent higher motor output, 12.3 percent lower air resistance, a 33 percent reduction in horizontal vibration acceleration and a 2-decibel decrease in indoor noise. The train will seat 479 passengers and has a motor capacity of 560 kilowatts, equivalent to the combined output of 75 midsize sedans.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

President Lee’s approval rating may be trending downward, but it is still very high for a Korean President:

 President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating slightly fell to 53.4 percent last week, a survey showed Monday, amid mixed public responses over the livestreaming of his policy briefings from government ministries. 

The survey by Realmeter showed the positive assessment of Lee’s overall performance dropped 0.9 percentage point from the previous week to 53.4 percent, while the negative evaluation rose 0.7 percentage point to 42.2 percent.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I can understand why tourism in Jeju is spiking. The K-drama when Life Gives You Tangerines is really good and beautifully filmed on Jeju island:

Foreign tourism to Jeju Island jumped this year, fueled by the global popularity of a Netflix K-drama filmed on the island and a growing appetite for travel beyond South Korea’s major cities.

Jeju Island alone recorded a 17.5 percent year-on-year increase in overseas visitors, driven in part by interest in the series set there. Promotional efforts tied to the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, along with local government tourism initiatives, have also helped boost visits to other regions.

According to the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute on Sunday, the share of foreign tourists who visited Jeju among all visitors to Korea rose for three consecutive quarters this year, reaching 8.9 percent in the first quarter, 9.0 percent in the second and 10.5 percent in the third.

The third-quarter figure marked a 0.6 percentage point increase from 9.9 percent during the same period last year.

The Jeju Provincial Government largely attributed the growth to global attention surrounding “When Life Gives You Tangerines.”

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.