Tag: South Korea

It appears the generational divide in South Korea is getting worse as young people are now describing themselves as the “give up” generation.  Imagine if Koreans after the Japanese colonization and the Korean War decided to “give up” where would Korea be today?  Instead they worked extremely hard and built the country we see today that the younger generation is complaining about:

The younger generation have had to give up so many things that they are now calling themselves the “n-Po” generation. University student Chan-mok Lim, 25, said, “Myself and a lot of my friends are working part-time jobs to pay for tuition. If when we graduate there wouldn’t be a problem finding a job, we could smile through the difficulties we have now. But the reality is that when we graduate, finding a job will be a real problem. Even for those friends who have found a job, they worry about getting married. The ones who got married, they worry about how to buy a home. We are calling ourselves the ‘n-Po‘ generation because we are giving up all the things that are of value in life.”

The barriers young people are facing are reflected in their self-depreciating language. Internet communities made up of young people are creating new slang at a fast pace. Words alluding to current slang such as “dirt spoon” in comparison to “golden spoon” (someone who was born in a wealthy household). “Dirt spoon” refers to young people who grew up in a poor home, and have little financial support.  [Korea Observer]

I think this line from the article sums up quite well what is happening:

Kim Su-han, professor of Sociology at Korea University, “Looking at the situation here the ‘whining strategy’ becomes rampant. Young people who cannot enjoy any benefits in life are feeling angry or disenfranchised and have taken to mockery and self-depreciation. The older generation is recognized for their hard work, but the younger generation is more known for inheritance than hard work when it comes to achieving success. This way of thinking reflects the difficulties young people face today.”

You can read the rest at the link.

if you can believe it only 38% of the population in Hawaii is Asian with the numbers of Koreans making up that portion of the population dropping.  I bet the high cost of living in Hawaii is causing more Koreans to seek the American dream on the mainland instead:

Although the overall Korean population in the United States rose by 11.3 percent from 2009 to 2014, it fell slightly in Hawaii, according to American Community Survey data taken from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The state’s Korean population numbered 22,125 as of last year, down 337 from 2013. Koreans make up 1.6 percent of Hawaii’s 1.42 million population.

Koreans are centered in Oahu, numbering 19,973 there. Big Island (1,049), Maui (651), Kauai (429) and Lanai (15) follow, according to data.

Asians make up 38 percent of the state’s population.  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on the protests outside of the Korea Training Center.  Basically the protesters want to get compensation money for the noise from the range.  If the US pays compensation will people living near Nightmare Range going to be the next to complain about noise and want compensation as well?  What about people who live near US air bases, should they be compensated as well for noise?  What gets me is how this is framed as a US military problem when the ROK military uses the KTC as well.  I have never heard of Koreans protesting against ROK military noise?  It would be an interesting fact to know if the ROK military has ever paid out compensation money for noise.

At sunset on Oct. 28, a group of South Koreans gathered outside the gates of Rodriguez Live Fire Complex at Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, some 24 kilometers from the heavily guarded demilitarized zone.

The numbers swelled into the hundreds, with the mostly middle-aged crowd from adjacent villages starting bonfires, singing songs and watching live dance performances. However, despite the seemingly festive atmosphere, hostility could be felt as villagers were there to hold a rally, calling for an end to what they alleged was excessive noise and danger from the U.S. military complex.

“I came here because I’m a resident here. The kids are so scared (because of the noise from gunshots), they keep waking up at night. I wish the noise could just go away,” said Lim Ga-young, a Vietnamese-Korean mother who accompanied her three children and mother-in-law to the rally.

Just like Lim and hundreds of people who gathered to seek compensation for decades of “living in fear,” villagers from near the U.S. shooting range in Pocheon, including in Yeongpyeong-ri and Yamae-ri, have complained about the noise and flying bullets from military shooting drills for over half a century.

The Rodriquez range, just a stone’s throw from North Korea, carries out live-fire exercises, including the annual Foal Eagle war games jointly conducted by the South Korean and U.S. military.

But flexing the allies’ muscles against the communist neighbor ― which remains technically at war with the South since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an cease-fire and not a treaty ― appears to have had unintentional negative repercussions on the well-being of the villagers.

“Living in this area, we are paying a hefty price because of the environment. Some even had to undergo surgeries for health problems. But there has hardly been any real probe or measures taken for us. They just don’t care, that’s why we decided to take the matter into our own hands,” said 62-year-old Lee Eung-soo.

“Decades have passed, but nothing has changed,” said Lee, who has lived in Pocheon for 60 years and works as a barber in his village. “It is hard for me to move because my entire livelihood is based in the city.” [Korea Herald]

You can read the rest at the link.

This seems to happen to every national health insurance program, at some point taxes have to be raised to make up for increased costs which is difficult politically for politicians to do.  Thus they begin to run into deficits:

Picture via BusanMike Flickr page.

Major forms of social insurance in South Korea are threatened with unsustainability. Health insurance finances in particular are set to run out in ten years without an increase in premiums or cuts to payouts. On this basis, the administration has argued for raising premiums and reducing benefits – an approach it is billing as “the right cost, the right payout.”But with income and generational differences poised to generate conflict over any social insurance changes, no matter how badly needed, the issue is now likely to be a key concern on the upcoming political calendar, and the 2016 parliamentary and 2017 presidential elections in particular.

On Dec. 4, the administration published a report on South Korea’s long-term financial prospects through the year 2060. The analysis focused on the future financial situation based on the current economic growth rate and changes in the population structure, assuming no or only minor changes in the social insurance system. It marks the first time an administration has ever published financial predictions for a date so many decades away.  [Hankyoreh]

You can read the rest at the link.

It will be interesting to see if the ROK will turn over this suspect if the Japanese government requests his extradition:

A Korean suspect was caught on surveillance cameras before an explosion outside a public restroom at Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine on Nov. 23, Japanese media reported Thursday.

The shrine houses the remains of Japan’s war dead, including convicted World War II criminals.

Reports said the suspect was dressed in black and wore a backpack. He was spotted walking around the shrine around 30 minutes before the blast and then returned to his nearby hotel.

Police analyzed CCTV footage to trace the suspect’s movements.

The suspect left Japan and returned to Korea late last month, according to Japanese police. Debris from the blast, including pieces of a battery made in Korea. The suspect is in his 30s.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read the rest at the link.

Minor opposition Justice Party leader Shim Sang-jung speaks at a debate at the National Assembly on Dec. 1, 2015, while wearing a mask in a message against government moves to ban the covering of faces during protests. After a violent demonstration on Nov. 14, the ruling party has proposed a bill to prohibit protesters from wearing masks to hide their identities. Unionists and civic groups are planning another mass rally for Dec. 5, despite the government disallowing it. (Yonhap)

This is something that I wish that we would do in the US because these megachurch leaders living opulent lifestyles should be taxed:

Picture of South Korean church steeple from Flickr user Knigel. 

In a sweeping revision of Korea’s tax system, the government plans to tax religious leaders for the first time and change regulations governing “corporate cars.”

The revisions were proposed at the taxation subcommittee of the Strategy and Finance Committee of the National Assembly on Monday.

In a move to be approved by the National Assembly on Wednesday, the government said it will begin collecting income tax from pastors, clergy and monks starting in 2018. The decision comes after long-standing discussions on the sensitive issue over the past 50 years.

“We decided to take the next two years as a time to prepare for the new rule, since it is the first time that Korea has implemented such a law,” Rep. Kang Seog-hoon of the ruling Saenuri Party said. “During the two years, we will keep communicating with religious groups so that the policy can settle down without turbulence.”

The revision categorizes income of religious leaders as “religious income,” instead of what is currently classified as an “honorarium,” and it will be collected under the same conditions as regular workers’ income.   [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read the rest at the link.

I don’t see any issue with the high dependence on nuclear power as long as the reactors are safely designed unlike what we saw at Fukushima:

South Korea’s reliance on nuclear power is the fourth-largest in the world while its use of renewable energy ranks near the bottom, a report showed Monday.

According to the World Factbook by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Asia’s fourth-largest economy possessed a total installed power generation capacity of 94 gigawatts (GW), placing it 13th in the world. The country’s annual electricity generation output stood at 517 terawatts (TW) placing it 11th, while it ranked 10th in terms of consumption at 482TW.

The numbers represent power generated by thermal and nuclear power plants, hydro-electric dams and renewable energy sources.

The European Union’s combined installed power capacity stood at 9,071GW, with China and the United States ranking second and third with capacitites of 1,505GW and 1,063GW each.

South Korea’s power capacity and consumption of electricity is roughly on par with its global GDP ranking that stood at 13th last year.

On the other hand, the country’s reliance on atomic power to meet its energy requirements was high.

The country receives 26.8 percent of all power from nuclear reactors, placing it behind France, Armenia and Belgium. France received 48.8 percent of its power from reactors with numbers for Armenia and Belgium standing at 34.3 percent and 30.4 percent, respectively. [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

South Korean naval destroyer Gang Gam-chan and its sailors are welcomed at a New York port on Nov. 22, 2015 (local time), as they arrive as part of a trip to 15 nations that participated in the 1950-53 Korean War. The 4,400-ton destroyer and a support ship left South Korea on Aug. 27 for the trip to mark the 70th anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule and the establishment of the country’s Navy. They head out for Colombia on Nov. 25. (Yonhap)

Hopefully it does not come this, but it would be interesting to see what the reaction in South Korea would be to a Paris style ISIS terrorist attack?  Fortunately it would be logistically very difficult for ISIS to pull off such an attack with the limited access to guns in South Korea.  That is why if they did try an attack I would think an explosive or fire in a confined area with a lot of people is the route they would go:

The so-called Islamic State has once again included Korea on a list of potential targets of terror attacks.

In a video clip on Wednesday, Korea was included among 60 countries belonging to what ISIS calls a “global coalition” that also includes the U.S., Japan and France.

In September, Dabiq, ISIS’ glossy propaganda magazine, named Korea among 62 countries that are supposedly part of a new “crusader coalition” and targeted for potential terror attacks.

The latest list includes two new targets — Russia and China — that were for some reason not on the list earlier.  [Chosun Ilbo]

By the way I did notice that North Korea did not make the list.  I wonder if Kim Jong-un feels left out?