Category: Korea-General Topics

That is the debate in South Korea right now in regards to whether it is too soon to celebrate Halloween one year after the horrible crushing tragedy that killed 159 people:

Controversy has arisen over whether visiting Seoul’s popular nightlife district Itaewon to celebrate Halloween this year is acceptable, as the one-year anniversary of the crowd crush that took the lives of 159 mostly young people approaches.

On Sunday, an online community post posed the question: “Is going to Itaewon this Halloween a thoughtless act?” The post presented two options — “It’s thoughtless” and “No problem at all” — soon sparking fervent discussion with hundreds of comments.

While there were several reactions of concern over enjoying Halloween in Itaewon, the general consensus leaned toward the notion that visiting Itaewon for this year’s holiday would be acceptable. However, many emphasized the importance of commemorating the Itaewon tragedy and being cautious of each other’s safety, rather than solely indulging in Halloween festivities.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Fortunately according to the article no South Korean citizens were killed or kidnapped by Hamas:

South Korean tourists wait in line to check in for their return flight at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on Oct. 10, 2023, amid an ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas militants. (Yonhap)

A South Korean passenger jet carrying dozens of citizens is set to return home from Israel, the foreign ministry said Tuesday, after violence erupted between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

The Korean Air Co. flight carrying 214 passengers, including 192 Korean nationals, departed from Tel Aviv at 1:50 p.m. Tuesday (local time) and is expected to arrive at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, at around 6:10 a.m. on Wednesday.

It will be the first flight to transport South Koreans back home since tensions quickly escalated in the region after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israel over the weekend.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It will now be harder for anyone in Korea looking to travel to Israel with Korean Air canceling flights to the country:

Korean Air Co. has canceled its flights from Incheon to Tel Aviv this week amid safety concerns over the escalating conflict between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, according to company officials Monday.

South Korea’s leading air carrier has canceled all three KE957 flights from Incheon to Tel Aviv, which run regularly on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, for the week.

The company, however, has kept in place the returning KE958 flights, which transport passengers from Tel Aviv to Incheon. It plans to decide whether to operate the return flights after reviewing the airport situation in Tel Aviv.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

According to the article the “gapjil” problem of professors abusing their authority does not really happen in undergraduate classes, but instead in graduate school where students have to work closely with their professors:

Earlier this month, a former professor saw his appeal denied in a lawsuit he filed to overturn the university’s decision to dismiss him. He was fired for sending inappropriate messages to a graduate student — a female foreign national doing a doctorate.

In 2021, the male professor sent sexually suggestive messages to the Ph.D. student, while implying that he would not pass her dissertation if she continued to avoid his advances. In some of the messages disclosed to the media, he described himself as an “emperor” and the victim a “concubine.”

The case appears to be a classic instance of “gapjil,” which refers to a superior’s abuse of power over an individual in a subordinate role, often by harassment or exploitation.

Although it typically occurs in the workplace, gapjil is also common in universities between professors and students.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link, but the article is recommending more gender equality centers on campus.

Here is the memorial that will be built in Itaewon by the one year anniversary of the crowd crush tragedy:

This image of memorials commemorating the Itaewon crowd crush and its victims is provided by groups representing bereaved families. (Yonhap)

A set of memorials will be installed in commemoration of last year’s deadly crowd crush in Seoul’s Itaewon district on the occasion of the tragedy’s first anniversary next month, bereaved families said Friday.

The crowd crush killed 159 people, many of them women in their 20s, on a narrow, sloped back alley in the nightlife district of Itaewon on Oct. 29 as a massive crowd packed the path amid Halloween festivities. 

With the accident’s first anniversary just a month away, groups representing families of the victims said memorials, called “The Path of Memory and Safety,” will be installed along the accident site and unveiled to the public on Oct. 26. 

The installation, designed by public art creator Kwon Eun-bi, will comprise a signboard bearing the name of the memorials and three light emitting diode-equipped bulletin boards displaying a description of the crowd crush as well as mourning messages from people and photos.

In commemoration of foreign victims of the tragedy, a mourning message, “All may go well today with all of you who remember that night,” will be inscribed in 14 different languages on the boards. 

The memorials will also include two stone sign plates, each to be laid on the ground at the start and the end of the accident alley, to remind visitors of the crowd crush and its victims.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It looks like if a liberal administration takes over again they will have a harder time trying to shutdown Fighters for a Free North Korea with this court ruling:

A South Korean court on Tuesday found a law banning private entities from sending leaflets or other items by balloon into North Korea unconstitutional.

In a 7-2 decision, the Constitutional Court found the Development of Inter-Korean Relations Act, promulgated in 2020 during the liberal Moon Jae-in administration, unconstitutional. Scores of North Korean human rights groups filed the complaint with the Constitutional Court immediately after the law came into effect.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.