It has been quite a while since the latest protest in Hong Kong started and yet the unrest shows no sign of stopping. Many protesters are risking rubber bullets and tear gas, but what makes them bear all this violence? To understand we need to look through some context that underlies the situation.Hong Kong’s HistoryHong Kong significantly differs from many other cities in China. It was under the British government for 150 years. After the Opium Wars of the nineteenth century, Hong Kong Island was ceded to the British Empire. However, more than 86% of modern Hong Kong, the New Territories, was

In 2019, the minimum hourly wage increased from 7,530 KRW in 2018 to 8,350 KRW, which is approximately a 10.9% increase. The hourly wage of 8,350 KRW amounts to 1,745,150 KRW per month for full-time employment (40 hours per week with holidays included). The national minimum wage is in place to protect low-income employees by forcing the employers to pay at least the amount that is set by the minimum wage. Although the burdens of low-income workers and part-time students were relieved to some extent by the increase in the minimum wage, there is a certain group of people whose work condition has

Lately, financial technology, or “Fintech” has innovated payment methods. Many online payment systems that support online money transfers and serve as an electronic alternative to traditional payment methods have appeared. In the U.S.A. and China, simple payment services such as “Paypal” and “Alipay” have been widely used by the public, and in Korea many similar services such as “Samsung pay”, “Kakao pay”. are increasing their market shares. ‘Simple payment service’ refers to any electronic payment service that allows users to make payments on and off-line simply and securely. It is a system t

Soon is May 18, a national day of commemoration for those who fought and died during the ‘May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement’. Although South Korea is presently a ‘democratic republic’, from 1961 to 1987, South Korea was a country under authoritarianism where indirect elections, media manipulation, and mass-shootings happened. Only after many years of struggles and sacrifices did South Korea finally have her first truly ‘elected’ president and become a genuine ‘democratic republic’ in Dec. 1987. The ‘May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement’ took place for ten days in Gwangju and JeollaNam

Lonely death, commonly referred to as ‘Godoksa’ in Korean, is a phenomenon where people living in solitude are found dead long after they actually passed away. Living in solitude cuts them off from the mainstream society that even when they pass away because they were so away from other people, their bodies are unattended to. First introduced in Japan, ‘Godoksa’ is now an issue Korea is having to deal with. With Korea having one of the world’s highest rates of elderly poverty and exponential increase in elderly single households, lonely death is turning into one of the major social problems.Du

On Feb. 29, an unexpected crisis occurred at the Gwangan Bridge in Busan that connects Haeundae-gu to Suyeong-gu. The Gwangan Bridge is the second longest bridge in Korea after the Incheon Bridge and is 7,420 meters long. The bridge is constructed so that it can withstand 45 m/s speed typhoons and seven meters high waves and is rated as a one in aseismic design. Such a sturdy bridge was damaged by a 6,000 ton-container ship, named the Seagrand, steered by a drunk Russian captain. Although the impact partially damaged the bridge structure, the Busan Coast Guard (BCG) reported that there were no

On April. 11, the Constitutional Court announced the anti-abortion law ‘unconstitutional’. Since 1953, abortion has been illegal under Article 269 and 270 of the Criminal Code; the country restricted women’s fundamental rights by punishing those who had an abortion with a fine up to two million KRW and imprisonment for up to a year. Doctors who conducted such surgeries were also sentenced to imprisonment for up to two years. Although illegal, the government-financed survey conducted last year showed there had been 50,000 abortion surgeries in 2017 alone, meaning that one out of five women with

According to research from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS), there are 5.64 million self-employed people in Korea. This is 21.0% of total employees, and the figure has decreased since 2008 when it was 25.3%. The ratio is quite high compared to those of OECD countries. In 2017, 25.4% of the total employees were self-employed and this is the fifth highest among OECD countries: unlike domestic figures, it counted unpaid family workers as self-employed people. Another report of the MSS claims that 67.6% of self-employed people started their businesses ‘because there was no other choice othe

Before the summit On Jan. 1, Kim Jong-un, the Chairman of the Workers’ Party of Korea, sent a positive message about holding the second North Korea – United States summit through his New Year’s address, although he also said he would seek a new path if there were unilateral U.S. sanctions and pressure.Responding to Kim’s speech, Donald Trump, the president of the United States of America, tweeted that he is also looking forward to meeting with Chairman Kim who realizes that North Korea possesses great economic potential. Accordingly, from the start of 2019, North Korea and the U.S. revealed th

Deep-fried laver, dried laver coated in a batter of glutinous rice starch, dried, and deep-fried, is a Korean snack, is just one product of Korean culture that has gained fame. How did this seemingly ordinary snack catch the eyes of million? The answer, ‘Korean Fever’, also known as the ‘Korean Wave’. With people, being captivated with Korean culture, it holds a powerful influence power over them. A TV show scene showing a celebrity eating deep-fried laver was all that was needed to propel the dish into the international spotlight. There are various elements to ‘Korean Fever’. Those elements i

Lee Guk-jong, the celebrated head of Ajou University Hospital’s trauma center, recalled Yoon Han-deok as being instrumental in organizing Korea’s emergency care system over the last 15 years.According to the National Medical Center (NMC), a public hospital as a subpart from the Health Ministry, Yoon Han-deok, the head of its National Emergency Medical Center, was discovered passed away in his office. At just 51, Yoon died of an apparent heart attack. A NMC doctor who conducted a preliminary autopsy concluded that Yoon’s heart attack may have been caused by years of stress and overwork. His dea

Whoever purchases a product or service from a company is the company’s customer. Whether the customer lives in the country of the company’s foundation or in a foreign country, every customer paid for the product and deserves to be treated accordingly. However, for the companies that rely on statistics and only care about their profit, the story is quite different. One such company that discriminates in the Korean market is the Japanese gaming company, Nintendo.Nintendo is a worldwide electronics and video game company founded on Sept. 23, 1989. Nintendo sells gaming consoles such as the Ninten

The income gap between the upper and lower classes has widened in the past three years. The percentage of the poor has been declining for the past two years. However, compared to member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Korea’s relative poverty rate is very high. According to the Korea Daily’s analysis of income concentration in 21 OECD member countries that have released indicators to the WID (World Inequality Database) since 2010, the top 10 percent of income earners who earn over 50 million KRW annually in Korea take up 43 percent or more of tota

On 2018 Dec. 20 The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSD)’s patrol aircraft conducted a threatening low-altitude flight for a considerable duration over ROKS Gwanggaeto the Great destroyer, which had been conducting a humanitarian rescue operation for a North Korean fishing vessel in distress. The aircraft made a threatening “8-shape” flight by continuously flying with 500-meter distance and 150-meter altitude. 150m is the lowest altitude for safety even without any people or buildings present. Japan claimed that it had conducted the flight to observe what operation ROK ship was conducting

Last summer, approximately 700 red imported fire ants were discovered in Pyeongtaek Port. This was the fourth time it was found in Korea since the first discovery from Busan. Meanwhile, red imported fire ants are classified as a part of ‘100 of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species’ by the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG).Invasive Species are defined as “any kind of living organism that is alien to an ecosystem and causes harm.” The problem is that Invasive Species account for approximately 42% of threatened or endangered species and provide risks towards the ecosystem. As much of h

Recently, high concentrations of fine dust, i.e. toxic haze, are causing high alerts. Fine dust is a particle smaller than 10 micrometers and larger than 2.5 micrometers in diameter. Exposure to such particles is reported to be linked to occurrence of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and to increase the death rate. Ultrafine dusts, that are the cause of current issues, in particular poses a big threat.It is widely known and believed between the general population that about 30~50% of the fine dust comes from China. This belief, fact is also announced by the Ministry of Environment. Howe

When Kakao Taxi service was started in March 2015, taxi businesses and Kakao had been working together. The two companies were in a position to coexist with signing business agreements with taxi operator and labor unions. However, the relationship between the two sides has gone sour when Kakao released ‘KakaoT’ by dispersing Kakao Mobility. Kakao Mobility introduced KakaoT in a bundle of chauffeur service and taxi service. In addition to increasing user convenience by bringing mobility services together, it was also a groundwork to launch carpool services. The taxi industry has been protesting

Kim Yong-kyun, a 24-year-old temporary worker, was found dead at the Taean Thermal Power Plant, crushed by a steel conveyer belt. He worked for the Korea Engineering & Power Services, a subcontractor for the Korea Western Power that is in charge of operating the conveyer belts that supply fuel to the Taean thermal power plant. Workers in the industry say it is manifestly dangerous for a single person to supervise the operations of a power plant on their own. They asked the company to change the inspection process by making sure that at least two people do the job together. However, their deman

Recently, there have been a few incidents where Asians were confronted with severe open racism. On Nov. 17, one of the most well-known Italian designer brands, Dolce & Gabbana, D&B, uploaded a series of short advertisement videos for a runway fashion show in Shanghai that was eventually cancelled due to an international outcry against the brand’s racism. The videos featured a Chinese model - dressed in a traditional Chinese dress with traditional Chinese music playing in the background – constantly struggling and failing to eat Italian food with chopsticks. Whilst the female Chinese model cons

On Nov. 24, certain regions including the Mapo-gu, Seodaemun-gu, Eunpyeong-gu of Seoul were entirely paralyzed due to a fire incident that took place in the KT Cable Tunnel in AhHyun Station. All KT telecom users in these specific regions, automatic telling machines, some kiosk machines, cash register, and etc. were disabled. The fire brought inconvenience to one of Seoul’s most overpopulated area. People, regardless of situation, couldn’t contact each other or use the internet to access search engines, social network system, and etc. However, these damages only turned out to be the tip of an