Group slams ‘reckless’ displacement of street dwellers for Asean Summit

Inquirer.net - Nov 13, 2026

MANILA, Philippines — A group advocating for people in street dwelling situations (PSDS) on Friday criticized the government’s clearing and beautification operations ahead of the 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit on Nov. 15 to 17. According to Kaagapay ng mga Sandigan ng Masang Nasa Kalsada (Kasama Ka) Executive Director Gil Espenido, the

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'I'd rather stay an intern': Why some Gen Z workers in Korea are choosing less responsibility

Nov 13, 2026

'I'd rather stay an intern': Why some Gen Z workers in Korea are choosing less responsibility

For some young Korean workers, leaving the office on time matters more than finishing every task, and avoiding the responsibilities of a permanent position can be more appealing than climbing the corporate ladder. These attitudes are emerging among members of Generation Z, who are challenging workplace expectations long shaped by loyalty, overtime and deference to senior colleagues. In a roundtable discussion organized by the Hankook Ilbo, young participants shared their views on work, career advancement and workplace relationships, revealing both generational differences and contradictions in their own approaches to professional life. Their experiences suggest that while younger employees increasingly demand clearer boundaries and more explicit instructions, they sometimes struggle to meet those same expectations when they become responsible for guiding others. Leaving work on time, even with tasks unfinished For Korea's Generation X, now largely in their 50s, staying late at the office was once considered a badge of dedication. In her 2000 novel "A Very Old Joke," acclaimed Korean author

[WEEKENDER] Samsung Guide Dog School marks 33 years of changing lives

Nov 13, 2026

[WEEKENDER] Samsung Guide Dog School marks 33 years of changing lives

Samsung Guide Dog School, which marks its 33rd anniversary this year, is Korea’s first guide dog training institution and the world’s only guide dog school operated by a single corporation, with its operations fully funded by Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance. The school was established in September 1993 by late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee as part of efforts to foster greater understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities. At the time, corporate involvement in guide dog training was unprecedented worldwide. The school became a full member of the International Guide Dog Federation in 1999 and went on to host the organization's general assembly in Korea in 2002. Lee was also honored by the federation that year for his efforts to raise awareness of people with disabilities. Since its first guide dog, Bada, was paired with a visually impaired person in 1994, the school has provided more than 320 guide dogs to visually impaired partners free of charge. Its responsibilities extend beyond raising and training guide dogs. The school also teaches visually impaired partners how

[WEEKENDER] How guide dogs and humans become partners

Nov 13, 2026

[WEEKENDER] How guide dogs and humans become partners

Completing professional training does not mean a guide dog is immediately ready to accompany a visually impaired person. The dog must first be matched with a suitable partner, and the two must learn to walk and live together. Few understand this process better than Yoo Seok-jong of Samsung Guide Dog School. Born with a visual impairment, Yoo now lives with his fifth guide dog. Drawing on his own experience, he helps visually impaired people find dogs suited to their needs and lifestyles. During an interview at the school in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Nov. 2, Yoo was accompanied by Gori, a 5-year-old demonstration dog. Yoo's own guide dog was at a veterinary clinic after falling ill that morning. Friendly and sociable, Gori normally helps introduce visitors to guide dogs and accompanies visually impaired people on trial walks. Yoo said one of the most important factors in matching a guide dog with a prospective partner is walking speed. "The person's walking speed needs to match the dog's natural pace," he said. "Trying to force either one to adjust can be difficult." Temperament is equa

[WEEKENDER] A day with Jerry, guide dog in training

Nov 13, 2026

[WEEKENDER] A day with Jerry, guide dog in training

As Jerry, a Labrador retriever, approached a crosswalk, he came to a stop at the curb. His trainer, Keum Jung-hun, had given no command. Jerry simply recognized the boundary between the sidewalk and the road and stopped on his own. Keum pressed a small device, producing a sharp click. Known as a clicker, the tool signals that Jerry has performed a task correctly. "It means he did a good job," Keum explained. "Verbal praise takes time, but a clicker lets us mark the exact moment he does something right." Jerry is an almost 2-year old guide dog in training. The Korea Times met him during a training session at Samsung Guide Dog School on Nov. 2. The school in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, is fully funded by Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance. After six to seven months of professional training, he has passed his final walking assessment and is now completing the remaining steps before being paired with a visually impaired partner. Accompanying Jerry and Keum on their morning training walk outside the school grounds near Bundang Central Park in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, revealed that guide dog tr

Lee's approval rating falls back below 40%: poll

Nov 13, 2026

Lee's approval rating falls back below 40%: poll

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating slipped back to 39 percent this week, a weekly poll showed Friday, amid negative sentiment over his real estate policies and economic concerns. The survey, conducted by Gallup Korea from Tuesday through Thursday on 1,002 people aged 18 and older, showed that positive assessments of Lee's performance fell 2 percentage points from the previous week, when the figure stood at 41 percent. Lee's approval rating has fluctuated around the 40 percent mark in recent weeks after hitting a low of 37 percent in October. Those who disapproved of Lee's handling of state affairs remained unchanged from the previous week at 50 percent. Real estate policies were cited the most by those who disapproved of Lee's performance at 17 percent, followed by economic and livelihood concerns at 15 percent. Among those who positively assessed Lee's performance, 19 percent cited economic and livelihood issues, followed by diplomacy at 17 percent and communication at 9 percent. The latest survey came amid political disputes over a controversial special counsel bill over allegatio

Seoul files criminal complaints against 5 serial 119 prank callers

Nov 13, 2026

Seoul files criminal complaints against 5 serial 119 prank callers

For the emergency dispatchers staffing Seoul’s 119 hotline — Korea’s equivalent of 911 — every second counts. Yet over the past year, a handful of individuals treated the city’s critical lifeline for fires, accidents, and medical emergencies as a personal bulletin board, a late-night cab service and a sounding board for drunken rants. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Friday that it had filed criminal complaints against five habitual callers who collectively flooded the 119 emergency dispatch center with 8,710 non-emergency calls and text messages between September 2025 and August 2026. The barrage intensified over the summer. Between June and August alone, the five individuals accounted for 4,034 separate contacts — an average of more than 40 disruptions a day. Among the worst offenders, one individual placed 2,661 phone calls, while another sent 2,886 text messages. According to the Seoul Emergency Operations Center, the nature of the contacts ranged from perplexing to blatantly disruptive. Dispatchers fielded silent calls where nobody spoke on the line, incoherent ra

Gov't holds first task force meeting to ease living costs for wage earners

Nov 13, 2026

Gov't holds first task force meeting to ease living costs for wage earners

Korea on Friday held the inaugural meeting of a new task force aimed at developing policies to reduce living costs and boost real disposable income for wage earners. First Vice Finance Minister Kwon Dae-young chaired the meeting with officials from relevant ministries to discuss detailed implementation plans following the presidential office's announcement of the initiative this week. The task force comprises four working groups covering existing support measures, taxation, fiscal policy and finance, respectively, to identify practical ways to achieve those goals. The new team will focus particularly on helping workers cope with labor market changes driven by structural changes in industry, along with the growing financial burden of caring for children and elderly parents. Other key goals will include helping workers build assets, improve job security and manage their health. "The measures in the 2026 tax revision bill and next year's budget proposal are directly linked to wage earners' household finances next year," Kwon said. "While respecting deliberations at the National Assembly, we w

Two 17th-century Buddhist temple halls earn national heritage honors

Nov 13, 2026

Two 17th-century Buddhist temple halls earn national heritage honors

Two 17th-century Buddhist worship halls in southeastern Korea have been designated as national cultural treasures, the Korea Heritage Service said Friday. Under Korea’s heritage ranking system, a treasure sits just one tier below the country's top national treasure status, honoring buildings and artifacts of major historical and artistic value. The newly recognized buildings are Daeung Hall at Unheung Temple in Goseong County, South Gyeongsang Province, and Daeung Hall at Geodong Temple in Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang Province. Both serve as the main prayer halls of temples traditionally traced to the seventh-century monk Uisang, though the surviving wooden structures date to the late Joseon Dynasty. Unheung Temple’s main hall, constructed in 1682, stands as a monument to wartime resilience. During the 1592–1598 Japanese invasions of Korea, the temple served as a strategic stronghold for warrior monks before being burned to the ground in battle. Analysis of its pillars and beams confirmed that the timber used to rebuild the hall was felled between late 1681 and early 1682. Every s

Winter blooms transform Seoul Botanic Park into festive garden

Nov 13, 2026

Winter blooms transform Seoul Botanic Park into festive garden

Tucked inside western Seoul’s Gangseo District, Seoul Botanic Park is defying the winter chill with a vibrant seasonal showcase of more than 40 tropical orchid varieties, 300 poinsettias and imaginative plant displays designed to liven up indoor spaces. The exhibition, titled “Between Winter and Plants,” runs from Friday through Jan. 31, 2027, across the park’s greenhouse, Seed Library and Garden Support Center. At the Tropical Hall, a display titled “Today, Orchids” features Aria, a miniature Phalaenopsis orchid developed domestically in 2019, alongside more than 40 varieties of tropical orchids, including Oncidium, Cattleya, Vanda and Cymbidium. The Mediterranean Hall presents a Christmas garden featuring 300 plants from 15 domestically developed poinsettia varieties, including red Flame, Green Star, peach Grace and Pink Bell. The display also features unusual spherical-bracted varieties called Sugar Ball, Red Ball and Snow Ball, while a fountain installation inspired by Rome incorporates a Christmas tree arrangement made with Flame poinsettias. At the Seed Library, an exhib

Remains of 2 Korean independence fighters to return home from US, Uzbekistan

Nov 13, 2026

Remains of 2 Korean independence fighters to return home from US, Uzbekistan

The remains of two Korean independence fighters laid to rest in the United States and Uzbekistan will return home next week to mark the 80th anniversary of a project to repatriate the remains of such activists from overseas, the veterans ministry said Friday. The remains of Ho Si-han and Lee Gwal will be brought back from the U.S. and Uzbekistan, respectively, on Sunday, according to the ministry. It marks the first time that the remains of an independence fighter buried in Uzbekistan will return home. An event marking their return will be held at a memorial park in Seoul on Monday, attended by some 300 personnel, and the remains will later be buried at the national cemetery in the central city of Daejeon. Ho, born in Seoul in 1885, was arrested by the Japanese police while raising military funds following the March 1 independence movement against Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea. He also took part in a number of fundraising schemes to support the Korean independence movement from 1927 to 1945, before he died in Los Angeles in 1956. The Korean government posthumously awarded him the

Korea's rice production falls for 5th year in 2026 amid changing diets

Nov 13, 2026

Korea's rice production falls for 5th year in 2026 amid changing diets

Korea's rice output declined for the fifth consecutive year in 2026 amid changing dietary habits, data showed Friday, with the cultivation area also reaching a new low. Rice production decreased 0.9 percent year-on-year to 3.5 million tons this year, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Data and Statistics. It marked the fourth-lowest level since the government began compiling the data in 1965. The combined area of rice paddies in the country fell 1.1 percent year-on-year to 670,000 hectares, the smallest on record. Despite the decline in overall production, output per 1,000 square meters increased 0.2 percent year-on-year to 524 kilograms this year, according to the ministry. Rice remains a staple food in Korea, but consumption has steadily fallen in recent decades amid shifts in dietary preferences. The decrease in production also came amid the government's efforts to manage output while encouraging farmers to switch to other crops. By region, South Jeolla Province and Gwangju together produced 736,000 tons of rice, followed by South Chungcheong Province with 681,000 tons and Nor

Defense ministry conducting poll on military cadets over proposed academy integration

Nov 13, 2026

Defense ministry conducting poll on military cadets over proposed academy integration

The defense ministry said Friday it is surveying military cadets on the proposal to integrate the Army, Air Force and Navy academies as the government seeks to revise the plan amid pushback from alumni groups and key stakeholders. The online survey, running from Friday through Tuesday, will poll 2,350 cadets across all four class years, excluding about 143 naval cadets set to be deployed for rotational training, a ministry official told reporters. The ministry is pushing to merge the three institutions into a unified military academy, but the plan has drawn fierce opposition from cadets and alumni who say it could erode the distinct identity and specialized capabilities of each armed service. The ministry is now reportedly weighing the option of relocating the military academy of the Army out of Seoul as planned while retaining the two others, a move seen as backtracking from its original merger plan. "The survey aims to evaluate the current military academies and collect cadets' opinions as part of broader efforts to gather input from various sectors to refine the plan for establishing

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