military service
Sunshine Land: Where War is Actually a Game
On a crisp December Monday morning in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, city workers outfitted the students in Noh Min-hyun’s sixth-grade class with child-sized body armor, helmets, and orange pistol-shaped BB guns. Resembling mini riot cops, the kids, divided into two teams, skipped and giggled their way into the newly
North Korean Soldier's Choco Pie (NOT Lifetime Supply)
Last month, Oh Chung-sung, a 24-year-old North Korean soldier, made an audacious sprint across the intensely guarded border that separates North and South Korea. He was dragged to safety by South Korean soldiers after fleeing a hail of gunfire. He sustained five gunshot wounds, and after undergoing surgeries, he woke
Yoo Ah Exempt: Another Celebrity Avoids Military Service
With both his name and “osteosarcoma” trending on giant portal site Naver, actor Yoo Ah-in found himself the center of Internet attention on June 26, joining the ranks of South Korean men exempt from mandatory military service. On May 22, Yoo received the last of five health examinations that began
What the Puck? South Korea Sells Nationality for Winter Olympic Glory
On Tuesday, South Korean footballer Lee Seung-woo scored a stunning goal to help his national team defeat Argentina 2-1 in a FIFA U-20 World Cup match. Lee is in his first year playing for FC Barcelona Juvenil A, and has even caught the attention of Argentinian legend Diego Maradona, who
Prospects for Human Rights: Amnesty International Korea Compares Presidential Candidates
On Apr. 19, Amnesty International Korea (AIK) released the results of a survey assessing the human rights-related manifesto pledges of South Korea’s five leading presidential candidates. The veteran international NGO’s local office grilled the camps of Moon Jae-in of the Minjoo Party, Ahn Cheol-soo of the
'Parasite Moms' Vs. 'Meat Shields': A Novel Prompts an Online Spat
34-year-old Kim Ji-young sits outside a café with her baby daughter in a stroller beside her. Out of the blue, she overhears young men talking about her: “I wish I could drink coffee with my husband’s money too. Must be so easy to live like a Mom-chung.” “I
Even Getting Into the Military Is Competitive in South Korea
It’s widely known that cut-throat competition is the norm of South Korean life. There are hagwons, or private cram schools, for children even in kindergarten. So it’s not surprising that hagwons exist also for those who are about to start their mandatory military service. Young South Korean
Weekly Brief: Sept. 19th - Sept. 25th
RIP, Baek Nam-gi Baek Nam-gi, the farmer knocked over by a police water cannon, has succumbed to his injuries (a skull fracture and brain hemorrhage) and passed away yesterday after being in a coma for the last 10 months. He was 69. As of press time there is a sit-up
Weekly Brief: Sept. 5th - Sept. 11th
“Just take off the mask” Demonstrators wearing masks may soon be subject to sentences of up to 18 months despite an absence of legislation on the matter. The Supreme Court issued sentencing guidelines last week that view masks as aggravating factors on obstruction of justice charges. Following mass demonstrations late