EDITOR’S LETTER
Hello. This is the first NEWS HERLIVERY in September, back with PEOPLE EDITION. In this issue, we have gathered news about women who are expanding their horizons in various fields.
Judge Kim Bok-hyung of the Seoul High Court has been nominated as the new judge to succeed Justice Eun-ae Lee of the Constitutional Court. With the nomination of Judge Kim, the number of female Constitutional Court justices will remain at three. Professor Yoon Jin-hee of the Department of Physics at Inha University has been elected as the next president of the Korean Physical Society. Professor Yoon is the first female president in the 72-year history of the Physical Society. Professor Yoon will begin her term as president in January 2025, and her term will be two years.
The first female test pilot for the Korean fighter KF-21 has been born in the Air Force. She is Major Da-jeong Jeong of the 52nd Test Flight Squadron of the Air Force Test and Evaluation Group. After being selected as the first female soldier to take the development test flight course in 2019, Lieutenant Jeong completed 11 months of domestic test flight training and 9 months of overseas flight test school practical training, and obtained the KF-21 development test flight qualification. The Navy has also produced its first female deep-sea diver. Lieutenant Moon Hee-woo, who is scheduled to be promoted to captain, completed the basic course of the Marine Rescue Squadron on August 30 of this year and obtained the qualification as a deep-sea diver.
Activist Lee Da-yeon of K-Pop for Planet, who is taking climate action for sustainable K-pop, has expressed her determination to ensure that the voices of women and Asians who are vulnerable to climate crises are reflected. The activist is sending album waste back to entertainment companies and conducting various online petition activities to urge entertainment companies to take responsible climate action. For these activities, she was selected as one of the BBC's '100 Women of the Year' last year. Hive has abruptly replaced the CEO of Adore, a subsidiary label of the group New Jeans, from CEO Min Hee-jin to executive director Kim Joo-young. Former CEO Min protested, saying that the dismissal was unilateral and unrelated to her will.
Girl group Twice and singer Kwon Eun-bi have declared a strong legal response without leniency against illegally synthesized deepfake videos. The lyrics of singer Yoonha's song "Event Horizon" will be included as a text in high school textbooks. Kim Seong-ja, the real-life protagonist of the movie "Citizen Deok-hee," will receive a reward of 50 million won. In 2016, Kim contributed to the arrest of 6 people, including the head of the organization, and the confirmation of 135 million won in damages from 72 people through a critical tip-off related to voice phishing. Soprano Choi Ji-eun became the first Korean female vocalist to win the Verdi International Vocal Competition in Busseto, Italy. American actress Brooke Shields was elected as the head of the theater actors' union. That's all for this issue of NEWS HERLIVERY. I'll be back next month with more women-related news in the PEOPLE EDITION. Thank you.
- - Best Wishes, Editor-in-Chief Yun Danwoo
Judge Kim Bok-hyung, the new Constitutional Court Justice… “A true female judge with extensive trial experience”
Kim Bok-hyung (56, 24th Judicial Research and Training Institute), a senior judge at the Seoul High Court, has been appointed as the new Constitutional Court judge.
On the 20th, the Supreme Court announced that Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae had decided to nominate Chief Judge Kim Bok-hyung as the successor to Constitutional Court Justice Lee Eun-ae, who is due to retire due to the expiration of her term.
Born in Geoje, Gyeongsangnam-do, Chief Judge Kim graduated from Seo Girls’ High School in Busan and the Department of Law at Seoul National University, and was appointed as a judge at the Seoul District Court in 1995. Since then, she has served as a judge at the Ulsan District Court, Suwon District Court, Seoul Central District Court, Seoul High Court, Daegu District Court, Seoul High Court, Chuncheon District Court, and Suwon High Court.
Since her appointment, Chief Judge Kim has handled various judicial duties, including civil, criminal, administrative, and domestic affairs, at various courts across the country for approximately 29 years.
In 2008, she was appointed as a Supreme Court research officer, the first female judge to work as a full-time research officer for two years, performing various research and review tasks on major appeal cases.
After studying abroad for a long period of time at the University of Paris II in France, she published a paper on the trial practice of the French Court of Appeal (2012), and is evaluated as having deep knowledge of foreign judicial systems and trial practices, as well as comparative legal research capabilities.
A Supreme Court official introduced Chief Judge Kim as "an authentic female judge who has continuously researched to reach rational and persuasive conclusions based on her extensive legal knowledge and outstanding trial practice skills," and "she is trusted both inside and outside the court due to her abundant trial experience, easygoing personality, and excellent communication skills."
Meanwhile, with the appointment of Chief Judge Kim, the number of female Constitutional Court justices remains at three, the same as it is now. Chief Judge Kim will undergo a National Assembly personnel hearing and be finally appointed by President Yoon Seok-yeol.
(Kim Se-won, Women News, 24.08.21)
“Physics is both basic and cutting-edge science”… Professor Yoon Jinhee, the first female president of the Physics Society in 72 years
Professor Yoon is trying to create an environment where children can dream about physics again during his two-year term as the next president of the physics society starting in January 2025. What is encouraging is that the physics community is changing and we can expect even greater changes in the future. The fact that Professor Yoon became the first female president in the 72-year history of the physics society is one proof of this.
After graduating from the Department of Physics at Seoul National University in 1986 and receiving a doctorate in nuclear physics theory from Purdue University in the United States in 1994, when Professor Yoon took office at Inha University in 1995, there were almost no women in the physics community. Professor Yoon was the only female professor in the Department of Physics at Inha University, and it was not until 18 years later in 2013 that the second female professor, Professor Kwon Min-jung, took office. Currently, there are three female professors, including Professor Park Hye-jin.
The percentage of women in the physics community is still less than 20%, but it has increased significantly over the past 20 years. This year, the first female president of the Korean Physical Society was elected, and Professor Yoon aims to lead greater change during her term as president of the Korean Physical Society starting next year.
Q. You have been given the title of the first female president of the Korean Physical Society. Gender is not important, but it is encouraging that a male-dominated society has become president. Do you think the physics community is changing?
"I started working for the society in 2002. At that time, there were only a few schools with female professors, but since then, the number of female physicists has increased significantly. People who do science tend to be rational, so they accept and accept logical reasons and explanations. This atmosphere seems to have brought about changes in the status of women. It took about 70 years for women to be elected as president because it was more difficult for women to reach leadership positions. I hope that she will be a good role model for her juniors in the future."
Q. The American Physical Society also has a Korean-American female president, Professor Kim Young-ki of the University of Chicago. Can we interpret this as an increase in the status of women and Korea in the physics community?
"As Korea achieved great economic growth, its status has risen. Also, in the field of physics, large accelerators have been built and it has become possible to train its own human resources. Our capabilities have improved considerably. Global trends are also having an impact. There is a female candidate in the recent US presidential election. Professor Kim Young-ki becoming the president of the society is part of this trend, but I think his own efforts have also been very important."
(Moon Se-young, Donga Science, 24.08.16)
“There was nothing difficult about being a female soldier”… Major Jeong Da-jeong, the first female to take part in a KF-21 test flight
The first female test pilot for the Korean fighter jet KF-21 has been born.
According to the Air Force on the 5th, Major Jeong Da-jeong of the 52nd Test Flight Squadron of the Air Force Test and Evaluation Group obtained the KF-21 development test flight qualification on the 23rd of last month.
Major Jeong completed her first evaluation mission as a KF-21 test pilot at the Air Force Seosan Base on the morning of the 4th. She has successfully completed her debut as the first female test pilot.
To obtain the KF-21 development test flight qualification, you must complete the test pilot training course and pass all of the ground academic evaluation, simulator evaluation, start-up and ground run evaluation, and actual flight evaluation to check your understanding of the various systems of the KF-21.
Once you obtain the qualification, you can perform the mission alone without an instructor test pilot. Major Jeong, a veteran pilot with over 1,300 hours of flight time, was the first female pilot to be selected for the development test flight training course in 2019. After completing 11 months of domestic test flight training and education and 9 months of practical training at an overseas flight test school, she became a test flight pilot. (Omitted)
-What would you like to say to your junior female pilots?
There was a comment that gave me strength on the radio before. I want to say, ‘You did well, you are doing well, and you will do well.’ You have overcome many difficult things so far, but such things will continue in the future, and most of them will be unexpected difficulties.
Even if you think, ‘Why should I do this?’ or ‘Why me?’, I hope you will not give up silently and move forward. Now that I’ve said it, I think I said what I needed to say.
-What was difficult as a female pilot?
There was nothing difficult for me because I am a female pilot. Everyone has gone through difficult and challenging processes. There is no such thing as the ‘first female KF-21 test pilot.’ I want to emphasize that there are only ‘KF-21 test pilots.’
- What is your ultimate dream as an Air Force pilot?
‘We are the first! Safely to the end!’ This is the motto of the 281st Test Squadron that I belong to. As an Air Force pilot, my ultimate dream is to safely carry out my mission until the end. I will pour all my capabilities into ensuring that the stable operationalization of the KF-21 will greatly enhance the aerospace power of the Republic of Korea.
(Park Soo-chan, Segye Ilbo, 24.09.05)
First female deep-sea diver born… “I can’t forget the ‘sweet and salty’ snack I ate with seawater”
The first female deep-sea diver of the Republic of Korea Navy has been produced.
The Navy announced on the 30th that 64 trainees, including 9 officers, 24 non-commissioned officers, and 31 enlisted men, graduated from the basic course of the Marine Rescue Unit (SSU) and became deep-sea divers.
Among them, Navy Lieutenant Moon Hee-woo, who is scheduled to be promoted to captain, is the first female to receive the deep-sea diver badge.
Lieutenant Moon majored in physical education and oceanography in college and enlisted as a 132nd class of officer candidates, and was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy in June 2022. She worked as a navigator on the frigate Daegu and as a logistics planner at the Naval Education and Training Command before applying for the basic course of marine rescue this year. (Omitted)
Female soldiers can enter the basic course of marine rescue even with short hair. However, Lieutenant Moon cut her shoulder-length hair to about 1cm the day before entering the academy because she thought it would interfere with training such as swimming if her hair was long.
She said, "I thought I did well cutting my hair throughout the training course, and I'm thinking about keeping it because it's really comfortable."
She entered the basic course after undergoing the same physical and swimming tests as the male soldiers. After entering the academy, she said, "Every day felt like a test of my limits." (Omitted)
She was the oldest trainee, eight years older than the youngest trainee. Lieutenant Moon emphasized, "I think my body recovered slowly after training and had a hard time keeping up with the physical training, but I never once thought about giving up."
Lieutenant Moon, who passed the same standards as the male soldiers and earned the title of 'First Female Soldier,' said, "I'm the first female deep-sea diver and will be the only female deep-sea diver until a new challenger appears," and expressed her determination, "I will grow into a marine rescue expert so that my juniors can look to me and challenge themselves."
(Kim Ji-hun, Yonhap News, 24.08.30)
“HYBE, SM, JYP, YG, Stop Selling Duplicate Purchases of K-Pop Idol Albums”
Behind the splendid success of K-pop, there is a lot of waste that is thrown away. K-pop agencies randomly provide dozens of photocards for each album. Also, in order to get a ticket to a fan signing event for your favorite idol group, you have to buy from a few dozen to a few hundred albums, and in the process, a lot of albums are thrown away. Some albums are even thrown away without even being opened. In this situation, there have been recent voices of self-reflection among K-pop fans, calling for restraint from indiscriminate consumption and a heightened sense of alertness to the climate crisis.
Among them, the Women's Newspaper met with activist Lee Da-yeon of K-pop4Planet, who is actively participating in climate action for sustainable K-pop, via video call. K-pop4Planet, which has the slogan "There is no K-pop on a dead planet," is an organization formed by activist Lee Da-yeon and Indonesian K-pop fan Nur Sarifa, whom Lee Da-yeon met while working at a youth environmental group in high school. Founded in 2021, K-Pop Planet has seven multinational fixed activists and 20 ambassadors.
An avid K-Pop fan since elementary school, activist Lee joined ‘Youth Climate Action’ in high school and became actively involved in climate activism. Her relationship with Indonesian Nur Saripa also began through youth climate action activities. Activist Da-yeon Lee, currently a third-year student at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, communicates with other activists through video conferences and is busy using vacation time.
Members of K-Pop Planet, including activist Lee, are urging entertainment companies to take responsible climate action through activities such as returning albums received from fans to major entertainment companies such as HYBE and various online petition activities. (Omitted)
Activist Lee was recognized for her various activities and was selected as the BBC's '2023 Woman of the Year' in 2023, and was listed next to prominent figures such as former US First Lady Michelle Obama, world-renowned feminist Gloria Steinem, and Melinda Gates.
However, she said that there is still a long way to go to create an eco-friendly culture in K-pop. This is because releasing eco-friendly albums alone will not solve the problem of mass album waste unless entertainment companies stop their sales tactics to induce album purchases. In fact, within the K-pop fandom, fans can be seen collecting photocards and purchasing eco-friendly albums in large quantities in order to increase the sales of their favorite idol's albums. As a result, entertainment companies are unable to avoid criticism of greenwashing (cleaning the image of being eco-friendly).
Activist Lee pointed out, “Album sales have been steadily increasing because they are continuously releasing existing physical albums while experimenting with platform albums,” and “We need to stop the sales tactics that make people buy multiple albums, such as random photo cards and fan signing events. Even if an album is made with eco-friendly materials, if you buy a lot of it, it will end up being the same trash.”
(Kim Se-won, Women News, 24.08.28)
Min Hee-jin, dismissed as ADOR CEO… ‘Management Rights Dispute’ 2nd round
ADOR, a label under HYBE that the group New Jeans belongs to, has abruptly replaced CEO Min Hee-jin. Former CEO Min protested, saying, “It was a unilateral dismissal that had nothing to do with my will.”
ADOR announced on the same day, “We held a board meeting on the 27th and appointed Kim Joo-young, an inside director of ADOR, as the new CEO.” “New CEO Kim is an HR expert with experience in various industries and will be in charge of stabilizing ADOR’s organization and reorganizing its internal affairs.” New CEO Kim took on the position of inside director of ADOR in May upon recommendation from HYBE.
Former CEO Min will retain his position as an inside director of ADOR. ADOR stated, “(Former CEO Min) will also continue to be in charge of producing New Jeans.” “ADOR’s internal organization will also separate production and management. The principle of multi-label operation has been consistently applied to all other labels, but ADOR has been the only exception where the CEO has been in charge of both production and management,” he said. “With this personnel change and reorganization, ADOR plans to spare no support for the growth and greater success of New Jeans.”
This replacement of the CEO was adopted as an official agenda item at the board of directors and passed by vote. It is reported that the board of directors meeting was convened last weekend and former CEO Min attended via phone. Currently, the ADOR board of directors consists of three members from HYBE and former CEO Min, so they could be removed at any time by vote. However, since the court accepted the injunction application filed by former CEO Min on May 30 to restrict the voting rights of HYBE’s shareholders who are trying to remove him, there could be different interpretations of this matter.
(Lee Jeong-Kook, Hankyoreh, 24.08.27)
Female Idol ‘Deepfake Damage’ Spreads, Twice and Kwon Eun-bi “No Leniency”
As deepfake sexual crimes targeting female idols spread, agencies are taking legal action.
According to the music industry on the 31st, JYP Entertainment, the agency of girl group Twice, stated the previous afternoon, “We are taking the recent spread of deepfake videos targeting our artists very seriously,” and “This is clearly an illegal act, and we are currently collecting all relevant information, and are taking strong legal action without leniency together with a specialized law firm.”
They continued, “We will absolutely not tolerate any acts that infringe upon the rights of artists, and will deal with them resolutely to the end.”
Singer Kwon Eun-bi also recently filed a criminal complaint against those who distributed synthetic pornographic photos of her.
The agency Woollim Entertainment stated, “We have already announced the mental damage to the artist due to serious defamation such as sexual harassment, personal attacks, dissemination of false facts, and invasion of privacy against Kwon Eun-bi,” and “We have collected numerous posts regarding the act of distributing fake obscene photos by photoshopping the artist’s portrait and filed the first complaint, and the police are currently investigating.” Woollim announced, “Based on the collected evidence, we will continue to take strong criminal legal action without leniency.”
(Kim Do-Kyun, The voice of the people, 24.08.31)
Yoon Ha's 'Event Horizon' to be included in high school textbooks… as a Korean text
Singer Yoon Ha's song 'Event Horizon', which created the reverse myth, will be included as a text in high school textbooks.
On the 6th, singer Yoon Ha's agency C9 Entertainment announced, "The lyrics of the title song 'Event Horizon' from Yoonha's 6th repackaged album will be included as a text in the 2022 revised edition of the Common Korean Language 1 and 2 high school textbooks of the Genius Education, which will be used starting next year."
The song, which was first released in March 2022, is evaluated to have caused a reverse syndrome by reaching No. 1 on various charts such as Melon and Genie Music seven months after its release. The lyrics were written by Yoon Ha, and the composition was jointly done by Yoon Ha and JEWNO (Son Jun-ho). The lyrics used materials from astrophysics to express the theme that a breakup is a new beginning.
The textbook presents ‘Event Horizon’ and the classical poem ‘Dongjidal Long Night’ as texts, and includes questions that compare the speaker’s situation and attitude in each text, and find parts where similar ideas and expressions are used in the two works. After introducing the event horizon as ‘a term referring to the boundary where an event does not affect an external observer,’ questions also include questions asking what the ‘event horizon’ is in one’s life, and how one has changed before and after the event.
Yoon Ha, who debuted in Japan in 2004 at the age of 16, celebrated her 20th debut anniversary this year. She has been greatly loved for songs such as ‘Waiting’, ‘Password 486’, and ‘We Broke Up Today’. Younha has also built her own musical world by utilizing astrophysics in ‘Comet’ (2007), ‘Oort Cloud’ (2022), and ‘Salbyeol’ (2022). Last year, she was selected as ‘Announcer’s Favorite Celebrity for Korean’.
(Choi Yun-ah, Hankyoreh, 24.09.06)
50 million won reward for the real-life protagonist of the movie ‘Citizen Deok-hee’, Kim Seong-ja
In January 2016, Ms. Kim Sung-ja sent 27.3 million won to a bank employee on 11 occasions. She was in pain after learning that she had been deceived by a voice phishing organization. Then, something like a movie happened. The voice phishing organization member called Ms. Kim again. “I really trusted you and called you, Ms. Kim Sung-ja.” He told her that the Chinese voice phishing mastermind who had taken Ms. Kim’s money was going to Korea.
Ms. Kim personally obtained evidence and information about the organization members and reported it to the police. Thanks to Ms. Kim’s critical tip, six people, including the voice phishing mastermind, were arrested. Thanks to Ms. Kim’s tip, 135 million won in damages from 72 victims were confirmed, and 234 people who were in the middle of a voice phishing crime were prevented from being victimized.
Once again, something like a movie happened. The police took full credit for catching the criminal. The police did not inform the crucial informant, Ms. Kim, of the arrest of the organization members, and omitted the fact that there was a citizen tip when the case was announced.
Ms. Kim could have received a reward of up to 100 million won, but the police did not even give him that. Instead, they offered to give him only 1 million won, citing budget constraints. Ms. Kim refused.
Ms. Kim’s story was reported in the media and was even made into a movie. The movie “Citizen Deok-hee,” which was released in January, was based on Ms. Kim’s story. The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office recommended that the National Human Rights Commission of Korea pay Ms. Kim a reward.
On the 27th, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea announced, “We decided to pay Ms. Kim a reward of 50 million won, which is about twice the amount of the fraud damage, in recognition of the informant’s efforts to solve the case and his contribution to the promotion of public interest.”
(Kim Nam-il, Hankyoreh, 24.08.27)
Soprano Choi Ji-eun, first Korean female vocalist to win Busseto Verdi Competition
At the 60th Verdi International Vocal Competition, which closed on the 7th (local time) in Busseto, Italy, soprano Choi Ji-eun (33, far left in the photo) became the first Korean female vocalist to win first place. This competition is the most prestigious vocal competition held annually in Busseto, the region where Verdi, the ‘master of opera’, was active. Soprano Choi Ji-eun will receive 5,000 euros (approximately 7.42 million won) in prize money for winning this competition.
“I was anxious because my throat was not good until the beginning of the competition, but I can’t believe I got such a good result.”
Verdi Theater in Busseto, Italy. Soprano Choi Ji-eun (33), who performed her last song (Verdi’s Don Carlo ‘God Who Knows Vanity’) in the final round of the Verdi International Vocal Competition, which is considered the most prestigious vocal competition, said this. When she was called as the winner, she couldn’t hide her surprise on her face. In a phone call with the Korea Economic Daily right after winning the award, he said, "I've been in many competitions, but this is the first time I've had so many hardships and difficulties," and "I emptied my mind and focused only on singing, so I'm grateful for this result." (Omitted)
Choi Ji-eun is a talented person who graduated from Suwon University's Department of Vocal Music and received a master's degree from Hanns Eisler University of Music in Berlin. She is currently a soloist at the Cottbus Opera in Germany. In October, she will play the role of Agathe, the lover of the main character in the opera 'Der Marksman' at the Cottbus Opera in Germany. She is also about to debut as the main character, Cho-sang, in Puccini's opera 'Madame Butterfly'. In March next year, she will meet Korean audiences as the Countess in the National Opera Company's 'The Marriage of Figaro'.
(Choi Da-eun/Cho Dong-Kyun, The Korea Economic Daily, 24.09.08)
Actress Brooke Shields Elected as President of US Actors' Union
The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 2nd (local time) that famous American actress Brooke Shields (59) has become the head of the Actors’ Union, which is facing various crises.
Concerts and sports games, which had been cut off due to the COVID-19 pandemic, have returned to the audience. However, stage performances have not yet recovered.
Around 51,000 actors across the United States are engaged in various struggles, including a strike by actors performing at Disneyland Resort, and the union leadership is trying to persuade Congress to revive the actor activity fee reduction bill.
It is unusual for a famous actress who started out as a model to become the head of the union. Shields defeated two competitors from the union and was elected as the head of the union, promising that she would use her fame to make actors’ pockets fat.
Shields first joined the Actors’ Union nearly 50 years ago, when she was 11 years old, while filming the controversial film “Pretty Baby.” Recently, she has appeared in a hit Netflix movie, founded a hair salon, written a book, and starred in a documentary about her experiences being labeled a sex symbol as a child and teenager.
Shields has been performing on Broadway since she was 29. She has also appeared in regional theaters and off-Broadway shows. (Omitted)
“Politicians often start by cutting the budget for the arts and education,” Shields said. “If they do that, the country will be in a funny state.”
Shields admits she has little experience running a union. She says her first few months as union president were like college. Shields is a graduate of the prestigious Princeton University.
“I’ve been a unionist since I was a little girl. My mother used to say, if I can’t help you, the union will help you,” Shields said.
(Kang Young-jin, Newsis, 24.09.03)
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