Reader's Digest: President Yoon, Harris visits DMZ, charye

During the last week of September, President Yoon Suk-yeol (윤석열) returned to Korea to face criticism from his recent trip overseas, in which he was caught in a profanity-laden rant via a hot mic and missed the official funeral ceremony for Queen Elizabeth II due to heavy traffic conditions. Domestically, inflation continued to wreak havoc as the South Korean won fell to a 13-year low against the U.S. dollar.

Reader's Digest

Harris focuses Asia trip on security, adds tour to Korea DMZ

(Associated Press)

United States Vice President Kamala Harris announced plans to visit the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea during her trip to Asia. This was somewhat embarrassing for the Yoon administration, as the news was accidentally revealed to the press by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo (한덕수).

Slow (and Welcome) Death of Korea's Ancestor Worship

(Korea Exposé)

Although rites have long been performed to show respect toward deceased ancestors, there is increased evidence that these rituals may be on their way out in modern Korea. According to Gallup Korea, 80% of respondents performed these rituals on Seollal (설날) and Chuseok (추석) in 2006, but only 40% did so in 2021.

Influencer who went viral riding on the back of a motorcycle in a bikini gets featured on the cover of Maxim Korea

(Wikitree)

This summer, a couple was summoned by Seoul police after riding a motorcycle wearing not more than shorts and a revealing bikini through Gangnam, in a video clip that has since gone viral. The couple then made headlines when the woman, named Im Green (임그린), showed up at the police station in a wedding dress. The couple is again in the news for appearing on the cover of Maxim Korea, a magazine aimed at men which is less explicit than its Western counterparts.

Bring in foreign nannies to aid parents, Seoul mayor suggests

(The Korea Herald)

In an effort to combat South Korea’s declining fertility rate, conservative Seoul mayor Oh Se-hoon (오세훈) proposed making it easier for au pairs to be granted an appropriate visa, similar to Hong Kong and Singapore. Critics charge that his proposal avoids addressing the real issues behind the low birth rate, such as Korea’s intense work culture and rampant misogyny.

N. Korea fires missile in show of force over joint S. Korea-US military drills

(The Hankyoreh)

In retaliation for annual drills conducted by South Korean and U.S. military units, North Korea launched a ballistic missile that landed in the East Sea. The joint military drills are routine–as is North Korea’s response–but for the first time in a half decade, they involved an aircraft carrier.