Latest Articles
Man chemically castrated sets precedent in South Korea
On Tuesday, the South Korean Justice Ministry reported that a convicted serial rapist of underage girls will be chemically castrated. This is the first time in Korea's history that such a punishment is exercised since the law was passed at the National Assembly in June 2010 and implemented in... read more
M6 earthquake strikes Aomori - no damage reported
An earthquake struck at around midnight on 24 May, about 75 km from the northern city of Mutsu in Aomori prefecture, Jiji News reports. According to the Japanese Meteorological Agency, the magnitude 6 earthquake occurred at a 50 km depth in the Pacific Ocean. The Nuclear Safety commission has said... read more
K-Pop's slave contracts - a glance at South Korea's entertainment industry
Given the fierce competition in post-academic life, South Korea’s schooling system is known to be one of the most rigorous in the world: after studying at school, it is common for students to attend hagwons, or cramming schools. The more privileged also hire tutors to learn to play an... read more
“Imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat capitalism" - China's bout for the Scarborough Shoal
This article was also featured on Tea Leaf Nation. The recent dispute over “illegal fishing” off the Scarborough Shoal between China and the Philippines calls to mind the Dokdo/Takeshima dispute between Korea and Japan in the East Sea. Just as the Japanese flaunt historical documents... read more
Korea's cities of the future
The prominent Italian anthropologist, academic, ethnologist and writer, Fosco Maraini once wrote [A] detail that is characteristic of Japanese cities, which Westerners never fail to notice in shock even upon brief visits, is the complete absence of squares, exedras, open spaces, fields and,... read more
After 42 years, Japan goes nuclear-free
The devastating magnitude 9 earthquake that crippled Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant on March 11, 2011, claiming 15,854 lives, injuring 26,992, leaving 1.5 million without water, shredding 130,000 buildings and damaging almost 700,000, has also swept away public faith in nuclear power... read more
Mr. Saitō: a chat-roulette for smartphones
A chat-roulette for smartphones: this is the new fad that is sweeping over Japan. With more than 2.6 million users – nearly the same as Osaka’s population – the Japanese program known as “Mr. Saitō” (斉藤さん) lets you speak to strangers on a VoIP (voice-over-internet... read more
"A tide that cannot be suppressed" - a Foucauldian interpretation of China's future
Chen Guangcheng, a blind human rights activist under house arrest was recently able to escape from his village in eastern China and find shelter in the US embassy, according to several reports. Chen's friends, He Peirong, as well as one of BBC's informants, Hu Jia, were detained by Chinese... read more
A painful beauty - Sexual Harassment in South Korea
“Why do you wanna write about it? Koreans are used to it...” The mournful stillness that settled into my mind upon reading those words brooded over me for several days. This girl, whom I will refer to as Ms. Kim to preserve her anonymity, works in a chemical factory in Seoul, South... read more
The race to save face: Bo Xilai's ousting disgraces China
Mr. Bo Xilai was removed from his position in the Chinese Politburo on April 10 as he is "suspected of being involved in serious discipline violations," the same day his wife, Gu Kailai, came under investigation for the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood in November 2011. The... read more
