YOON TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE

YOON TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE

[Anchor Lead]
President Yoon Suk Yeol will hold a press conference on the 9th, marking the second anniversary of his inauguration. This comes after a year and 9 months since his first press conference after taking office.

[Pkg]
President Yoon Suk Yeol will mark the second anniversary of his inauguration on Friday. The presidential office announced that the president will hold a press conference a day earlier. This is the first press conference he will hold in one year and nine months since August 2022 when the president was marking 100 days in office.

[Soundbite]
Kim Soo-kyung (Presidential Spokesperson): The president will hold a press conference at the briefing room on Thursday morning marking second year in office.

The press conference will take place in sequence. In the form of an opening remarks, Yoon will first provide an explanation on his state management policies at his office. He will then move to the briefing room and take questions from reporters.

[Soundbite]
Kim Soo-kyung (Presidential Spokesperson0: In the video, the president will explain the administration's policy directions in the last two years and plans for the next three years.

A presidential official said that President Yoon intends to directly address what the people want to know and clarify any misunderstandings through this upcoming press conference. Excluding the opening speech, the Q&A portion alone is scheduled to take up to an hour.

"MINUTES ON QUOTA HIKE MISSING"

[Anchor Lead]
The government and medical groups are once again clashing over the medical school admissions quota increase. A former trainee representative, who previously filed a complaint against high-ranking officials, is now planning to file another complaint with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials. Meanwhile, medical professors are also ramping up pressure on the government, calling for the punishment of those responsible.

[Pkg]
In February, the government finalized the plan to increase the medical school admissions quota by 2,000, citing talks through related statutory bodies.

[Soundbite]
Cho Kyoo-hong (Minister of Health and Welfare (Feb. 6)): In depth reviews and discussions were held through the healthcare policy deliberation committee and its sub-committees.

There were three such bodies that discussed the quota hike, including the healthcare policy deliberation committee. New speculation has emerged that minutes of their meetings, which is a legal mandate, were not recorded. This has triggered strong protest by doctors groups.

[Soundbite]
Kim Chang-soo (Chair, Med Professors Association of Korea (May 4)): We submitted thousands of documents and minutes proving the hike was decided through a fair, transparent...and scientific review by numerous medical experts to the judiciary.

Some including a former trainee doctor representative at Cha University Bundang Medical Center Jung Keun-young have expressed plans to file a complaint with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials(CIO). The complaint will target 5 officials including Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong, Education Minister Lee Ju-ho and Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo. They're claiming charges of dereliction of duty and discarding of public records.

[Soundbite]
Lee Byung-cheol (Complainant (lawyer)): Minutes are a legal requirement but the ministry does not have them and is saying they will submit summarized recordings. This is a crime.

The Medical Professors Association of Korea is also ramping up pressure. It said a procedural illegality has been found in the quota hike process and called for punishment of those responsible. In response, the health ministry said it will faithfully submit requested materials to the court but did not answer KBS' inquiry regarding the existence of the meeting records in question.

HIGH DINING OUT COSTS

[Anchor Lead]
Amid soaring inflation, many people are hesitant to dine out these days. Last month's dining out prices rose by 3%, marking the 35th consecutive month that dining out prices have outpaced overall consumer inflation. The largest price increases were seen in popular dishes like tteokbokki, bibimbap, and gimbap.

[Pkg]
Dining out prices continued to outpace the growth of overall consumer prices last month. According to Statistics Korea, the average price of major food items at restaurants rose 3% on-year in April, one-tenth of a percentage point higher than the 2.9% inflation rate. The upward trend in cost of dining out has surpassed the overall consumer price inflation for the 35th consecutive month since June 2021. In detail, the price growth of 19, about half of 39 dining out items, has exceeded the average inflation rate. By item, the price of tteokbokki or the spicy stir-fried rice cake dish posted the largest gain of 5.9%. It was followed by rice dishes bibimbap and gimbap at 5.3% growth each. Hamburger prices rose 5%, lunch box prices 4.7% while that of noodle dishes kalguksu and naengmyeon went up 4.2%. None of the dining out food items saw a price decline. However, the growth is steadily slowing from 4.3% in January to 3.8 in February and 3.4 in March. If the rate further slows this month, dining out costs could dip below overall inflation for the first time in 3 years. However this may come later rather than sooner...because recent price hikes by franchised gimbab and fried chicken restaurants could delay a slowdown in price growth.

SHOOTING RANGE IN DOWNTOWN AREA

[Anchor Lead]
Last year's KBS report brought to light the presence of a U.S. Forces Korea shooting range hidden in the heart of Changwon for half a century. Since then, the Ministry of National Defense and USFK have stated that they would work with the Changwon City government to find ways to address residents' concerns. So, how have things changed a year later? We take a look.

[Pkg]
A construction site with all trees cut out can be seen clearly from the living room of a nearby apartment building. Residents' complaints poured in ahead of the monsoon season. The site turned out to be the Masan Range of U.S. Forces Korea. Its identity was finally revealed in May last year when USFK chopped trees en masse. The news triggered strong protests from locals, because there is an apartment complex and commercial facilities within a 1.5km radius from the construction site. Moreover, the matter had not been discussed with the local government. The defense ministry and USFK eventually suspended construction and pledged to address the issues of noise and safety with the government of Changwon City.

[Soundbite]
(KBS News 9 (May 2023)): USFK and defense ministry decided to suspend shooting range construction 2 days after KBS exclusive report.

How have things changed one year later? The ministry says no additional construction at the shooting range has been carried out, and no shooting training is taking place there. It added it will discuss the relocation of the range requested officially by the government of Changwon City with USFK. However, relocation will likely be difficult, as finding a new site will not be easy.

[Soundbite]
Lee Kyung-bong (Changwon City Government): We will continue to convey residents' opinions so that our recommendations can be adopted as soon as possible.

The shooting range in the heart of Changwon has revealed its identity half a century later. Although its construction and shooting training have all been suspended, more protests are expected until it is either shut down completely or relocated to another area.

FROZEN GIMBAP GOES GLOBAL

[Anchor Lead]
The popularity of Korean frozen gimbap, which initially created a sensation in the United States, is now spreading worldwide. Remarkably, this frozen gimbap product comes from a local SME. Behind its ability to overcome the challenging export market lies the "power of win-win growth."

[Pkg]
Frozen gimbap at one point were selling out at an American grocery store chain, it caused sellers to limit its sale to just two rolls per person. This company, which was the first in Korea to produce and export frozen gimbap in 2020, has its factory operating busily around the clock. But exporting gimbap initially wasn't smooth sailing. After two years of research, the company managed to find a way to develop frozen gimbap that maintained its form without breaking, but selling it turned out to be the challenge.

[Soundbite]
Cho Eun-woo (CEO of frozen gimbap company): It was tough because of problems related to customs, tariffs and FDA regulations.

Help came from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation that saw potential in frozen gimbap and decided to provide all-out support.

[Soundbite]
Cho Eun-woo (CEO of frozen gimbap company): They told us how to deal with restrictions in each country.

Thanks to the customized consultation, this company was able to market its products in 19 countries, while its export amount doubled. The Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation's revenues also increased. Last year, 241 tons of local agricultural produce was used in frozen gimbap alone.

[Soundbite]
Moon Jae-young (Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp.): It helped raise the local farmer and fishermen income to meet our founding goal and expand agricultural exports.

This is an example of a win-win partnership, where support is not provided unilaterally to SMEs, but where large corporations and public agencies also profit and grow in unison. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups has selected this case as this year's first recipient of the Win-win Honors Program, and decided to grant a wide range of benefits. The ministry also plans to unearth 100 Win-Win Honors cases by 2027 to promote shared growth among businesses.

FIRST KOREAN TEXTBOOK IN FRANCE

[Anchor Lead]
Starting in 2017, France included Korean in the foreign language section of its national college entrance exam. Until now, high schools teaching Korean have primarily relied on textbooks designed for adults, but for the first time, a dedicated textbook tailored specifically for high school students will soon be published. Why? We have the details.

[Pkg]
Filming is underway for video materials to be used in Korean language classes at French high schools.

[Soundbite]
This is the schoolyard. We exercise here on Monday.

The video consists of situational dialogues between a French student learning Korean language and her Korean friends. The first Korean language textbook for French students, which includes these video materials, will soon be published. The number of French students opting to learn Korean has been increasing since Korean was designated as an official foreign language subject for the French college entrance exam in 2017.

[Soundbite]
(French student (INALCO)): At college, the number of people studying Korean has jumped in five years.

Up until now, French students taking Korean class have been using textbooks for adults, as there have been no teaching materials for younger learners. In the soon-to-be-published textbooks, easy and interesting contents are used to meet the needs and levels of high school students.

[Soundbite]
Kim Eun-jin (Korean textbook writer): The textbook is tailored for high school students. We worked hard to include Korean that allows students to talk with their friends.

K-pop and Korean dramas, which they have been growing up with, are the starting point that motivates French students to learn Korean.

[Soundbite]
(French high school student): When I was 12, I began learning Korean on my own. Fascinated by Korean culture, I wanted to learn Korean more deeply.

Recently, the number of French students taking Korean class at school has tripled from some 600 in 2018 to roughly 1,800. The new textbook, published by a French publisher under the guidance of Korea's education ministry, will be distributed to high schools across France offering Korean classes from the new semester starting in September.

HORNETS THREATEN BEEKEEPING

[Anchor Lead]
Recently, beekeepers are on high alert due to the predatory hornets threatening honeybee colonies. In particular, concerns are mounting that the population of the invasive Asian hornet, which is known for its aggressive behavior, will surge due to unusually warm winter temperatures, leading to greater losses for beekeepers.

[Pkg]
As the wire mesh cover is opened, dead bodies of hornets are found inside the box. These are Asian hornets, a carnivorous, invasive species that is known to be the predator of honeybees. They are also found in other catchers installed by the farmer. Ahead of the breeding season between August and September, Asian hornets prey on honeybees to obtain nourishment. It is a source of the biggest headache for bee farmers around this time.

[Soundbite]
Lee Eul-jae (Bee farmer): If 3,000 Asian hornets each hunt a honeybee, 3,000 honeybees will be gone. It is grave damage.

Beekeepers have to remove as many queen hornets as possible. But it is beyond their capability. It is because the number of Asian hornets is growing rapidly. In 2018, it accounted for just four percent of the entire hornet species. But the rate jumped to exceed 80 percent in 2021. Unusually warm winter is cited as one of the culprits. Queen hornets survive the winter and awaken in early spring to catch more honeybees. In order to eradicate Asian hornets, it is necessary to find and remove all hives hanging on trees that are dozens of meters high. It is nearly impossible.

[Soundbite]
Lee Myeon-jae (Chungju office, Korean association of bee farmers): We hope that they will find ways to remove hornets' hives as soon as possible.

Amid the abnormal temperatures that help its predators thrive, honeybees are disappearing and taking a serious toll on bee farmers.