TV Debate

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Presidential candidates Park Geun-hye, Moon Jae-in and Lee Jung-hee butted heads on North Korea policy and other issues in their first televised debate on Tuesday night.

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The three candidates attacked one another throughout the debate.

[Soundbite] Park Geun-hye(Saenuri Party Presidential Candidate) : "It's been confirmed that you scaled down the actual payment of the contract for your house. Do you really think you can prevent the irregularities and influence-peddling committed by senior officials?"

[Soundbite] Moon Jae-in(DUP Presidential Candidate) : "It's regretful to see that even you engage in negative attacks."

[Soundbite] "Allegations of bribes offered to nominate lawmakers close to Park have also appeared. It's said that within the Saenuri Party that Park has supreme power."

[Soundbite] "I’ll introduce special inspectors and a standing independent counsel to fundamentally root out corruption involving the president's relatives and close aides."

Lee Jung-hee didn't hide her resolve to launch an onslaught against Park Geun-hye.

[Soundbite] Lee Jung-hee(Unified Progressive Party Presidential Candidate) : "Didn't you say you received 600 million won (US$553,500) from former president Chun Doo-hwan who said that the money was used by your father, former president Park Chung-hee?"

[Soundbite] "I have no kids or any family. I plan to return all of it to society later on."

[Soundbite] "Just remember this: this is in order to defeat Park Geun-hye. I’ll do everything I can to make her lose."

Lee didn't spare Moon Jae-in either.

[Soundbite] "Some say that scholarship students of Samsung group seized power from the start of the former Roh Moo-hyun administration."

[Soundbite] "That rumor about Samsung scholarship recipients ruling the Roh government is not true."

Regarding the debate, the ruling Saenuri Party assessed that its candidate Park stood out by showcasing her qualities as a prepared female president. The Democratic United Party praised its contender Moon for revealing in-depth understanding and his determination to take action on pending issues.

Winter Weather

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The fall weather has officially come to an end in Korea, with the peninsula suddenly getting thrown into the depths of winter with freezing temperatures and a huge dump of snow.

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People are bundled up, trying anything and everything they can do to keep warm, but they still shiver in the chilly weather that came about all of a sudden. Bare hands couldn't seem colder. A man has his legs all wrapped up in a blanket to endure the biting cold.

[Soundbite] "The weather suddenly got so cold I even had to wear a cap and my ears are freezing."

The perfect snack for such a cold day is a fish cake soup that is typically sold as street food. People stop by one of the stalls to warm themselves up by sipping on the soup. On the morning of November 5, the temperature dropped to minus five degrees Celsius in Seoul, but it's as cold as minus ten degrees because of the wind chill factor.

[Soundbite] "It's so cold my runny nose is about to freeze."

The Korea Meteorological Administration predicts heavy snowfall till the evening of November 5. As for the forecasted morning low on the 6th, the temperature is expected to fall to around minus ten degrees Celsius.

Saving Energy

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With the cold snap, alarm bells are ringing over a looming power crisis.

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The cold snap raised power consumption in Korea, setting a record high for this winter on December 4. On that day at 6 p.m., the maximum electric power demand soared to 71.77 million kilowatts and backup power fell to 4.87 million kilowatts. During the afternoon, standby power once dropped to 4.01 million kilowatts raising an alert. But thanks to the authorities' power demand control and increase of private generation, backup power did not fall below four million kilowatts, in which case an "attention" level alert would be issued. When backup power falls below four million kilowatts, an "attention" alert is issued and when it falls below three million, a "caution" alert. A "warning' alert is issued when it drops below two million. December 5 is a major concern for power authorities since another cold wave is forecasted after the snowing stops. The maximum power demand for this day is expected to rise higher than the previous day to 72.5 million kilowatts and standby power is expected to drop to 4.2 million kilowatts. Accordingly, the government is urging citizens to conserve energy during the peak hours of electricity consumption.

[Soundbite] Hong Suk Woo(Knowledge Economy Minister) : "From 10 a.m. to noon is the time. Citizens, please focus on saving energy during this time."

To prepare for an emergency, authorities are requesting private generators to increase supply by 400,000 kilowatts.

Prosecutor Under Fire

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A prosecutor who brought a firestorm of criticism on the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office with an inappropriate relationship with a female suspect will likely be fired.

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The Inspection Committee of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office says the prosecutor who caused a recent sex scandal must quit his post. This sounds like a final decision as nobody has rejected the committee's recommendation so far. Sources say that the prosecutor in question, identified only by his family name Jeon, will be likely fired in line with the announcement of investigation results on November 7. He will be indicted without physical arrest. Meanwhile, the committee also dropped the charges against Central Investigation Unit chief Choi Jae-kyung, who exchanged text messages with prosecutor Kim Kwang-joon, who was arrested earlier for accepting bribes.

[Soundbite] Lee Jun-ho(Chief, Supreme Prosecutors' Office Inspection Team) : "We decided to drop the charges after today’s meeting because the content of the text message wasn’t intended to conceal the truth and contained no confidential information regarding the investigation."

The Inspection Committee also advised that prosecutor Yoon Dae-hae's resignation be accepted. Yoon was under fire for sending a text message that called on his fellow prosecutors to just pretend to be implementing reforms in the prosecutors' office. Meanwhile, the team of special prosecutors investigating Kim Kwang-joon is also planning to announce the results of its probe on November 7.

Car Recalls

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Recalls of various industrial products including automobiles are on the rise in Korea but due to the complicated process, consumers are often left holding the bag.

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This man found the brakes of his car weren’t working properly in May. But he only knew months later that his vehicle was up for a recall. A survey by the Korea Consumer Agency finds that 65 percent of consumers said that automobiles need recalls the most. Respondents said getting a recall was also the most difficult for cars and the satisfaction rate for the service was also the lowest with automobiles. The survey shows that out of those eligible for recalls, 34 percent did not receive one at all. As for the reasons, 30 percent said the process was complicated while others responded that it was too much of a hassle or found out about the recall too late. The terminology and regulation levels stated in various recall-related laws also differ adding more confusion to consumers.

[Soundbite] Choe Eun-sil(Korea Consumer Agency) : "All words should be unified into one word, “recall,” which is easy to understand. Businesses need to develop manuals to make recalls accessible to consumers."

The Korea Consumer Agency also suggests the need for a comprehensive recall portal so that information can be effectively conveyed to consumers.

Smoking Teens

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With many cigarette company marketing strategies luring in young people, Korea has the world’s highest rate of teenage smoking.

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At a park, a group of young students smoke cigarettes together. New products that come with fragrances attract curious youngsters. In fact, 43 percent of smoking teenagers say they started to smoke out of curiosity. 32 percent say their friends got them to start smoking. This is why the government is banning cigarette packages from mentioning whether the cigarettes have any added fragrances or flavors, starting from December 8. But experts say this is not enough to prevent teenage smoking.

[Soundbite] Choe Eun-jin(Korea Inst. for Health & Social Affairs) : "Places like convenience stores need to ask a customer's age when selling cigarettes and stronger regulations are needed for advertisements at stores."

Currently, the anti-smoking policies are focused on adult male smokers. This should be changed so that more attention is being paid to teenage smokers as well. Korea now has the world's highest rate for teenage smoking. If nothing is done to stomp this problem out, Korea could see itself holding the title of having the highest smoking rate in the world.

Late Pregnancy Risks

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As Korean women get married and have their first child later and later, health concerns are on the rise.

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This woman who gave birth to her first child is 35. She wanted a natural birth but had to get a Caesarean operation because of an obstetrical complication called placenta previa. Results of a study on some 6,200 women after labor, show that those aged 35 or older had a 4.3 times higher risk of suffering from gestational diabetes and a 2.7 times greater risk of premature birth. Overall, they were at least twice as much at risk of various obstetric complications. This is because the functions of the female body deteriorate with age. Obesity before pregnancy was also found to raise risks of complications. Compared to women of normal weight, obese women had a 4.8 times greater risk of gestational diabetes, a 3.5 times higher risk of gestational hypertension, and were two times more viable of having a Caesarean operation. But a healthy pregnancy and delivery are possible regardless of age if you are in good health before pregnancy and get prenatal care.

[Soundbite] Prof. An Hyeon-gyeong(Cheil General Hospital) : "Due to the risk of chronic illnesses such as diabetes and high blood pressure, you should get a checkup and manage your weight before pregnancy. Under these conditions, you can have a healthy pregnancy."

Currently, 16 percent of pregnant women in Korea are aged 35 or older and the number continues to rise.

Big Gift

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An anonymous donor has wired 100 million won, or over 92 thousand U.S. dollars, to the Salvation Army.

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December second was the third day that the Salvation Army held its street fundraising campaign. It was on this day that an anonymous donor deposited 92-thousand-250 U.S. dollars to the Salvation Army’s bank account. That’s the largest amount that an individual has ever transferred to a Salvation Army account. Last year, a man in his 60s dropped off a check worth over a 100-thousand dollars at one of the Salvation Army’s donation boxes. After that incident, an elderly couple in their 90s made a 184,500 dollar donation to the organization. These heartwarming stories led to others to become more charitable, resulting in the amount of donations to skyrocket.

[Soundbite] Hong Bong-sik(The Salvation Army Korea Territory) : "We had concerns preparing for this year's fundraising. After hearing the news today, our volunteers are excited and working hard."

This year, the Salvation Army has implemented a new method to collect its donations. People can now pay online through the organization’s digital charity box, in which people can now make donations with their credit cards. The Salvation Army expects that the stories of altruistic benefactors and the various collection methods will help it reach its target fundraising goal of 4.6 million dollars this year.

To Your Health

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There is lots of health food out there, but what about healthy booze? In Korea, some alcoholic drinks are thought to actually help you stay healthy.

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This restaurant in Seoul sells some very special liquor.

[Soundbite] "It's not stale and it tastes clean and good."

It's a special version of Korean rice wine called makgeolli with lotus leaves added to the original recipe. The owner, Kim Dong-gyo, runs a makgeolli brewery with his father. The brewery has been passed down through three generations of his family and has been open for 80 years. The makgeolli here is made with freshly harvested rice, so it’s said to have a much richer flavor than your everyday brands.

[Soundbite] Kim Yong-se(CEO, Brewery) : "It shouldn’t be too soft or too hard. Explaining it using the right words is difficult but it's appropriately cooked."

The lotus leaves are also a big part of the flavor of this family-made makgeolli, and are picked and dried in the spring. Fermented with the leaves, they say this makgeolli is especially good for women.

[Soundbite] Yun Seong-guk(Traditional Medicine Doctor) : "Because lotus leaves grow in muddy water, they’re very strong natural purifiers. Therefore, they help eliminate wastes from the body and so they’re great for women's skin care."

The temperature inside the jar needs to be kept just right for the leaves to ferment evenly. Fermented alcoholic beverages brewed in autumn are also thought to have medicinal effects.

[Soundbite] "When drunk in between seasons, fermented alcoholic beverages are great for refection and enhancing the body's immunity. In cold weather, taking half a glass two or three times a day helps keep the body warm and is especially effective for women's diseases."

After work, father and son sit down to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

[Soundbite] Kim Dong-gyo(Son) : "Though we may sell less, I’m going to create my own world of makgeolli that tastes better than others and uses modern methods."

This man is busy picking chrysanthemums that have been touched by the late fall frost. He has a reason for waiting until the flowers go frosty.

[Soundbite] Lee Seong-wu(Traditional Fermented Alcoholic Beverage Master) : "I'm brewing medicinal liquor. It's a valuable healing wine that was served to the kings during the Joseon Dynasty."

This royal Joseon drink is known as "baegil-ju" meaning one-hundred-day-old liquor, because it brews for that long. It’s also known as an autumn liquor because it’s made with fall chrysanthemums. Lee Seong-wu didn’t come to be known as a master of this liquor by accident; he carefully brews each batch with hand-selected ingredients. He uses pine needles picked on a nearby hill, azaleas picked and dried in the spring, and of course, frosted chrysanthemums.

[Soundbite] "Baegilju, which contains organic acids, vitamins and minerals, is very good for your health between seasons."

The secret recipe was bestowed by the court during the reign of Joseon King Injo has been handed down in the family for 15 generations. As the name indicates, it takes a hundred days for the chrysanthemum fragrance to fully permeate the wine. The liquor is filtered once with a bamboo basket and then once more with traditional paper called hanji, just like in the old days. Baegil-ju is famous for its delicate flavors.

[Soundbite] "It's a liquor for kings who were very picky and only ate the most valuable foods. What more explanation do you need?"

The changing of the seasons can be tough on your body, but these autumn alcohols are said to help you make it through in good health.