Seoul: Today marks several significant events in Korean history, spanning from the early 20th century to recent years. In 1920, Korea’s national sports council organized the country’s first baseball championship for junior and senior high school students at Seoul’s Baejae High School. This event marked a pivotal moment in promoting baseball as a popular sport in Korea.
According to Yonhap News Agency, in 1933, the Korean Language Society made a historic announcement by introducing the first orthography for the Korean language. This development played a crucial role in standardizing the written form of Korean, contributing to the preservation and promotion of the language.
The year 1983 witnessed a dramatic shift in diplomatic relations when the government of Burma, now Myanmar, severed ties with North Korea. This action followed a bombing incident in Rangoon on October 9, in which North Korean agents were implicated, resulting in the death of seventeen South Korean officials who were accompanying President
Chun Doo-hwan.
In 2002, South Korea experienced its first nationwide walkout by unionized government workers, marking a significant moment in the country’s labor movement history. This event highlighted the growing demands for workers’ rights and better working conditions.
Tensions between North and South Korea were further exemplified in 2013 when North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea criticized South Korea’s “inter-Korean trust-building policy.” The Rodong Sinmun article accused the policy of fostering confrontation between differing political systems and being rooted in hostility.
In 2016, President Park Geun-hye faced a massive corruption scandal involving a close confidante. She expressed her willingness to undergo investigation, leading to her impeachment by the National Assembly on December 9. The Constitutional Court upheld the decision on March 10, 2017.
The South Korean entertainment industry mourned the loss of actor Shin Sung-il in 2018. Known as a heartthrob in the 1960s and 70s, Shin
Sung-il passed away at the age of 81 due to lung cancer.
In 2019, a significant trade agreement was reached at the ASEAN summit. ASEAN member states, South Korea, and five other countries concluded negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), marking a new era in Asia-Pacific trade relations.