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Home General Overview News & Media History Tourism Culture & Art Way of Life Economy & Business Korea Info Korean |
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General Overview Officially REPUBLIC OF KOREA, Korean TAEHAN MIN'GUK, country occupying the southern Korean peninsula in East Asia. South Korea is situated about 120 miles (193 km) northwest of the Japanese islands of Honshu and Kyushu and includes Cheju Island, which is located about 60 miles (97 km) south of the peninsula. The country is about 300 miles (480 km) long and about 135 miles (217 km) wide. It is bordered on the north by North Korea, on the east by the Sea of Japan (East Sea), on the south by the Korea Strait, and on the west by the Yellow Sea. The nation's capital is Seoul. Area 38,330 square miles (99,274 square km). Pop. (1994 est.) 44,436,000.[Map],[Living in korea] [Koreans] South Korea is a republic with a presidential system of government. The constitution promulgated in 1980 was amended in 1987. Legislative power is vested in a unicameral National Assembly, consisting of 299 members, of which the great majority are directly elected and the remainder are apportioned among the political parties. Executive power rests with the president, who is elected by direct popular vote for one five-year term. The president governs with the assistance of the State Council, which includes the prime minister and the heads of executive ministries. The prime minister is appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly. The independent judiciary is headed by the Supreme Court. [News], [Government], [Directory], [Issues] Government welfare activities are relatively new and limited in range. A national pension system was legislated in 1973 for later implementation. The health-insurance program, established in 1977, is limited in coverage, although it is gradually being extended as the country's standard of living continues to rise.[Foreign Relations][Korea and the World] Health conditions and services in South Korea improved markedly after the Korean War (1950-53), although the availability of health services in rural areas especially has remained inadequate. Most people now have some sort of medical-insurance coverage. Since the 1960s, sanitation and hygiene have improved considerably as South Korea developed economically, and the incidence of serious infectious diseases has drastically declined.[Learn about Korea] [Library] [Nature] Six years of primary education is compulsory and free. Virtually all school-age children attend primary and three-year middle schools, and nearly all attend three-year general or vocational high schools. Higher education is available at a number of universities and colleges, among them Seoul National University and the private Yonsei University, Korea University, and Ewha Women's University.[How to learn Korean Lanuage] The government often imposed strict control over the news media until 1987, but the subsequent democratization of South Korea's political life brought a corresponding freedom to its press and other media. (Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica). You can find more informations about Korea in thr sites of Korea Net, KCCI, Yellow Pages Korea and Korea Insights. |
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