Korea24 – 2022.11.30 (Wednesday)

News Briefing: Two labor unions of Seoul Metro launched a general strike on Wednesday morning, calling for the subway operator to withdraw restructuring plans that include layoffs. (Eunice KIM)

In-Depth News Analysis: Last week, President Yoon Suk Yeol held a dinner event with President William Ruto of Kenya and ambassadors from 31 African nations, where he pledged to pursue a free trade agreement with African nations, and hold a special South Korea-Africa summit in 2024. To discuss such plans and learn more about the current state of Korea-Africa relations, Dr. Cho Joonhwa, research fellow at Seoul National University’s Asia Center joins us in the studio.

Korea Trending with Walter Lee:
1. Education authorities have launched an investigation after an 8-year-old student punched his teacher in the face last week in Gunwi County. (초등학교 3학년이 40대 여교사 폭행)
2. The head coach for South Korea's football team Paulo Bento apologized for getting suspended for the last group match at the 2022 World Cup. (벤투 감독, 선수단에 사과…“3차전도 우리의 축구 할 것”)
3. JackMa, the founder of the e-commerce giant Alibaba, who disappeared from public view since China’s tech crackdown, is reported to be in Tokyo. (‘실종설’ 마윈 어딨나 했더니… “도쿄서 반년째 은신”)

Korea Book Club: Literary translator Beth Eunhee Hong introduces us to the Munhak Dongnae’s Young Writers Award, and this year’s grand prize winning story ‘초파리 돌보기 (Looking After Fruit Flies)’ by Lim Solah (임솔아), a quietly devastating story about a woman in her 50s who has had various odd jobs throughout her life as she raised her daughter.

Morning Edition Preview with Richard Larkin:
- In tomorrow’s Korea Herald, Park Ga-young reports on pianist Lim Yun-chan’s album with the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra becoming a "platinum-selling" album within hours of its release.
- Tomorrow’s Korea Times features an article by Park Han-sol on a limited-edition book about director Park Chan-wook’s 30-year career that will be published next month.