Six out of 10 teenage entertainers do not attend school regularly, a survey showed Monday, sparking worries over the K-pop industry‘s violation of the school-age children’s right to learn.

According to a 2016 report on pop culture industry submitted by Korea Creative Content Agency to Rep. Kim Byung-wook of the Democratic Party, only 35.3 percent of the entertainers aged under 19 went to school every day despite their work schedule.

Some 47 percent of them went to school two to three times a week and 5.9 percent went to school once or twice a month when they were working. Nearly 12 percent said they barely went to school, the report showed.

The local law stipulates that the teenage entertainers’ right to learn must be included when agencies sign contracts with them.

But only 20 percent of the agencies added the teenage entertainer’s duty to attend school to the terms and conditions of the contract. Nearly 53 percent of their agencies did not even check whether the teenage entertainers went to schools.

The teenagers were required to work late at night without any prior request, the report showed. Some 15 percent of the agencies said they were not seeking an agreement from the teenagers when they asked them to work at night.

For trainees, the working conditions were poorer. Some 23.5 percent of them did not sign a written contract with agencies. It took an average of one year and nine months for would-be actors and actresses to debut and two years and seven months for aspiring singers. Most of the agencies kicked out the trainees when they could not pass a monthly test.

“There is an explosive increase in the number of teenage entertainers, but protecting their rights such as the right to learn is insufficient. The government should lay out standardized guidelines,” said Rep. Kim.

Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, who arrived at the heavily guarded court in handcuffs and wearing bulletproof vests, entered their pleas through interpreters as proceedings got under way.

The defendants were arrested just days after the killing of Kim Jong-Nam on February 13 as he waited to board a plane to Macau at Kuala Lumpur airport.

The women are accused of rubbing toxic VX nerve agent, a chemical so deadly it is listed as a weapon of mass destruction, on his face.

Kim died an agonising death about 20 minutes after the hit, which was caught on airport CCTV as the VX rapidly shut down his central nervous system.

The defendants — who face the death penalty if convicted — claim they were duped into believing they were taking part in a prank for a reality TV show.

The murder sparked an angry row between North Korea and Malaysia with both countries expelling each other’s ambassadors.

The women were led into Sham Alam High Court, outside Kuala Lumpur, in handcuffs for the start of the trial. Aisyah, 25, was wearing traditional Malaysian dress and Huong, 29, a blue jumper.

The murder charge was read to them in their native languages and interpreters assigned to the defendants indicated they were pleading not guilty.

Prosecutor Muhamad Iskandar Ahmad then read a statement giving details of the murder and said the prosecution had sufficient evidence to prove the women’s guilt.

“We will provide evidence that the dead victim was at (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) departure lounge when Siti Aisyah and Doan Thi Huong approached the dead victim and swiped a poisoned liquid on the face and eyes of the victim,” he told the court.

“The evidence clearly showed that their action to swipe the poison known as VX caused the death of the victim. Expert evidence will be shown that the VX was the cause of death and the chances to save him were extremely slim.”

He said the women had carried out exercises with four other people before the murder to ensure they succeeded in their “common intention” of killing Kim.

– Murder mystery –

==================

Defence lawyers immediately demanded the court reveal the names of four other people charged over the murder.

The four were formally accused in March of the assassination alongside Aisyah and Huong but authorities said they were still at large and have not disclosed their names.

Police have said four North Korean suspects fled Malaysia on the day of the murder, and the women’s defence teams insist these individuals are the main suspects.

About 200 police officers had been deployed to guard the court. The defendants arrived in a convoy of police cars with their sirens blaring.

The trial could at last shed light on the many unanswered questions surrounding the murder.

These range from how two women living precarious existences among Malaysia’s army of migrant workers allegedly became involved in a high-profile assassination, to how a lethal nerve agent was deployed in an airport and killed Kim but harmed no one else.

South Korea accuses the North of being behind the murder of Kim Jong-Un’s estranged half-brother, who had voiced criticism of the regime after falling from grace and going to live in exile overseas.

The North denies the allegation.

The run-up to the trial has been marked by fierce criticism from the women’s lawyers who say the accused are the fall guys in the case.

As well as the North Koreans who fled immediately after the assassination, several others allegedly linked to the murder plot were allowed to leave the country later to ease the diplomatic crisis.

The women’s legal teams also accuse prosecutors of dragging their heels on handing over key material required to mount a defence.

Prosecutors — who insist the women will get a fair trial — will lay out their case over two months and call 30 to 40 witnesses. The defence is then likely to be called.

Prior to the murder, Malaysia had been one of Pyongyang’s few allies amid a global outcry over the country’s atomic weapons programme.

After the assassination sent diplomatic relations plummeting between Pyongyang and Kuala Lumpur, tensions only eased when Malaysia agreed to return Kim’s body in March.

“[Learn to] understand the greatness of Thailand in handling security, culinary, street food and homestay,” Arief said at the KBRI office in Bangkok on Sept. 28.

Arief mentioned that the culinary and street food of Thailand is very famous in the world, there’s always a Thailand restaurant in every country in the world and it’s always crowded with visitors. Thailand offers dishes that are suitable for Asian, European, Australian and American tastebuds.

“We have to learn from the success of Thailand because we’ve set them as our professional enemy,” added Arief.

Arief also encouraged Indonesian diaspora and KBRI to learn about the security in Thailand after hearing two of his friends talking about how good the service and safety in that country, “Please study this, we are willing to learn. The person-in-charge of this is Kiki [the ministry’s Southeast Asia tourism promotion assistant deputy, Rizki Handayani],” he said.

President Joko Widodo has set tourism as one of the nation’s economic cores, for the past three years tourism has been the leading sector and in 2018 it will be one of the three main prioritized industries besides agriculture and fishery.

“We will gladly help, last year Thailand welcomed 32 million overseas tourists,” said Ahmad.

According to The Telegraph, Indonesia is included in the Top 20 Fastest Growing Travel Destinations in the World.

The growth rate of overseas tourists in Indonesia is close to 24 percent whilst the growth rates for both ASEAN and global at six percent.

By the end of the discussion, Arief requested for the formation of a special team who will learn about the Thailand tourism industry.

On September 27, the department released a research based on the 2014 nationwide census.

The research paper pointed out changing and aging population, social affairs, accommodation, economic conditions, health, life expectancy and differences of the elderly in term of regions.

According to the 2014 Nationwide Census, there are 4.5 million people aged 60 or over. The number of people aged 60 or over will account for 20 per cent of the total population.

In 2050, the number of aging population will be similar to that of children under 15.

Between 1973 and 2014, the population increased at an annual rate of 1.4 per cent and the number of population aged 60 or above increased at an annual rate of 2.4 per cent. Urban areas see more aging population than the rural areas.

Magway, Mon, Bago, Mandalay, Sagaing, Ayeyarwady and Yangon see the highest number of aging population. In 2030, the country will face the highest increase in aging population along with a decline in the number of population.

Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong arrived at the heavily guarded court outside the capital Kuala Lumpur for the proceedings, handcuffed and wearing bulletproof vests.

The defendants were arrested just days after the killing of Kim Jong-Nam on February 13 as he waited to board a plane to Macau at Kuala Lumpur airport.

The women, both in their 20s, are accused of rubbing toxic VX nerve agent in his face.

Kim died an agonising death about 20 minutes after the hit, which was caught on airport CCTV as the VX — a chemical so deadly it is listed as a weapon of mass destruction — rapidly overcame his central nervous system.

The murder sparked an angry row between North Korea and Malaysia, which had been one of Pyongyang’s few allies amid global alarm over the country’s atomic weapons programme, with both countries expelling each other’s ambassadors.

The women — who face the death penalty if convicted — are expected to plead not guilty at the start of the trial. The pair claim they were duped into believing they were taking part in a prank for a reality TV show.

Defence lawyers are convinced the real culprits have left Malaysia and that the women’s innocence will be proven in court.

“We are fairly confident that at the end of trial, they will probably be acquitted,” Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, a lawyer for Huong, told AFP.

About 200 police officers had been deployed to guard Shah Alam High Court, where the trial will take place. The defendants arrived in a convoy of police cars with their sirens blaring.

The diminutive pair bowed their heads as they were led into court past waiting journalists.

– Mysterious murder –

=====================

The trial could at last shed light on the many unanswered questions surrounding the murder.

These range from how two women living precarious existences among Malaysia’s army of migrant workers allegedly became involved in a high-profile assassination, to how a lethal nerve agent was deployed in an airport and killed Kim but harmed no one else.

South Korea accuses the North of being behind the murder of Kim Jong-Un’s estranged half-brother, who had voiced criticism of the regime after falling from grace and going to live in exile overseas.

The North denies the allegation.

The run-up to the trial has been marked by fierce criticism from the women’s lawyers who say they are figures of convenience.

Some North Korean figures linked to the plot fled Malaysia immediately after the assassination, while others were allowed to leave the country later to ease the diplomatic crisis.

The women’s legal teams also accuse prosecutors of dragging their heels on handing over key material required to mount a defence.

Prosecutors — who insist the women will get a fair trial — will lay out their case over two months and call 30 to 40 witnesses. The defence is then likely to be called.

After the assassination sent the diplomatic temperature soaring between Pyongyang and Kuala Lumpur, tensions only eased when Malaysia agreed to return Kim’s body.

An Asian Cup football qualifier between Malaysia and North Korea was postponed amid the crisis, and delayed this week for a third time after Kuala Lumpur imposed a ban on travel to North Korea due to surging nuclear tensions.

However Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy declared the Sunday plebiscite had been blocked, saying “today there has not been a self-determination referendum in Catalonia,” a region deeply divided over independence.

Further adding to tensions, unions and Catalan associations called a region-wide strike for Tuesday due to “the grave violation of rights and freedoms,” urging people to take to the streets in Catalonia, a major engine for Spanish growth.

At least 92 people were confirmed injured out of a total of 844 who needed medical attention, Catalan authorities said, as police cracked down on a vote Spain’s central government branded a “farce”.

The interior ministry said 33 police required treatment as a result of the clashes.

The violence raised alarm abroad and further heightened tensions between Rajoy’s government and the authorities in Catalonia in the worst political crisis in Spain in decades.

Rajoy called the vote a process that “only served to sow division, push citizens to confrontation and the streets to revolt”, but left the door potentially open to negotiations on greater autonomy for the region.

The referendum was organised under the threat of reprisals and criminal charges but thousands of Catalans stood in defiance of the central government crying “Votarem” — “We will vote”.

Puigdemont, who governs Catalonia, said in an address after polls closed: “With this day of hope and suffering, the citizens of Catalonia have won the right to an independent state in the form of a republic.”

He urged the European Union to stop looking “the other way” following the police crackdown.

In a press briefing, regional government spokesman Jordi Turull said 2.02 million Catalans voted for independence, or a 42.3 percent turnout.

He said that represented “90 percent” of the votes cast, while 7.8 percent said “no” to the question: “Do you want Catalonia to become an independent state in the form of a republic?”

A further two percent cast a blank vote, he added, and 0.5 percent of ballots were void.

Camped inside overnight

From early in the day, helmeted police armed with batons moved in en masse to seal off polling stations and seize ballot boxes, sparking clashes.

Videos posted on social media showed police dragging voters from polling stations by their hair, throwing people down stairs and attacking Catalan firefighters who were protecting polling stations.

“They took the ballot boxes by force… and they literally yanked them from us as we continued to sing ‘Els Segadors’, the Catalan hymn, and shouting ‘long live democracy’,” said Marc Carrasco, in charge at one Barcelona polling station.

The referendum law foresees a declaration of independence soon after a “Yes” vote but it remains unclear if the regional government will actually do so.

Even before the vote, judicial officials ordered police to seize ballot papers, detain key organisers and shut down websites promoting the referendum after Madrid and the courts deemed it unconstitutional.

Thousands of people had gathered outside polling stations before dawn, joining those who had spent the night camped inside to ensure they would be open on the day.

In central Barcelona, riot police charged at demonstrators who were sitting on the ground at a polling station, and fired rubber bullets, witnesses said.

‘Unjustified violence’

Riot police also stormed a polling station near Girona, smashing the glass doors of the sports centre where Puigdemont was due to vote and cutting a chain to force their way in.

But the regional government said Puigdemont had managed to vote anyway in nearby Cornella del Terri.

The crackdown drew a sharp rebuke from Catalan leaders and others including Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the pro-independence Scottish National Party.

The trouble caused Barcelona football club to play its La Liga tie against Las Palmas behind closed doors after the Spanish league refused to postpone the match.

But in several areas, voting was peaceful.

Under a sea of umbrellas outside a school in Barcelona, a crowd gathered, among them elderly people in wheelchairs, families with buggies and parents clutching toddlers by the hand.

With no police in sight, they were able to cast their ballots, prompting scenes of jubilation.

“I’ve voted! I’ve voted,” one man shouted.

“That’s the great hope, to be able to vote freely like this despite the problems we’ve faced, I’m very happy. I can die peacefully,” added Jose Mas Ribas, 79.

– Overtaxed, underfunded –

==========================

Although Catalans are divided over independence, most want to vote on the matter in a legal and binding plebiscite.

Although Catalonia already has significant control over education, healthcare and welfare, the region says it pays more in taxes than it receives from Madrid.

This has sparked resentment which has been further exacerbated by Spain’s economic woes and helped push the secessionist cause.