Seoul: Today in Korean history, significant events highlight Korea's resistance to Western influence and pivotal diplomatic shifts in the region. In 1866, Bishop Simeon Francois Berneux was executed as part of a broader persecution against Western missionaries and their converts by Korean rulers. This persecution, which persisted until 1871, resulted in the deaths of approximately 8,000 Korean Catholics and nine foreign missionaries. The campaign was primarily aimed at preventing Western influence from taking hold in Korea. Notably, Korea's first Catholic Church had been established in 1784.
According to Yonhap News Agency, another critical event occurred in 1885 when China and Japan signed a treaty in Tianjin, China, to withdraw their military forces from Korea. Following a progressive movement by young Korean radicals in 1884, Chinese forces had entered Korea, prompting Japan to deploy troops to counterbalance the Chinese presence. As tensions neared a military clash, the treaty marked a significant diplomatic effort to de-escalate the situation and remove foreign military forces from the Korean Peninsula.
In more recent history, the Korean Medical Association officially recognized "brain death" in 1993, defining it as the irreversible end of all brain functions. In 1994, the National Assembly passed three pivotal bills aimed at enhancing transparency in national politics. These bills focused on the supervision of elections, fundraising, and municipal governance.
In 2011, cyberattacks targeted South Korea's presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, along with around 40 other government agencies and financial institutions, causing paralysis from morning until evening. About a month later, police confirmed that North Korea was responsible for the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.
In 2017, diplomatic tensions with North Korea resurfaced when Malaysia decided to expel North Korean Ambassador Kang Chol, giving him 48 hours to leave the country. This decision followed Malaysia's recall of its ambassador from Pyongyang after the assassination of Kim Jong-nam in Kuala Lumpur. The North Korean regime was widely believed to be behind the death of its leader Kim Jong-un's estranged half-brother.