Korea 24 - 2021.04.27

Korea24 &ndash; 2020.04.27. (Tuesday) <br /> <br /> News Briefing: South Korea&#039;s economy rebounded in the first quarter with the GDP growing one-point-six percent from the previous quarter, recovering to levels seen before the outbreak of COVID-19. Further buoying optimism is Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki&rsquo;s forecast that the economy could expand in the mid- to upper-three-percent range this year. (Koo Heejin) <br /> <br /> In-Depth News Analysis: Dr. John Linton, Director of the International Health Care Center at Yonsei University Severance Hospital, gives his overall assessment of South Korea&rsquo;s coronavirus situation, and how the government has handled the outbreak so far. <br /> <br /> Korea Trending with Lee Ju-young: The South Korean Army is under fire for quarantine guidelines that are deemed excessive (육군훈련소 샤워/화장실 제한 논란 사과), recent cases of unprovoked attacks in Seoul raise concerns among citizens (묻지마 범죄 증가세), and the contents of this year&#039;s Oscar Swag Bag are revealed (아카데미상 수상자 스웨그백).<br /> <br /> Touch Base in Seoul: North Korean defector Park Ji-hyun shares how she escaped the country and made a new life in the United Kingdom to become a vocal figure against the regime&#039;s human rights abuses. She also discusses how she is running to be a local councillor in Manchester.<br /> <br /> Morning Edition Preview with Mark Wilson-Choi: Mark shares a piece from the Korea Herald that addresses the importance of public and community parks amid the COVID-19 era.