On a recent train ride down to Busan, a teenage girl caught my eye as she had hair rollers shaping her bangs. Perhaps it is a recent trend as it is quite common to see young women, especially high school students, in public with hair rollers in clear sight. When the trend first started, I was quick to judge, trying to comprehend how this younger generation could be so comfortable leaving home only half prepared for the day ahead.

 

The Cover Story for this month is 'The Impact and Significance of the Revision of the Customs Act in 2021'. FTA News covers 'Changes in the system related to the application for issuance of a certificate of origin in accordance to the revision of regulations for issuing the certificate of origin for exports', and Inside Vietnam reports 'The AEO system of Vietnam and the EU’s suspension of the full transition to the GSP REX'. In addition, the Updates in Customs and Trade Related Laws is 'The establishment of the 'Notice on the Administrative Processing of Support for Inspection Cost of Export and Import Cargo', and the Customs Case Study is 'whether items temporarily used for participation in international conventions are subject to re-import tax exemption pursuant to Article 99 of the Customs Act'.

 

In March 2017, Korea faced a monumental turning point in its history as the President went through a highly public trial and was ultimately impeached. In the heat of the impeachment trial, television cameras caught a judge entering the Constitutional Court with a hair roller protruding from the back of her head. There was a moment of empathy as we felt the gravity of the historical event, and how this judge must have been under such tremendous stress and pressure that she hadn’t even noticed her hair roller exposed for the world to see.

 

On that day, the President of South Korea was impeached.

How has the world progressed in the three years since that fateful day?

 

We hoped that we would be brought closer together by a more open society combined with new technologies enabling greater information sharing. But the gaps between classes and between political factions have only widened. Instead of bringing us together, algorithms have created echo chambers creating more extreme views and stubborn beliefs.

 

It is only natural for our lives to revolve around ourselves. Individual beliefs, opinions, and ideologies are natural. But does that make it okay for the judge with a hair roller protruding from the back of her head to scold the teenager for being senseless? Or does that make it okay for the teenager to shut out the judge for being old and disconnected from society?

 

We are all living life in the pursuit of happiness and fulfillment. Everyone faces unique challenges in life, particularly in these turbulent times. And that is why we need empathy. Empathy for each other’s challenges and for each other’s aspirations.

 

At the end of the day, empathy will not solve our differences. We will continue to diverge in thoughts and beliefs. But perhaps with empathy we can alleviate the anger. And perhaps with empathy, those walking away from each other will one day meet in the middle – the world is round after all!

 

 

*Plato(428-348 BCE), Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

 

- Contents -

 

▶ Where Is Grace Chang?

Summer Story

 

▶ Cover Story

The Impact and Significance of the Revision of the Customs Act in 2021

 

▶ FTA News

Changes in the system related to the application for issuance

of a certificate of origin in accordance to the revision of regulations

for issuing the certificate of origin for exports

 

▶ Inside Vietnam

The AEO system of Vietnam

The EU’s suspension of the full transition to GSP REX

 

▶ Customs Trade Related Law Changes

The establishment of the ‘Notice on the Administrative Processing of Support

for Inspection Cost of Export and Import Cargo’

 

▶ Customs Case

Whether items temporarily used for participation in international convention are

subject to re-import tax exemption pursuant to Article 99 of the Customs Act

 

 

 

 

 

[SHINHAN Zoom In Trade AUG]

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shinhan@shcs.kr

 

 

 

 

 

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http://customsservice.co.kr

http://blog.naver.com/shinhan22

 

 

 

 

 

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