The Korea Herald

Leaders share measures in ‘atmosphere of agreement’

PoliticsMar 27, 2012

World leaders taking part in the Nuclear Security Summit reaffirmed their agreement on the importance of nuclear security and stressed the need for international cooperation during Tuesday’s morning session. “During the morning session, 27 leaders spoke out introducing their nuclear security policies and shared the view on the importance of the issue,” South Korea’s spokesperson and Sous-Sherpa ...
FTA heavyweights panelists clash in Gangnam

PoliticsMar 27, 2012

This is the fifth in a series introducing the key inter-party battle fields in the upcoming April 11 general elections. -- Ed. The electoral battle in southern Seoul’s Gangnam district is heating up over the disputed Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement. The main opposition Democratic United Party earlier nominated senior advisor Rep. Chung Dong-young as its candidate for the Gangnam-B constituency....
Japan readies missile units ahead of N.K. launch

North KoreaMar 27, 2012

TOKYO (AP) ― Japan’s defense minister on Tuesday ordered interceptor missile units to prepare for North Korea’s rocket launch next month. The ``Unha-3’’ rocket is expected to fly over western Japan after it is launched from a pad on North Korea’s west coast between April 14-16. That has raised concerns that a failed launch, or a falling stage of the rocket, could endanger Japanese lives or prope...
North Korean leader elected as delegate to key party conference

North KoreaMar 27, 2012

North Korea’s military has elected leader Kim Jong-un as a delegate to the upcoming Workers’ Party conference, the North’s state media reported Tuesday. The development came amid mounting international pressure on the communist country to call off next month’s rocket launch that Pyongyang claims is designed to put a satellite into orbit as part of its peaceful space program. South Korea, the Un...
Saenuri struggles to fend off opposition challenge in Busan

PoliticsMar 27, 2012

The ruling Saenuri Party is struggling to fend off a strong opposition challenge in Busan, one of its traditional strongholds in the southeastern region. To drum up support for her party in next month’s parliamentary election, Saenuri chief Park Geun-hye travelled to the port city Tuesday, her third visit in a month’s time. “New politics that Saenuri dreams to realize is starting right here in ...
N. Korea vows to go ahead with planned rocket launch

North KoreaMar 27, 2012

North Korea vowed Tuesday to go ahead with its planned rocket launch next month, defying successive warnings from global leaders attending the Nuclear Security Summit now under way in Seoul. The North’s defiant stance, released through its foreign ministry, came after Pyongyang announced earlier this month it would launch a long-range rocket in mid-April to put a satellite into orbit as part of ...
Ex-DP leader Sohn faces bribery investigation

PoliticsMar 27, 2012

Prosecutors launched an internal probe into allegations that the main opposition Democratic United Party’s senior advisor Rep. Sohn Hak-kyu bribed regional party members before last year’s Seoul mayoral by-election, officials said Tuesday. A former party member recently claimed that Sohn, who was chairman of the then-Democratic Party at the time, summoned regional committee chairpersons to party...
Age discrimination rife in Korea despite legislation

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

Women in 50s most likely to experience age discrimination in employment When one 50-year-old housewife asked staff at one of the country’s biggest supermarket chains what qualifications were needed for her to be a cashier, she got a nasty surprise. The first thing cashiers told her was that she needed to be under 50. She was told thatunless she has a special qualification or is highly recommen...
Industry fights against drug price cuts

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

Four companies file injunction against 14% discount effective April 1 Pharmaceutical companies and the government are at odds over the new regulation slashing drug prices by an average of 14 percent from April 1. Four drug makers have filed an injunction and annulment suit against the Ministry of Health and Welfare, claiming it threatens the business environment. The ministry on Tuesday defend...
More than 30 executed in N.K. last year: Amnesty

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

More than 30 people in North Korea were executed last year, international human rights watchdog, Amnesty International, reported Tuesday. According to its annual report on capital punishment execution around the world, at least 30 people received the death penalty and were killed, ranking sixth among the list. “In January 2011 unconfirmed reports suggested that more than 200 officials had been ...
Scaffolding collapse injures workers, cause one death at power plant

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

A scaffolding collapse at the nation’s biggest thermal power plant caused one death on Tuesday morning. Thirteen workers fell from a height of about 10 meters when a scaffold set up to assist their maintenance work inside a Boryeong thermal power plant broke down. Ten workers escaped or were rescued by 119 rescue workers right after the accident, and several hours later, three more were rescued...
Longest working hours, earliest retirement age

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

Korean workers are renowned for having the longest working hours in the world. But in terms of official retirement age, they are driven into quitting their jobs earlier than their counterparts in any of the 34 member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Korea does not set the corporate retirement age by law but allows private companies to decide on their own. Acco...
U.S. Gov't: Nuclear bomb in DC wouldn't destroy city

ScienceMar 27, 2012

Hollywood has destroyed Washington -- or New York or Los Angeles -- lots of times with nuclear bombs detonated by terrorists. It turns out to be harder in real life than in the movies. Thinking about the unthinkable, a U.S. government study analyzed the likely effects from terrorists setting off a 10-kiloton nuclear device a few blocks north of the White House. It predicted terrible devastation ...
Three new Japanese textbooks claim Dokdo

Social affairsMar 27, 2012

Noda’s remarks on Korean sex slaves expected to trigger backlash The Japanese government on Wednesday approved three new high school textbooks in the latest round of screenings that claim Dokdo as Japanese territory, instantly sparking a strong protest from the Korean government. The Japanese education ministry announced the first results of the textbook screenings, which are running from 2012-...
First lady hosts cultural performances for leaders' spouses

InternationalMar 27, 2012

South Korean first lady Kim Yoon-ok hosted a luncheon and cultural performances on Tuesday for the visiting spouses of global leaders attending the ongoing Nuclear Security Summit. Seventeen spouses came to Seoul with heads of state and leaders of key international organizations for the global conference, one of the largest international events South Korea has ever hosted. Kim welcomed 15 spous...