Most Popular
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Hyundai Motor eyes 80,000 jobs, W68tr investment at home by 2026
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Seoul bus drivers go on general strike, cause morning rush hour delays
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Korea enters full election mode
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Official campaigning kicks off for April 10 elections
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Dialogue hopes fade as doctors pick hard-liner as new head
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Immigrant woman stabbed to death by Korean husband
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Coupang pledges W3tr to expand Rocket Delivery nationwide by 2027
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[Election Battlefield] Political novice to face off star politician in ‘swing district’
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[Herald Interview] Son Suk-ku chooses to be swayed by others in navigating life
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Seoul’s bus union prepares for strike
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Tae Yong-ho announces second bid for Assembly
Ruling People Power Party Rep. Tae Yong-ho, who was formerly a senior diplomat for North Korea, said Monday he will run for a second term in the National Assembly in a Seoul district typically lenient toward the rival party. Tae, who is the first North Korean defector to be elected in a constituency, said he would vie for a second Assembly term in Guro against Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Youn Kun-young. “Gangnam has been my political hometown after I left North Korea and began a new lif
Jan. 29, 2024
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Former first lady's Chanel jacket row revived as ruling party returns fire
Amid escalating tensions over graft accusations against first lady Kim Keon Hee involving a Christian Dior handbag, the ruling party on Monday called for an investigation into similar allegations surrounding the former first lady. The People Power Party brought up long-standing allegations that former President Moon Jae-in's wife Kim Jung-sook used taxpayers' money to purchase a custom-made Chanel jacket in around 2018. "What really needs to be addressed and questioned is the curr
Jan. 29, 2024
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Yoon's office mulls action against JTBC for subtitle error
President Yoon Suk Yeol's office is considering taking action against broadcaster JTBC for a subtitled video it aired that the office says misrepresented his remarks. A JTBC news clip showed Yoon on Thursday telling vendors at a traditional market that he would put forward "effort to make the napa cabbage (price) go higher" in the subtitle, while Yoon's office contends the president had actually emphasized "effort to make their sales go higher." "There are many
Jan. 29, 2024
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[Bills in Focus] Bills on construction defect liability, contracts
Proposed Bill: Special Act on the Change of Jurisdiction of Hanam-gu from Gyeonggi-do to Seoul Metropolitan City Proposed by Rep. Lee Yong (People Power Party) ● This proposed bill backs up the ruling People Power Party's "megacity" scheme that intends to incorporate cities near Seoul into the capital administratively. The "megacity" scheme attempts to "merge areas where people live with with the matching administrative jurisdiction," Seoul. The bill argues th
Jan. 29, 2024
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DP leader Lee labels govt. 'cold-blooded' over anticipated rejection of Itaewon special bill
Main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung criticized the government Monday for its anticipated rejection of a special bill calling for a renewed investigation into the Itaewon crowd crush in 2022. The main opposition Democratic Party, which holds a controlling majority in the National Assembly, railroaded the special bill on Jan. 9, following the breakdown of negotiations with the ruling People Power Party. However, the Cabinet is set to hold a meeting Tuesday to pass a motion demanding the National
Jan. 29, 2024
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Yoon, PPP chief to have lunch amid signs of reconciliation
President Yoon Suk Yeol and ruling party chief Han Dong-hoon will have lunch at the presidential office Monday, an official said, their second meeting in less than a week after clashing over allegations involving first lady Kim Keon Hee. Han of the People Power Party will attend the luncheon together with People Power Party floor leader Yun Jae-ok, presidential chief of staff Lee Kwan-sup and senior presidential secretary for political affairs Han Oh-seop, according to the official. The Yoon-Han
Jan. 29, 2024
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Pressure mounting on Yoon to address first lady's bag scandal
President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing mounting pressure to clarify his stance regarding the revelation of an alleged graft case involving first lady Kim Keon Hee. A Gallup Korea's poll on Friday showed that 63 percent of South Korean people disapproved of Yoon's performance in the fourth week of January, up 5 percentage points from the week before. Yoon's disapproval rating has hit its highest point in nine months since April 2023, when his remarks suggested that the past during Japan's colonial occ
Jan. 28, 2024
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Yoon critic vows to stay in PPP
Yoo Seong-min, a former four-term lawmaker, said Sunday he would not run in the April general election but rather protect his party, deflecting speculation that he would leave the party. Yoo, a former lawmaker who is considered a key critic of President Yoon Suk Yeol in the People Power Party, announced in a Facebook post that he will not apply for the election nomination and would continue to wait as he has done. "Twenty-four years ago, I joined the Grand National Party (the predecessor
Jan. 28, 2024
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Ruling party lawmaker leaves hospital after brick attack by teenager
Rep. Bae Hyun-jin of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) was discharged from the hospital Saturday, days after she was hit in the head with a brick by a teenager. Bae described the attack she suffered as an accident that can happen to anybody, vowing to work "harder than ever" to ensure the safety of the people as soon as she fully recovers. "I realized, after becoming a direct victim of an unimaginable incident, that this kind of a terrible thing is a fatal threat to which an
Jan. 27, 2024
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Second attack on politician amplifies safety concerns as election looms
A teenager's attack against a ruling party lawmaker on Thursday, which came less than a month after a stabbing incident involving the main opposition leader, has fueled worries over the safety of politicians ahead of April's general election. People Power Party Rep. Bae Hyun-jin remained hospitalized as of Friday afternoon after the 41-year-old lawmaker was repeatedly struck in the head with a blunt object by a teenage assailant in Gangnam-gu the previous day. Bae was rushed to hospita
Jan. 26, 2024
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Opposition leader accuses Yoon of covering up first lady's allegations
Main opposition leader Lee Jae-myung accused President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday of interfering in the affairs of the ruling People Power Party and covering up suspicions of wrongdoing involving the first lady. The comments followed Yoon's public clash with Han Dong-hoon, the chief of the ruling People Power Party, over allegations that first lady Kim Keon Hee received a luxury bag as a gift in 2022 and concerns about party nominations for the upcoming general elections in April. "The pr
Jan. 26, 2024
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Speaker blasts Yoon bodyguards' 'excessive' use of force
National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo on Thursday criticized the president's bodyguards' use of force against a minor party lawmaker at a recent event. Calling the restraint "excessive," he warned that such actions should not be repeated and called for the Cabinet and the parliament to have mutual respect. "Appropriate solutions must be adopted, to prevent such excessive measures from the president's bodyguards," Kim said during a speech at Thursday's pl
Jan. 25, 2024
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Ruling party lawmaker assaulted by teenager
People Power Party Rep. Bae Hyun-jin was struck multiple times in the head with a blunt object by a teenage assailant on Thursday, police said. Bae was entering a building in Sinsa-dong, southern Seoul, when she was attacked at around 5:18 p.m., according to a report filed with the police. The report identified the blunt object as a stone. The 41-year-old TV broadcaster-turned-lawmaker was immediately rushed to the hospital. Bae suffered a "1-centimeter laceration" on her scalp,
Jan. 25, 2024
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Presidential office names new senior science secretary in R&D push
President Yoon Suk Yeol's office announced on Thursday it has created a new senior secretary post for science and technology to embolden the administration's push for research and development. Park Sang-ook, associate professor of science policy at Seoul National University, will take the new role, according to Yoon's office. Park, under Sung Tae-yoon, presidential chief of staff for policy, will supervise four presidential secretaries -- each dedicated to R&D-related policy,
Jan. 25, 2024
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Reality check: How diverse is Korea really? LGBTQ+ and politics (4)
South Korea defaults to heterosexuality as the predominant sexual identity publicly represented by political leaders. Among national politicians and elected parliamentarians, there have not been any public disclosures of a politician's sexual orientation throughout Korea’s entire legislative history. This lack of openly acknowledged LGBTQ+ representation in the country's top political leadership underscores the degree of exclusion and discrimination faced by LGBTQ+ individuals in
Jan. 25, 2024
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Korea unveils W134tr rail plan to cut Seoul commutes to 30 minutes
South Korea on Thursday unveiled a spending package worth 134 trillion won ($100.4 billion) to achieve a 30-minute commute for residents in the Greater Seoul area, mainly through a new suburban rail network called the GTX. The plan encompasses spending 38.6 trillion won to build GTX routes aimed at shrinking daily commute times to a quarter of what they are currently. The GTX, or Great Train Express, will comprise six lines covering the Greater Seoul area, as well as potentially parts of Gangwon
Jan. 25, 2024
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Main opposition leader proposes military pay raise
The main opposition party on Wednesday rolled out a set of pledges aimed at improving the livelihoods of soldiers here, including raising their night and weekend shift payments. The pledges were announced by Democratic Party of Korea Chair Lee Jae-myung during his visit to the Second Marine Division in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, in the morning. The party plans to help the Ministry of Defense raise the weekday late shift pay for soldiers from the current 10,000 won ($7.50) to 30,000 won per shif
Jan. 24, 2024
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Reality check: How diverse is Korea really? Disabilities and politics (3)
As of 2022, individuals with disabilities make up 5.2 percent of South Korea's population. Using basic arithmetic, this percentage corresponds to approximately 15 seats in the country’s 300-member unicameral parliament. In reality, just four seats are currently occupied by individuals with disabilities, constituting only 1.3 percent. The first person with a disability to win a parliamentary seat as a constituency representative was Lee Chul-yong. In 1988, on the ticket of the libera
Jan. 24, 2024
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Yoon-Han meeting at fire-torn market signals mending ties
President Yoon Suk Yeol and the People Power Party's interim leader Han Dong-hoon met on Tuesday at a traditional market in Seocheon, South Chungcheong Province, signaling their efforts to mend the political rift that stemmed from differing views toward allegations of graft involving first lady Kim Keon Hee and questions about Han's fairness in the candidate nomination process. Han told reporters at Seoul Station, as he returned to the capital city after the surprise trip, his "deep respect
Jan. 23, 2024
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Yoon's ex-boss named justice minister nominee
President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday picked his former boss Park Sung-jae, who led the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office, as the nominee for the minister of justice. The Justice Ministry oversees legal affairs, correctional services, the prosecution service and immigration. The nominee must go through a confirmation hearing in the National Assembly before receiving Yoon's final approval. Presidential Chief of Staff Lee Kwan-sup said Park would be a good fit for the Yoon administration'
Jan. 23, 2024