Most Popular
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Tensions heighten ahead of first president-opposition chief meeting
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Seoul to provide housing subsidy to married couples with newborns
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[KH Explains] No more 'Michael' at Kakao Games
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Rapper jailed after public street fight with another rapper
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Woman gets suspended term for injuring boyfriend with knife
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Samsung chief bolsters ties with Germany’s Zeiss
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[Grace Kao] Hybe vs. Ador: Inspiration, imitation and plagiarism
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NewJeans pops out ‘Bubble Gum’ video amid troubles at agency
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Med schools expect 1,500+ new admission slots next year
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Nominee for chief of anti-corruption body pledges 'independence, effectiveness'
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Hyosung chief banned from leaving S. Korea for suspected tax evasion
South Korea's tax agency has barred the chief of Hyosung Group, a local family-run conglomerate, and two of the group's executives from leaving the country on suspicion of evading a massive amount of taxes, sources said Wednesday. According to the sources, the National Tax Service (NTS), which conducted a special audit into the group in May, suspects that the group's chairman Cho Suck-rai, 79, had been evading a huge amount of taxes through holding borrowed-named properties.Under a financial law
Sept. 5, 2013
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Spy agency arrests leftist lawmaker on rebellion plot charge
In an unusually speedy manner, the nation's spy agency on Wednesday arrested a leftist lawmaker on charges of plotting to overthrow the government, putting it a step closer to launching a prosecution probe into the scandal.Rep. Lee Seok-ki of the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party (UPP) is accused of leading a secret organization with suspected links to North Korea. The so-called Revolutionary Organization (RO) allegedly devised plans to destroy key infrastructure facilities in the South
Sept. 4, 2013
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NIS to question six related to revolt conspiracy
The National Intelligence Service said Wednesday it would start questioning six individuals ― other than leftist lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki and those already under detention ― for any connection with the rebellion conspiracy or North Korea starting this Friday.The six left-wing political and labor activists are among those whose homes and offices were raided last week. They were initially scheduled to be summoned on Wednesday but were delayed after a request from their legal representative.Among
Sept. 4, 2013
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Assembly passes motion to arrest Lee Seok-ki
The National Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved the motion for the arrest of lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki, suspected of conspiring in an armed revolt, giving the green light to a full-force probe by the National Intelligence Service against the leftist group. Of the 289 attending lawmakers, 258 voted in approval while 14 disapproved and 11 abstained in the secret vote held at the one-point plenary session. Another six were counted as invalid.Following the Assembly’s decision, Lee of the
Sept. 4, 2013
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UPP leader says armed revolt remarks ‘a joke’
Lee Jung-hee, the leader of the minor opposition United Progressive Party, said Wednesday the remark supposedly made by Rep. Lee Seok-ki that led to claims that he was plotting an armed revolt was “a joke.”She also claimed someone else in the alleged secret meeting of left-wing figures made the controversial comment. “Out of 130 people in the meeting, one or two people mentioned hijacking arms and destroying infrastructure, which everyone else took as a joke,” Lee said in a press conference held
Sept. 4, 2013
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NIS to question six related to revolt conspiracy
The National Intelligence Service said Wednesday they will start questioning six individuals -- other than leftist lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki and those already under detention -- for any connection with the rebellion conspiracy or North Korea starting this Friday.The six left-wing political and labor activists are among those whose homes and offices were raided last week. They were initially scheduled to be summoned on Wednesday but were delayed upon the request from their legal representative.Am
Sept. 4, 2013
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Prosecutors probe Lee for links to North Korean spying
Prosecutors have reportedly secured circumstantial evidence that lawmaker Lee Seok-ki and his alleged underground organization are linked to North Korea’s espionage operations against the South.The politician also visited North Korea as part of the Mount Geumgang tour in 2005 and 2007, but any ulterior motive remains unconfirmed.Lee, a member of the minor Unified Progressive Party, is accused of conspiring to stage an armed revolt and forming an anti-state organization called “Revolutionary Orga
Sept. 3, 2013
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[Newsmaker] Park headed to first G20
President Park Geun-hye leaves for Russia on Wednesday to attend the G20 summit, making her debut in multinational summit diplomacy. Park will also make a state visit to Vietnam later this week as the first leg of her “sales diplomacy.”The eighth G20 Summit will be held Sept. 5-6 in St. Petersburg under the theme, “The Growth of the Global Economy and the Creation of Quality Jobs.”In her lead speech at the first session, Park is expected to highlight the need for the major economies’ cooperation
Sept. 3, 2013
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PJP leader urges Lee apologize for armed revolt allegations
Sim Sang-jeung, chairperson of the Progressive Justice Party and a prominent opposition figure, urged Rep. Lee Seok-ki to apologize to the people of South Korea over accusations of plotting to overthrow the government.“As a member of a political party, he (Lee) needs to sincerely apologize to the shocked people for bringing about such an incident,” Sim said in an interview on a KBS radio show. “Apart from the legal judgment on the plot for armed revolt, Lee’s words and actions were anachronistic
Sept. 3, 2013
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Lee planned ‘speedy war,’ prosecutors say
Lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki allegedly called on his colleagues to prepare to conduct a “speedy war” against the South Korean government should Pyongyang issue an order to attack, according to a transcript of his address during their secret meeting in May. Lee, of the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party, is accused of forming an underground pro-North Korean organization and plotting and instigating an armed revolt.The group, known only as the “revolutionary organization,” is thought to have
Sept. 2, 2013
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[Newsmaker] ‘Conspiracy to rebel’ charge rocks nation
The rebellion charge faced by leftist lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki has rocked not only the political arena but the entire country, which is still ideologically divided in the midst of constant threats from North Korea.The best-known insurrection case was in 1980, albeit in vastly different circumstances. Then opposition leader Kim Dae-jung, who later became president, was sentenced to death by the military junta in its move to oppress the democratic movement. He was declared innocent in 2004.Anothe
Sept. 2, 2013
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Veteran politician to head local autonomy panel
President Park Geun-hye named a former veteran administrator and politician Monday to lead a presidential committee charged with developing plans on moving more of administrative power and roles from the central government to local authorities.Sim Dae-pyung, who served as governor of South Chungcheong Province four times between 1988 and 2006, was named chairman of the Presidential Committee on Local Autonomy Development, senior presidential press secretary Lee Jung-hyun said.Former ruling party
Sept. 2, 2013
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Lawmaker accused of rebellion visited N. Korea twice
The lawmaker who was recently accused of plotting to overthrow the government had visited North Korea on two different occasions, the government said Monday.Rep. Lee Seok-ki, a first-term lawmaker of the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party, is suspected of organizing an underground entity called the Revolutionary Organization with the aim of subverting the South Korean government and blowing up infrastructure facilities throughout the country.Reports have said Lee traveled to North Korea
Sept. 2, 2013
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UPP leader goes on hunger strike, protests ‘witch hunt’
Lee Jung-hee, chairperson of the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party, went on a hunger strike on Monday to protest what she called a “witch hunt” against UPP lawmaker Lee Seok-ki, who recently was accused of plotting an armed revolt.“A democratic person must put an end to the witch hunt against Rep. Lee Seok-ki, whether or not you agree with him,” Lee said at a press conference held at 1:40 p.m. in front of the National Assembly. “In order to stop the arrest motion on Lee from being passe
Sept. 2, 2013
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Park signs motion for parliamentary consent to opposition lawmaker's arrest
President Park Geun-hye signed a request Monday for parliamentary consent to arrest a leftist lawmaker accused of plotting to overthrow South Korea's government in a daring scheme suspected of links to North Korea.The motion for the arrest of Rep. Lee Seok-ki of the Unified Progressive Party was sent to the National Assembly for approval shortly after Park's signing. Parliamentary consent is required to arrest him because lawmakers are immune from detention while the parliament is in session.A m
Sept. 2, 2013
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UPP faces further isolation
The minor opposition Unified Progressive Party is becoming increasingly isolated as its former leftist allies are turning their backs over allegations that its leading members plotted an armed revolt.As the two main parties appear ready to approve the government’s request to allow the arrest of key suspect Rep. Lee Seok-ki within the week, the UPP on Sunday fired back at the National Intelligence Service, claiming that the agency had paid a party member to spy on its activities for an extended p
Sept. 1, 2013
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DP returns to Yeouido, unveils new logo
The main opposition Democratic Party on Sunday opened its new headquarters in Yeouido, returning to Seoul’s political center after nine years away. In 2004, the party relocated to Yeongdeung-po, a relatively underdeveloped area in southern Seoul, following criticism that its headquarters were too luxurious. In making the move to the new office, which is about 90 percent smaller than its previous office, the DP relocated a number of departments to the National Assembly in order to cut costs. Acco
Sept. 1, 2013
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Korea eyes infrastructure projects in Turkey
ISTANBUL (Yonhap News) ― Prime Minister Chung Hong-won called for Turkey’s support for South Korean companies trying to win more infrastructure deals in the West Asian country, a Seoul official accompanying him said Saturday.Chung was in Turkey on the last of his eight-day trip that also took him to Bahrain, Qatar and Sri Lanka. On Saturday, he met with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Istanbul.In July, a consortium led by Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co. won a $697 mill
Sept. 1, 2013
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Parliament to handle arrest request for Lee next week
The National Assembly is expected to handle the court's request to arrest Rep. Lee Seok-ki, who has been accused of conspiring to start an armed rebellion, next week, insiders said Saturday. Lee and some members of the Unified Progressive Party have been accused by the National Intelligence Service of planning an armed revolt if war breaks out with North Korea. The country's spy agency said the people under investigation hatched a plot to attack key infrastructure in the South to aid the North
Aug. 31, 2013
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Govt. to pick business delegates for president’s overseas trips
The government will directly recruit the economic delegation for the president’s overseas visits to enhance the transparency of the selection process and provide wider opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday. So far, leading business organizations have been responsible for picking the delegation, raising concerns that the participants tended to be focused on conglomerates, limiting the access of smaller enterprises.The new policy goes into effect starting f
Aug. 30, 2013