Most Popular
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Yoon’s jailed mother-in-law excluded from latest parole list
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[Herald Interview] 'Amid aging population, Korea to invite more young professionals from overseas'
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Korea’s homegrown nanosatellite successfully launches into space
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Nicaragua shuts down Seoul embassy
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Rocket engine expert, ex-NASA exec to lead Korea's new space agency
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SNU profs to suspend treatment for one day
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SK hynix pledges W20tr to ramp up DRAM production at home
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Hybe's multilabel system tested amid conflict with Ador
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Aging population to drive down Korea's housing prices from 2040: experts
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Over-50s, men, single-person households take up majority of those filing for bankruptcy
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Candidates eschew flashy campaigns
In terms of campaigning, the race for Seoul mayor was characterized by how relatively unflashy it was, focusing instead on volunteering and directly communicating with citizens.The most conspicuous change from past races was the relative lack of loudspeakers, which were typical of street campaigning in the past.The two candidates decided they should listen more and speak less to win the public’s heart, especially considering the public’s general discontent with politics and the ongoing economic
Oct. 26, 2011
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Voters hope new Seoul mayor will bring better welfare
Although it was early in the morning with the mercury dipping to 3 degrees Celsius, the lowest this fall, voters in Seoul cast their ballots in the hopes that the new mayor would enhance their welfare. Featuring an unprecedented contest between a ruling party standard-bearer and a civil society leader, the by-election drew keen attention as its outcome was expected to be a crucial gauge of public sentiment ahead of the general and presidential elections next year.“All voters including myself wan
Oct. 26, 2011
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Election a warm-up for presidential race
GNP hopefuls’ push for Blue House candidacy may sap Lee’s powerThe by-elections on Wednesday cleared the runways for presidential aspirants to make their sorties for the big race next year, pushing President Lee Myung-bak deeper into his lame duck status. The bustle for the 2012 election within the ruling party, which began to turn a cold shoulder to Lee early this year by boycotting his top state auditor nominee, is to overshadow Cheong Wa Dae at a much greater pace.The Seoul mayoral by-electi
Oct. 26, 2011
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Parliamentary committee passes procedural law on FTAs
SEOUL, Oct. 25 (Yonhap) -- A parliamentary trade committee on Tuesday passed a law on the procedures for signing and implementation of a trade pact, considered a first step to ratifying the long-delayed Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA).The procedural law makes it mandatory for the government to
Oct. 26, 2011
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Voting under way for Seoul mayoral, local by-elections
Polls opened Wednesday for the Seoul mayoral vote and other local by-elections seen as a significant test for the rival parties and presidential hopefuls before South Korea elects a new parliament and a new president next year.At stake are the Seoul mayoralty and 11 other posts in smaller local muni
Oct. 26, 2011
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Lee to write to lawmakers on FTA
Assembly committee to begin deliberation on U.S. free trade dealPresident Lee Myung-bak plans to send a letter to parliamentarians urging them to swiftly ratify a pending free trade agreement with the United States, officials at the presidential office said Tuesday. In the letter to be sent to all 295 members of the National Assembly, Lee will appeal to opposition lawmakers that the ratification motion should at least be processed in accordance with parliamentary rules. The bill currently stands
Oct. 25, 2011
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Rivals enter last day campaign sprint
GNP’s Na tours city on foot; independent Park spends whole night campaigning in streetsThe conservative and the liberal candidates for Seoul mayor were hard at last-minute campaigning Tuesday, a day before polls open.The Grand National Party and its candidate Na Kyung-won urged conservative voters to unite and stand against the left-wing bloc, while unified liberal candidate Park Won-soon and the Democratic Party focused on ensuring a high turnout, especially among younger voters.“I hope that th
Oct. 25, 2011
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Lee’s book stresses unification, green growth
President’s English autobiography ‘The Uncharted Path’ to be published in U.S. on Nov. 1President Lee Myung-bak reiterated his commitment to unification with North Korea and his trademark policy of “green growth” in his upcoming autobiography, saying a unified Korea would be a blessing for the world, and he would continue to champion a greener future after leaving office.“A peaceful peninsula will have enormous benefits that will go far beyond the region,” Lee says in the English-language autobi
Oct. 25, 2011
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Turnout in age groups key factor in by-election
Surveys show Park backed by 20s and 30s, but Na prevails among 50s and upWith Wednesday’s Seoul mayoral vote widely perceived as a curtain-raiser to the presidential race next year, political observers are zeroing in on several key factors that could determine the outcome such as the voter turnout among the young and the weather.Latest surveys showed that opposition candidate Park Won-soon was mostly backed by voters in their 20s and 30s while support for ruling the Grand National Party’s Rep. N
Oct. 25, 2011
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Economic slowdown to affect 2012 polls
The economic slowdown, if it extends well into next year, may hold sway over the results of the parliamentary and presidential elections, observers say.The ruling Grand National Party and its presidential frontrunner Rep. Park Geun-hye are positioned to feel the chill from a cooling economy more than the opposition bloc.Aides to Park have recently expressed concerns over the impact of the prolonged economic slump on her prospects for succeeding in her second presidential challenge. They fear det
Oct. 25, 2011
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Lawmakers move to raise penalties on rapes of children, disabled
SEOUL, Oct. 25 (Yonhap) -- Lawmakers on Tuesday moved to raise penalties for rapes of children and disabled people in a bid to curb sex crimes against the most vulnerable.A sub-committee of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee passed a revision bill lifting the statute of limita
Oct. 25, 2011
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Despite some progress, parties still split on FTA
Opposition rejects proposal for special parliamentary address by LeePolitical parties made some progress Monday in talks over the proposed free trade agreement with the U.S., but key differences remained. Two committees of the National Assembly began the handling of all 14 bills that need to be approved for the FTA to take effect. The bills would revise local rules to abolish tariffs and import barriers between the two countries.Members of the National Assembly’s foreign affairs and trade commit
Oct. 24, 2011
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Will Ahn’s backing be decisive factor in Seoul election?
DP predicts win, while GNP denies Ahn effect on raceProfessor Ahn Cheol-soo finally responded to the liberal bloc’s repeated calls on Sunday and announced he would campaign for candidate Park Won-soon ahead of Wednesday’s Seoul mayoral election.The Seoul National University professor expressed his intent to support the civic activist, according to sources in Park’s camp. “Ahn called Park this evening and offered his hand, saying that he shall specify and confirm his decision tomorrow,” said Park
Oct. 24, 2011
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Lee promotes career bureaucrat to vice unification minister
President Lee Myung-bak on Monday promoted Kim Chun-sig, one of his chief negotiators with North Korea, to vice minister of unification, on the advice of his close friend who became minister a month ago.Lee is also expected to name later this week, after Wednesday’s by-elections, successors to the knowledge economy minister and chief of the Presidential Security Service who resigned last month and last week, respectively. Lee was mulling former and incumbent police chiefs, one of his aides said
Oct. 24, 2011
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Lee to meet Medvedev in St. Petersburg, attend Cannes G20
President Lee Myung-bak will fly to St. Petersburg next week for a summit with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and an annual Korea-Russia dialogue before heading to Cannes to attend the G20 Summit.Lee is scheduled to arrive at St. Petersburg next Tuesday and hold summit talks with Medvedev on Wednesday during which the two leaders are expected to deal with the envisioned project to pipe Siberian gas to South Korea via North Korea.Talks are under way between the South’s Korea Gas Corp. and Russ
Oct. 24, 2011
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Ahn decides to back liberal candidate Park in Seoul mayoral race
The rival candidates for Seoul mayor ratcheted up their last-minute campaigns Monday, two days ahead of the vote, closely eyeing how star IT expert Ahn Cheol-soo's call for support for the opposition candidate would affect the close race.Ahn Cheol-soo (Yonhap News)Ahn, who had previously been consid
Oct. 24, 2011
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Candidates campaign for swing votes
The two frontrunners for Wednesday’s Seoul mayoral race braced themselves over the weekend for the last two days of their election campaign, aiming at attracting a maximum number of swing votes.According to recent public polls, the number of undecided swing votes greatly rose, especially among the moderate 40s group, reflecting the public’s disapproval of the mudslinging between the candidates.Na Kyung-won of the ruling Grand National Party focused on getting in direct contact with the voters by
Oct. 23, 2011
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Parliament to vote on U.S. FTA ratification Monday
The Korean parliament is expected to vote on the ratification of a free trade pact with the U.S. on Monday, after a last round of discussions over the long-delayed deal. The U.S. Congress passed the deal as President Lee Myung-bak was visiting Washington for summit talks with President Barack Obama
Oct. 23, 2011
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Tight races forecast in Busan, Chungju
Local by-elections hotly contested in prelude to major elections next yearThe Seoul mayoral contest, where independent Park Won-soon and the ruling Grand National Party’s Na Kyung-won are running a tight race, is by far the most intense and important in Wednesday’s by-elections. But several provinci
Oct. 23, 2011
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Obama signs FTAs with S. Korea, Colombia, Panama
WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law a free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea, completing a long-delayed process in Washington to put the accord, expected to help create jobs, into effect.The FTA still requires ratification by South Korea's National Assembly, embr
Oct. 22, 2011