Most Popular
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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Hybe-Ador feud should have limited effect on Hybe's overall performance: analysts
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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First-ever meeting of president, opposition chief set to finally happen
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NewJeans' singles, Japanese debut to proceed as planned, despite Hybe-Ador feud
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Experts raise concerns about Japan putting pressure on Naver over Line
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Samsung mobile chief, Google device head meet in Seoul
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Blinken calls on China to press N. Korea to end its 'dangerous' behavior
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Ship linked to NK arms shipments to Russia is moored in China: State Dept.
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Acid leak reported at LG Siltron plant
Hydrofluoric acid was allegedly leaked Saturday evening from the LG Siltron plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, according to police. The leakage was reported to local authorities on Sunday morning, 16 hours after the initial leak was detected at 8:34 p.m. on Saturday, raising suspicions of a cover up. According to police, some 30 to 60 liters of mixed hydrofluoric, nitric and acetic acid was leaked from the Gumi plant 2 of LG Siltron, a producer of wafers used in semiconductor manufacturin
March 3, 2013
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Seoul to grant financial support to foreign firms
Seoul City will grant financial aid to foreign investment firms in the “new growth engine” industries that helped to create jobs last year, the city government said Sunday. Foreign firms that established their branches or made investments in Seoul within five years of application and hired more than 10 new employees in 2012 are eligible for the support.The rate of foreign investment should be at least 30 percent to receive the benefits worth up to 200 million won ($180,000).Firms that have provi
March 3, 2013
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Four-river project may face full-scale overhaul
Building a canal by connecting the country’s four major rivers was one of the top pledges of former President Lee Myung-bak’s presidential campaign in 2007.In the face of popular opposition, the project was scaled down to refurbishing the Hangang, Nakdonggang, Yeongsangang and Geumgang rivers to clean them up, increase water supply and prevent floods. The project, however, continued to face strong resistance from the opposition and civic environmental groups for its alleged negative effects on t
March 3, 2013
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U.S. soldier shot by police in car chase through Seoul
An American soldier was in stable condition Sunday after being shot by South Korean authorities during a late-night car chase, police said Sunday.According to Seoul’s Yongsan Police Station, police received calls shortly before midnight Saturday that two American soldiers, including the injured, were threatening civilians with an air gun in the district of Itaewon. The two U.S. soldiers were approached by Seoul police near Itaewon Station, but they refused to identify themselves and fled in a ve
March 3, 2013
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Alienated teenager kills uncle, injures seven other relatives
A jobless teenager went on a knife rampage at his grandfather's house in Gwangju on Sunday, killing his uncle and injuring seven others, including his grandparents, police said.The 19-year-old man, identified only by his surname Kim, surrendered to police after the spree and told investigators that he stabbed his relatives shortly after midnight Saturday for having ignored and insulted his "poor" parents at family gatherings, according to the Gwangsan Police Station.At the scene of knife rampage
March 3, 2013
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Songpa, an epitome of green city
Seoul’s Songpa District boasts ample cultural heritage, verdant landscapes and salubrious neighborhoods with a slew of parks and lakeside trails providing its residents with a quick getaway from it all. One of the world’s most livable communities recognized by the United Nations, the eastern district spearheads Seoul’s efforts to cope with climate change, pollution and other urban challenges. The municipality runs three solar power plants, raising the supply of renewable energy and helping the u
Feb. 28, 2013
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Seoul, N.Y. events to mark March 1 Movement
Koreans in Seoul and New York are set to hold various events Friday to mark the March 1 Independence Movement.March 1 is a national holiday in Korea which commemorates the independence movement against the Japanese colonial occupation in 1919. The nationwide uprising is one of the most significant protests against Japan’s colonization of Korea, which ended in 1945 at the end of World War II.Seodaemun Prison History Hall will host a “3.1 experience program,” incorporating the core ideology of the
Feb. 28, 2013
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Probe finds rampant labor law violations by E-Mart
The Ministry of Employment and Labor said Thursday that it has found a number of labor law violations at E-Mart and will take disciplinary measures if the company refuses to correct its unfair practices.“We found a number of cases of E-Mart violating the law by raiding the company’s headquarters and 24 branches twice and questioning officials,” an official said.Through a intensive inspection since mid-February, the ministry discovered that E-Mart has been illegally using nearly 2,000 employees o
Feb. 28, 2013
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Woman arrested for false emergency call
A Busan woman was taken into custody after she made a false emergency call, police said Thursday.Officials at the Gyeonggi Uiwang Police Station said they had detained a 42-year-old woman surnamed Kim for calling the 112 Crime Report Center for a non-emergency situation. The officials added that the case had been transferred to the Busan police.According to the police, Kim dialed the Busan emergency center around midnight Tuesday and yelled “Help!” before hanging up the phone. Busan police said
Feb. 28, 2013
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‘Korea’s elderly welfare spending 2nd lowest among OECD nations’
The poverty rate of South Korea’s elderly population was the highest among advanced countries, but the country’s spending for their welfare was one of the lowest in 2011, a report showed Wednesday.According to the report from the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, South Korea was ranked the second lowest among all members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in terms of its spending for the welfare of elders.From 2006 to 2008, South Korea’s government spending
Feb. 27, 2013
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Survey finds 15 percent of Korean students overweight
About 15 percent of the country’s primary and secondary school students are overweight, due mainly to bad dietary habits and a lack of exercise, a survey showed Wednesday.According to the survey conducted by the education ministry of 87,000 students of the country’s 758 elementary, middle and high schools, 14.7 percent were classified as obese, up by 0.4 parentage point from a year earlier.The ratio of the obese students has been on a constant rise from 11.2 percent in 2008 to 13.2 percent in 20
Feb. 27, 2013
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Row over teachers’ union tests Park’s labor policy
A simmering dispute between the government and a progressive teachers’ union over its membership rules poses a major challenge to President Park Geun-hye, who has made healing social divides a top policy goal. The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union has defied the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s order to revise its bylaws, which illegally recognize fired educational workers as members. The ministry warned last week that unless the union complies, it will be deprived of legal status as
Feb. 27, 2013
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Why leadership education matters
Liberal arts and leadership education are crucial in today’s rapidly changing world, said the president of Claremont McKenna College, a prestigious liberal arts college in Claremont, California, noted for its leadership development programs.“Liberal arts is teaching you life-time skills,” said Pamela Brooks Gann, the president of CMC, during an interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul. “It’s teaching you critical thinking. Most of the hard problems that have to be solved today are interdisciplin
Feb. 27, 2013
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ACRC strives to boost transparency, civil rights
Five years after its inception, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission has become the nation’s most satisfactory public agency thanks to its strenuous efforts to improve services and find solutions to citizens’ complaints.The ACRC was established in 2008 by combining three state organizations ― the Ombudsman of Korea, the Independent Commission against Corruption and the Administrative Appeals Commission.It has continued to innovate its services anchored in its “field-oriented” approach
Feb. 27, 2013
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ACRC awards contributors to civil rights
The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission on Wednesday declared Feb. 27 the national civil rights day, and awarded medals and commendations to individuals for contributing to anti-corruption and civil rights issues.Feb. 27 is the date on which King Taejong of the Joseon era ordered the Sinmungo to be installed. The Sinmungo was a drum set up outside the king’s palace that could be sounded to bring the authorities’ attention to complaints about state affairs or personal grievances.At the ce
Feb. 27, 2013
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Coolant leaks at nuclear power plant but no injury reported
GYEONGJU, South Korea (Yonhap News) -- A small amount of coolant leaked from a nuclear power plant under repair earlier this week but there were no reports of injuries, the plant's operator said Tuesday.Eleven workers were hurriedly evacuated after the leak was reported at the Wolseong nuclear power plant near the southeastern provincial city of Gyeongju shortly after noon on Sunday, the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power said.Laboratory tests later found only negligible amounts of radioactiv
Feb. 26, 2013
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[Newsmaker] Gallery Seomi under tax evasion probe
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said Tuesday it has launched an investigation into Gallery Seomi, one of the most prominent art galleries in Korea, and its director Hong Song-won on suspicion of evading billions of won in taxes. Much attention is being paid to the case as it could cause a ripple effect up to some of the chaebol families who have long been in close relations with the gallery and Hong. The gallery is suspected of avoiding taxes by omitting some of its profits from i
Feb. 26, 2013
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Divorce rate still high among multicultural families: report
Nearly four out of 10 multicultural marriages break down within the first five years, a report suggested on Tuesday. According to Korean Women’s Development Institute, some 37.8 percent of the international couples studied divorced or separated within five years. However, the divorce rate last year was a drop from 53.1 percent within years in 2009, the institute said. About one-third of married couples ended their marriages because their spouses ran away and another 30 percent because of irrecon
Feb. 26, 2013
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7 face trial for negligence after Samsung plant gas leak
HWASEONG (Yonhap News) ― A total of seven people, including three officials of Samsung Electronics Co.’s chip plant, have been indicted on charges of professional negligence that led to last month’s fatal hydrofluoric acid gas leak, police said Tuesday.Up to 10 liters of diluted hydrofluoric acid, a colorless acute poison that can damage the lungs and bones and even affect the nervous system, leaked from one of the valves at the main semiconductor factory of the world’s largest memory chip maker
Feb. 26, 2013
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Fine sought for 2 prosecutors for leaking suspect's photo
Prosecutors said Tuesday they have sought fines and asked for summary judgments against two of their own on charges of copying and circulating a digital photo of a female suspect who had sex with a trainee prosecutor during questioning.The scandal centers around allegations that a trainee prosecutor engaged in sexual acts with a suspect charged with theft during questioning at his office last year. A photo of the 42-year-old suspect later spread through the Internet and the woman asked police to
Feb. 26, 2013