Most Popular
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Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
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S. Korea votes in favor of Palestinian bid for UN membership
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Russia's denial of entry of S. Korean national unrelated to bilateral ties: Seoul official
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Bae Doo-na shares portraying Korean identity in Hollywood's 'Rebel Moon'
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[From the Scene] Monks, Buddhists hail return of remains of Buddhas
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Medical schools granted enrollment quota flexibility for next year
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Yoon offers first one-on-one meeting with opposition leader next week
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Iran fires air defense batteries in provinces as sound of explosions heard near Isfahan
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France rejects opening Paris flight routes to T'way Air, deals blow to Korean Air merger
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Chinese man behind drug scam targeting teens nabbed in Cambodia
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N.K. defector gives self up to police
A North Korean defector who arrived in Jeju Island by air from China, has turned herself in, the police said Sunday.The defector, surnamed Kim, 41, arrived at Jeju International Airport at 2:30 on Sunday from Bejing. Kim passed through immigration with a fake Chinese passport. After failing to get a visa to come to the South, she reportedly chose to come to Jeju, which has not required a visa from Chinese travelers since 2008.An organization that supports North Korean defectors is said to have h
Aug. 27, 2012
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Korea to ease college regulations
The government announced on Monday a set of measures to ease regulations on local universities as part of its plan to boost their international competiveness through enhanced autonomy.The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said that it will soften rules on government subsidies to the institutions and allow private institutions for the first time to have residence halls off-campus.The 32 guidelines for university reform were presented during a special committee meeting presided over by
Aug. 27, 2012
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Korea mulls increased use of chemical castration
The government will consider applying chemical castration to a larger number of sex offenders.At a ministerial meeting presided over by Prime Minister Kim Hwang-shik on Monday, officials agreed to consider plans to widen the application of the method. The attending ministers, however, are reported to have reached the decision that having all sex offenders treated with chemicals, as suggested by the ruling Saenuri Party, was excessive and potentially violated human rights. On Sunday, the Saenuri
Aug. 27, 2012
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Parties sell tuition cuts to young voters
Assembly Voice looks into key issues and controversial bills through a series of interviews with rival lawmakers who lead the legislative debate at the National Assembly ― Ed.Sky-high college tuition has been a thorny social problem over the past few years. Students took to the streets in protest. Rival parties locked horns over the solutions. Universities, on their part, complained that the debate derived from populism that may hurt their autonomy.The political parties are expected to bicker in
Aug. 27, 2012
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Gov't considers expanding 'chemical castration' on sex criminals
South Korea is considering expanding the use of chemical castration of sex offenders and putting repeat criminals under closer watch with growing calls for tougher measures against rapists and pedophiles, government officials said Monday. Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik and senior officials from related agencies agreed to adopt stricter measures to curb sex offenses and increase staff to monitor rapi
Aug. 27, 2012
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TB outbreak at cram school
A group of students at a private educational institute have been infected with tuberculosis, and health authorities are investigating the possible spread of the disease. The Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Monday that six students at a cram school for college entrance in Mokdong, western Seoul, had been infected with TB, and that 14 others with latent TB are undergoing further tests. The health authority has isolated the 20 patients and expanded the testing to other stu
Aug. 27, 2012
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Woman arrested for ‘attacking’ restaurants while drunk
A woman who got drunk and obstructed business at local stores has been arrested, police said Monday.The 37-year-old, whose name was withheld by authorities, routinely got drunk and demanded free food and liquor from a convenience store and a restaurant in Seoul’s Seodaemun district, officials at Seodaemun Police Station said. Whenever workers at the two stores refused, she would get violent and "go on a rampage."Last month, the suspect visited a restaurant and asked for a “free liquor and pork-o
Aug. 27, 2012
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S. Korea's health insurance coverage one of lowest in world
South Korea will move to expand coverage by its national health insurance program as a recent study showed its coverage rate is one of the lowest among advanced nations, the insurance operator said Monday.According to the National Health Insurance Corp., the country’s health insurance service covered only 58.2 percent of all medical expenses in 2011.That rate is the lowest among the 11 members of the 27-nation Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development whose per capita income rose abo
Aug. 27, 2012
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Unusually powerful typhoon to batter Korean Peninsula
The most powerful typhoon in a decade is set to hit the Korean Peninsula early this week, weather forecasters said Sunday, prompting authorities to brace for a worst-case scenario.Typhoon Bolaven, which is named after a highland region in Laos, was moving northward at a speed of 15 kilometers per hour from southeastern waters off Japan‘s Okinawa as of 3 p.m., according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA).The typhoon is expected to approach waters some 500 kilometers off South Korea’
Aug. 27, 2012
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Top court dismisses ex-president’s claim to nephew’s company
The highest court in South Korea on Sunday dismissed former President Roh Tae-woo’s claim to ownership of his nephew’s company although it was founded with his slush fund.Roh gave some 12 billion won ($10.6 million) to his younger brother Jae-woo before a local court ordered the former leader in 1997 to return to state coffers roughly 263 billion won he had amassed during his five-year tenure from 1988. The younger Roh used the funds to set up a cold storage company with the help of a friend ide
Aug. 26, 2012
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Strong typhoon may hit Korea early next week
Korea is bracing for the strongest typhoon to hit the nation this summer and possibly in years. Typhoon Bolaven, strengthening while moving upward in the direction of Okinawa, Japan, could make landfall on Jeju early next week, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration.The intensity of Bolaven may be similar to that of Typhoon Rusa which battered the country in 2002 and killed more than 200, the weather agency said. By Monday, the storm is expected to grow to have a radius of 500 kilo
Aug. 24, 2012
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Elderly woman dead after being stabbed
A woman in her 50s fatally stabbed a 78-year-old fellow tenant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, Friday morning, adding to public jitters after a series of incidents involving knife-wielding attackers. Police said that the women had a quarrel before the younger woman attacked the older one in an alley at around 9:20 a.m. The two, both surnamed Kim, lived alone as tenants in the same house.“She was not conscious and did not breathe. We tried to resuscitate her, but to no avail,” a hospital official
Aug. 24, 2012
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Mothers selective on children's caregiving
This photo is not directly related to the story. (123rf)Most mothers who rely on children for care have a preference for which child they turn to in a crisis, confide in or prefer as caregiver, U.S. researchers say.Research by Megan Gilligan, a Purdue University doctoral student, and Jill Suitor, a professor of sociology, found older mothers were more likely to be stressed when they received help
Aug. 24, 2012
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Police reinforce countermeasures against violent crimes
Police said Friday they will provide tear gas guns to officers on security duty in Seoul, as part of efforts to reinforce countermeasures against violent crimes.The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said they requested the National Police Agency to set aside a budget worth 180 million won ($158,800) to purchase gas guns for conscripted riot police and combat police forces stationed in the capital c
Aug. 24, 2012
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Gov’t revs up preparations for powerful typhoon
The government will hold an extensive meeting on Friday to brace for a powerful typhoon expected to affect the nation early next week.Typhoon Bolaven, which is named after a highland region in Laos, is expected to be the most powerful storm of the season for the country and to bring heavy rains to the southern island of Jeju from Monday before affecting the whole country the following day, according to the state weather agency.The typhoon will likely cause huge damage to the country already suff
Aug. 24, 2012
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Nuclear reactor shuts down in southern Korea
A nuclear reactor in South Korea's southeastern region shut itself down after its reactor operation system gave a warning signal, the state-run plant operator said Thursday. The Reactor-1 in Uljin Nuclear Power Plant, automatically stopped operating its nuclear reactor and turbine generator as of 6:41 p.m., according to the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. It froze itself on the warning signal and
Aug. 24, 2012
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Heavy downpours hits southern parts of S. Korea
(Yonhap) -- Torrential downpours in the southern parts of South Korea flooded local farms and houses, leaving two people dead and causing damage across the region, the police and weather agency said Thursday. An 85-year-old woman, surnamed Yeom, was found dead by alandslide in Boseong, a town in South Jeolla Province, 397 kilometers southwest of Seoul, after being buried in soil for an hour unti
Aug. 23, 2012
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Cement mine collapses, trapping two
A mine of a cement manufacturer in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, collapsed, trapping at least two workers under the rubble, police said Thursday.The mine of Lafarge Halla Cement Corp. caved in at around 7:05 p.m. Four were initially buried under the rubble. But police rescued one, and another made his way out of the debris.The two trapped miners are out of contact, the company said.The police are carrying out a search and rescue operation at the scene.By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)
Aug. 23, 2012
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Court nixes real name Internet law
The Constitutional Court on Thursday ruled the online real-name system unconstitutional. The decision will thus repeal the system that was introduced in 2007 to prevent malicious postings and comments on the Web.“In order to preliminarily restrict freedom of expression, there must be a clear effect (from such a system) on the common good. After the (real-name system was introduced), the amount of illegal postings did not make a significant decline and instead led users to use overseas sites, whi
Aug. 23, 2012
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Stabbings raise alarm about social outcasts
An unemployed man carried out a stabbing spree on Wednesday in Seoul, marking the fourth knife attack to take place in Korea in less than a week.While public anxiety grows, experts say that dissent against society, a sense of being deprived and isolation from society are to blame. According to experts, social outcasts have a tendency toward explosive expressions of emotion when their pride is hurt, and their anger and anxiety can result in such attacks. The latest attack took place in the financ
Aug. 23, 2012