Parents call for better disease control and prevention measures A series of recent cases in which young military trainees have been infected with or even died from a serious disease have sparked public concerns here over the “sloppy” military medical system. Some argue that the military appears to have attempted to conceal the cases to avoid criticism, particularly from parents who have sent th...

Private universities are discussing cutting tuition fees by 10 to 15 percent on condition that the government shares the financing of scholarships at individual schools, the head of a private university presidents’ council said Sunday. Park Chul, head of the Association of Private University Presidents, said in an interview that the group is gathering opinions of member schools about a trade-off...

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon blasted political parties for their proposed welfare policies Sunday, calling them populist ploys ahead of elections. He also warned against unconditional welfare policies, saying that they would erode the growth potential of the country. “Expanded welfare would cause tax hikes, and then ordinary people will suffer,” he said in an interview with the Yonhap news agency. “T...

The Central Officials Training Institute will start a two-week program on international negotiation Monday. Twenty four public servants from 19 government agencies will participate in the English-only course, titled “the Multinational English Immersion Program.” This year, eight foreign participants have been invited to the program, which has involved only Korean civil servants since 2008. The...

Civic group urges investigation of all U.S. bases Provincial governments are moving to verify whether areas near U.S. military facilities are contaminated amid heightened public worries over the alleged burial of Agent Orange at Camp Carroll in Waegwan, North Gyeongsang Province. Some environmentalists and activists criticized the U.S. military for being overly “slow and careful” in conducting ...

South Korea is considering deploying large attack helicopters on one of its western sea border islands in preparation against surprise infiltrations of North Korea’s air-cushioned vessels, a defense source said Sunday. “A helicopter hangar under construction on Baengnyeong Island is capable of accommodating large-sized attack helicopters. Some Apache-class attack helicopters to be imported next ...

DHAKA (AFP) – A “benevolent burglar” hailed as a modern-day Robin Hood for donating his ill-gotten gains to local orphanages has been arrested in southeastern Bangladesh, police said. Badiul Haq Nasir, 45, who had earned millions in well-planned heists, was revered in dozens of villages for making large donations to orphanages and mosques, local police chief Babul Akhter told AFP. “The villager...

Hyundai Motor Co. and its labor union said Saturday they reached an agreement to resume operations at one of its plants, 39 hours after unionized workers walked off their jobs because of a colleague's death. Assembly workers at the top automaker's plant in Asan, about 100 kilometers southwest of Seoul, had laid down their tools on Thursday, claiming that a union worker committed suicide due to t...

Students, civic group members and politicians flocked to Seoul’s Gwanghwamun area Friday evening for the candle light vigil urging the government and the ruling party to follow up on their pledge to halve college tuition. Students, nongovernmental organizations and opposition politicians have called on the ruling Grand National Party to keep its promise to halve college tuition. GNP’s new floor...

The Bongeun Temple of the Jogye Order, in the affluent Gangnam area in southern Seoul, will be transformed into a history-themed park, Seoul officials said Friday. According to Gangnam-gu Office, the temple has recently filed for the re-designation as a history park from its current status as a neighborhood park, a move aimed at attracting foreign visitors who want to see Korean Zen culture. The...

Cheongju Heungdeok Police Station have arrested a 35-year-old man who allegedly posed as an agent from the National Security Agency to deceive his classmates. The accused, identified by his surname Lee, approached to one of his classmates and said that he is an agent from NSA. After buying his trust, the swindler persuaded his friend to make an investment in the Daegu English Village project. ...

A British boy allegedly struck his mother to death with a bat, after she became engaged to a man eight months after the death of his father. James Gethen, 15, allegedly killed his mother a few hours after she announced her engagement on her Facebook. The accused suffered from meningitis, which may have affected his behavior, reports said. The boy has a record of being in trouble including throw...