The Korea Herald > Opinion > Editorial
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Controversy continues over the government’s plan to provide subsidies to purchasers of low-emission passenger cars while collecting levies from buyers of high-emission vehicles.The Ministry of Environment plans to introduce the bonus-malus plan starting in 2015 as part of its efforts to r...
Updated : 2014.03.10 20:22
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Allegations have been raised that the National Intelligence Service played a role in fabricating evidence against a North Korean defector being tried on charges of espionage.Prosecutors launched a full-fledged probe into the allegations Friday, banning several NIS agents from leaving the c...
Updated : 2014.03.10 20:21
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A recent report by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies showed that the gap between Asian and Western military spending continued to narrow as Asia’s defense spending rose, while most Western countries cut their defense budgets. The IISS report said that real def...
Updated : 2014.03.09 19:58
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That Korea has one of the world’s lowest birthrates and it is headed to become a super-aging society is hardly news anymore. Yet, the latest government statistics on the falling birthrate should ring an alarm bell. The number of babies born in the country dropped for the first time in fou...
Updated : 2014.03.09 19:58
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As announced, doctors are expected to go on a one-day strike on March 10 before launching a work-to-rule struggle from March 11 to 23 and a six-day strike immediately thereafter. Yet their collective action is unlikely to cause chaos as hospitals will not participate in it. Earlier this we...
Updated : 2014.03.07 20:18
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A rapid expansion of the free lunch program for students is taking its toll on teachers and poorer students. For many metropolitan and provincial educational offices, the program has become a massive budgetary black hole that sucks up funds set aside for other purposes.The seriousness of t...
Updated : 2014.03.07 20:17
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Lee Ju-yeol’s name had been floated by the media as a potential nominee, but it was still a little surprising that President Park Geun-hye chose him as the next governor of the Bank of Korea, as there were seemingly stronger candidates. Unlike his predecessors, Lee, who retired from the B...
Updated : 2014.03.06 20:38
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It is a typical scene in street demonstrations. Lawmakers and politicians, usually from the opposition, join the front rows of sit-in rallies or street marches. More often than not, they engage in illegal activities, including violating police lines or physically obstructing police officer...
Updated : 2014.03.06 20:38
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Red Cross officials from North Korea and Japan agreed to continue negotiations on the possible repatriation of the remains of Japanese nationals buried in the North at their talks Monday in the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang. Pyongyang’s chief delegate said the talks were underway ...
Updated : 2014.03.05 19:49
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North Korea has recently made a string of provocations that appear well-measured to boost its position without stifling the burgeoning reconciliatory mood between the two Koreas and subjecting itself to additional sanctions from the international community. It seems a reasonable assumption...
Updated : 2014.03.05 19:49
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One important issue that the government has to decide in the next few months is whether to open the nation’s rice market to foreign exporters, as Korea must inform the World Trade Organization of its decision by September.Under the Uruguay Round trade agreement that took effect from 1995,...
Updated : 2014.03.04 20:19
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Reform of the prosecution has been a hot issue in Korea for years. Opposition parties have long called for reform to ensure prosecutors’ political independence and fairness in investigating wrongdoings involving politicians and public officials. Prosecutorial reform was a major campaign i...
Updated : 2014.03.04 20:18
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The agreement between the Democratic Party and Ahn Cheol-soo’s political group to merge and create a new party is shaking Korean politics. The agreement should be good news for opponents of President Park Geun-hye and her ruling Saenuri Party. The ruling camp now faces an uphill battle ag...
Updated : 2014.03.03 20:09
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Last week, two events took place in Seoul that will affect relations between South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. A group of lawmakers launched the Korea-ASEAN Parliamentary Forum on Tuesday. The following day, experts from Korea and the ASEAN countries held an acade...
Updated : 2014.03.03 20:08
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The government last week announced a set of measures to curb mounting household debt that is becoming the main drag on Korea’s economy as it dampens consumer spending. Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok hoped that the measures would help ease debt-servicing burdens and increase consumption exp...
Updated : 2014.03.02 19:38
