Most Popular
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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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Hybe's multilabel system tested amid conflict with Ador
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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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Over-50s, men, single-person households take up majority of those filing for bankruptcy
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Ministry denies blame for Jamboree debacle
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Pianist Cho Seong-Jin named Berlin Philharmonic's artist-in-residence
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[Editorial] Nothing is for free
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea, with an overwhelming majority in the National Assembly, is seeking to pass an extra budget bill of up to 30 trillion won ($25 billion) in a provisional session before the March 9 presidential election. This is a move to meet its presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s demand for an extra budget to support pandemic-hit small businesses and merchants. Lee said it was right to give them the largest possible support through an extra budget, and that 25 tri
Jan. 6, 2022
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[Editorial] Balanced measures needed
A heated dispute has erupted over the planned extension of South Korea’s vaccine pass rules to discount and department stores among unvaccinated people, who are raising questions about their basic rights and fairness in applying the pass system. The government decided to expand the facilities that require the vaccine pass, following a sharp increase in new COVID-19 cases and growing concerns about the omicron variant. Previously, the vaccine pass requirements were applied to a range of
Jan. 5, 2022
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[Editorial] Collapsed discipline
On the first day of 2022, South Korea’s eastern front-line fence was breached -- again. A person presumed to be a civilian crossed the heavily guarded Military Demarcation Line into North Korea at around 10:40 p.m. on Saturday, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. At around 9:20 p.m., the military spotted the unidentified person in the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas. Troops searched but failed to capture the DMZ trespasser. In a fact-finding process later, authorities fo
Jan. 4, 2022
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[Editorial] A year of hope and worries
The year of 2022 has started on a mix of hope and worries. In a third year of COVID-19, the list of troubling challenges and thorny issues outnumbers that of reasons to be hopeful for by a wide margin. But things could change in a positive way -- if the country will make the right choices and pull off concerted efforts to navigate a difficult path filled with roadblocks, potholes and traps. The first -- and perhaps the biggest -- choice is the forthcoming presidential election. Korean citizen
Jan. 3, 2022
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[Editorial] Pressure on investigations
In connection with the prosecution’s probe of Kim Kun-hee, the wife of the opposition People Power Party’ presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol, Justice Minister Park Beom-kye said the prosecution must “draw a conclusion suitable to popular suspicions.” Park made the remark in an interview with KBS on Sunday. He also said that she was allegedly the financier of a stock price manipulation scheme and that a sizable sum of her money was involved. For more than a year, the
Dec. 31, 2021
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[Editorial] Living with ‘vaccine pass’
The “vaccine pass” system is still generating confusion and complaints among citizens due to inconsistent standards for exemption and questionable rules for applications. The system, introduced Dec. 13, is now applied to 16 multiuse facilities including restaurants, cafes, movie theaters, museums, cram schools and libraries. To enter these facilities, people must present a certificate proving they have been fully vaccinated or tested negative. But the application of the vaccine pa
Dec. 30, 2021
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[Editorial] Employment pressure
President Moon Jae-in said Monday that the responsibility to create good jobs ultimately falls on businesses, while the government can only provide its full support. Moon made the remark during a luncheon at Cheong Wa Dae attended by chiefs of six business conglomerates he invited, including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor. What he said is quite reasonable, but that remark is the opposite of what his administration has done. If it wants companies to hire more people, it must lift or eas
Dec. 29, 2021
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[Editorial] Pardon favoritism
President Moon Jae-in has pardoned former President Park Geun-hye unexpectedly, and so far, it has left an unpleasant aftertaste. Park, 69, will be freed from prison on Dec. 31, four years and nine months after being locked up in March 2017. She has been treated for chronic shoulder and lower back pain since she was imprisoned. When the ruling party leader suggested early this year that Moon pardon Park, he refused, saying “now is not the time.” A Cheong Wa Dae official said that
Dec. 27, 2021
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[Editorial] Perils of party politics
The main opposition People Power Party is facing the specter of a rudderless ship beset with internal rivalries, a precarious condition ahead of the presidential election slated for March next year. On the surface, the internal feud broke out between People Power Party Chairman Lee Jun-seok and the campaign committee’s public relations chief Rep. Cho Su-jin. At a deeper level, the confrontation lays bare the opposition party’s shaky leadership riddled with arrogance, selfishne
Dec. 24, 2021
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[Editorial] Biased assistance
The Moon administration is actively accommodating demands by Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, while pushing policies to curry favor with voters. On the surface, the administration says it is drawing up policies to meet the needs of the people, but actually, it is supporting the candidate by reflecting his opinions and pledges in its policies in meetings with the party. It is questionable if the government is violating its legal obligation to s
Dec. 23, 2021
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[Editorial] Passing the burden to taxpayers
State-run power firm Korea Electric Power Corp. asked for an increase in the country’s electricity rate, citing soaring global energy prices. The Moon Jae-in administration rejected it in the name of reining in runaway consumer prices. A hike in electric bills at this point will certainly put more pressure on prices amid rising inflation, but the administration’s decision is not only short-sighted but also irresponsible. On Monday, Kepco announced the country’s electricity r
Dec. 22, 2021
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[Editorial] Intimidating the press
The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials is said to have obtained phone records of about 40 journalists of at least 13 media companies. The numbers may rise as reporters are asking telecom companies if the agency secretly requested their phone records. The CIO says that it legally obtained the records to find out whom suspects in cases under its probe had talked to over the phone. Telecom companies usually hand over phone records if requested by the CIO and other law en
Dec. 21, 2021
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[Editorial] Rules for financial support
The government announced Friday it would offer additional financial support to small businesses and self-employed people to minimize their damages due to a new set of social distancing rules that took effect from Saturday. Under the new rules, up to four people are allowed to meet for private gatherings and businesses will be subject to a curfew of 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. Those who are fully vaccinated will be able to dine out at restaurants and cafes, while those who are yet to be vaccinated will h
Dec. 20, 2021
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[Editorial] Sugarcoated proposal
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea seeks to legislate a temporary delay of the imposition of heavy transfer taxes on owners of multiple homes for profits from their housing sales. The tax rate rises up to 82.5 percent on capital gains. The party is moving to buttress presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s policy through legislation after Lee on Sunday proposed postponing the tax for a year. Rep. Park Wan-joo, chief policymaker of the party, said Tuesday that he would start an internal
Dec. 17, 2021
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[Editorial] No more hesitating
The government is finally -- and belatedly -- moving to halt the phased program for a return to normal that began last month despite a flurry of warnings from medical experts and was followed by a record surge in new COVID-19 cases and deaths amid worries about the new omicron variant. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Wednesday the government considers the current virus situation as “very serious” and will implement stricter social distancing rules. Details of new toughened socia
Dec. 16, 2021
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[Editorial] US signal on NK
The US blacklisted on Monday North Korea’s new Defense Minister Ri Yong-gil, a former head of the Ministry of Social Security which is in charge of the prison system, and the Central Public Prosecutors Office on the grounds of forced labor and human rights violation. The sanction is significant in that it was one first imposed by the Joe Biden administration since it was launched in January. The main reason for sanctions so far by the US and the international community against North Kore
Dec. 15, 2021
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[Editorial] Dispute over ‘Nth room’ law
The “Nth room prevention law,” enacted hurriedly last year to prevent digital sex crimes, is sparking a wave of disputes over state censorship amid concerns over the law’s fundamental flaws and loopholes. At issue is the revision to the Telecommunications Business Act and a related law that went into effect Friday after a one-year grace period. The revision was made last year after the digital sex trafficking of women and underage girls was committed via secret Telegram chatr
Dec. 14, 2021
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[Editorial] Scandal in focus again
The apparent suicide of a key suspect in the Daejang-dong land development scandal has set back a prosecution probe seeking to get to the heart of it. The scandal centers on allegations that the city of Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, south of Seoul, gave a few certain civilians special favors so they could obtain astronomical returns on investments in a land development project when Lee Jae-myung, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s presidential candidate, was mayor of the city. Yoo Ha
Dec. 13, 2021
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[Editorial] Pulling strings at the hospital
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki faces public criticism for allegedly seeking special treatment from the country’s top hospital when his son needed medical care. This is at a time when around 1,000 patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms are struggling to find a bed. A recent report by the state-run KBS TV said Hong’s son visited the emergency room at Seoul National University Hospital on Nov. 24 with pain in his leg. Medical staff told him it was not urgent and
Dec. 10, 2021
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[Editorial] Why not disclose info?
In connection with an incident in which a Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries official was shot dead by North Korean soldiers in the North’s waters last year, the presidential office and the Korea Coast Guard reportedly appealed against a court ruling that they should disclose information except for military secrets to his bereaved family. The first-trial court ruled last month that Cheong Wa Dae should disclose reports from the Ministries of National Defense and Oceans and Fisheries and its
Dec. 9, 2021