Articles by Kim Yon-se
Kim Yon-se
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Crewmen victimized Sewol passengers: prosecution
The prosecution said Tuesday that the crew members of the capsized ferry Sewol should be held accountable for the fate of more than 300 dead or missing passengers.During a trial hearing on the captain of the ferry and other crewmen at the Gwangju District Court, the prosecution unveiled detailed video clips from the April 16 disaster, denouncing the irresponsible actions of the indicted crewmen.If the crewmen had taken steps to evacuate the passengers, they may have been able to save all of them
Social Affairs July 8, 2014
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Law-breaking policemen chip away at public trust
Multiple faults and irregularities among policemen have occurred recently in Seoul, which could amplify the public’s distrust of law enforcement.A police division was found to have concealed an accidental shooting by a drafted policeman, which occurred in downtown Seoul four months ago. He was doing guard duty at the Government Complex.The accident was made public after a whistleblower at the National Police Agency reported the incident to an internal inspection bureau about 10 days after it too
Social Affairs July 8, 2014
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Coast Guard officials stand trial on bribery charges
A Gwangju court on Monday held the first hearing in the trial for maritime affairs officials indicted on charges of taking bribes in return for approving the Sewol ferry operator’s cabin-extension proposal despite risks of heavy pressure on the vessel.The defendants included several officials from the Korea Coast Guard, the Korea Maritime and Port Administration and the Korean Maritime Safety Tribunal, according to the Mokpo unit of the Gwangju District Court.According to the prosecution, a comm
Social Affairs July 7, 2014
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Ferry owner barred from holding French exhibit
Police escort Yoo Byung-il, the elder brother of wanted man Yoo Byung-eun, to the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office on June 11. (Yonhap)The French government has acknowledged the seriousness of the Sewol ferry disaster by banning fugitive Yoo Byung-eun, who is better known as Ahae in Europe, from holding a scheduled photo exhibition in the country.Following his previous event in Paris in 2013, Yoo, the owner of the Sewol, was preparing for a solo show in Compiegne, northern France, before the
Social Affairs July 6, 2014
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Former Saenuri deputy spokesman arrested for bribes
A Seoul court on Saturday issued an arrest warrant for Kwon Young-mo, a former deputy spokesman for the ruling Saenuri Party, on charges of taking kickbacks from a railroad parts supplier.Kwon, 55, has been under investigation by prosecutors for receiving bribes worth some 100 million won from AVT, a railway parts importer and supplier, between 2010 and early 2014.In addition, Kwon has been suspected of providing Kim Kwang-jae, former chairman and CEO of the Korea Rail Network Authority with 30
Social Affairs July 6, 2014
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Father sells daughter for W600,000
A single man in his 20s has been criticized for selling a female baby for 600,000 won ($590) which he fathered with his live-in girlfriend.The Cheongju District Police Agency said Thursday that it has asked the court to issue an arrest warrant for the suspect on charges of illicitly handing over his daughter, aged 6 months, to a woman in her 30s through an unauthorized website.The suspect, who was a college student in Seoul, has reportedly lived with his girlfriend of the same age in Cheongju, N
Social Affairs July 3, 2014
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Client ordered to pay law firm W200m for winning suit
A court has ordered a man who was acquitted of taking bribes to pay his law firm 200 million won ($196,000) in attorney fees.The ruling is drawing attention as it reveals the fees charged by lawyers who were once judges or prosecutors.The client, who worked for a mobile telecommunications company, asked a major law firm to defend him against graft charges, and a prosecutor-turned-lawyer from the firm acted as his main attorney.The client initially paid the law firm 30 million won in fees and 3 m
Social Affairs July 2, 2014
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Prosecution seeks to indict fugitive Sewol owner
The prosecution reportedly plans to indict the fugitive Yoo Byung-eun, even if it fails to arrest the owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, as investigators have already secured testimony that after modifications, the vessel had a weakened ability to recover its balance at the time of its sinking.While the prosecution said it may choose to indict him before his capture, it asserted that remarks from Yoo’s aides could fulfil requirements to indict the runaway.According to investigators at the Incheon
Social Affairs June 30, 2014
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[Ferry Disaster] Ferry owner pocketed funds at Salvation Sect: ex-devotee
The fugitive Yoo Byung-eun, owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, reportedly instigated competition among devotees of the Salvation Sect to make them give as much as possible, a former follower said on a TV program.The individual, surnamed Lee, who identified himself as an ex-devotee of the sect, told a TV news outlet that Yoo’s close aides pressured the devotees to offer more funds and made known how much they gave.Raising the allegation that Yoo and his family could have pocketed most of the funds,
Social Affairs June 27, 2014
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Panel proposes 7.1% hike in minimum wage for 2015
A trilateral committee of government, labor and management representatives agreed Friday to raise the country’s minimum hourly wage by about 7.1 percent to 5,580 won ($5.50) per hour for next year, officials said.The Minimum Wage Council reached the deal after an intensive overnight discussion on compromise plans, marking the first time that a minimum wage has been set within a legal deadline.The hourly wage translates to 44,640 won a day for those who work eight hours a day and 1.16 million won
Social Affairs June 27, 2014
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Ruling allows Lee ally to retain Assembly seat
The Supreme Court overturned the decisions of a Seoul district and appellate court against ruling party lawmaker Chung Doo-un for taking illicit kickbacks and ruled in favor of a retrial on Thursday.Its verdict clarified that “there is no objective evidence which could prove the charges that (Rep. Chung of the Saenuri Party) received illicit slush funds” from the head of a secondary bank.The top court added that the testimony of Lim Suk of the now-defunct Solomon Savings Bank was inconsistent.It
Politics June 26, 2014
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[Ferry Disaster] Prosecution pressures Yoo to turn himself in
Investigators are reportedly pressuring fugitive Yoo Byung-eun to give himself up to police by sending message from law enforcement to the de facto Sewol owner via his brother-in-law, Gabriel Oh.According to investigative insiders, the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office is making low-key contact with Gabriel Oh, a younger brother-in-law of Yoo, who served as the Korean Ambassador to the Czech Republic from 2010-2013.Though the prosecution had brought in Oh and his wife for colluding with Yoo i
Social Affairs June 26, 2014
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[Ferry Disaster] Ferry owner still at large 2 months after sinking
The prosecution has yet to arrest the fugitive Yoo Byung-eun though it has been more than two months since the law enforcement agency barred the Sewol owner from leaving the nation on April 21.It has been more than one month since the prosecution initially raided Geumsuwon, a compound of the Salvation Sect south of Seoul, which is led by the 73-year-old fugitive. Investigators forced their way into Geumsuwon twice: on May 21 and June 11.Further, Yoo’s second son, Hyuk-gi, fled abroad right befor
Social Affairs June 25, 2014
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[Ferry Disaster] Ferry owner’s in-law indicted for embezzlement
The prosecution on Tuesday indicted a brother-in-law of Yoo Byung-eun, de facto owner of the sunken ferry Sewol, on charges of shady intra-group deals as the head of a unit of Chonghaejin Marine Co., the operator of the ill-fated vessel.According to the Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office, the suspect Kwon Oh-kyun allegedly pocketed company funds to illicitly transfer to the fugitive Yoo and his children.This marked the first time that a family member or relative of Yoo was handed over to the c
Social Affairs June 24, 2014
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Court set to decide on Saenuri lawmaker’s fate
The fate of Rep. Chung Doo-un of the governing Saenuri Party depends on a judges’ ruling on Thursday ahead of the July 30 by-elections. The verdict from the Supreme Court could deprive Chung of his seat in the National Assembly.Chung, a confidante of former President Lee Myung-bak, was indicted for taking bribes from a secondary bank chief. While he wassentenced to one year in prison and fined 104 million won ($102,000) by a Seoul district court, a Seoul appellate court’s commutation of that pun
Politics June 24, 2014
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