Should police be permitted to terminate a criminal investigation on their own? This question is at the core of a long-standing debate between the prosecution and police over the adjustment of investigative power. There are many other issues, but this one has become very symbolic. The prosecution opposes it, while the police treat it as the lynchpin of the whole debate. National Assembly deliberation this fall will finalize the adjustment. As expected, it was also a hot topic at the confirmation

Viewpoints July 9, 2019

The poor police officer who got the call may have scoffed, thinking it was a prank. Imagine the caller saying something like this: “I have just talked to four people claiming to have come from the North. They are standing on the quay.” Then imagine the startled police officers rushing to the scene. Recent media photos of South Korean police officers talking to the crew of a North Korean boat that apparently strayed into South Korean waters captured exactly this bizarre encounter. The

Viewpoints June 25, 2019

After four deferrals in eight years since 2011, the revised Higher Education Act goes into effect this August. With roughly one month left, colleges and universities are preoccupied with how to implement new requirements under the law. There are still many unanswered questions and missing details. If you have any doubt, this is a well-intentioned law in all respects. It aims to protect the rights and working conditions of part-time lecturers at colleges and universities nationwide. Their employm

Viewpoints June 11, 2019

The intensifying US-China confrontation has just taken a new twist. Reportedly, Washington is asking Seoul to join its anti-Huawei alliance. The reason is security concerns posed by the Chinese IT giant. This latest development puts South Korea in a difficult spot again. Korea is confronted with what it dreads most: choosing sides in a decisive manner.It is one thing to worry about the G2 confrontation and its overall economic impact. It is quite another to be forced to choose sides openly and o

Viewpoints May 28, 2019

Last spring, driving on Olympic Highway along the Han River, I saw a young man caught by police for riding a motorcycle on the highway. To be sure, riding a motorbike on expressways or automobile-only highways is not permitted in Korea. In fact, Korea is one of the few countries (the only OECD member) where motorcycles are prohibited on those roads, mainly for safety reasons. This policy has been a trade hot potato for many years. Domestically, a group of Korean motorbikers have brought as many

Viewpoints May 14, 2019

Due process, mutual respect and civil debates. When do we get to see them in our parliament? Or, rather, will we ever see them? That question has echoed through the nation for the past five days. The long-forgotten “physical” politics has roared back to life in Yeouido – live, kicking and ever more hostile. In what has been five days of pushing, shoving and shouting, to put it mildly, the National Assembly has shown how far it is removed from the aspirations of its constituents

Viewpoints April 30, 2019

This time we are serious, as things have changed since last summer. We sense increasing social awareness on chronic overuse of plastics, and this is a welcome step in the right direction. New regulations with teeth have arrived at shops. Starting from April 1, single-use plastic bags have been banned at supermarkets and malls. This follows an earlier ban (August 2018) of single-use plastic cups in coffee shops and cafes. Further anti-plastic measures are waiting in queue. Civic engagement is als

Viewpoints April 16, 2019

After all, it hurt to watch. It really did. Confirmation hearings for some of the seven ministerial post nominees last week stirred public anger. Questions posed, responses given and facts found were just so embarrassing, to say the least. Over the weekend, the nomination for one minister was withdrawn, and one nominee voluntarily stepped down. Frankly, I blushed at the thought of the reaction of our foreign friends: What would they think? Again, not all, but some of the seven candidates raised

Viewpoints April 2, 2019

Usually, society changes first. Laws then follow. Which means a gap between the two. The norm-reality gap has become more evident these days: the speed of social changes is unprecedented, and laws are lagging behind, panting. The narrower the gap, the more likely society benefits from harmony and stability. A gap left unattended grows into a gulf, fostering social discord and instability. It all depends on the quality of the legislative institution. The legislature fails us either by over-regula

Viewpoints March 19, 2019

Last week was all about Hanoi. But hidden in the stack of news reports from Hanoi was that South Korea broke a record again -- this time in the category of birthrate. In 2018 population data, released by Statistics Korea on Feb. 27: Births in 2018 were 326,900, down from 357,800 in 2017. The birthrate in 2018 was reported to be just 0.98, compared to 1.05 in 2017. Alarms rang out loudly last year when the 400,000 mark was breached, then regarded as a Maginot Line. We are now even approaching the

Viewpoints March 5, 2019

Still a bit of a tongue twister even to experts: hard to pronounce and difficult to remember. Many tend to get the sequence of the letters wrong. The CPTPP stands for the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership. As the name speaks for itself, this is a treaty to save the TPP -- an originally 12-nation trade agreement in the Pacific region, spearheaded by the United States. Upon Washington’s withdrawal in January 2017, the remaining 11 states joined forces to rescue the deal

Viewpoints Feb. 19, 2019

Here we go again. Public concerns escalate, agencies issue advisories, and ominous news reports flood media outlets. And then we get one final piece of advice: Wear masks. That is pretty much it -- nothing further happens. When the next fine-dust blanket hits the country a couple of weeks later, I can almost guarantee the cycle will repeat. This is too lame for a country that inches closer to a fine-dust disaster with each passing year. When fine dust levels soared to new heights last week, clea

Viewpoints Jan. 22, 2019

It was 1986 when the international community agreed on a ban on “commercial whaling.” Depleting whale stocks urged states to adopt an extraordinary measure. Except for the two states (Norway and Iceland), all whaling countries got on board. So started the ban and has been quite effective for 32 years. While controversy has persisted concerning what is “commercial whaling,” which is banned, and what is “scientific whaling,” which is not, overall the ban has suc

Viewpoints Jan. 8, 2019

A dispute settlement proceeding between two states usually conjures up the image of stern-faced judges in robes under tightly controlled timeframes, and most importantly, a legally binding judgment with a serious penalty. This is very important, and many disputes go down this path. In the meantime, a notable new trend is forming. Nonbinding dispute settlement procedures that seek an amicable solution are making inroads into new treaties and agreements. This is, so to speak, a state-to-state vers

Viewpoints Dec. 25, 2018

After a roller coaster year on the trade front, we are now well-versed in other countries’ trade barriers restraining Korean products and businesses. We, however, tend to forget how we are viewed in the eyes of other nations. The latest observation came from the Nov. 30 joint statement by five chambers of commerce operating in Seoul: the American, European, British, French and German Chambers of Commerce. The joint statement was the first of its kind.What was mentioned in the statement is their

Viewpoints Dec. 11, 2018