Most Popular
-
1
Jimin of BTS, actor Song Da-eun suspected to be dating, again
-
2
Police raid popera singer Kim Ho-joong's house over hit-and-run suspicions
-
3
What's next for the government's push in quota hike?
-
4
Trump may like to 'solve' N. Korean nuclear problem if reelected: ex-official
-
5
Woman falls to death from acquaintance's home after exhibiting ‘unexplained' behaviors
-
6
N. Korea slams planned S. Korea-US military drills, warns of 'catastrophic aftermath'
-
7
N. Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea: JCS
-
8
‘Malice should not undermine the system, social order,’ says Hybe's Bang
-
9
[Robert J. Fouser] Social attitudes toward language proficiency
-
10
[Graphic News] How much do Korean adults read?
-
S. Korea investigators return from Philippines after probe into murder of citizen
Investigators returned from the Philippines on Friday after looking into the recent shooting death of a South Korean man, adding they have found key evidence to narrow down the suspects.A 57-year-old South Korean, identified only by his surname Cho, was shot to death by four unidentified, armed assailants on Sunday at his house in Batangas, some 100km south of Manila.The incident raised the number of South Koreans killed in the Southeast Asian country to 11 this year. Police said they have
North KoreaDec. 25, 2015
-
Park checks military readiness against N. Korea
President Park Geun-hye checked military readiness against possible North Korean provocations as she made a rare visit to a military base near the border with North Korea, an official said Thursday.Park, wearing a military jacket, commended the soldiers at the military division in Yeoncheon near the central section of the border, for their "resolute" response to North Korea's shelling attacks on Aug. 20, presidential spokesman Jeong Yeon-guk said.Combined with a land-mine attack earlier in the m
North KoreaDec. 25, 2015
-
Park hopes more people donate
President Park Geun-hye expressed hopes on Thursday that more people will donate, citing her email conversation with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg."I have recently exchanged an email with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg about sharing and the spirit of donation," Park wrote in her Facebook post. "I hope that there will be more people in our country who are sharing and donating."Earlier this month, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan announced that they would donate 99 percent of their Faceboo
Social AffairsDec. 24, 2015
-
S. Korea warns Japan against revisionist history review
South Korea warned Thursday Japan will face an angry backlash from neighbors and the international communist if the country rewrites its modern history with a revisionist view.A controversial history review office of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party held its first meeting on Tuesday as it reportedly seeks to review an array of modern historical events.The move is raising concerns that Japan may rewrite its modern history of World War II aggression and atrocities as the meeting will report
PoliticsDec. 24, 2015
-
Rival parties again fail to agree on electoral map
Rival parties once again failed Thursday to agree on redrawing electoral districts for next year's general elections.Ruling Saenuri Party Chairman Kim Moo-sung, main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy Chairman Moon Jae-in and the parties' floor leaders sat together over the demarcation of constituencies earlier in the day, but the meeting fell through without an outcome, according to party officials. It was their seventh negotiation held on the issue this month as the parties gear up
PoliticsDec. 24, 2015
-
'TPP will spur erosion of China’s manufacturing edge’
This is the 11th and last installment in a series of interviews with scholars and experts on China as a resurgent Asian power that is changing the regional order. This installment looks into China’s economic issues. -- Ed. If the Trans-Pacific Partnership is ratified, it will spur the movement of the world’s manufacturing center from China to countries in Southeast Asia where the labor cost is cheaper and investments will flow in, China expert Jee Man-soo said. Jee Man-sooJee, a research fellow
Foreign AffairsDec. 24, 2015
-
Dispute rises over child care budget in South Korea
The Education Ministry on Thursday threatened to file a lawsuit against municipal education offices that have been refusing to allocate their budget on next year’s child care allowance for children aged 3-5 with the claim that the central government must fully finance the program. Backing the ministry’s stance, Choo Kyung-ho, head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, also announced that the central government would take “every possible disciplinary measure” -- be it legal, administr
Social AffairsDec. 24, 2015
-
Korea to sign contract on KF-X next week
South Korea's state arms procurement agency said Thursday it will sign a formal contract next week on its fighter jet development project, known as KF-X.The Defense Acquisition Procurement Administration plans to ink the deal with Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd., the country's sole aircraft maker."Negotiations over the formal contract on the KF-X program are going well. It seems to be possible to sign it around Dec. 28," the agency official said on the condition of anonymity.South Korea hopes to
DefenseDec. 24, 2015
-
Korea paroles 550 prisoners in celebration of Christmas
The government released 550 prisoners on special parole, ministry officials said Thursday, in celebration of the Christmas holiday.The inmates, who had a low possibility of repeating their crimes and led an exemplary life in prison, were granted parole on the last working day before the holiday, the Ministry of Justice said.Two juvenile prisoners and the former head of the Hankook Ilbo media group were included in the list.Chang Jae-ku, 68, had about a month left to finish his 30-month jail term
Social AffairsDec. 24, 2015
-
Koreas' women call for efforts to improve inter-Korean ties
South and North Korean women have called for efforts to bring reconciliation and peace to the Korean Peninsula, Pyongyang's state media said Thursday.About 60 South Korean women from 35 female activists' organizations visited the North's border city of Kaesong Wednesday for a set of cultural events with their North Korean counterparts.Participants raised the need to cherish an inter-Korean agreement in August to defuse military tension and implement it thoroughly to open a "fresh turning phase"
North KoreaDec. 24, 2015
-
North Korea denounces Obama for military tensions
North Korea fiercely accused the Obama administration Thursday of deliberately raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, while refraining from criticizing South Korea.Recounting security-related events in Korea this year, the Korean Central News Agency claimed a military crisis has returned to Korea due to Washington's "hostile policy" on Pyongyang."The current U.S. administration's policy on the DPRK and its implementation is the most hostile and ferocious in the history (of the U.S. government
North KoreaDec. 24, 2015
-
Top court confirms conviction of ruling party lawmaker
The nation's top court on Thursday upheld a six-month jail term for a ruling party lawmaker convicted of receiving illegal political funds, a verdict that stripped him of his seat.The Supreme Court handed down the decision on Park Sang-eun of the ruling Saenuri Party. Still, the prison term was suspended for one year, meaning that Park would not have to serve prison time if he stayed out of trouble during that period.It is the latest in a string of bribery convictions involving lawmakers in rece
PoliticsDec. 24, 2015
-
Korea to set aside more than 30% of budget for welfare
Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said Thursday the government will spend more 30 percent of next year's budget on the welfare sector to ensure no needy people go without help.The government will "make sure that there will be no welfare blind spots," Hwang said during a ceremony.He also said the government will relieve the burdens of those in vulnerable social groups. (Yonhap)
PoliticsDec. 24, 2015
-
Koreas reach deal on land use fee at Gaeseong complex
South and North Korea have reached an agreement on the land use fee amount for South Korean firms operating a joint industrial park across the border, the Unification Ministry announced Thursday.The deal calls for South Korean firms at Gaeseong Industrial Complex to pay $0.64 per square meter every year, it said.The complex in the North's border city of Gaeseong opened in 2004 as a symbol of inter-Korean reconciliation. A total of 124 South Korean firms are running factories with about 54,000 No
North KoreaDec. 24, 2015
-
North Korea leader inspects joint training by military units
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected joint drills conducted by the military's two units, ordering the Korean People's Army to intensify combat drills, Pyongyang's state media said Thursday.Kim observed "actual maneuvers" between the KPA's large combined units 526 and 671, expressing satisfaction over their flawlessness in defensive and offensive capacities, according to the Korean Central News Agency. It did not specify the date of Kim's visit."Practical drills should be conducted so often
North KoreaDec. 24, 2015
-
Court rules chemical castration constitutional
The Constitutional Court ruled in a 6-3 vote Wednesday that hormonal treatment to suppress sexual impulses in sex offenders is constitutional.In 2013, a district court had challenged the law that allows chemical castration for convicted child molesters over 19 years of age who are at risk of repeating their crimes, saying it violates basic human rights. The Constitutional Court, however, said the medication is a temporary treatment for the offenders and the hormones could be produced again when
Social AffairsDec. 23, 2015
-
China denies media report that it offered to rent S. Korean port
China on Wednesday denied a Japanese media report that Beijing had proposed renting a port facility on a South Korean island in 2013. Japans Asahi newspaper reported earlier this week that China had asked South Korea to let a Chinese company rent a port facility on Koje Island off the southeastern tip of the Korean Peninsula.But, the proposal was rejected by South Koreas defense ministry, according to the report. "I have never heard of such a plan and the relevant report is not worth commenting
Foreign AffairsDec. 23, 2015
-
Top court backs sacking of stem cell scientist Hwang
The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that Seoul National University’s dismissal of Hwang Woo-suk was justifiable, marking an end to a nine-year legal battle for the scientist whose fabrication of his stem cell research had tarnished his reputation.The top court upended its original ruling in 2014 that the SNU ruling was fair as Hwang’s actions “eroded people’s trust in SNU and the entire science circle.”In 2006, the SNU dismissed the veterinarian and cloning expert after he was found to have fak
Social AffairsDec. 23, 2015
-
Hailing cab late at night a challenge in winter
A line of people, intoxicated and weary from the festivities of year-end parties, shiver outside Itaewon Station in central Seoul on a cold December night, trying to hail taxis. The seemingly insignificant task proves to be daunting, as a parade of cabs rush past them in search of passengers looking to travel long distance. “Where are you headed?” a driver asks a potential passenger, before speeding away at his mention of a destination 20 minutes away. Local taxi drivers’ tendency to cherry-pick
Social AffairsDec. 23, 2015
-
South Korea to monitor absent students for possible domestic abuse
Following a high profile child abuse case this week reported in Incheon, where a father confined his 11-year-old daughter at home and continually abused her for more than two years, the South Korean government is launching a special investigation nationwide next month on all schoolchildren absent from school for more than a week. “Normally, when a child is absent for no specific reason for more than a week, a teacher is required to call his or her parents,” said Kim Il-yeol from the Division of
Social AffairsDec. 23, 2015