Most Popular
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Over 80,000 millionaires, 20 billionaires in Seoul: report
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Korean battery makers heave sigh of relief over 2-year IRA reprieve
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Yoon apologizes over first lady’s Dior bag scandal, but accuses special probe attempt as political maneuvering
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Young Korean doctors seek plan B: cosmetic dermatology or overseas
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South Korea open to Indonesian proposal to cut KF-21 payments
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Girl hanging on bridge, police trying to rescue her both fall off; rescued immediately
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Coupang earnings hit hard by losses from ailing Farfetch
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[K-pop’s dilemma] Time, profit pressures work against originality
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Why femicide and dating violence are growing issues in S. Korea
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DP urges Yoon to accept proposal on cash handouts, special counsel probe over Marine's death
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Korea to offer malaria medicine to Niger
South Korea is set to send anti-malarial drugs worth $50,000 to help victims of the mosquito-borne infectious disease in Niger, Seoul’s foreign ministry said Tuesday. As one of the most prevalent diseases in the landlocked African country, malaria is the No. 1 cause of death for children aged five and younger. During the rainy season, some 80 percent of hospital visits are caused by it, according to the ministry’s statement. Last year, the Seoul government sent $100,000 worth of diagnosis reagen
July 16, 2013
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Korean scientists identify aging-related gene
A group of South Korean scientists has identified a gene that may help slow the rate of aging and also treat or prevent cancer, the science ministry said Tuesday.According to the team from the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, the gene, TXNIP, helps create and maintain hematopoietic stem cells, which are blood cells that develop into all other blood cells, including immunity-related white cells.The gene’s relevance to aging was identified in a test, in which hematopoietic
July 16, 2013
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Presidential Security Service agent fired over alleged bribe-taking
A Presidential Security Service agent has been fired over suspicions that he took bribes from a man at the center of a massive corruption scandal involving construction-site catering contracts, officials said Tuesday.The 47-year-old agent, identified by his surname Park, has been accused of accepting about 120 million won (US$107,214) from contract broker Yoo Sang-bong, who was convicted by the Supreme Court last year of bribing top police officials and others to seek their help in winning cater
July 16, 2013
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Parties begin to examine 2007 summit transcript
Lawmakers began the process of reviewing the transcript of the 2007 inter-Korean summit Monday in the hope of putting to rest the controversy over former President Roh Moo-hyun’s stance on the Northern Limit Line.The de facto maritime border between the two Koreas in the West Sea has been a source of contention between the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic Party. At issue are claims that the late former leader denied its validity during his talks with late North Korean lead
July 15, 2013
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Park chides politicians’ remarks
President Park Geun-hye on Monday sent an oblique warning to the opposition over the latest remarks questioning the legitimacy of her election and attacking her father President Park Chung-hee’s rule.“I hope that there are no incidents where inappropriate comments undermine the unity and harmony of the people and that we open a dignified political era where (rivals) coexist,” Park said during a meeting of senior presidential secretaries on Monday.“It is regrettable that unrefined remarks from va
July 15, 2013
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Park, Saenuri Party divided over inquiry into flawed river project
President Park Geun-hye and the ruling Saenuri Party were divided Monday over the state auditors’ recent negative assessment of her predecessor Lee Myung-bak’s project to refurbish major rivers. The Board of Audit and Inspection last week announced the result of its inquiry, saying that Lee may have intended the project as a prelude to a controversial canal plan which he had scrapped in the face of public opposition.The “hidden” long-term plan caused a number of serious problems such as bid rigg
July 15, 2013
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Parties begin to examine 2007 summit transcript
Lawmakers began the process of reviewing the transcript of the 2007 inter-Korean summit Monday in the hope of putting to rest the controversy over former President Roh Moo-hyun’s stance on the Northern Limit Line.The de facto maritime border between the two Koreas in the West Sea has been a source of contention between the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic Party. At issue are claims that the late former leader denied its validity during his talks with late North Korean lead
July 15, 2013
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Assembly to file against governor for no-show
The National Assembly’s special committee on the now-closed Jinju Medical Center decided to file a complaint with the prosecution against South Gyeongsang Province Gov. Hong Joon-pyo for refusing to show up at its hearing.The former Saenuri chairman refused to attend a parliamentary hearing on his decision to close the provincial public hospital on several occasions. The panel even issued a legally binding order of attendance last week, but Hong again refused. In the last meeting of the 32-day p
July 14, 2013
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Parties back to colliding over NLL, NIS
Korea’s two main parties returned to tussling over the presidential transcript disclosure and the special probe into the National Intelligence Service this week, as they regrouped after flying off on a tangent over an opposition lawmaker’s insults about President Park Geun-hye.The commotion over Democratic Party Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo’s remarks that Park was a “gwitae,” or a “baby born to a ghost,” during a briefing Thursday subsided over the weekend, following Hong’s resignation as party floor spoke
July 14, 2013
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Political parties agree to reopen parliament
Political parties agreed Saturday to reopen parliamentary proceedings that have been suspended over a row triggered by an insult leveled at President Park Geun-hye by an opposition lawmaker.All parliamentary activity came to a halt on Friday after Democratic Party spokesman Hong Ik-pyo referred to President Park as a "gwitae" or a "baby born to a ghost" the day prior. This word can be interpreted as a child of someone who should never have been born.The remark is a direct insult to the chief ex
July 13, 2013
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Spy agency transferred N.K. intelligence to U.S.: WikiLeaks
South Korea's spy agency transferred large amounts of intelligence on North Korea to the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, an on-line whistle blower site claimed Saturday.WikiLeaks said based on reports sent by the U.S. embassy in Seoul to the State Department dated July 9, 2007 that the South's National Intelligence Service handed over data collected through interviews with around 9,000 North Korean defectors. The flow of information started in 1997 and ran through 2007 with NIS agents transfer
July 13, 2013
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Opposition parliamentary spokesman resigns under pressure
The parliamentary spokesman of South Korea's main opposition party resigned under pressure Friday, taking responsibility for making what was perceived by critics as a disparaging remark against the family of President Park Geun-hye.Citing a book he read, Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo, the parliamentary spokesman for the Democratic Party (DP), on Thursday called Park's father, former President Park Chung-hee, a "gwitae," or a "baby born to a ghost," meaning that he should not have been born.The book, authore
July 12, 2013
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DP member’s Park remarks raise partisan tension, stall parliament
An opposition spokesman’s remarks deemed insulting to President Park Geun-hye’s father ignited political conflict Friday, prompting the ruling party to demand an apology and boycott all bipartisan proceedings. Democratic Party floor spokesman Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo referred to former iron-fisted ruler Park Chung-hee as “a person who should not have been born.” In a news briefing he deplored the fact that the nation is ruled by Park’s offspring. In an emergency Supreme Council meeting Friday, the Sae
July 12, 2013
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Park's office vents rage over opposition lawmaker's remark
The office of President Park Geun-hye burst out in anger Friday and demanded the main opposition Democratic Party apologize after its floor spokesman insulted her by calling her an offspring of a man who shouldn't have been born.Rep. Hong Ihk-pyo made the remark Thursday, accusing Park of trying to revive the dictatorial rule of her father, former strongman President Park Chung-hee, as the opposition stepped up attacks on her over allegations the state spy agency attempted to influence December
July 12, 2013
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Feud surfaces between old, new governments
Tensions are high between President Park Geun-hye and her predecessor’s administration after her aggressive attack on its four-river refurbishment project that the state auditor recently found to have misled the public.Continuing Korea’s long-festering custom of confrontation between past and current governments, former aides of Lee expressed discomfort with the current government after it quickly sided with the Board of Audit and Inspection. The BAI claimed in a report on Wednesday that Lee’s p
July 11, 2013
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NIS vows focus on terror, not politics
The National Intelligence Service said Wednesday it will fortify its functions against espionage and terrorism and remove any political involvement as part of its self-reform measures ordered by President Park Geun-hye earlier this week.For this, the agency will set up a task force to lead what it called the “second round of reform measures.”The NIS has been carrying out strong self-reform since the appointment of director Nam Jae-joon “to turn over a new leaf as the nation’s top intelligence ag
July 10, 2013
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Parties fail to agree on NIS probe plans
The rival parties failed to finalize the format of their special investigation into the National Intelligence Service’s alleged political interference Wednesday due to differences over the member composition.Representatives of the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic Party on the special committee met and discussed the detailed plans for the investigation, but butted heads over the former’s demand for the exclusion of some DP members.“If the DP does not leave out the two lawma
July 10, 2013
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China adamant against N.K. nukes: Park
President Park Geun-hye said Wednesday the Chinese leadership including President Xi Jinping was adamantly opposed to North Korea’s nuclear programs, refuting concerns here that Seoul and Beijing were not eye-to-eye on Pyongyang’s provocation.“Whenever the issue of the nuclear problem came up in meetings with President Xi and Premier Li Keqiang, they were adamantly against it,” Park told chief editorial writers of major media during a luncheon.With regard to the reason for watering down such ada
July 10, 2013
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Opposition lawmaker proposes carbon-tax bill
An opposition lawmaker on Wednesday proposed a bill calling for taxes on the use of carbons such as coal to help raise funds for the development of renewable energy sources.The so-called carbon tax bill, proposed by Rep. Sim Sang-jung of the left-leaning minor opposition Progressive Justice Party, calls for taxes on anthracite and bituminous coal as well as on electricity.The taxes would come in addition to the current taxes on seven different types of fuel, including gasoline, diesel and kerose
July 10, 2013
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Park sends message to Obama over jet crash
President Park Geun-hye has sent a message to U.S. President Barack Obama over the recent Asiana Airlines jet crash in San Francisco, expressing sympathy to the victims and promising to do whatever it takes to normalize the situation, her spokeswoman said Wednesday.In the message sent Tuesday evening, Park said she thinks of the crash as truly regrettable, offers sympathy to the victims, and expresses gratitude for U.S. efforts to cope with its aftermath, including a joint probe to determine wha
July 10, 2013