Most Popular
-
1
[Weekender] Geeks have never been so chic in Korea
-
2
[KH Explains] Why Korea's so tough on short selling
-
3
[News Focus] Mystery deepens after hundreds of cat deaths in S. Korea
-
4
NewJeans members submit petitions over court injunction in Hybe-Ador conflict
-
5
‘Kim desperately wanted to denuclearize,’ Moon writes in memoirs
-
6
Actors involved in past controversies return first via streaming service originals
-
7
S. Korea's exports of instant noodles surpass $100m for 1st time in April: data
-
8
Korea set to finalize medical school expansion plans
-
9
Seoul City to open 'hotel' on river bridge
-
10
Yoon, first lady celebrate return of Buddhist relics after century
-
Progressive party decides to oust two pro-N.K. lawmakers
A progressive South Korean party decided Wednesday to oust two pro-North Korean lawmakers at the center of political controversy in the new National Assembly session.The move by the beleaguered Unified Progressive Party (UPP) will apparently spur efforts by conservative lawmakers to deprive Reps. Lee Seok-gi and Kim Jae-yeon of their seats.The duo has faced weeks of pressure to voluntarily step do
June 7, 2012
-
President joins criticism of pro-N.K. figures
Political leaders ratcheted up their battle over ideology on Wednesday as the nation remembered fallen patriots including soldiers killed during the Korean War. President Lee Myung-bak used his address for the 57th Memorial Day to denounce “those who try to destroy the constitutional order.” “The people of the Republic of Korea will never tolerate anyone who attempts to negate liberal democracy,” Lee said in the speech at the National Cemetery.The ruling Saenuri Party is pushing to expel some la
June 6, 2012
-
Lee takes center stage in ideology debate
Maverick ex-P.M. continues to spit controversial remarks, including accusations of McCarthyismRep. Lee Hae-chan of the Democratic United Party is falling back on his outspoken habits while the debate over the ideological tilt of progressive lawmakers flares again. Lee’s recent outburst, broadcasted over a live radio show, could however work in his favor in the DUP leadership race, as party members seek stronger leadership. In the DUP chairperson elections, Lee is trailing Rep. Kim Han-gill. Duri
June 6, 2012
-
Assembly staggers amid tug-of-war
The National Assembly failed to convene on Tuesday as major parties engaged in a tug-of-war over committee control and the scandal involving far-left lawmakers.The ruling Saenuri Party and opposition Democratic United Party had agreed to open the 19th Assembly’s first plenary session at 10 a.m. that day to confirm each party’s nomination of speaker and vice speakers. But the DUP boycotted the session to demand the chairmanship of one of the three most important parliamentary panels. Most Saenuri
June 5, 2012
-
Ruling party keeps up pressure on DUP to punish pro-N. Korean lawmaker
The ruling Saenuri Party stepped up pressure Tuesday on the main opposition Democratic United Party(DUP) to help discipline opposition lawmakers accused of sympathizing with North Korea.In a radio address, Saenuri chairman Hwang Woo-yea urged the DUP to take punitive measures against Rep. Lim Su-kyung, an activist-turned-lawmaker who made headlines in the past week for calling North Korean defecto
June 5, 2012
-
National Assembly unlikely to hold first session amid row between rival parties
The new National Assembly is unlikely to convene its first plenary meeting scheduled for Tuesday as the ruling and main opposition parties continue to squabble over who will control key parliamentary committees.The 300-member parliament began its four-year term last week and was scheduled to formally open with a plenary meeting Tuesday.However, the main opposition Democratic United Party looks lik
June 5, 2012
-
Lee confidant convicted of corruption
Shin Jae-min, a former vice culture minister known as one of President Lee Myung-bak's trusted aides, was sentenced to prison after being convicted of receiving bribes from a Seoul businessman years ago, court officials said Monday. The Seoul Central District Court ordered the 54-year-old Shin to serve a prison term of three years and six months, pay a fine of 54 million won ($47,000) and forfei
June 4, 2012
-
Ideological attacks darken Assembly
Pro-N.K. controversy spreads to DUP in wake of Lim’s remarksIdeological disputes over allegedly “pro-North Korean” lawmakers are prompting a war of words between parties, which could worsen in the lead up to the December presidential election. The controversy ― originally implicating new legislators from the minority Unified Progressive Party ― is quickly spreading to the main opposition Democratic United Party, after a DUP activist-turned-lawmaker slandered North Korean defectors, calling them
June 4, 2012
-
S. Korea, U.S. struggle over missile pact revision
South Korea and the United States are still struggling to narrow their differences over a proposed revision of a bilateral pact to allow Seoul to develop longer-range ballistic missiles, officials here said Monday.The Korean government in Seoul denied a news report that the allies reached an agreement to extend the missile range stipulated in the deal to 550 km from the current 300 km, saying that negotiations are still ongoing.The two countries have been in consultations for the past few months
June 4, 2012
-
Rep. Lim, a former activist called ‘Flower of Unification’
Rep. Lim Su-kyung of the main opposition Democratic United Party, who came under fire for bombarding North Korean defectors with abusive remarks, was once a star activist in the radical pro-unification circles. Lim became embroiled in controversy on Sunday as a North Korea defector college student revealed the verbal insults she made against other defectors and Rep. Ha Tae-keung, a former activist who recently joined the conservative Saenuri Party.Student activist Lim made an unauthorized visit
June 4, 2012
-
Parties wrangle over Assembly panel chairs
Major parties continued wrangling over the allocation of the chief posts of standing committees on Monday, further delaying the proceedings of the National Assembly. The ruling Saenuri Party suggested that the main opposition Democratic Party chair one of the two parliamentary committees related to national security, in an attempt to hold on to other key panels.“We are willing to hand over to the opposition the chairmanship for the foreign affairs committee or the national defense committee,” sa
June 4, 2012
-
Calls for tactical nuclear weapons foolish: Halperin
JEJU ― Recent calls from the U.S. Congress for the redeployment of tactical nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula stems from Republicans’ “romance” with them, a former senior Washington official said, dismissing its possibility.“The Republican Party has always had a romance with tactical nuclear weapons. They have always seen them as a way to reduce the need for manpower and to reduce the size of the budget,” Morton H. Halperin, former U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, told The Korea
June 4, 2012
-
Kim Jong-un still unknown to Chinese leaders, officials: Xu
Key foreign policy adviser expresses displeasure over human rights criticismJEJU ― Most Chinese leaders still do not know much about North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un, a former senior Beijing official said, indicating that there has been little high-level contact between Pyongyang and its only major ally.Xu Dunxin, a leading member of Beijing’s Foreign Policy Advisory Group, also said that Pyongyang’s decision to launch a long-range rocket in April despite its opposition has made him more uncerta
June 3, 2012
-
UPP to launch new leadership next month
The Unified Progressive Party will kick off its new leadership early next month while it continues to seek expulsion of its defiant lawmakers by the end of this month.The scandal-ridden party held a national committee meeting on Saturday and decided to hold a leadership election this month to pick a chairperson and the supreme council, as well as delegates and regional chiefs.The corresponding vote will take place on June 25-29, after candidates register themselves on June 17-18, according to of
June 3, 2012
-
Front-runners in DUP race rally for final votes
The two leading contenders to be the next Democratic United Party chairperson, Kim Han-gil and Lee Hae-chan, took aim at each other over the weekend as the race entered its final week.Rep. Kim remains in the lead against former Prime Minister Lee in regional votes so far conducted in 13 constituencies, but the gap is only 210 votes.The outcome of the final vote on June 9 remains unpredictable as the regional ballots up until now account for 11 percent of the entire vote. The party will on Saturd
June 3, 2012
-
Establishing S. Korea-China ties was not easy: Zhang
Former ambassador to Seoul recalls negotiations in 1992 over bilateral tiesJEJU ― Establishing the relationship between South Korea and China two decades ago was not an easy process as they faced diplomatic challenges ― for Seoul to sever ties with Taiwan and for Beijing to upset North Korea.Zhang Tingyan, who served as Beijing’s first ambassador to Seoul from 1992-1998, recalled his memories of the bilateral negotiations over the new relationship, which he noted has deepened and widened in man
June 3, 2012
-
S. Korea, U.S., Japan to cooperate on North Korea provocations
South Korea, the United States and Japan agreed to steadily strengthen trilateral defense cooperation to deter provocations by North Korea, Seoul’s defense ministry said Saturday.The agreement was reached during a meeting of the three countries’ top defense officials held on the sidelines of the 11th Asia Security Summit, also known as the Shangri La Dialogue, in Singapore, the ministry said.South Korea’s Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin, U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Japan’s Senior Vi
June 3, 2012
-
DUP opposes Supreme Court nominees
Criticizes current candidates as biased and lacking diversityThe main opposition Democratic United Party on Sunday called for the Supreme Court justice nominees to be reselected, claiming the current lineup to be biased and lacking in diversity.“As the 13 nominees selected by the justice nominee selection committee are at odds with the public’s will, we firmly request a reselection,” said a statement released by 20 DUP lawmakers at a joint press conference. The lawmakers were former members of t
June 3, 2012
-
DUP’s Lim lambasted for ‘apostate’ remarks
The Democratic United Party’s Rep. Lim Su-kyung was under fire on Sunday for reportedly calling activist-turned-lawmaker Ha Tae-keung of the Saenuri Party an “apostate” and lashing out at a college student who defected from the North.Lim, 44, is a proportional representative of the main opposition party and was once called “flower of reunification” by the North after she made an unauthorized and controversial visit to North Korea as a student activist in 1989.The student named Baek Yo-sep left a
June 3, 2012
-
Calls for tactical nuclear weapons foolish: Halperin
Morton H. Halperin JEJU ― Recent calls from the U.S. Congress for the redeployment of tactical nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula stems from Republicans’ “romance” with them, a former senior Washington official said, dismissing its possibility.“The Republican Party has always had a romance with tactical nuclear weapons. They have always seen them as a way to reduce the need for manpower and t
June 3, 2012