Most Popular
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Controversy rekindled over when to name criminals, suspects
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Seoul transit pass for travelers to be available starting July
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Hybe-Ador CEO conflict gets messier
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Battery makers ramp up efforts to diversify graphite supply chain
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Prosecutors to summon pastor who allegedly gave Dior bag to first lady
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‘Monk’ DJ spreading Buddhism goes global
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[LLG] Unseen inheritance: Trauma of transnational adoption 'trickles down' to adoptees' children
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[KH Explains] Hyundai Motor’s plan for new landmark keeps hitting bumps
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Seoul vows action over Naver's Line, Yahoo dispute
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Court's ruling set to shape path of medical school expansion
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[Newsmaker] Ex-Ulsan mayor questioned over Cheong Wa Dae’s alleged election meddling
Former Ulsan Mayor Kim Gi-hyeon, who raised allegations about Cheong Wa Dae’s suspected meddling in regional elections last year, appeared before the prosecution Sunday to be questioned as a witness. Kim, who is affiliated with the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, says that the Ulsan Metropolitan Police Agency deliberately investigated suspicions surrounding his brother and close aide a few months ahead of the elections last year, to sway the vote in favor of the ruling Democratic
Dec. 15, 2019
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Multiple pileups on highway kill at least 7, injure more than 30
Two massive pileups occurred within moments on a highway in the country's southeast early Saturday, killing at least seven people and injuring 32 others, officials said. The first crash occurred at about 4:40 a.m., when some 10 vehicles, including cargo trucks, collided on a highway en route to Youngcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, 301 kilometers south of Seoul.Some 20 other vehicles that had followed behind crashed successively.Six people died, and 14 others were wounded, according to the
Dec. 14, 2019
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Labor office launches probe into employer paying migrant workers in fake money
A local labor office said Friday that it is investigating allegations that a subcontractor had paid Vietnamese migrant workers in fake money for their farm labor. According to an association of migrant workers’ rights organizations based in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, the subcontractor paid the workers in paper coupons, instead of cash, promising to exchange the coupons with real currency when they wanted. Their employer, however, did not exchange the coupons in full when re
Dec. 13, 2019
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Detective admits to coercing confession in serial murders
A police officer has admitted to torturing a 53-year-old surnamed Yun during the investigation into the Hwaseong serial killings from the 1980s to 1990s. Yun was later convicted for the eighth murder in the case. A local media outlet said Friday that the Suwon Prosecutors’ Office recently called in three former detectives who investigated Yun. One of the officers acknowledged that he had deprived Yun of sleep. But he denied that he had beat Yun or forced him to do squat jumps as alleged
Dec. 13, 2019
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Special investigation team secures audit records involving ferry disaster
A special unit of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office launched Nov. 11 to reinvestigate the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster raided the Board of Audit and Inspection on Thursday, and secured audit records for the responsible government ministries from the aftermath of the sinking. Shortly after the disaster, the audit agency conducted probes into those government bodies, including the Coast Guard, to find out why a new locally developed Navy ship was not mobilized to aid the rescue operations.
Dec. 13, 2019
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Ruling party slams ex-president for extravagant wine and dine
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea on Friday lashed out at former President Chun Doo-hwan, who is now on trial on libel charges in connection with his role in the 1980 crackdown on the Gwangju Democratic Uprising, for hosting an extravagant luncheon on the anniversary of the military coup that brought him to power. The former Army general, 88, seized power in a military coup on Dec. 12, 1979, following the assassination of President Park Chung-hee on Oct. 26 by his spy agency director. C
Dec. 13, 2019
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[Newsmaker] Singer Kim Gun-mo sues woman who filed rape suit
Singer Kim Gun-mo, 51, on Friday countersued a woman who accused the singer of sexual assault, denying all allegations made against him. On the same day, Kim’s agency Guneum announced the cancellation of the singer’s nationwide concert tour that was to take place Dec. 24 to Feb. 29, 2020.On Monday, the woman, surnamed Kim, sued the singer, claiming he had sexually assaulted her in August 2016 at a bar in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, where she worked. “Kim Gun-mo does not know the woman a
Dec. 13, 2019
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Court upholds entry ban on Vietnamese woman who borrowed passport
A 10-year entry ban imposed by immigration authorities on a Vietnamese woman who lived in South Korea on a borrowed passport is lawful, a local court said Friday. The Seoul High Court ruled against the woman, who had challenged the decision and asked the court to invalidate the deportation order and 10-year entry ban. The woman entered the country in April 1997 as part of an industrial trainee program, but overstayed her visa and continued to live here illegally. She received a deportation
Dec. 13, 2019
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Prosecution to indict ex-Busan mayor in bribery case
Prosecutors on Friday are set to indict a former mayor of Busan, South Korea's largest port city, who is suspected of receiving bribes while he worked at the state financial regulator.An official at the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors Office said prosecutors plan to indict Yoo Jae-soo, who recently resigned as vice mayor of economic affairs in the southeastern city. Yoo, 55, is accused of receiving bribes worth a combined 50 million won ($43,000) from three to four financial firms durin
Dec. 13, 2019
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[Graphic News] Life expectancy of Koreans unchanged at 82.7 years in 2018
South Korean babies born in 2018 can be expected to live just over 82 years, government data showed, as a growing number of people are taking care of their health by receiving regular medical checkups and treatment. Life expectancy at birth averaged 82.7 years in 2018 and remained unchanged from a year ago, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The figure represents a sharp hike from 62.3 years in 1970, when Korea began to compile relevant data. Baby boys and girls born in 2018 we
Dec. 12, 2019
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Ex-Minister Cho to be summoned in power abuse probe
Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk will soon be questioned by prosecutors about his involvement in alleged power abuse involving Cheong Wa Dae. Cho is already under investigation over corruption allegations involving his family. On Wednesday, Cho appeared before the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office for a third round of questioning on the corruption accusations. Cho allegedly influenced battery firm WFM to undersell its shares to his wife, and rigged the university applications of h
Dec. 12, 2019
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Justice Ministry seeks to overturn prosecution reform bill
The Justice Ministry is seeking to overturn a pending prosecution reform bill that would strip prosecutors of its investigative powers and delegate them to police, a local media outlet reported Wednesday. The reports said a senior Justice Ministry official met with several lawmakers -- from both sides of aisle -- and discussed restrengthening the prosecution, amid a prolonged parliament deadlock over the reform bill. The senior official reportedly told legislators that the prosecution should b
Dec. 12, 2019
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[Newsmaker] Korean Air recognizes same-sex Korean couple as family
A same-sex couple of Korean nationality were recognized as family members by Korean Air’s membership rewards program, South Korea’s flag carrier said Thursday, a step hailed by sexual minorities’ rights advocates. The female couple, who are in their 40s, completed registering as family members in Korean Air’s SkyPass program on Monday after the country’s largest airline accepted their marriage certificate, which had been issued in Canada. The couple, who have b
Dec. 12, 2019
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Prosecutors reopen 1980s murder case
Prosecutors said Thursday they will investigate the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl from over 30 years ago after a man -- 53-year-old surnamed Yun -- convicted of the crime pleaded his innocence last month.The Suwon District Prosecutors’ Office has formed a task force to find the real killer, as well as to get to the bottom of allegations of wrongdoings by past investigative agencies.The prosecutors said they opened the probe upon request from Yun’s defense team, who alleged in
Dec. 12, 2019
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Top court confirms conviction of groper who was subject of innocence petition
The top court on Thursday upheld a lower court’s decision on a high-profile sexual molestation case in which a man was accused of groping a woman in public two years ago, confirming the sentence of six months in jail suspended for two years.On Nov. 26, 2017, the man, 39, allegedly groped the victim’s buttocks as she was coming out from a private room in an oxtail restaurant in the Yuseong district of Daejeon. Based on the victim’s testimony and an examination of security f
Dec. 12, 2019
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[Newsmaker] Male rapper convicted of sexually insulting female singer in lyrics
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld lower courts' conviction of a male rapper indicted for sexually insulting a female rapper in his songs and concerts.Black Nut, the defendant rapper whose real name is Kim Dae-woong, was sentenced by the top court to an imprisonment of six months, suspended for two years, and ordered to conduct 160 hours of social service.Lower courts had previously handed out the same guilty verdict and sentences to Black Nut, who was accused of inserting controversial words
Dec. 12, 2019
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Gangwon fire almost contained after burning 2 ha of forest
Firefighters on Thursday continued to put out the remaining flames of a forest fire that broke out in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, on Wednesday evening.The regional forest service said most of the fire was extinguished by around 10:39 a.m. Thursday after burning for around 15 hours. The fire started at around 7:18 p.m. Wednesday at the seventh ridge of Baekseoksan, gradually spreading to the nearby areas overnight. The fire burned through 2 hectares of forest area, with firefighters experiencing
Dec. 12, 2019
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Seoul to set 50 kph speed limit on roads with bus-only lanes
The speed limit on Seoul roads with bus-only lanes will be adjusted to 50 kilometers per hour starting late this month as part of efforts to reduce traffic accidents involving pedestrians, the city government said Wednesday.The new speed limit will apply to 14 roads in Seoul with median bus-only lanes, starting Dec. 20. Violators face up to 170,000 won ($142) in fines. Other major roads -- including Hannamdaero and Gyeonginro -- connected to roads with bus-only lanes will have the 50 kph speed l
Dec. 11, 2019
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Capital area choked by thick fine dust for second straight day
The Seoul metropolitan area was shrouded by heavy fine dust concentrations for the second straight day on Wednesday, forcing local governments to issue a fine dust advisory and take emergency emission reduction measures, such as a mandatory alternate no-driving system for public vehicles and road ban for old diesel cars.A constant influx of Chinese smog into the stagnant local air has led to a spike in ultrafine dust figures to bad levels in almost all parts of South Korea, excluding Jeju Island
Dec. 11, 2019
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Man suspected of killing 1, injuring 2 turns self in
A man thought to have stabbed three people at a restaurant in Daejeon on Tuesday surrendered himself to the local police five hours after the incident.A 46-year-old woman, who was the owner of the restaurant, was killed in the attack while her husband and son sustained severe injuries, Daejeon Dongbu Police Station said. Investigations showed the killer entered the restaurant around 6:20 p.m. Tuesday and spoke with the victims for few minutes. The man then attacked them, and quickly fled t
Dec. 11, 2019