Most Popular
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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Inflation eases in April, continues bumpy ride
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Russia sent more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to N. Korea in March: White House
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Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
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Seoul alerts overseas missions to NK terror threats
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[Graphic News] Number of coffee franchises in S. Korea rises 13%
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S. Korean children, teens grow taller, mature faster than before: study
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Some junior doctors are returning: Health Ministry
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Public backlash against division of Gyeonggi Province under 'corny' name
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[Robert J. Fouser] AI changes rationale for learning languages
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Funeral held for victim of Japan's wartime sex slavery
Family members of a South Korean woman who was forced into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II mourned the death of their loved one during her humble funeral on Monday. Choi Gab-soon, 96, died of natural causes at a hospital in Namyangju, east of Seoul, on Saturday, reducing the number of surviving victims to 46. Some 10 people, including Choi's family and activists from the Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, a civic group working t
Dec. 7, 2015
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Former chief of KT&G questioned over bribery
A former head of the nation's leading tobacco maker was summoned Monday for questioning on suspicions that he received kickbacks from a company subcontractor. Min Young-jin appeared before the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul. The 57-year-old is suspected of receiving a total of 100 million won ($85,830) in bribes from a subcontractor in exchange for business favors. The former head of the KT&G Corp. is also suspected of creating secret funds while taking over and
Dec. 7, 2015
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Doctor at odds with Seoul mayor over MERS released from hospital
The doctor, engaged in a war of words with Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon over a deadly respiratory disease, has been released from a hospital after being treated for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, an official said Sunday.The doctor at the Samsung Medical Center in Seoul was at the center of public attention in June when Park said in a news conference that the doctor had direct and indirect contact with over 1,500 people when a MERS infection was suspected.The doctor -- who was confirmed to ha
Dec. 6, 2015
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Massive antigovernment rally ends peacefully
On Saturday afternoon, tens of thousands of protestors peacefully marched through central Seoul under police protection in the second massive rally held in three weeks against government policies, defying concerns over violent confrontation between demonstrators and the police.Thousands of protesters, many wearing masks, hold a rally Saturday at Seoul Plaza in downtown Seoul opposing the government’s reinstatement of state history textbooks and labor reform measures. Police estimated 14,000 peop
Dec. 6, 2015
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‘Why have kids’ 20% of teens say
One out of 5 teenagers in South Korea do not think there is a need to have children in life, a report showed Sunday.The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs surveyed 1,179 students in middle and high schools to look into teen perceptions of marriage and childbirth. (123rf)While 21.1 percent said they did not think they “must have children” when they became adults, 55.1 percent said they should. Some 23.6 percent said they were not sure yet. The response also varied between genders, with
Dec. 6, 2015
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Another victim of Japan’s wartime sex slavery dies
Another South Korean woman who was forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military during World War II died Saturday, bringing the number of Korean survivors to 46. Choi Gab-soon died at age 96, after years of suffering from chronic conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes and dementia, said the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Choi was the ninth Korean victim of slavery to die this year. The late victim was born in 1919 in Gurye, South Jeolla Province. When she was 15, Ch
Dec. 6, 2015
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S. Korea, U.N. agree on anti-corruption effort
South Korea’s Anticorruption and Civil Rights Commission agreed to share its corruption-fighting know-how with developing countries, in an MOU signed with the United Nations Development Program on Friday. “With this MOU, we want to increase our strategic opportunities to help increase the anticorruption capacity of developing countries by combining the UNDP’s policy expertise and country-level presence, with ACRC’s anticorruption technical expertise and innovative tools, such as the Anticorrupt
Dec. 4, 2015
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[Weekender] The police officer's daily grind
With the setting sun, darkness seeps into the harbor city of Incheon. As people unwind after a hectic day of work with bottles of soju, some beer and ample amounts of Korean barbecue in the local popular hangout, things start to get a little rough around a clearly-drunk 50-something man. Uniformed police officers arrive on the scene and attempt to calm things down, but are welcomed with a slap and violent behavior with rants of “How dare you lecture me when you’re just my son’s age!” Cops specia
Dec. 4, 2015
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Backlash intensifies over bar exam retention
The government’s decision to delay the abolishment of the state-run bar exam has stoked vehement opposition, as students from 24 of 25 law schools in Korea agreed Friday to hand in dropout letters and refused to attend classes. The University of Seoul Law School, one institute which did not participate in the movement, held a general meeting later in the day to discuss the matter. “The Justice Ministry broke its promise in 2007 to abolish the bar exam, which is a nearsighted decision that is ag
Dec. 4, 2015
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[Weekender] Closer to the people
In light of the deadly terror attack in Paris last month and the fear it sparked around the globe, many in South Korea also began reconsidering everyday safety.Granted, amid the constant threat from the reclusive North Korea, coping with looming fear has become somewhat usual for Koreans for decades. And various global indexes, including the Better Life Index 2015 by OECD, placed South Korea as one of the safest places to live, at No. 6. Behind the unorthodox sense of security enjoyed by the pub
Dec. 4, 2015
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[Weekender] Portraying police in Korean cinema
“We may not have money, but we have our pride.”This year’s smashing box-office hit “Veteran” -- a cathartic action thriller following a detective trying to arrest a sociopathic young chaebol scion on criminal charges -- offered arguably one of the most positive portrayals of Korean cops. The detective Do-cheol (played by Hwang Jeong-min), as reflected in the above famous quote, is fierce, righteous, capable and, most of all, ethical. He does not exchange his dignity for his own safety, comfort
Dec. 4, 2015
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[Weekender] After K-pop, Korea eyes ‘K-cop wave’
With Korean pop culture, known as K-pop, enjoying steady popularity around the globe, South Korea is looking to export its homegrown policing tactics and equipment in the hope that it can spur what they call the “K-cop wave.”Putting aside controversy at home over the excessive use of police equipment such as water cannons and pepper spray at rallies, South Korean police’s security capabilities have received the spotlight given its long years of experience in keeping public order through turbulen
Dec. 4, 2015
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[Weekender] Tech plays bigger role in fighting crime
As crimes become more complex, the role of technology has been ever more crucial in nabbing and indicting suspects. From autopsies and fingerprint recognition to DNA and psychological analyses, the Korean police have improved over the years.Korea Crime Scene Investigation agents demonstrate how they secure evidence and investigate a crime scene. (Yonhap) Among the technologies that have been developed, the advancement of fingerprint analysis is especially noticeable since its introduction to Ko
Dec. 4, 2015
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S. Korea to offer US$3 mln in refugee aid
South Korea will offer a total of US$3 million in aid to Greece, Serbia and Croatia to help them cope with the growing refugee crisis in the region, the Foreign Ministry said Friday.The number of people fleeing to Europe from conflict-torn nations, such as Syria and Iraq, has reached 850,000 this year, according to the ministry. In 2012, that number was 330,000, while in 2013, it was 430,000. Last year, 620,000 refugees crossed the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe.South Korea will provide Greec
Dec. 4, 2015
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Massive anti-gov't rally to be staged this weekend
An association of 118 civic groups will hold a street demonstration in central Seoul this weekend, police said Friday, following a court ruling that overturned the police ban on the rally.It is the second rally after one in mid-November, which brought tens of thousands of demonstrators to the streets in downtown Seoul to protest the government's decision to adopt state history textbooks for secondary students and push for labor reforms. The rally turned violent as some protesters brandished meta
Dec. 4, 2015
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Gov't to sponsor unification education at universities
The government plans to choose a handful of universities to lead education on inter-Korean reunification, a Unification Ministry official said Friday.The ministry will allocate 1.8 billion won ($1.56 million) to the new project under next year's government budget plan passed by the National Assembly on Thursday, according to the official. The project was not originally part of the budget plan."We plan to receive applications from universities in the first half of next year and then choose three
Dec. 4, 2015
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Top court rejects unfaithful spouse's divorce claim
The nation's top court dismissed a suit filed by an unfaithful spouse seeking a divorce from his wife, officials said Friday.Upholding a lower court's ruling, the Supreme Court ruled against the 70-year-old man, whose identity was withheld, for being responsible for the shattered marriage. The couple tied the knot 42 years ago but has been separated since 1984, following the plaintiff's series of affairs. He started to live with his mistress in the mid-1990s.Without any economic support from the
Dec. 4, 2015
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Court allows second mass rally this weekend
The court ruled on Thursday that the police ban on the second mass anti-government rally planned for this weekend is "unjust," giving the event the greenlight.The Seoul Administrative Court said that one cannot assure that the protest will pose a threat to the public safety simply because the event will be led by some of the groups who were in charge of last month's violent protest.Following the ruling, police said that it will respect the court decision but will take stern measures if the rally
Dec. 3, 2015
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Korea to maintain bar exam until 2021
The government announced Thursday it would hold off on plans to abolish the state-run bar exam until 2021, as controversy persists over the current law school system that was originally introduced to widen the pool of legal professionals. But the decision was scorned by both proponents and opponents of the bar exam, who said it would only extend confusion in the judiciary sector.The Ministry of Justice said it would delay scrapping the bar exam, initially set to be abolished in 2017, citing publ
Dec. 3, 2015
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Korea targets 500,000 foreign patients
With the latest passage of a set of bills to support easier overseas advances of the medical industry, the government said Thursday it will aim to attract some 500,000 foreign patients in 2017, while also creating new jobs for young Koreans. The National Assembly late Wednesday night passed a string of medical-related bills that would, among other things, allow distance consultations between Korean doctors and overseas patients and job training programs for interpreters and medical coordinators
Dec. 3, 2015