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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Arrest warrant issued for medical student for allegedly killing girlfriend after breakup
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[Editorial] ‘Red complex’
Most South Koreans believe the North Korean regime is evil, and their antagonism toward the North grew further when Pyongyang announced a purported satellite launch plan, which the world condemned as cover for its long-range missile project. Therefore, whichever political groups or individuals determined to be sympathetic with the North Korean communists are sure to lose votes even if they could expect support from a small pocket in the extreme left.Thus, in the final week of the National Assemb
April 2, 2012
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[Editorial] Military adventurism
The window of diplomacy toward North Korea is closing as the date for its long-range missile launch is fast approaching. Defying international pressure against its plan, the communist state is proceeding with preparations for what it claims to be a satellite launch, scheduled for any time between April 12 and 16. What will follow is nothing but international sanctions. The United States, which vows to overhaul its approach toward North Korea if it pushes ahead with its plan, has already taken pu
April 1, 2012
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[Editorial] Massive surveillance
A businessman who put a video clip lampooning President Lee Myung-bak in his blog was not the only civilian placed under illegal surveillance. Instead, President Lee Myung-bak’s administration is found to have conducted surveillance on numerous civilians with no authorization from the court. The prime minister’s office has a section authorized to monitor high-level officials ― either in government departments or firms and organizations funded or invested in by the government ― if they are suspec
April 1, 2012
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[Editorial] Election fever
Election fever is gripping the nation, as official campaigning for the April 11 parliamentary election has started. Some 920 candidates will campaign boisterously in 246 electoral districts across the nation for 13 days from Thursday to the eve of polling.The temperature of the election fever is unusually high. One indication is the expected high voter turnout. According to a recent survey conducted by the National Election Commission, 56.9 percent of the respondents said they would “definitely”
March 30, 2012
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[Editorial] Nuclear deal with Vietnam
Korea is one step closer to participating in Vietnam’s nuclear power construction project. According to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Korea has concluded an agreement with Vietnam to conduct a preliminary feasibility study on building a Korean-developed nuclear power plant in the Southeast Asian country. The deal was agreed between President Lee Myung-bak and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Wednesday following the Nuclear Security Summit held in Seoul. According to the ministry
March 30, 2012
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[Editorial] Post-election prices
A brewery raised the prices of its five beer brands by an average of 7.48 percent in December only to revert them to the previous prices in three days. In the same month, a food company announced a 7 percent increase in its tofu prices only to rescind it in the same day.Given that the two companies were among many others that made unsuccessful attempts at price increases, it is easy to assume that a not-so-hidden hand was behind the price rollbacks. Indeed, the administration had repeatedly prom
March 29, 2012
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[Editorial] A sobering reminder
The ruling Saenuri Party’s ill-prepared commitment to child care is backfiring ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections. But the main opposition Democratic United Party finds itself in no position to feel schadenfreude. Its election pledges for welfare are a target of public criticism as well.The ruling party’s predicament dates back to August, when it promised to provide subsidies for child care. It did so without seriously considering the administration’s budget constraints and the shaky
March 29, 2012
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[Editorial] Related-party deals
The Fair Trade Commission has toughened its regulation on related-party transactions among subsidiaries of chaebol groups in a bid to expand business opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises.Under the new rule, which is to apply starting April 1, a company belonging to a business group with aggregate assets exceeding 5 trillion won is required to obtain prior approval from the board of directors when it places an order valued at 5 billion won or more with a sister affiliate. Presentl
March 28, 2012
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[Editorial] Speed up investigations
The presidential office must be on edge as it faces two high-profile investigations at the same time. One concerns the cyberattack last October on the website of the National Election Commission while the other is about illegal surveillance of a civilian.On Monday, an independent counsel started a probe into the NEC website attack that took place on Oct. 26, the day Seoul mayoral by-election was held. A massive distributed denial-of-service attack brought the election watchdog’s website down, ma
March 28, 2012
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[Editorial] Biggest nuclear threat
The leaders of 53 nations and international bodies met in Seoul for two to reconfirm their shared responsibilities to keep nuclear materials from dangerous hands, but the absence of North Korea and Iran helped the participants of the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit realize where the biggest threats are. One positive outcome for President Lee Myung-bak, host of the second nuclear summit after the first in Washington in 2010, was that he had a great opportunity to convince world leaders of the nature
March 27, 2012
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[Editorial] English-only lectures
Universities are increasing the number of English-only lectures to “go in step with the globalization trend,” but students and professors are uncomfortable with the plan. They complain that learning efficiency decreases rather than increases in classes where teachers and students are supposed to speak only English.Since the innovative Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology president Suh Nam-pyo declared “all-English” lectures at the state-run university five years ago and the decisio
March 27, 2012
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[Editorial] Opposition alliance
Park Geun-hye, Han Myeong-sook and Lee Jung-hee. These three women dominate electioneering in the Republic of Korea, each leading a political party. Of them, Lee is the youngest and newest. This baby-faced, smiling woman is also probably most intelligent ― the highest female scorer in the 1987 SAT ― but she is dedicated to the toughest political cause. She wants to be Korea’s first woman president from the working class.Lee Jung-hee, a co-leader of the United Progressive Party, left the parliame
March 26, 2012
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[Editorial] Obama at DMZ
When U.S. President Barack Obama visited Camp Bonifas near the Panmunjeom truce village on his way to a guard post in the Korean Demilitarized Zone on Sunday, he must have been told whom the U.S. Army facility was named after. It was dedicated to Capt. Arthur Bonifas, one of the two U.S. officers who were killed by axe-wielding North Korean guards while on a work detail from the U.N. Command on Aug. 18, 1976.Time has passed very slowly in the 36 years since the bloody incident and since the sign
March 26, 2012
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[Editorial] Curbing nuclear terrorism
Leaders of 53 nations and four international organizations have gathered in Seoul for a two-day summit on expanding and deepening international cooperation in thwarting nuclear terrorism. The threat of nuclear terrorism loomed large following the 9/11 attacks on the United States. But global efforts to address it had remained low-key until U.S. President Barak Obama energized them. In a speech in Prague in 2009, Obama presented his vision of a world free of nuclear weapons. One initiative he pro
March 25, 2012
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[Editorial] Obama’s surprise pick
U.S. President Barak Obama has nominated Jim Yong Kim, a Korean-American who leads Dartmouth College, to become president of the World Bank. Kim, if confirmed by the bank, will become the first Asian-American to head the institution in its 68-year history. The bank has usually been headed by an American, while its sister organization, the International Monetary Fund, has always been led by a European. Kim’s nomination is seen as a move aimed at fending off challenges from developing nations, whi
March 25, 2012
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[Editorial] Obama’s DMZ visit
Tension is building as Pyongyang escalates its threats of attack against South Korea. The latest among them is a warning that North Korea would regard it as a “declaration of war” if the forthcoming Seoul nuclear security summit adopts a statement condemning its nuclear program.Those remarks were contained in a statement carried by the North’s state-run news agency on Wednesday. It added: “If there is any provocative act such as the issuance of a so-called statement concerning ‘the North’s nucle
March 23, 2012
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[Editorial] Pension depletion
The government estimates the national pension fund will be depleted by 2060 if no action is taken. But a university professor of statistics, who claims the government is mistaken in its estimation, says the year of depletion will be 2049.The dispute over the year of depletion is no small matter, given that the trust of subscribers to the national pension program is at stake. The pension program will be put in jeopardy if it is shunned by suspecting young people.In a paper submitted to a forum on
March 23, 2012
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[Editorial] Face the music
Cheong Wa Dae is under snowballing pressure to come clean on its role in the alleged attempt to cover up the illegal surveillance of a civilian by officials of the Prime Minister’s Office in 2008. Opposition parties are zeroing in on President Lee Myung-bak. Defining the case as a Korean version of the Watergate scandal that ousted U.S. President Richard Nixon, they urged Lee to clear up the suspicions that some of his former top aides had been involved in a systematic cover-up. The suspicions s
March 22, 2012
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[Editorial] Nuclear safety culture
The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission has concluded that the power outage at the Gori-1 reactor on Feb. 9 had been caused by a combination of a worker’s mistake, a defect in the emergency diesel power generator and a weak safety culture.According to the commission, external power supply to the Gori-1 reactor was suspended while a worker tested the protection system for the back-up diesel power generator. He was found to have not followed the instructions of his supervisor.The emergency powe
March 22, 2012
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[Editorial] Taxing clergy
All taxable incomes must be taxed. But there have been unwarranted exceptions ― those accrued to Protestant priests, Buddhist monks and other clergy members. Permitting such an exception goes against the Constitution, which reads in part: “All citizens have the duty to pay taxes under the conditions as prescribed by law.”Now the government belatedly says it will seriously consider taxing all people holding religious office. Finance Minister Bark Jae-wan says he finds it difficult to continue to
March 21, 2012