Now that Democrat Joe Biden has won the US presidential election, how the new president-elect and his administration will cope with North Korea is attracting keen attention here. During his election campaign rallies, Biden called North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a “dictator” and a “thug,” and criticized his rival President Donald Trump for befriending Kim. But Biden left the door open for a possible summit, with the condition being that Pyongyang work to make the Kor

North Korea Nov. 8, 2020

The ruling Democratic Party’s support rating has fallen behind that of the conservative opposition People Power Party in Seoul, where the two parties seek to strengthen their support base ahead of next year’s mayoral by-elections. According to a survey released by Realmeter on Thursday, the People Power Party’s support came in at 31.4 percent among Seoul residents surveyed, up 1.0 percentage point from the previous week, while that of the ruling party decreased 3.8 percenta

Politics Nov. 5, 2020

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a life sentence for a woman who was convicted of killing her former husband, dismembering his body and dumping it into the sea. However, she was cleared of another murder charge for allegedly suffocating her 4-year-old stepson, due to lack of evidence. Koh Yu-jeong, 37, was sentenced to life in prison in previous rulings by lower courts in February and July, upon conviction for the murder of her former husband, surnamed Kang, and for hiding his body. On

Social Affairs Nov. 5, 2020

The floor leader of the main opposition People Power Party on Wednesday hinted at the possibility of a right-wing alliance in next year’s Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections. People Power Party floor leader Rep. Joo Ho-young said he sees “a very high probability” that his party could join hands with Ahn Cheol-soo, head of the minor opposition People’s Party, and former lawmaker Keum Tae-sup, who defected from the ruling Democratic Party in October. Joo said the tie-

Politics Nov. 4, 2020

The government and the ruling Democratic Party agreed on tax relief for single homeowners and retail stock investors, in an apparent move to soothe public anger over increased levy burden under the Moon Jae-in administration. According to Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Tuesday, the government scrapped its initial plan to broaden the tax base for capital gains to include retail stock investors who own stocks worth over 300 million won in a single company. This means the current standard -

Politics Nov. 3, 2020

State prosecutors have posted a slew of online criticism decrying Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae’s prosecutorial reform and her decision to sideline the prosecutor general from certain cases involving politicians and prosecutors suspected of corruption. The heated discussion was triggered by an online statement that began “Prosecution reform has failed,” posted Wednesday by Lee Hwan-woo, a prosecutor at the Jeju District Prosecutors’ Office, via the bulletin board at Eprose

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2020

A committee that will recommend candidates for the top job within a new investigation body targeting high-ranking public officials held its first meeting Friday, putting in motion President Moon Jae-in’s prosecution reform initiative. The main opposition People Power Party designated two experts to join the seven-member committee on Tuesday. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea seeks to complete the launch of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, or CIO, before t

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2020

The country’s highest court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling sentencing former President Lee Myung-bak to 17 years in prison for bribery and embezzlement. The Supreme Court also upheld the 13 billion won ($11.4 million) fine and the additional forfeiture of 5.78 billion won that the appeals court handed down in February. “There is no fault in the previous ruling in terms of fact finding on embezzlement or bribery charges,” the court said in a verdict. The top court

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2020

Scholars and experts virtually gathered Wednesday for a livestreamed forum hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to discuss the future of city leadership in the post-COVID-19 era. The fifth “Seoul Brand Global Forum” was held under the theme of “SEOUL Initiative-The Future of City Leadership,” at SEOUL ON, the city’s studio dedicated to video conferences. The one-day forum was organized to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the launch of Seoul’s ci

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2020

The Seoul Metropolitan Government will toughen its on-site inspections on nightlife businesses to verify their compliance with antivirus measures ahead of Halloween amid concerns over another potential outbreak of mass coronavirus infections. Talks on temporary suspensions of operations on Halloween weekend are underway with owners of night entertainment venues including nightclubs, no-alcohol dancing halls called colatec and bars with dancing spaces, the city said. “The city will make

Social Affairs Oct. 28, 2020

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea is stepping up its push for the launch of a new investigation body for high-ranking public officials, a flagship project of President Moon Jae-in’s prosecution reform initiative, by proposing bills to amend related laws and seeking to move up the launch by a month. According to the National Assembly’s bill information site on Tuesday, 10 ruling party lawmakers jointly tabled 13 bills on Monday to create a legal framework for the Corruption Inv

Politics Oct. 27, 2020

The death Sunday of Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee ushers in a new era under his son, the group’s de facto head Lee Jae-yong, but the path forward for the new leader appears fraught with legal challenges. Lee Jae-yong, the 52-year-old third-generation leader of the country’s largest conglomerate, is currently standing trial in two cases that could send him back to prison and are likely to take years to reach a conclusion. At the center of the legal disputes is the process by whic

Social Affairs Oct. 26, 2020

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl on Thursday lashed out at Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae, who had accused him of bias and a lack of sincerity, saying she has no legal authority to deprive him of his powers to lead investigations. During a parliamentary inspection of the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, Yoon said Choo’s decision to sideline him in a high-profile probe into a sprawling financial fraud scandal allegedly involving politicians and incumbent prosecutors was “unlawful

Social Affairs Oct. 22, 2020

The conflict between the country’s justice minister and the chief prosecutor intensified Wednesday, with the minister accusing the prosecution of “deceiving the public” with its probe of a high-profile fund scam scandal. 　 Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae said that Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl should have apologized over prosecutors’ unfair investigative practices when they looked into a key suspect in the Lime Asset Management fund scam, who last week delivered the

Social Affairs Oct. 21, 2020

Exposure to ultrafine dust caused 63,000 extra deaths in South Korea during a recent three-year period, an opposition party lawmaker said Wednesday. Particulate pollution called PM2.5, consisting of particles measuring 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter, resulted in 63,969 more deaths than otherwise would have been expected among people aged 30 and older between 2015 and 2017, said Rep. Kang Gi-yun of the People Power Party, citing data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

Social Affairs Oct. 21, 2020