Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

Interior Minister Chin Young Open Government Partnership’s person of month

Minister of Interior and Safety Chin Young was selected as the Open Government Partnership’s person of the month.The OGP is an international organization launched in 2011 to promote transparency, combat corruption and encourage citizen participation in governments globally.  The Seoul government promised an increased role and presence in the partnership after it was elected in August as the “incoming government co-chair” of the steering committee, a position it will hold u

Oct 22, 2019   Foreign Affairs

PM’s Japan visit a chance to mend ties

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon kicked off a three-day visit to Japan in the hope that a meeting with his Japanese counterpart will pave the way for improvements in the two countries’ strained relations. Before heading to Tokyo, Lee said he hoped South Korea and Japan would foster harmonious and mature relations despite difficulties, speaking with Japanese Ambassador Yasumasa Nagamine, who saw Lee off at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. “I don’t expect that this visit w

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

Special bill aims to bring Hwaseong killer to justice

Lawmakers have officially filed a bill that would invalidate the statute of limitations for a series of rape-murders from the mid-1980s and early 1990s in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.On Sept. 20, 13 lawmakers jointly submitted a motion seeking to punish killer Lee Chun-jae, 56, despite the statute of limitations having expired.  The police booked Lee on Oct. 14 after they determined there were “substantial grounds” to believe he was responsible for the crimes, including admissio

Oct 22, 2019   Politics

[Newsmaker] Opposition party leader denies involvement in alleged martial law plan

Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn on Tuesday denied allegations made by a civic group that he took part in planning to impose martial law to quell monthslong candlelight protests if the impeachment of then President Park Geun-hye failed. Hwang’s party filed a complaint to the prosecutors’ office against Lim Tae-hoon, the chief of the Military Human Rights Center for Korea, who raised the suspicions.  On Monday, Lim, testifying as a witness at the parliamentary audit of

Oct 22, 2019   Politics

Moon urges parliament to pass budget bill

Moon says budget aimed at creating fairer, peaceful society

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

[News Focus] Korea faces symptoms of drop in men’s population

SEJONG -- Statistics Korea forecasts that the nation’s population will start declining in 2029 after peaking at 51.94 million in 2028.By sex, the timing of drop in men will likely come first, beginning from 2026 after reaching an all-time high of 25.97 million in 2025, while the number of women is projected to fall starting from 2031.But the symptom of an earlier-than-expected drop mode in the men’s population has already surfaced, according to monthly demographic figures held by the

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

Foreign teachers should receive severance, annual leave stipends: top court

The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered a private academy in Seoul to pay severance pay and stipends for unused leave to foreign teachers.The top court upheld the high court’s decision and concluded expat teachers are regular employees according to the Labor Standards Act, and so eligible for wage benefits guaranteed by law, including pay for severance and for working on public holidays.  The top court remanded the case to the lower court, ordering recalculation of payments due to the pl

Oct 22, 2019   Politics

Moon vows strong education, prosecution reform for fairness in aftermath of Cho Kuk case

President Moon Jae-in pledged a strong push Tuesday for the far-reaching reform of South Korea's education and prosecution systems amid no let-up in public criticism over his short-lived justice minister and calls for curbing prosecutorial power abuse.In his budget speech at the National Assembly, Moon stressed the importance of promoting fairness to achieve the key policy goals of innovative, inclusive and peace-based growth."'Fairness' should be established anew in not just the economy bu

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

Court rapped for giving child porn site operator slap on wrist

A South Korean court is under fire for sentencing the operator of one of the world’s largest child pornography websites to a year and six months in prison.US and UK authorities announced last week that 337 individuals had been arrested in 38 countries and accused of crimes related to use of the site. They included the US, the UK, Ireland, South Korea, Germany, Spain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the Czech Republic and Canada.Last year, a 23-year-old South Korean named Son Jong-w

Oct 22, 2019   North Korea

US wins ownership of seized North Korean vessel

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The United States was awarded ownership of a North Korean cargo ship that was seized for violating international sanctions, the US Justice Department said.The Wise Honest -- the first North Korean vessel to be seized by the US for sanctions violation -- was caught carrying a $3 million shipment of coal in Indonesian waters last year and later handed over to the US.The latest ruling by the Southern District of New York finalises the US government's seizure of the North Korean

Oct 22, 2019   Defense

Russian military aircraft intrude into S. Korea's air defense zone

A military aircraft believed to be from Russia violated South Korea's air defense identification zone over the East Sea on Tuesday, prompting the Air Force to scramble fighter jets to turn it back, a Joint Chiefs of Staff officer said.The plane entered the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone earlier in the day without prior notice, the officer said, adding that F-15K fighter jets were scrambled to the area to force the plane to retreat.Other details, including the type of the plane, its fligh

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

National college entrance exam to take place Nov. 14

The annual national college entrance exam is scheduled to take place Nov. 14, the education ministry said Tuesday, with public transportation and working hours at government offices to be affected.More than 540,000 people are expected to sit for this year's College Scholastic Aptitude Test, also known as "suneung" here. The exam will take place from 8:40 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. at 1,185 schools across the country, according to the Ministry of Education. The CSAT, held only once a year, is co

Oct 22, 2019   Social affairs

Court to review arrest warrant of ex-minister's wife

A Seoul court is expected to decide whether to arrest the wife of ex-Justice Minister Cho Kuk this week over charges related to her daughter's college admission and a private equity fund investment.The Seoul Central District Court is scheduled to review the arrest warrant request made by the prosecution Wednesday morning.Prosecutors have been investigating Cho's wife, Chung Kyung-sim, for two months regarding the college admission process and a 1 billion-won ($850 million) PEF investment.The Seo

Oct 22, 2019   North Korea

UN grants sanctions waivers for Red Cross assistance efforts in N. Korea

The UN Security Council has granted sanctions waivers for an international Red Cross organization project to provide clean water and better sanitation in North Korea, the UN website showed Tuesday. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies received sanctions exemptions on materials "urgently required for lifesaving humanitarian assistance" in providing access to clean drinking water and improving sanitation, according to the website.A total of 11 items worth