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I apologize for causing concerns today," Rep. Oh Yeong-hwan of the Democratic Party told reporters through a text message. Oh underwent testing and quarantined himself earlier in t Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs Court blocks decision to reveal suspect's identity in Telegram sex crime case A court on Friday overruled a police decision to disclose the personal information of a suspect involved in a high-profile online sex crime case. The Chuncheon District Court accepted an injunction request filed by a 38-year-old male suspect of the so-called Nth room sex crime case, asking to nullify a police committee's decision to reveal his identity. The man is charged with allegedly purchasing videos of underage girls being sexually exploited through a pay-to-view online club on messaging Jul 3, 2020 Politics Nat'l Assembly on alert after lawmaker's contact with COVID-19 patient South Korea's National Assembly was placed on high alert Friday and even rescheduled a plenary session to pass an extra budget after learning that a ruling party lawmaker had contact with a coronavirus patient earlier this week. Rep. Oh Yeong-hwan of the Democratic Party, who attended an evening event in his constituency of Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, on Wednesday, told reporters through text message that a citizen who he shook hands with at the event was confirmed to be infected with COVID- Jul 3, 2020 Politics Spy agency chief nominee Park, champion of inter-Korean reconciliation, cooperation National Intelligence Service (NIS) director-nominee Park Jie-won is known for his role in arranging the historic first-ever inter-Korean summit in 2000 and fostering engagement with North Korea while in government service from the late 1990s to early 2000s. Park, a former lawmaker of the opposition Party for People's Livelihoods, was a close confidant to late ex-President Kim Dae-jung credited with promoting reconciliation with North Korea through his "sunshine policy," for which Ki Jul 3, 2020 Politics Moon names spy chief as top adviser, reshuffles security ranks President Moon Jae-in on Friday replaced his top foreign policy and national security officials, naming Suh Hoon director of the National Security Office, top security adviser to the president. Suh is a longtime veteran on North Korea policy who helped to orchestrate the three inter-Korean summits in 2018. Park Jie-won, a former special envoy to North Korea who met both Kim Jong-un and his late father Kim Jong-il, was named to head the spy agency. The four-term lawmaker is a vocal supporte Jul 3, 2020 Foreign affairs S. Korea's top nuke envoy holds talks with Chinese, Russian ambassadors South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator Lee Do-hoon met separately with the top Chinese and Russian envoys to Seoul on Friday and discussed the situation on the Korean Peninsula. The meetings took place as Lee reported to work for the first time since his release from mandatory two-week self-isolation after returning from a trip to Washington, where he held talks with his counterpart, Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun. Lee first met with Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming, who was seen ar Jul 3, 2020 Politics Four-term ruling party lawmaker named unification minister Unification minister-designate Lee In-young is a four-term lawmaker known for leading the pro-democracy student movement in the 1980s as the inaugural leader of what was then the country's biggest college student organization. Lee's designation is widely seen as reflecting President Moon Jae-in's intention to seek a breakthrough in the long-stalled inter-Korean relations amid North Korea's anger over anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets and Seoul's overall policy on cross-border relations. Born Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs [Newsmaker] Forcible discharge of transgender sergeant justifiable: military An appeal by a former Korean sergeant, who was forcibly discharged from the military after sex reassignment surgery, to revoke the decision to has been denied, the Army said Friday. Byun Hee-soo, 22, was discharged from the military on Jan. 22 after undergoing sex reassignment surgery while enlisted, despite her wish to continue service as a female officer. What she has done “falls into reasons deemed unfit” for military service in accordance with the current law, the Jul 3, 2020 Politics [Breaking] Four-term ruling party lawmaker nominated as unification minister, NIS chief as national security adviser President Moon Jae-in nominated Lee In-young, a four-term ruling party lawmaker, as South Korea's new unification minister Friday in a shake-up of his security team aimed at providing fresh momentum to troubled efforts to improve inter-Korean ties and revitalize the peace process. Moon also tapped Suh Hoon, head of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), as new director of national security. Lee, known for brisk involvement in peace-related activities as a lawmaker with the Democratic Party, Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs Nat'l human rights body investigating abuse claims by late triathlete The national human rights body said Friday it is investigating abuse claims from a late triathlete who filed a petition a day before taking her own life. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) said it received the petition on June 25 from the legal representative of the family of Choi Suk-hyeon, who was found dead the following day in her home in Busan, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. An NHRC official confirmed Friday its special task force on human rights in sports has taken up the c Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs Agency says last month was hottest June on record South Korea's average high temperature rose to 28 C last month, making it the hottest June on record since authorities began collecting relevant data in 1973, a government agency said Friday. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said June's average high temperature was also 1.5 C higher than the average of the past 30 years, noting the extraordinarily hot weather was caused by North Pacific high pressure and the influx of warm southwesterly winds. Last month's average temperature was Jul 3, 2020 Defense S. Korea, Washington mull canceling joint military drills: sources South Korea and the United States are considering calling off their joint military exercises in August, held twice annually in March and August, due to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, a local report said Friday citing Seoul officials. The two sides were reportedly mulling three options: canceling the drills, scaling them back or forging ahead. The officials said the government at the moment was taking preparations on the assumption that the Combined Forces Command between Seoul and Wa Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs 4 football players caught dodging active-duty military service through self-inflicted injuries Four semi-pro football league players were caught injuring their own wrists in an attempt to avoid active-duty mandatory military service, the military recruitment agency said Friday. The K3 league players, whose identities were withheld, intentionally damaged ligaments in their wrists by excessively turning them while holding dumbbells and received surgery for the injuries, which led them to be judged unfit for active-duty service. They were then assigned to serve alternative military servic Jul 3, 2020 North Korea Bolton says Trump could meet Kim to win reelection US President Donald Trump could push to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for the third time in October to bolster his November reelection, said former national security adviser John Bolton. “If the president felt he was in deep, deep trouble, another meeting with his friend Kim Jong-un might look like something that could turn things upside down again,” Bolton told a video press conference hosted by New York foreign journalists Thursday. But he was doubtful whether the North w Jul 3, 2020 Social affairs PM voices alarm at growing virus infections in Gwangju Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun voiced alarm over the recent "unusual" spike in virus infections in the southwestern city of Gwangju Friday, presiding over the central government's regular COVID-19 response meeting there. "The pace of COVID-19's spread in Gwangju has taken a serious turn. ... (The city) must wisely overcome the crisis to become a model case," Chung said during the meeting held at Gwangju's city hall. The regular virus-response meeting chaired by the PM has b MORE 15 / 174556
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