In a letter posted on the Prosecutor’s Office’s intranet, Kim claimed that it was “extremely rare” for the ministry to inspect a prosecutor without prior consultation with his division. Alleging that the justice minister had been manipulated by “schemers,” Kim said, “I step down for the sake of not being shameful to my son and daughter.” SPO’s Office of Future Strategy and Mission chief Park Eun...

The Korea Electric Power Corp. is set to resume its stalled power-line project in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, after next week’s Chuseok holidays despite continued resistance from some residents. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Chung Hong-won visited the county saying that resumption was an “unavoidable choice” and announced a revised 18.5 billion won ($17 million) compensation plan. The com...

An Olympic gold medalist has been elected president of the International Olympic Committee for the first time in its 119-year history. Thomas Bach, a 59-year-old vice president of the IOC, has ascended to the top post of Olympic leadership. He was elected the ninth president of the IOC in its 125th session in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday. He will serve a four-year term and will be eligible...

It has been mission impossible for 16 years: collecting 167.2 billion won in overdue fines from a former strongman who claimed to have only 290,000 won at hand and is notoriously at home with brinkmanship. So, many observers were skeptical when the prosecution began a whirlwind investigation into former President Chun Doo-hwan’s family nearly four months ago with an aim to force him to pay the b...

The first gay marriage in Korea on Saturday sharply divided the country, putting to the test its legal system and public tolerance of sexual minorities. Film director Kim-Jho Gwang-soo and film distributor Kim Seung-hwan held a symbolic wedding in central Seoul. They have been partners for nine years. The two men made their vows in front of guests reported to number about 1,000, including Kim-J...

Lee Sang-deuk, 78, former six-term lawmaker and elder brother to ex-President Lee Myung-bak, will be released from prison Monday. He has been serving time since July last year for taking illegal funds from failing savings banks. The political bigwig was considered the most influential figure in the previous administration after the president. Lee was frequently described by pundits as the “Rege...

S.R. Cho, chairman of Hyosung Group, is coming under increasing pressure over allegations of tax evasion as tax authorities step up their investigation into his financial history. With conglomerate heads known for purchasing airline tickets to get out of tight spots in the past, Cho was banned from traveling abroad, forcing him to cancel plans to go to Vietnam with President Park Geun-hye for he...

Kang Duk-soo, 63, chairman and founder of the faltering STX Group, is likely to step down within this month due to conflict with creditors. Representing creditor banks, Korea Development Bank issued a statement on Tuesday calling on him to resign to save the group. The request was made based on the earlier agreement of Kang in April, a pre-condition for capital injection to ailing STX Offshore &...

President Park Geun-hye leaves for Russia on Wednesday to attend the G20 summit, making her debut in multinational summit diplomacy. Park will also make a state visit to Vietnam later this week as the first leg of her “sales diplomacy.” The eighth G20 Summit will be held Sept. 5-6 in St. Petersburg under the theme, “The Growth of the Global Economy and the Creation of Quality Jobs.” In her lead...

The rebellion charge faced by leftist lawmaker Rep. Lee Seok-ki has rocked not only the political arena but the entire country, which is still ideologically divided in the midst of constant threats from North Korea. The best-known insurrection case was in 1980, albeit in vastly different circumstances. Then opposition leader Kim Dae-jung, who later became president, was sentenced to death by the...

KORAIL, the nation’s state-run railway operator, is facing public criticism over its response to a train collision on Saturday. Two passenger trains collided near Daegu Station at 7:14 a.m. on Saturday, disrupting rail traffic between Seoul and Busan. A third train later crashed into the two stationary vehicles. The cause of the accident had yet to be confirmed as of Sunday afternoon. No one wa...

The spy agency’s ongoing investigation into leftist lawmaker Lee Seok-ki on charges of plotting a rebellion threatens to engulf the far left of Korean politics and push his Unified Progressive Party over the edge. The UPP, which represents the more extreme end of progressive politics in Korea, was founded in November 2011 when the Democratic Labor Party merged with other progressive factions. A...

The minor Unified Progressive Party’s Rep. Lee Seok-ki has never been free from controversy having been accused of election fraud, illegal funding and leftist ideology. But the investigation of the progressive lawmaker unveiled Wednesday was stunning to the public: He faces the first charge of revolt in 30 years. The first-term lawmaker has been at the center of one of the largest scandals to e...

China’s sensational trial of disgraced politician Bo Xilai wound down Monday with the former Communist Party bigwig giving a performance reminiscent of Jack Nicholson’s Col. Nathan R. Jessup in “A Few Good Men,” railing against his accusers in self-righteous indignation. Bo hurled invective at the testimonies of major witnesses for the prosecution, calling one “insane” and another “a vile liar.”...

Democratic Party adviser Sohn Hak-kyu continues to be a major factor for the progressive bloc despite his absence and apparent intention to “rest.” After losing the DP’s presidential primaries to Rep. Moon Jae-in last year, Sohn maintained a relatively low profile, and in January left for Germany to research welfare and labor issues. However, Sohn has been linked to Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo on a numb...