Acting President and Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn on Friday named a new vice cultural minister in his first exercise of personnel authority as the acting president.Hwang tapped Song Soo-keun, who heads the strategy division of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, as the ministry's first vice minister in charge of overall cultural policies.The prime minister's office said the decision came as Song holds a variety of experience in the cultural sector as well as public relations.Hwang has b

A new South Korean victim of Japan's wartime sexual enslavement has registered with the government, increasing the total known victims to 239 and the current number of survivors to 40, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said on Friday."The elderly woman has recently applied for registration after she got to know about the government support program," a ministry official said. The ministry declined to disclose her identity following the wishes of those caring for her.The ministry has prov

The government's plan to foster mega-sized investment banks (IBs) will likely be hampered by a controversial rule that restricts their investments in the real estate sector, industry observers said Friday.Under the government's plan, IBs with 4 trillion won (US$3.3 billion) or more in equity capital will be eligible for short-term corporate lending, such as the issuance of commercial papers.Securities firms with equity capital of 8 trillion won or more will be able to launch investment managemen

The special investigative team led by independent counsel Park young-soo suspects that another unauthorized figure may have been involved in President Park Geun-hye’s medical treatment.  According to sources and local reports, the team has secured text messages exchanged between two of Park’s secretaries in May 2013 regarding visits by the “injection lady” to Cheong Wa Dae, allegedly without proper security clearance.  According to the five text messages that have been restored through digital f

The Ministry of Environment announced Tuesday a revised law to strengthen control over breaches of vehicle authentication here, in a bid to prevent another Volkswagen’s emissions-rigging scandal.  Audi Volkswagen Korea headquarterAccording to the revision bill of the current Clean Air Conservation Act, automobile makers that breach vehicle authentication measures in Korea will receive a penalty of up to 5 percent of the total sales amount and can be fined up to 50 billion won ($41 million) per v

With at least 70,000 people involved in the mass culling of poultry at bird flu-hit areas recently, concerns of human infections of the virus are rising due to the workers‘ exposure, a lawmaker said Tuesday. “Since workers participating in culling and burying infected poultry in rural areas are directly exposed to the virus, they carry a higher likelihood of getting infected,” said main opposition Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Kim Hyun-kwon, adding the government should come up with stricter qu

South Koreans gathered in central Seoul on Christmas Eve, braving the cold to protest against President Park Geun-hye and demand the Constitutional Court promptly carry out her impeachment trial.Saturday’s rally, the ninth of its kind since October, had a festive mood, with some protesters dressing up as Santa Claus.(Yonhap)Before the main part of the rally, which was a march toward the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae at 6 p.m., there were events such as a Korean traditional percussion perform

Starting Friday, graphic warnings about the harmful effects of smoking will be attached to cigarette packs sold in South Korea. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, all cigarette packs sold here, including those sold at duty-free shops, must carry one of 10 designated full-color and disturbing photos with warnings on the adverse effects of smoking.Some of the photos depict the body parts of smokers suffering from fatal diseases such as lung cancer, oral cancer, heart attack and strok

For Kim Su-yeon, a 36-year-old self-proclaimed germophobe, Seoul at this time of a year is a nightmare.  Before stepping outside, she always makes sure she has a sufficient supply of antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizers in her bag. But such precautions still seem inadequate in keeping her germ-free, especially when strangers near her start to cough without covering their mouth. “I saw a lady who clearly had a contagious cold, coughing, sneezing and wiping her nose with her hand in the subway.

The cancer occurrence rate among South Koreans has fallen for three consecutive years, government data showed Tuesday.According to data tallied by the Korea Central Cancer Registry, 217,057 patients were diagnosed with cancer in 2014 -- 289.1 cases per 100,000 people -- down 4.5 percent from the 227,188 patients in 2013. The KCCR began collecting data on the occurrence rate of cancer in 1999. It peaked in 2012 with 323.3 cases per 100,000 people, but has since been on a gradual decline. By type

The government on Tuesday mapped out plans to tighten controls to prevent humans from being infected with a highly pathogenic bird flu strain, a week after it elevated its watch level from “alert” to “serious,” the highest level in the country’s disease control system.The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Tuesday it has dispatched quarantine officials to monitor human infections and cull infected poultry at 42 sites across the nation.Officials will also provide residents with 15,300 doses of a

South Koreans will continue to take to the streets for rallies before the year-end holidays to call for President Park Geun-hye to immediately resign and the Constitutional Court to promptly carry out her impeachment trial.According to rally organizers, candlelight vigils are planned for the two remaining Saturdays of the year, Dec. 24 and Dec. 31, to show that the “people’s democracy at Gwanghwamun will not die down until President Park Geun-hye resigns.”“Our gathering (for the candlelight vigi

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Monday a set of countermeasures to stop a highly pathogenic bird flu strain that is spreading toward the capital at an unprecedented pace.The city’s Citizens Health bureau said it has culled eight mandarin ducks at Seoul Grand Park in Gwacheon, just outside Seoul and banned at least 40 zookeepers from leaving the zoo for a week, as part of its preventive measures.Authorities sent feces of a total of 1,200 fowl collected inside the zoo to the National I

A highly pathogenic bird flu is spreading at an alarming pace toward the capital, with confirmed cases in Gimpo, west of Seoul, and another suspected case near the capital. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Sunday that it temporarily closed the Seoul Grand Park in Gwacheon, just south of Seoul, over the weekend after it found two dead storks over consecutive days.Authorities said it did not find anything significant from the autopsy results, while the examinations have been sent to the Nati

South Koreans now consume about 19 percent less sodium compared to five years ago, data showed Sunday.According to the Korea Health Promotion Foundation, the average Korean’s daily sodium intake in 2015 was 3,871 milligrams, about a 19 percent decrease from 4,785 milligrams in 2010.The KHPF attributed the reduction in sodium intake to a well-being trend in the local food industry -- in particular the introductions of new MSG-free, low-sodium instant noodles and traditional paste products for hea

Representatives of foreign residents in Seoul on Wednesday shared ideas on how to make the city a better place to live. Celebrating the first year since the launch of the Seoul foreign residents’ council, a total of 38 representatives from 23 countries and different walks of life gathered for a general assembly at the Seoul City Hall.“We represent some 460,000 foreigners residing in Seoul,” said Taki Yukari, a Japanese office worker who settled in Seoul five years ago.“As a chair of the counsel,

The slaughter of dogs will be abolished and butchery facilities removed from South Korea’s largest dog meat market, in a move which officials described as a step toward ending the animal welfare controversy over the industry. The decision was announced Tuesday by Seongnam City Government and the vendors’ association of Moran Market, which, among others, represents its 22 dog meat dealers. According to their agreement, the dog meat vendors will start removing slaughter facilities and dog cages fr

South Korean soldiers will now receive up to three years of paternity leave per child, three times longer than the Army’s previous policy.The Ministry of Defense said Tuesday that it has revised the Military Personnel Management Act to grant the same period of child care leave to male soldiers. Currently, female soldiers receive up to three years of maternity leave per child. Parents with an 8-year-old child or younger are eligible for the leave.  stock image(123rf)The ministry hopes that the ch

South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Monday began preparations for the impeachment trial of President Park Geun-hye, holding the first assembly of its justices. The meeting was attended by eight of the nine judges, including Kang Il-won, who will lead the coming trial as head justice. They discussed the formation of a task force, the hearings schedule and other related issues, the court’s spokesperson said. Park Han-chul (left), head of the Constitutional Court, arrives at the court in Seoul on

As the Constitutional Court gears up for the impeachment trial of President Park Geun-hye, scholars, politicians and the media are revisiting the 2004 trial of late President Roh Moo-hyun for a hint of what is to come.   It took 63 days for the top court to overturn Roh’s parliamentary impeachment, but opinions are split as to whether the upcoming trial of President Park will produce a similar result or take a similar amount of time. The nine justices of the Constitutional Court will decide whet