Most Popular
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Korean labor force to shrink by 10 million by 2044: report
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[AtoZ Korean Mind] Does your job define who you are? Should it?
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Allegations surrounding BTS resurface, enraged fans demand apology
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Students with history of violence will be barred from becoming teachers
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Probe of first lady on Dior bag allegations set to begin
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'Super Rich in Korea' will leave viewers appreciating Korea more: producers
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Top prosecutor pledges 'speedy, strict' probe into first lady's luxury bag allegations
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Medical feud leaves hospitals in financial crisis
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'Queen of Tears' riding high on Netflix chart
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Chip up cycle won’t stay long: SK chief
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Minister vows to stamp out unauthorized youth camps
The government and ruling party on Tuesday vowed to close youth summer camps with any safety or security concerns.“We’ll check all outdoor camps and force to stop them running unless safety of students is assured,” Education Minister Seo Nam-soo said at a government-ruling party meeting.His remarks came less than a week after five teenagers drowned at a private seaside summer camp at Taean Beach, South Chungcheong Province.“The incident occurred during the outdoor school activity, and I feel a g
July 23, 2013
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‘Fire truck that killed Asiana victim had no heat sensors’
The fire truck that ran over and killed a Chinese girl after an Asiana Airlines jet crash-landed on July 6 was not equipped with heat-sensing equipment, U.S. media reported Monday.According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the vehicle that caused the death of 16-year-old Ye Mengyuan did not have forward-looking infrared technology. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration requires all aircraft rescue trucks to install the equipment.A former FAA safety expert Ben Castellano told the newspaper the
July 23, 2013
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Former president claims seized insurance as inheritance
A confiscated insurance product belonging to the wife of former President Chun Doo-hwan has been purchased with assets inherited from her ancestors, a lawyer representing the couple said Tuesday.As part of efforts to collect a massive fine that the former military dictator owes the state, prosecutors have seized a personal pension insurance policy worth 3 billion won (US$2.68 million) that was opened under the name of former first lady Lee Soon-ja."I came here to pick up a document that can prov
July 23, 2013
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Club abuse video done for fame: alleged interpreter
A woman has claimed to have been an interpreter on the shoot of a viral Internet video that appears to show a group of Western men sexually harassing a woman in a nightclub but has since had its authenticity challenged. A second woman also told The Korea Herald that she had put one of the foreign men in the video in touch with its makers. The woman is a mutual acquaintance of the alleged interpreter and one of the foreign actors. The two women are the fourth and fifth people to claim that the vi
July 23, 2013
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TV producer found dead in apparent suicide
Kim Jong-hak, a star producer of hit Korean TV dramas, was found dead on Tuesday in an apparent suicide at a small rented room in Bundang, just outside Seoul, the police said.The 62-year-old producer allegedly killed himself by deliberate smoke inhalation, according to reports. He was found lying on the bed by a building manager at around 10 a.m. Kim left a four-page note in which he apologized to his family. Kim didn’t mention his financial troubles or the accusations of fraud and embezzlement
July 23, 2013
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Hacking attempts on foreign ministry, diplomatic offices to triple in 5 years
Hacking attempts this year targeting South Korea's foreign ministry and its diplomatic missions are expected to be triple the 2009 figure, the ministry said Tuesday. Just in the first three months of this year, attempts to break into the websites of the foreign affairs establishments totaled 1,027, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. If the current pace continues, the total number of hacking attempts on the ministry and its overseas offices will exceed the 4,000 mark for all of 2013, nearly tr
July 23, 2013
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[Newsmaker] Icon of peaceful protest tainted by violence
Two years ago, “Buses of Hope,” carrying thousands of people from different backgrounds, emerged as an icon for peaceful protest.The sympathy rally was launched in support of Kim Jin-suk, a female labor union member, who protested alone on a 35-meter-high crane for more than 300 days against Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction after the shipbuilder laid off more than 400 workers. Ferried in by buses, about 8,000 participants from across the country visited the shipyard in Busan on five occa
July 22, 2013
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[Graphic News] Hallyu earnings rocket
Thanks to a surge in exports of hallyu-related products, Korean entertainment-related firms including filmmakers, broadcasters and game makers earned about $800 million in royalties from foreign firms and individuals’ use of their intellectual property rights last year. It is an increase of 17.6 percent from the previous year that posted $680 million, according to data from the Bank of Korea.
July 22, 2013
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Park calls for overhaul of role of state lenders
President Park Geun-hye called Monday for restructuring the roles of state lending agencies to improve efficiency in funding key policy goals of her government, such as providing export support for smaller firms and increasing the employment rate, her spokeswoman said.Park made the remark after receiving a report on reorganizing the government’s “policy financing” system during a weekly meeting with senior secretaries, saying the current system lacks efficiency as related roles are scattered acr
July 22, 2013
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Korea to increase number of female school chiefs
The Education Ministry said Monday it plans to increase the number of female principals and vice principals at public schools by 2017, it announced on Monday.As of May, women accounted for only 5,188 of the 19,085 principals and vice principals in public schools across the country. The ministry said it would raise the number by 1,100 by 2017.Exactly half of Korea’s 50 million people are women, according to recent government figures.(596story@heraldcorp.com)
July 22, 2013
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Government jobs open to North Korean defectors
The government plans to hire North Korean defectors with career experience and certificates as formal staff in the second half of the year, the Ministry of Security and Public Administration said.Eleven low-level positions will be open for the refugees at some offices including those in charge of labor, culture, health, fair trade and food and drug safety. More details about the application process and qualifications will be announced between July and November on each ministry website. (monicasu
July 22, 2013
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Seoul City to deploy ‘tourist sheriffs’
Retired police officers and former public servants are likely to join police to protect foreign visitors in Seoul’s major tourist spots, a city official said Monday. Seoul Police Agency plans to launch a 100-member police corps by October to crack down on abuses against tourists by illegal taxi vans, unauthorized guides and others. Seoul City is considering deploying 12 former officials with local knowledge as “tourist sheriffs” to assist police in the most popular tourist areas, such as Myeongd
July 22, 2013
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Namyang officials indicted for abusing partners
The prosecution on Monday indicted the chief executive and five other officials of Namyang Dairy, one of the nation’s major dairy product makers, on charges of violating fair trade law, work disturbance and false accusations. Namyang CEO Kim Woong and other officials are suspected of forcing small retailers and distributors to buy more products than they needed. A total of 22 other former and incumbent Namyang Dairy officials also have been fined for employing unfair business tactics such as int
July 22, 2013
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Auditor launches safety checks on construction sites
The state auditor launched Monday emergency safety checks on dozens of major construction sites in Seoul as part of efforts to prevent accidents from flooding amid the prolonged rainy season.The move came after seven workers were killed last week after the swollen Hangang River, which flows through the center of the capital city, swamped their underground waterworks construction site. Torrential monsoon rains have pounded the city and adjacent areas in recent days.The Board of Audit and Inspecti
July 22, 2013
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Park urges enhanced safety
President Park Geun-hye directed the government to enhance safety oversight Monday after fatal accidents at a Seoul construction site and a youth boot camp last week. “Praying for the souls of the victims, I offer heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families,” Park said during a meeting with senior secretaries, before ordering officials to make sure that similar accidents didn’t happen in the future.“If any safety problems occur due to the lack of oversight and supervisory efforts, I will make
July 22, 2013
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Park pays homage to fallen U.N. soldiers
BUSAN (Yonhap News) ― President Park Geun-hye paid tribute Monday to thousands of U.N. soldiers killed while fighting alongside South Korea during the Korean War, saying the country will never forget their sacrifices and will try to repay the debt to the international community.In a memorial ceremony held ahead of the 60th anniversary of the end of the 1950-53 conflict, Park also pledged to ensure a strong deterrence against North Korea and work closely with other nations to get the communist re
July 22, 2013
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Shinsegae chief cleared of E-mart labor abuses
Labor authorities on Monday cleared Shinsegae Group vice chairman Chung Yong-jin of suspicions of illegal surveillance and other abuses of employees at the group’s discount store arm E-mart.The Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office referred to the prosecution 14 E-mart officials, including former chief executive Choi Byung-ryul, wrapping up a six-month investigation into allegations that the management interfered with union activities last year.Chung and incumbent CEO Heo In-cheol were not
July 22, 2013
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Four dead as heavy rain lashes central parts
Torrential rains pounded central parts of the country on Monday, leaving at least four people dead, disaster officials said. Heavy rain alerts were issued in Seoul as well as Gyeonggi and Gangwon provinces as more than 100 millimeters of rain soaked the areas.Some roads, river walks and bridges in Seoul were closed and a parking lot was fully flooded, damaging around 30 to 40 cars. Parts of the city received an average of 80 millimeters of rain with up to 145.5 millimeters in some districts.Road
July 22, 2013
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Boryeong Mud Festival attracts overseas tourists
The city of Boryeong, the host of the annual Boryeong Mud Festival, said Monday some foreign visitors were now booking their tickets and coming from overseas to participate in the event. Foreign visitors to the festival have generally been already residing in the country. “Jay from the United States saw an online ad for the festival and immediately booked a ticket to land in South Korea on Friday, the opening day of the festival,” said one of the interpreters at the event.Daecheon Beach, the ven
July 22, 2013
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Prosecution seizes insurance product of ex-president's wife
Prosecutors have seized an insurance product belonging to former President Chun Doo-hwan's wife as part of efforts to collect a massive fine he owes the state, sources at the prosecution said Monday. The move is part of intensifying efforts by the prosecution to find concealed assets of the former president, who was ordered by the top court in 1997 to return to the state coffers 220 billion won (US$196.8 million) that he was found to have accumulated during his military rule from 1980 to 1988.
July 22, 2013