Rival parties to take more time to discuss controversial media bill

Rival parties on Tuesday tentatively agreed to process a controversial media reform bill led by the ruling party in a plenary parliamentary session next month, party officials said. Reps. Yun Ho-jung and Kim Gi-hyeon, floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), respectively, made the consensus during a meeting earlier in the day to table the bill in a plenary parliamentary session set for Sept. 27. The bill, championed by the DP, is desi

Aug. 31, 2021

W12tr earmarked for carbon neutrality in 2022

South Korea plans to spend about 12 trillion won ($10.3 billion) next year on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and responding to the climate crisis to pursue carbon neutrality, the government said in its 2022 budget plan released Tuesday. The plan calls for allocating 8.3 trillion won to low-carbon projects in four major sectors -- energy, industry, mobility and land -- and establishing a climate response fund worth 2.5 trillion won. The government has selected the transition to carbon neutra

Aug. 31, 2021

Ruling party kicks off 41-day nationwide primary voting to pick presidential candidate

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Tuesday kicked off a 41-day nationwide voting process to choose its final candidate to run in next year's presidential election, party officials said. The primary election voting on six DP presidential contenders started off on the inaugural leg of the central city of Daejeon and surrounding South Chungcheong Province earlier in the day. It will then move to 10 additional legs across the country, including the southern city of Gwangju on Sept. 25, to wrap up

Aug. 31, 2021

Vote over ‘fake news’ bill likely delayed to September

South Korea’s National Assembly has effectively failed to cast a final vote on the “fake news” bill, as fierce opposition from those outside the ruling bloc is believed to prevent lawmakers from holding the vote within this month’s provisional parliamentary session. Even after a series of meetings between floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and main opposition People Power Party held for hours until late Monday afternoon, lawmakers failed to reach a dea

Aug. 30, 2021

Moon says S. Korea has shown its dignity by embracing Afghan evacuees

President Moon Jae-in said Monday that South Korea's successful operation to evacuate Afghan people last week is expected to serve as a chance to further enhance its global stature. In the emergency move, codenamed Operation Miracle, South Korea brought nearly 400 Afghans fleeing the Taliban-controlled nation to its territory on its military aircraft. They have been allowed to stay here with legal status on par with that of a refugee. It is unprecedented in South Korea's diplomatic history to

Aug. 30, 2021

Moon orders readiness for booster shots

President Moon Jae-in on Monday suggested that coronavirus vaccine booster shots will be available here soon, with health care workers and older adults the first to receive the extra shots. “Based on guidance from health authorities and experts, the government will start offering booster shots for high-risk groups like elderly people and health care workers and expand the recipients in phases,” the president said in a weekly meeting with his aides at Cheong Wa Dae. His remarks ca

Aug. 30, 2021

S. Korea's trade ministry launches task force on vaccine production

South Korea's trade ministry on Monday launched a new task force that will establish a long-term strategy to help Asia's No. 4 economy emerge as a global vaccine production hub amid the protracted COVID-19 pandemic. "Based on South Korea's various free-trade networks with 57 countries, the country will bolster ties with major partners in terms of the global vaccine supply chain," Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo said in a statement during a meeting with related organizations. During the me

Aug. 30, 2021

National Assembly set to vote on contentious bills

The National Assembly on Monday is set to vote on a string of contentious bills in a plenary session. The ruling Democratic Party (DP), holding an absolute parliamentary majority, initially planned to push a highly contested media reform bill through the meeting scheduled for 5 p.m., but the prospect of its imminent passage remains slim amid the main opposition's threat to launch a filibuster. Among the bills likely to be submitted to the session are one to block US tech giant Google's upcomin

Aug. 30, 2021

[Newsmaker] Chances grow for ‘fake news’ bill to be voted on a later date

Lawmakers on Monday continued to debate the timing of a final vote on a bill on penalizing the press for “fake news,” with fierce opposition from those outside the ruling party likely pushing the date back. In face of fierce protest from the media and opposition lawmakers, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea was debating within its members whether to walk back from its plan to push the bill through the National Assembly within this month’s provisional session. The bill has f

Aug. 30, 2021

Parties lock horns over vote on ‘fake news’ bill

The floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and the main opposition People Power Party are expected to debate the contentious “fake news” bill one last time before Monday’s plenary session. National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug had arranged a meeting of the two sides on Sunday, for the second time in less than a week to help settle their differences over the bill that would impose drastically higher penalties on media organizations for “fake news.&rdq

Aug. 29, 2021

DP lawmakers withdraw contentious bill banning slander of ex-wartime sexual slavery victims

A group of ruling party lawmakers have withdrawn a controversial bill designed to curb slander of former wartime sexual slavery victims and their advocacy groups, in the face of strong criticism from opposition parties. According to a National Assembly website tracking legislative bills, the proposal to revise the act on protecting so-called comfort women was withdrawn on Wednesday after its submission 12 days ago. "Comfort women" is a euphemistic term for those who were sexually ens

Aug. 28, 2021

Former lawmaker named as vice chief of presidential council on unification

Lee Seok-hyun, former six-term lawmaker and deputy speaker of the National Assembly, has been tapped as executive vice chairman of the presidential National Unification Advisory Council, Cheong Wa Dae announced Friday. Lee is replacing Jeong Se-hyun, former unification minister, to assume the minister-level post. The council, chaired by President Moon Jae-in, is a constitutional body to help establish and implement bipartisan policies on democratic and peaceful unification. Moon also appointed

Aug. 27, 2021

'Fake news’ bill faces global criticism for ‘gagging press’

Criticism continues to pile up in response to the ruling party’s “fake news” bill, with critics saying it would suppress freedom of the press in South Korea. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea has defended the proposed revision to the Act on Press Arbitration and Remedies, Etc. for Damages Caused by Press Reports as a means to protect the public from misinformation and malicious press reports. Opposition lawmakers and local media organizations have attacked the bill from th

Aug. 26, 2021

Ruling party, govt. agree to give monthly rent subsidy to low-income youth

The ruling party and the government on Thursday agreed on a new youth assistance program, including a monthly rent subsidy for young people in lower income brackets, party officials said. The decision was reached during a consultative meeting between the Democratic Party and the government amid the country's soaring housing costs and the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Under the special youth assistance program, the government will pay a monthly rent subsidy of 200,000 won ($171.4) for up to a ye

Aug. 26, 2021

S. Korea to seek talks with EU over new carbon policy

South Korea's trade ministry said Thursday it is seeking to hold talks with the European Union (EU) over the single largest economic bloc's new carbon-neutral policy, which may weigh down exports of steel and aluminum. The EU announced earlier that it will implement the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in the near future. Under the CBAM scheme, European importers of cement, electricity, fertilizer, steel and aluminum must purchase "carbon certificates" corresponding to the a

Aug. 26, 2021

Assembly vote on 'fake news' bill delayed

South Korea’s National Assembly postponed a plenary meeting scheduled for Wednesday, preventing the ruling party from passing two controversial bills that have drawn fierce protests from opposition lawmakers. Early Wednesday, National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug notified the political party floor leaders that the plenary meeting scheduled later in the day would be postponed, since bills should not go through two legislative stages on the same day. At around 4 a.m. Wednesday, a cont

Aug. 25, 2021

Plenary parliamentary meeting postponed ahead of planned vote on controversial media bill

The National Assembly postponed a plenary meeting set for Wednesday, hours after the ruling party railroaded a controversial media bill through a parliamentary committee despite protests from opposition parties. National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug expressed his decision to put off the plenary meeting set for the afternoon, according to Rep. Han Byung-do, spokesman of the ruling Democratic Party (DP). The DP, controlling an absolute majority at the National Assembly, planned to push the

Aug. 25, 2021

S. Korea looks set for legislation to curb Google, Apple's in-app billing system

A parliamentary committee on Wednesday passed a bill to ban Google and Apple from forcing app developers to use the platforms' payment systems, clearing the last remaining hurdle before a final vote. The legislation and judiciary committee of the National Assembly approved the revision of the Telecommunications Business Act, which seeks to bar app market operators from requiring developers to use certain payment systems by unfairly using their positions. If the bill is approved in a plenary

Aug. 25, 2021

[Newsmaker] Controversial media bill passes last hurdle to go on parliamentary plenary vote

A controversial bill on curbing fake news passed the last parliamentary hurdle Wednesday to be put to a final plenary vote at the National Assembly amid heated protests from opposition parties and journalists' associations. The bill to revise the Act on Press Arbitration and Remedies, Etc. for Damage Caused by Press Reports received the green light from the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the final gatekeeping committee for all bills before they go on a final vote at a parliamentary plenar

Aug. 25, 2021

Moon to invite startup entrepreneurs, promise support at Cheong Wa Dae event

President Moon Jae-in will invite venture startup investors and entrepreneurs to Cheong Wa Dae this week to encourage them and promise government support to extend South Korea's latest boom in the startup scene, his office said Tuesday. The event, titled "K+ Venture," will be held Thursday afternoon at the presidential office and will be attended by SMEs and Startups Minister Kwon Chil-seung and some 70 startup investors, entrepreneurs and those currently preparing to launch their own

Aug. 24, 2021