Candidate registration opens for ruling party leadership race

Candidate registration opened Thursday for the ruling People Power Party's leadership election, with two main contenders, Reps. Kim Gi-hyeon and Ahn Cheol-soo, running neck and neck in the race to head the party through next year's general elections. The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol is watching the race closely as it wants a Yoon loyalist to lead the party through the parliamentary elections that will determine whether Yoon would be able to push his agenda in the National Assembly

Feb. 2, 2023

Democratic Party accuses Yoon of ‘rolling back Moon’s reforms’ of top spy service

The push by the administration of previous President Moon Jae-in to take away investigative powers from the National Intelligence Service is being rolled back under President Yoon Suk Yeol, Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers claimed Wednesday. Opposition party Reps. Youn Kun-young and Kim Eui-kyeom of the National Assembly’s intelligence committee reiterated in a conference that the top spy service should not be allowed to continue investigations of North Korean espionage and meddling. Yo

Feb. 1, 2023

Govt. expands heating bill support for vulnerable people

The government announced a set of measures Wednesday to help the country's vulnerable people to cope with a spike in heating and energy bills. The move came amid a mounting public outcry over higher heating bills caused by a global surge in gas and energy prices. The measures, among other things, call for doubling the value of energy vouchers for vulnerable people and the amount of heating bill discounts for them. Nearly 1.7 million underprivileged households and some 400,000 lower-income f

Feb. 1, 2023

S. Korean president invites Cambodian boy who received heart surgery in Korea to office

President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee invited 14-year-old Aok Rotha from Cambodia, who underwent heart surgery in Korea, to the presidential office on Tuesday. “President Yoon met with Aok Rotha, who was preparing to return home after successfully completing heart surgery, at the presidential office this afternoon,” said Yoon’s chief of public relations Kim Eun-hye in a press briefing on the day. Yoon gave Rotha a soccer ball after learning that he had never playe

Jan. 31, 2023

Calls for nuclear buildup a chance to widen debate, experts say

Growing calls for South Korea’s independent nuclear buildup, a discussion that had left the country more divided than united, now offer policymakers latitude to widen the nuclear debate, experts said Tuesday as South Korea steps up efforts for a more powerful military to contain North Korea. President Yoon Suk Yeol and Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Seoul on Tuesday while Foreign Minister Park Jin and his US counterpart, Antony Blinken, will mee

Jan. 31, 2023

Arrest looms for accused operators of North Korean spy ring

An arrest warrant is being sought after four individuals accused of operating a spy ring for North Korea, according to a Seoul court on Tuesday. The Seoul central district court opened a hearing at 3 p.m. to determine whether to issue an arrest warrant requested by prosecutors for the four accused spies for North Korea. The court may take longer than a day to make a decision on the prosecutors’ request for a warrant of arrest, which was filed Monday. The request for their arrest comes more

Jan. 31, 2023

Ex-lawmaker Yoo bows out of ruling party leadership race

Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the ruling People Power Party said Tuesday he will not run for party leader. Yoo, a former four-term lawmaker considered a key critic of President Yoon Suk Yeol in the People Power Party, made the announcement in a Facebook post, saying there is no point in running and he will wait patiently for a better time. Surveys have shown Yoo is trailing way behind the main contenders, with less than 10 percent support. The race has become largely a two-way contest between Reps. Kim

Jan. 31, 2023

Seoul rights envoy urges attention to women in North Korea

Lee Shin-wha, South Korean ambassador for international cooperation on North Korean human rights, said the situation of women and girls in North Korea “deserves a special focus” ahead of a Seoul conference on Monday. “The state of human rights is alarming in North Korea, and especially so for women,” she told The Korea Herald. “More North Korean women now contribute to the household economy as breadwinners and yet they are still expected to meet patriarchal demands

Jan. 30, 2023

Yoon's office sues DP spokesperson for defaming first lady

The presidential office has sued the main opposition Democratic Party spokesperson for defaming first lady Kim Keon Hee over her alleged involvement in stock manipulation. Spokesperson Kim Eui-kyeom earlier claimed that the first lady was involved in a so-called "pump and dump" scam involving Woori Technology shares listed on Kosdaq, South Korea's tech-heavy secondary bourse, in addition to her alleged involvement in stock manipulation of Deutsche Motors. "Pump-and-dump&quo

Jan. 30, 2023

Yoon's approval rating slips for third week: poll

President Yoon Suk Yeol's approval rating fell for the third straight week in the wake of a spike in heating bills, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 1,504 adults conducted by Realmeter from Monday to Wednesday of last week, the positive assessment of Yoon's performance dipped 1.7 percentage points from the previous week to 37 percent. Yoon's disapproval rating was 59.8 percent, adding 1 percentage point in the same period. Realmeter said the fall could be attributable to a sur

Jan. 30, 2023

Opposition leader blasts 'dictatorial regime,' says won't answer questions during interrogation

South Korea's main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung called the Yoon Suk Yeol administration a “dictatorial regime” controlled by prosecutors as he appeared at a district prosecutors' office in Seoul on Saturday as a suspect to a high-profile land corruption scandal. Lee, defeated by former prosecutor Yoon in the 2022 presidential election in a narrow margin, has since been facing a number of corruption allegations that were raised even before he became a candidate. A

Jan. 28, 2023

Yoon may revisit law letting police handle espionage cases: ruling party

President Yoon Suk Yeol is rethinking the new law that will let police handle espionage cases, according to the ruling People Power Party spokesperson Yang Kum-hee. In December 2020, the laws on the National Intelligence Service were amended to forfeit the intelligence agency of the authority to investigate crimes related to North Korean espionage and other foreign meddling. The controversial amendment was unilaterally passed by the Democratic Party of Korea. Yang said there was “shared un

Jan. 27, 2023

Support for Ahn doubles after Na quits ruling party leadership race: poll

Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon of the ruling People Power Party is leading in the race for party leadership, but support for runner-up Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo also jumped twofold after strong contender Na Kyung-won bowed out, a poll showed Friday. Kim was ahead of the others with 40 percent in the poll of 422 People Power Party supporters conducted by Realmeter between Wednesday and Thursday. Ahn, who placed third with 17.2 percent in the poll conducted a week earlier, rose to No. 2 with 33.9 percent. Former lawm

Jan. 27, 2023

Ministry plans new law banning sex offenders from living near schools

The Ministry of Justice said Thursday that it will push for legislation of a new law that prohibits sex offenders from living closely to schools and establish a unit to oversee overall immigration policies. The so-called "Korean Jessica Act," calls for preventing high-risk sex offenders from residing within 500 meters of education facilities that involves minors -- elementary, middle, and high schools, daycare centers and kindergartens – after they are released from prison. The r

Jan. 26, 2023

Korea to set up immigration control tower

To cope with fast growing number of foreign residents, the ministry will set up a unit to help coordinate immigration policies with related ministries and agencies. The number of foreigners staying in Korea already exceeded the 2 million mark, the ministry said stressing the need to set up an integrated management system. “We will quickly establish a unified immigration policy at the pan-government level through the establishment of a coordinating unit and secure the budget by preventing o

Jan. 26, 2023

Democratic Party ramps up attacks on Yoon over North Korean drone incursion

The opposition Democratic Party of Korea went after the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s national security strategy on Thursday in a bid to keep the ruling People Power Party on the defense. Democratic Party floor leader Rep. Park Hong-keun convened an emergency meeting, in which he said that the “incompetence of the administration was threatening the security of the country.” “North Korean drones intruded into our airspace and revealed critical security gaps, and yet the r

Jan. 26, 2023

Seoul to expand energy vouchers for low-income families

The government decided Thursday to expand support for low income families struggling to pay gas bills by offering energy vouchers and discounts as rapidly growing energy costs have become the center of political debate. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s economic secretary Choi Sang-mok said the value of energy vouchers given to 1.17 million households classified as economically vulnerable would be doubled to 304,000 won ($246). The range of discounts for gas bills will also be doubled to 18,000 w

Jan. 26, 2023

Embattled Na drops out of race for ruling party leadership

Na Kyung-won, a former four-term conservative lawmaker, said Wednesday that she would not run for the party leadership for the sake of unity in the ruling party, ending weeks of friction with President Yoon Suk Yeol's office that put pressure on her to withdraw. "I won't take part in the race for the People Power Party leadership at the upcoming national convention (in March)," Na told reporters at the headquarters of People Power Party in western Seoul. The judge-turned-seas

Jan. 25, 2023

Yoon says Korea's labor, regulatory policies should align with global standards

President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday that South Korea should conform its labor and regulatory policies to global standards in order to survive in the competitive global market. “Unless we align our system with global standards (in regard to) regulation and labor, (global companies) will not invest in our country and it will be difficult for Korean companies to compete in the global market,” Yoon told his ministers at the meeting on Wednesday. The remark came at the meeting held aft

Jan. 25, 2023

Vice unification minister calls on N. Korea to return to dialogue

Vice Unification Minister Kim Ki-woong called on North Korea on Sunday to halt provocations and return to dialogue, saying Seoul stands by its offers for talks. Kim made the remark during a memorial service in Imjingak, Paju, just south of the inter-Korean border, held by people whose ancestors are in North Korea, to mark the Lunar New Year. "The North Korean authorities must immediately halt provocations that threaten the survival of our people and respond to our government's offers f

Jan. 22, 2023