Govt., ruling party seek tougher rule on public officials' property registration

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the government agreed Friday to push for expanding the asset declaration system of civil servants in a bid to stave off their unfair and illicit real estate transactions. The two sides announced the move at the start of a high-level meeting also involving Cheong Wa Dae on measures to prevent the recurrence of an incident like the snowballing scandal centered around the Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH), the state housing supply arm. The session was held at t

March 19, 2021

[Newsmaker] DP apologizes again to victim of alleged sexual harassment by ex-Seoul mayor

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Thursday once again apologized to the victim of alleged sexual harassment by late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, pledging its full support to help her return to normal life. "On behalf of the DP, I once again give my sincere apology to the victim," floor leader Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon, who is acting as the party chairman, said during a party meeting. "(The DP) will take full responsibility in helping the victim return normally to her everyday

March 18, 2021

Justice minister exercises investigation command in ex-prime minister's bribery case

Justice Minister Park Beom-kye on Wednesday exercised his investigation command authority over a case involving Han Myeong-sook, a former prime minister convicted of taking bribes. The move came as the statute of limitations is set to expire on Monday in an alleged perjury case, in which prosecutors are suspected of forcing inmates who spent time in prison together with the man who bribed Han to make false testimonies against her in 2011. Earlier this month, the Supreme Prosecutors Office (SPO

March 17, 2021

Main opposition submits proposal for parliamentary inquiry into LH scandal

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Wednesday submitted a proposal to the National Assembly to launch a parliamentary inquiry into a snowballing land speculation scandal involving employees of a state housing developer. Twenty employees at the Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH) are currently under investigation on suspicion of using insider information to purchase farmland mainly in the cities of Siheung and Gwangmyeong, both south of Seoul, before the central government designated t

March 17, 2021

Late Seoul mayor's harassment victim calls for ending consuming debate

The victim of alleged sexual harassment by late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on Wednesday called for terminating all "consuming" debate on her case. The victim, a former secretary of Park, made the plea during a news conference arranged by her supporters in Seoul ahead of the April 7 by-election to elect his successor. It is the first time since the case erupted last July that the victim has stood in front of the media. On July 8 last year, the victim filed a complaint with the police,

March 17, 2021

Assembly speaker supports Korean firms joining Costa Rica’s electric train project

National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug asked Costa Rican Foreign Minister Rodolfo Solano Quiros to pay special attention to South Korean companies’ participation in the nation’s electric train project and in electronic-government projects, in a meeting held Tuesday. “I learned that Costa Rica is pushing for electric trains in the metropolitan area and e-government projects, Park said during a talk with Solano. I think there are many areas where we can work together as

March 17, 2021

PM says allowing new virus wave will be painful misstep amid resurgence woes

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Wednesday stressed the importance of maintaining strict adherence to government measures against the new coronavirus pandemic, amid no clear signs of a letup in new cases and fears of an infection resurgence. "If we lose our sense of attentiveness and allow a fourth pandemic wave to break out, it will be a painful misstep," Chung said during a daily interagency meeting on the coronavirus response. South Korean health authorities have struggled to brin

March 17, 2021

Moon discusses digital partnership with Latin American countries

President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday held a meeting with ministers and ambassadors of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Colombia and Brazil to discuss digital partnership with Latin American countries. This is the president’s first face-to-face diplomatic meeting over the past year amid canceled or delayed state visits in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Korea is an optimal and reliable partner for your envisioned transition towards an ecofriendly digital economy. Korea has

March 16, 2021

Seoul mayor candidate Park vows to strengthen ties with Europe

Park Young-sun, the Seoul mayor candidate of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, has vowed to strengthen cooperation with Europe to drive the city to move toward a global city at a meeting with the European Chamber of Commerce in Korea on Monday. The candidate attended a special meeting hosted by the ECCK and shared opinions with European entrepreneurs on the business landscape in Seoul and ways to further develop Seoul into a global economic hub, the ECCK said Tuesday. During the meeting

March 16, 2021

Former Seoul mayor has highest poll rating

Less than a month before the April 7 by-election to choose Seoul’s next mayor, Oh Se-hoon, a former mayor and the sole candidate from the main opposition People Power Party, is ahead of both of the other major candidates -- People’s Party Chairman Ahn Cheol-soo and Park Young-sun, former minister of SMEs and startups and the sole candidate from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea -- a poll showed Tuesday. According to a Realmeter survey of 1,030 Seoulites aged 18 or older on March

March 16, 2021

Rival parties to seek special counsel probe into growing land speculation scandal

Rival parties tentatively agreed Tuesday to jointly seek an independent counsel investigation into a ballooning land speculation scandal. Rep. Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), said his party will seek to launch an independent counsel probe into the scandal, practically accepting the ruling Democratic Party's earlier call for the investigation. "I request the implementation of a special counsel probe, as well as a parliamentary investigation (in

March 16, 2021

Moon offers public apology over LH land speculation scandal

President Moon Jae-in apologized to the people Tuesday over alleged insider property speculation involving officials at the state-owned housing supply body, two weeks after the revelation of the case by civic groups. "I am sorry for having caused great concern to the people," he said at the start of a weekly Cabinet meeting. The case has brought about a "great sense of despondency and disappointment" among the public, he added. The apology followed a string of strong messa

March 16, 2021

Moon, first lady to receive COVID-19 vaccines next week

President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook will receive COVID-19 vaccines on Tuesday next week ahead of their planned trip to the UK for the G-7 summit in June, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday. The presidential couple will be given the two-dose AstraZeneca vaccines like other citizens here, the presidential office added. “Their planned vaccination also aims to eradicate safety and efficacy concerns surrounding the AstraZeneca vaccine,” Moon’s spokesperson Kang Min-seok s

March 15, 2021

Moon pledges to clean up corruption in housing market

President Moon Jae-in on Monday vowed to root out corruption in the housing market, calling real estate speculation another form of “deep-rooted evil” that has long been prevalent in society. “Eradicating deep-rooted evil and restoring order in the real estate market will become one of the key goals in the remaining time of the administration,” Moon said in a weekly meeting with his key aides at Cheong Wa Dae. “We should keep in mind that this is the most import

March 15, 2021

Majority of experts say division, conflicts of S. Korean society at serious levels: survey

Nearly 90 percent of experts view the level of social division and conflicts in South Korea as serious, a survey by a parliamentary advisory committee showed Monday. In its survey conducted from March 2-6 on 1,801 experts in social, political or economic affairs who are registered in the National Assembly Library's database, 89 percent of the respondents said social division and conflicts within the country are at serious levels, according to a subunit of the Committee for National Cohesion tha

March 15, 2021

Moon's approval rating falls to five-week low amid LH land speculation scandal

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating dropped to its lowest in nine weeks, a poll showed Monday, as his administration struggles to calm public outcry over alleged speculative land purchases by officials at the state-owned housing supply enterprise. Public support for the ruling Democratic Party (DP) also dipped, while that for the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) ascended, with less than a month left before the all-important Seoul and Busan mayoral by-elections, according to Realmete

March 15, 2021

Former SMEs minister vows to expand hydrogen mobility in Seoul

Seoul mayoral candidate Park Young-sun says there are three things at the top of her agenda to make the city cleaner and safer if she is elected: Expanding green areas, boosting eco-friendly mobility and tackling the capital’s overflowing waste problem. In December, Seoul set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030 and going carbon neutral by 2050 in line with the global environmental trends. But the city has a long way to go as it struggles to combat worsening

March 14, 2021

Ex-prosecutor Yoon surges to tie with Gov. Lee atop monthly opinion poll

Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung and former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl were tied atop the list of potential candidates for next year's presidential election, a new poll showed Friday. Yoon has soared in opinion surveys since he resigned on March 4 in protest of the ruling Democratic Party (DP)'s push to create a new investigative body that reduces the prosecution's power. Gallup Korea, a pollster, said both Gov. Lee and Yoon garnered 24 percent of support in its latest survey conduc

March 12, 2021

Govt. identifies 20 LH officials suspected of land speculation

The government has identified seven more public officials suspected of buying land for speculation, bringing the total number to 20, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Thursday, declaring a "war" against real estate crime. Chung said at a press conference that all the 20 people work for the state housing developer, Korea Land and Housing Corp. (LH), and purchased land mainly in the Gwangmyeong-Siheung area of Gyeonggi Province, which has been designated as the site of a major public h

March 11, 2021

Ruling party proposes parliamentary probe into all sitting lawmakers over land speculation scandal

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) proposed Thursday a parliamentary probe into all sitting lawmakers over a widening land speculation scandal, to which the main opposition party responded positively. "The justice and order of our society should be re-established by launching an investigation into all of the employees at state-run institutions, high-level government officials as well as lawmakers," Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon, acting chairman of the DP, said during a party meeting. The proposal

March 11, 2021