[Editorial] Fast-aging Korea

Recent government data sounded the alarm on the need for South Korea to urgently brace itself for a rapidly aging society.  Statistics Korea said that the number of citizens aged 100 or older had surged 72 percent from 2010. The figure showed that 3,159 centenarians were living in the country as of November 2015, up from the 1,835 five years earlier.As life expectancy gets longer steadily, 13.1 percent of South Korea’s 50.6 million population were 65 or older in 2015, said the state statistical

July 26, 2016

[Editorial] Wave of protectionism

Amid the rising tide of protectionism, a growing number of Korean companies are becoming the targets of protectionist measures in their major overseas markets, including the United States and China.Last week, the U.S. government took a series of harsh measures against Korean exporters. Notably, the Department of Commerce introduced high anti-dumping and countervailing duties on cold-rolled steel plates produced by POSCO and Hyundai Steel on Wednesday.The duties amounted to 64.7 percent for POSCO

July 25, 2016

[Editorial] Extra budget

The National Assembly is set to begin deliberations on the government’s 11 trillion-won ($9.64 billion) supplementary budget bill.The extra budget is part of the government’s 28 trillion-won fiscal spending package aimed at propping up the faltering economy and easing the fallout from the ongoing restructuring of ailing industries, including shipbuilding.The government hopes that the parliament passes the bill by Aug. 12 so that it can begin spending the funds before September.Yet the deliberati

July 25, 2016

[Editorial] Too vulnerable

Korea is not the only country where corruption in sports often becomes a hot social issue. But match-fixing scandals that hit the nation’s professional sports intermittently show that the issue requires greater attention from law-enforcement authorities, sports governing bodies and managers of pro clubs. The first major match-fixing scandal erupted in soccer in 2011, which resulted in the indictment of 37 players. Since then, similar cases continued to strike professional sports like baseball, b

July 24, 2016

[Editorial] Trump and Korea

Every U.S. presidential election matters to the world. This year’s election matters much more than any previous election – due mainly to a man who is calling for drastic changes to American policies, not least those on security and free trade. By now, the whole world knows that the “America First” slogan of Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, is a euphemism for neo-isolationism and protectionism. The populist tycoon-turned-politician firmly believes that the U.S. loses more than it gains in

July 24, 2016

[Editorial] Disregard for law

The ruling Saenuri Party can hardly be seen as a respecter of the law, as its leaders are turning a blind eye to allegations that close aides to President Park Geun-hye illegally intervened in candidate nomination for the April 13 general election.Earlier this week, a local news outlet revealed transcripts of conversations between Kim Sung-hoi, a Saenuri candidate for the Hwaseong C district of Gyeonggi Province, and Reps. Yoon Sang-hyun and Choi Kyung-hwan, who are close aides to Park.  It also

July 22, 2016

[Editorial] Gaming culture

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has come up with a new set of measures to promote Korea’s slumping game industry.Dubbed “A Five-Year Plan to Enhance the Gaming Culture,” the new measures focus more on creating a healthy gaming culture than supporting game developers. The policy shift is based on the realization that the game industry cannot prosper unless people’s negative perceptions toward online games change.The government’s policy toward the game industry has been contradictory.

July 22, 2016

[Editorial] Losing weight

Obesity has become a social concern that needs the attention of government officials, politicians, as well as individuals. One does not need the authorities to explain why being overweight is becoming a global phenomenon: People are consuming more calories, sugar and fat. They live in an increasingly stressful society and engage in little physical activity. Koreans are no exception. Figures back up the trend. A research center affiliated with the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation said

July 21, 2016

[Editorial] Under siege

It is obvious that President Park Geun-hye is under siege. She faces hostility on many fronts -- the media, opposition parties and even ruling party members as well as residents from a region that had previously been loyal to her. First, the controversy over one of her most trusted Blue House aides is threatening to erode public trust in the presidential office and the civil service as a whole. It is ironic that a conservative newspaper -- which usually supports Park -- started the increasingly

July 21, 2016

[Editorial] Gender inequality

Two years ago, the government established a task force, composed of major conglomerates and civic groups, on narrowing the nation’s gender gap and increasing women’s participation in the workforce.Despite the effort, South Korea still has an enormous gender gap, with the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report in 2015 placing Korea 115th out of 146 nations in gender equality.According to the report from the Swiss-based WEF, female economic participation and opportunities stood at 56 perc

July 20, 2016

[Editorial] Internal conflict

Pyongyang has test-fired three ballistic missiles in an apparent protest against the Seoul’s decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system in the southern county of Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province.Like military officials’ interpretation, the North’s missile launches are in line with its earlier threats. Last week, it warned of a “physical counteraction” after South Korea and the U.S. announced the THAAD deployment, scheduled for 2017, to better deal with evolving nuclear a

July 20, 2016

[Editorial] Inconsistent policies

Since 2013, the Ministry of Education has sought to weed out poorly managed universities as demand for higher education is forecast to drop due to the falling population of high school graduates.Yet the ministry has made little progress thus far. Last month, Hanlyo University in Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province, announced it would close in the second half of the year, becoming the first university to do so under the incumbent government. Under the preceding administration, six universities had b

July 19, 2016

[Editorial] Reform the prosecution

Justice Minister Kim Hyun-woong and Prosecutor General Kim Soo-nam apologized Monday over the arrest of Jin Kyung-joon, a senior prosecutor, for taking bribes from a leading online games firm.　On Sunday, Jin became the first high-ranking prosecutor in the 68-year history of the nation’s prosecution system to be arrested while in office. He is accused of making some 12 billion won ($10.5 million) through shady stock transactions involving Nexon Co. 　Jin is also alleged to have pressured Hanjin Gr

July 19, 2016

[Editorial] THAAD disputes

The latest developments surrounding the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system here are exposing problems this country faces whenever it confronts an issue like this: incompetent government, populist politicians and selfish residents.The primary blame for the U.S. antimissile system becoming another contentious issue should go to the Park administration. The way President Park Geun-hye, her ministers and aides are handling the issue shows how incompetent the government is.F

July 18, 2016

[Editorial] Safeguarding justice

Rep. Kim Cheol-min and 14 other members of The Minjoo Party of Korea have drafted a bill to restrict the power of the president to grant special amnesties. The bill should prompt the National Assembly to address the issue, which comes up whenever there is a presidential pardon.The bill aims, among other things, to exclude convicts from amnesty unless they have served a certain period of their prison terms. For instance, those facong the death penalty should have served at least 15 years; those w

July 18, 2016

[Editorial] Minimum wage

The nation’s minimum wage per hour for next year has been set at 6,470 won ($5.70), a growth of 7.3 percent from the current 6,030 won. The new minimum wage translates to 1.35 million won per month for employees who work full time.Opposition lawmakers expressed their regret over the decision. The main opposition said the increase should have been at least a two-digit percentage. The runner-up opposition claimed the increase is far short of the level that can narrow the current income gap and tha

July 17, 2016

[Editorial] Inflated shock

Samsung Electronics is drawing close attention in the capital market as its stock prices have risen 8.4 percent over the past three weeks since the impact of the Brexit referendum hit the KOSPI. It closed at 1.518 million won ($1,337) last Friday, compared with 1.4 million won on June 24.Its share price growth over the past two months was more noteworthy, gaining 21.6 percent from 1.248 million won on May 16.Samsun Electronics shares have reached their highest point in three years, and the issue

July 17, 2016

[Editorial] Suicidal walkout

It is not unusual for large Korean unions to down tools at the wrong time and for the wrong cause. But the news that unions of major shipbuilders and the top automaker are moving to strike is truly disappointing. 　The unions of eight major shipbuilding firms held a joint news conference at the National Assembly on Wednesday, vowing to launch a general strike on July 20 in protest against restructuring plans. 　Some of the unions had already been taking collective action. Workers of Samsung Heavy

July 15, 2016

[Editorial] Fallen star

The scandal involving senior prosecutor Jin Kyung-joon and Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju is another reminder of how negligent the elite in this country are in abiding by the law and upholding minimum ethical standards. 　Jin was put into custody Thursday on graft charges, and it has yet to be seen what charges Kim will face. But what is certain is that the scandal – centered on the allegation that Jin earned as much as 12.6 billion won ($10.94 million) in suspicious transactions of Nexon stock courte

July 15, 2016

[Editorial] Youth unemployment

A year ago, the government publicized its plan to create more than 200,000 jobs for those aged between 15 and 34 by 2017 in collaboration with six major business associations.Besides that, over the past few years, Korea’s economic policymakers have come up with another set of countermeasures to tackle the lingering youth joblessness problem.So far, however, the measures have yet to put a big dent in youth unemployment.Last month, the nation’s youth unemployment rate has reached 10.3 percent. Thi

July 14, 2016