[Editorial] Talking to citizens

The issue surrounding the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system is becoming a serious bone of contention in East Asia as well as on the Korean Peninsula after Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, was announced this week as the site that will host a THAAD battery.South Korea’s government has faced a dual task in resolving the backlash from domestic opponents, including Seongju residents, and neighboring countries such as China.The government should be aware that the problem has snowballe

July 14, 2016

[Editorial] Taxing times 　

The National Assembly’s Special Committee on Budget and Accounts has recently pointed out in a report the need to reduce the proportion of wage earners exempted from income tax. The committee has expressed concern that the ever-expanding share of workers who do not pay any income tax could have negative effects on the government’s tax revenue in the long term as it would deter the expansion of the taxation base.Last year, of the 16.7 million Korean workers, 8.02 million, or 48.1 percent, did not

July 13, 2016

[Editorial] Stem cell research

In Korea, research on creating stem cell lines using cloned human embryos has been virtually suspended following the cloning scandal of Hwang Woo-suk, which erupted in 2005 causing a stir around the world.Hwang, then a professor at Seoul National University, claimed that he had successfully established stem cell lines from cloned embryos. But his work was discredited as he was found to have fabricated a series of experiments.The scandal prompted the government to enact the Bioethics and Safety A

July 13, 2016

[Editorial] Park’s challenges

As expected, the decision to deploy a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea has many ramifications that pose hard challenges to the country -- specifically to President Park Geun-hye. First of all, Park -- as the commander-in-chief -- needs to make sure the South Korean military prevents or deals properly with any provocations from North Korea, which is reacting fiercely to the planned deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense. In its first reaction to the announcement, the Nort

July 12, 2016

[Editorial] No more disservice

Last week the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank posted a job vacancy announcements on its website. It included openings for vice president for finance and director-general for risk management.The announcement confirmed that the bank is seeking a replacement for Hong Ky-ttack, the South Korean vice president for risk management who is on a leave of absence. Also evident is that the vice presidency that had been held by Hong went to the finance officer and the post of the risk management office

July 12, 2016

[Editorial] Leadership contest

The leadership race of the ruling Saenuri Party is heating up. On Sunday, two candidates threw their hats into the ring, boosting the number of candidates who have said they will run for the Aug. 9 election to five. The candidate list could still be extended before it is finalized around the end of this month.The leadership contest offers the party an opportunity to take significant strides toward reform based on an accurate and thorough analysis of its humiliating defeat in the April general el

July 11, 2016

[Editorial] Smart farms

Farmers are strongly resisting a plan by LG Group to invest 380 billion won ($309 million) to develop smart farm technology. They view the investment as another attempt by a chaebol to engage in large-scale fruit cultivation, which would threaten the livelihoods of many small fruit growers.Yet the farmers’ resistance is short-sighted and goes against the government’s push to revolutionize Korea’s agriculture with smart farm technology.A smart farm refers to an automated, remotely controlled gree

July 11, 2016

[Editorial] Rare chance

A special law for vitalization of the corporate sector and the economy is drawing attention as to whether it would be an efficient remedy for South Korea, which has been saddled with external and domestic uncertainties.Both policymakers and ailing industries are pinning hopes on the Corporate Vitality Enhancement Act, which will take effect in about a month. The law, which was legislated in February, is designed to revitalize major industries, such as shipbuilding and steelmaking, which have bee

July 10, 2016

[Editorial] Exports after THAAD

Early this year, a consensus on sanctions on Pyongyang by Washington and Beijing was regarded as a benefit and relief to Seoul. China’s participation in the U.N.-led sanctions might be a substitute for the U.S.’s plan to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system on the Korean Peninsula.Apart from possible geopolitical tension from the isolation of North Korea, the U.S. and China-led reprimand of the wayward North was assumed to help South Korea avoid clashing with China on the trade

July 10, 2016

[Editorial] Isolated North Korea

Chances are that the strained relations between Pyongyang and Washington will not thaw in the coming months, as the U.S. has put North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on its sanctions blacklist for the first time.　Dictator Kim is among 15 officials and eight entities identified in the blacklist designated by the U.S. State Department and Treasury. This is the first time that Kim has been personally blacklisted, although in the past there have been international and unilateral bans in connection with t

July 8, 2016

[Editorial] R&D expenditure

The government has unveiled measures, deregulations and tax rewards to reinvigorate newly emerging industries, amid growing concerns over a longer-than-expected export slump.　Its announcement, which was made at a trade promotion gathering chaired by President Park Geun-hye on Thursday, is drawing wide attention, as the government — in coordination with the private sector — has pledged to inject up to 4 trillion won ($3.4 billion) into prospective industries.　A project for a robot theme park in a

July 8, 2016

[Editorial] Lax discipline

The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning is tasked to design the future of the Korean economy and lead Korea’s transition to a creative economy. Yet the powerful ministry has a more urgent task to do: to improve the moral fiber of its officials.Recently, there has been a series of misconduct involving the ministry’s officials. The latest case involves a section chief of the ministry who is suspected of having attempted to purchase sex. The official was caught by undercover police officer

July 7, 2016

[Editorial] Misguided decision

The Fair Trade Commission has unexpectedly put the brakes on mobile giant SK Telecom’s plan to acquire CJ HelloVision, a leading cable TV operator. The decision was ill-advised as it deters the development of the nation’s broadcast industry.Last November, SKT agreed to acquire a 53.9-percent stake in CJ HelloVision from CJ Group for 1 trillion won ($870 million). It planned to merge the cable TV operator with SK Broadband, an affiliate that provides Internet TV services.The deal was expected to

July 7, 2016

[Editorial] Privileged speech

The Article 45 of the Constitution says: No member of the National Assembly shall be held responsible outside the National Assembly for opinions officially expressed or votes cast in the Assembly.It is under this clause that legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for statements they make in the National Assembly. The privilege includes legal immunity even from libel or slander. In a sense, legislators need such immunity because they should be given freedom and aut

July 6, 2016

[Editorial] Far from creative

The government has proclaimed “Creative Korea” as the nation’s new slogan. This, like many of its predecessors, is another brainchild of the stupidity of the Korean bureaucracy. Officials said they collected ideas and suggestions from the public and experts to find words best represent the country. Three words came up in the shortlist: “creativity,” “passion” and “harmony.”But few would agree that the three words best portray the most unique and distinctive image of Korea and its people. Even fe

July 6, 2016

[Editorial] Chain of terror

Fear of terror attacks is shrouding the globe in the wake of successive assaults in Turkey, Bangladesh and Iraq. A week ago, a bombing at the Istanbul airport killed 44, a hostage-taking incident at a restaurant in Dhaka left 22 dead over the weekend and a massive car bomb attack in Baghdad has killed at least 150 people. The jihadist militant Islamic State group claimed accountability for the massacres in Baghdad and Dhaka. IS is also suspected of committing the terrorist attack in Istanbul.Fol

July 5, 2016

[Editorial] National debt

Last week, the government said it would draw up a supplementary budget worth 10 trillion won ($8.69 billion) in its unveiling of its second-half economic policy direction.A package of stimulus might be necessary in terms of overcoming the weak recovery in exports and domestic consumption as well as uncertainty from the Brexit scenario. But in a different aspect, the planned government expenditure is arousing concerns over possible deterioration of fiscal soundness amid a recent surge in sovereig

July 5, 2016

[Editorial] Lunar project

The government’s plan to develop Korea’s own space launch vehicle for lunar exploration by 2020 is likely to be delayed as the test launch of the rocket scheduled for December 2017 is to be postponed.　The Korea Aerospace Research Institute has reported to the government that the development of a 75-ton class liquid engine and fuel tanks for the test launch vehicle is 10 months behind schedule due to difficulties in sorting out technological problems.　The institute had difficulty in ensuring stab

July 4, 2016

[Editorial] Cowardly government　

The main opposition The Minjoo Party of Korea has unveiled a plan to overhaul the health insurance system amid widespread discontent about the way insurance premiums are determined.The party’s plan proposes making aggregate income the single criterion for setting premiums for the two types of policyholders -- employees and the self-employed.Currently, insurance contributions for employees are set based solely on their wage income and are shared equally between the employee and employer.For the s

July 4, 2016

[Editorial] Hardly extraordinary

These days, many people make a habit of checking the levels of fine dust in the air, as the country is often swept by a blanket of hazardous particulate materials. The air pollution problem has become a headache for President Park Geun-hye as people struggling with hazy air filled with harmful pollutants vent their anger against the government. Park called for a package of “extraordinary” measures to address the problem, and officials announced some measures -- they called them “action plans” --

July 3, 2016