[Editorial] New work arrangement

The Supreme Court has put an end to a long-running dispute over the status of workers at Hyundai Motor who are formally hired by the carmaker’s in-house subcontractors but work just like its regular employees ― for far lower wages.On Thursday, the court ruled in favor of a former Hyundai worker who filed a suit in 2005 claiming that he was unlawfully fired. The worker, who was then employed by an in-house subcontractor at the carmaker’s plant in Ulsan, claimed that he should have been converted

Feb. 24, 2012

[Editorial] Fill the ‘unification jar’

What will it take to sensitize lawmakers to the need to raise funds to prepare for Korean reunification? Apparently, the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il was not enough. Earlier this month, the Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee of the National Assembly suspended discussions on a bill aimed at creating a so-called “unification jar” ― a metaphor for an account that will store funds to finance reunification.The bill proposes to create a unification account under the Inter-Kor

Feb. 24, 2012

[Editorial] Why the opposition?

The Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul next month will seek to strengthen the partnerships of nations to help prevent nuclear materials from falling into the hands of terrorists. The Seoul summit of more than 50 heads of state and international organizations on March 26-27 will also take specific actions to protect nuclear materials from illicit trafficking and smuggling. They will discuss ways to give the International Atomic Energy Agency the resources and authority it needs to meet its responsi

Feb. 23, 2012

[Editorial] The final year

President Lee seems to have more regrets than satisfaction as he enters the final year in his five-year tenure. In a rare press conference on Wednesday, the president was particularly apologetic about graft cases involving people around him. He said his heart stopped when another name popped up from among his aides and relatives in a corruption scandal.Newspapers featured improprieties related to Lee’s associates on the fourth anniversary of his inauguration. “I have no words to say to the peopl

Feb. 23, 2012

[Editorial] U.N. focus on defectors

More than 30 North Korean defectors caught in Shenyang by Chinese security police are facing repatriation to the North. The problems of North Korean defectors in China are hardly new, but this time, the situation is much more serious than before. The new North Korean leader, Kim Jung-un, openly threatened in January to “exterminate three generations of the family” of anyone who defects during the 100-day mourning period for his deceased father, Kim Jong-il.As the arrested defectors could face pu

Feb. 22, 2012

[Editorial] Vetting campaign pledges

A quarrel has flared up between the government and political parties over the latter’s welfare-related campaign promises.On Monday, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance announced it had launched a task force to study the feasibility of the welfare proposals presented by the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic United Party.The schemes floated by the two parties included quadrupling the salaries of conscripted soldiers to about 400,000 won, free child care services for kids und

Feb. 22, 2012

[Editorial] Mayor’s son’s MRI

The solitary campaign of Rep. Kang Yong-seok against Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon with allegations of impropriety in having his son exempted from military conscription seems to be paying off. Park has agreed to open his son’s spinal image to the public.Rep. Kang has volunteered a “sniper’s role” against leading liberal figures, including Seoul Education Superintendent Kwak No-hyun and Mayor Park. The sons of both Park and Kwak were disqualified from active duty because of their physical conditions.

Feb. 21, 2012

[Editorial] Truth, half-truth and lies

Intelligent Koreans find it increasingly difficult to tell the whole truth from half-truths and outright lies these days. “Facts” about people are disseminated through the media and the social networking service channels, but their respective audiences should exercise great discretion to decide whether the information is true or not.Most dangerous are half-truths which make people believe the whole information is true when it is partly false. This can be compared to a recently circulated nude pi

Feb. 21, 2012

[Editorial] Foreign tourist extortion

A surge of foreign tourists, most conspicuously from China and Japan, is an encouraging thing in otherwise generally bleak economic environment these days. As the Chinese government allowed overseas tourism for residents of cities first and then gradually eased travel restrictions, Korea emerged as one of the most popular destinations because of its geographical and cultural proximity. Travelling in Korea, the Chinese witness political and economic advancement of Koreans and visualize the future

Feb. 20, 2012

[Editorial] End of a saga

“Hana” means one in Korean, but the Hana Financial Group will operate with two separate banks for five years after its takeover of Korea Exchange Bank. As the new owners reached a deal with the KEB union last week, new KEB CEO Yun Yong-ro reported to his office Monday, a week after he was appointed by the HFG. The gist of the deal made on the day before the scheduled start of a strike by the union is that KEB, keeping its present name, will have “independent management” until the end of 2016 wit

Feb. 20, 2012

[Editorial] Amb. Han’s transfer

As it does each year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade holds a conference of its diplomatic mission chiefs in Seoul this week, at which it briefs them on this year’s foreign policy goals and gives them new assignments. Conspicuously missing from the conference will be Han Duck-soo, ambassador to the United States. Hardly a day had passed since his arrival last week before he said he was resigning. He did not offer any explanation. His seemingly abrupt decision sent many scratching their

Feb. 19, 2012

[Editorial] Disgraced to the end

Rep. Park Hee-tae, speaker of the National Assembly, subjected himself to a prosecutor’s inquiry into a vote-buying allegation Sunday. Though his case may have no direct link to the 18th National Assembly’s underperformance during the last four years, it certainly has added to its self-inflicted humiliation. The floor in the main hall of the National Assembly has often become the scene of a brawl, as lawmakers attempting to railroad a bill try to break through the defenses of their rivals. Injur

Feb. 19, 2012

[Editorial] Change in lending rules

Banks had often demanded people line up more than one guarantor if they wanted to borrow money until “joint and several liability” for individuals was abolished in 2008. But lenders still ask the self-employed and corporations that other parties be presented to hold each of them liable to the full amount of the relevant obligation.This loan practice, however, is set to be scrapped in May. The Financial Services Commission has recently decided to ban joint and several liability ― a practice often

Feb. 17, 2012

[Editorial] Match-fixing scandals

In July last year, prosecutors indicted 37 football players on charges of fixing matches in the nation’s top professional football league. The associations of other sports should have learned a lesson from the scandal, but they did not. Now they are paying the price.Allegations have been made that professional baseball players were involved in match fixing. Prosecutors, who are looking into the cases, have reportedly obtained testimony confirming the scandal. The teams whose players are suspecte

Feb. 17, 2012

[Editorial] A wise decision

Japanese authorities have decided not to allow a right-wing organization to erect stone monuments of “Takeshima” in front of the Korean Embassy in Tokyo and its consulate general in Osaka, Yonhap News and SBS TV reported, quoting official sources in Seoul. The reports revealed that Japanese officials intimated their Korean counterparts about the decision which is inadequate to be officially announced.A Japanese group called “the Society of Citizens Recognizing No Privileges of Foreigners in Japa

Feb. 16, 2012

[Editorial] China’s thrust

With his approval rating rising to over 50 percent this week, U.S. President Barack Obama told visiting Chinese top leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping that Washington welcomes China’s “peaceful rise” but cautioned him about friction over trade and human rights issues as the economic and military rivalry grows between the two countries.While the Chinese vice president was seeking to boost his international standing with his four-day visit to the United States, it offered U.S. leaders to size up the man

Feb. 16, 2012

[Editorial] Restarting a charade?

The United States is set to hold talks with North Korea in Beijing next Thursday, the third of their kind aimed at restarting the stalled six-nation negotiations on North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. As a U.S. State Department spokeswoman put it, the talks are “a continuation of the meetings” that the United States has been holding with an evasive, cunning North Korea to see if it is prepared to fulfill its past commitments to denuclearization. Given the remarks, the United States does not a

Feb. 15, 2012

[Editorial] Airport promise again

Political parties have no qualms about making untenable pledges ahead of the April 11 general elections if they are believed to endear them to the electorate. A case in point is a promise to build a new airport in the southeast, which is shaping up to be one of the fiercest battle grounds.The proposal to build a new airport in the area, originally a campaign promise of President Lee Myung-bak, was scrapped when a feasibility study concluded last year that it would incur heavy losses if its const

Feb. 15, 2012

[Editorial] Good and bad judges

Korea has about 1,000 judges sitting in the district, appellate and the supreme courts. They were given their robes after passing the state-run judiciary examination and two years of training. Each year, those who earn higher scores in various tests during the training course are appointed as judges and the rest go to the prosecution or directly go into legal practice.Judges are supposed to make rulings in accordance with the law and their conscience. People have believed judges have clearer con

Feb. 14, 2012

[Editorial] Nomination wars

Up until a few weeks ago, leaders of parties talked about some kind of “bottom-up” process in nominating candidates for the upcoming National Assembly elections. Both Park Geun-hye of what is now the Saenuri Party and Han Myeong-sook of the Democratic United Party mentioned “open primaries” at each district to find fresh personalities who have the respect of constituents and present positive images of their parties.But what we now see at the headquarters of these parties are members of respectiv

Feb. 14, 2012