[Newsmaker] Going back and forth, opposition party leader seen as indecisive

“Pray for me,” Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn said softly, barely audible to people near him. He was addressing a line of supporters one by one -- who appeared to be in their 50s and beyond -- at the site of his hunger strike in front of Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday. Hwang continued his hunger strike for a second day near the presidential office to protest President Moon Jae-in’s foreign and domestic policies. He demands that Moon extend the military intel-s

PoliticsNov. 21, 2019

[Newsmaker] Moon’s televised town hall meeting draws mixed reactions

President Moon Jae-in’s television appearance on Tuesday is being met with mixed reactions from the public and political arena. On Tuesday, Moon took part in an unscripted question-and-answer session televised live on major terrestrial and cable networks. The program invited 300 members of the public -- selected to represent South Korea’s demographics -- to pose any question to the president. Although the program gave members of the public a chance to address the president direc

PoliticsNov. 20, 2019

[Newsmaker] State broadcaster accused of demoting reporters over critical coverage of ex-minister

The national public broadcaster KBS is accused of unfairly punishing its reporters for running unfavorable stories on Cho Kuk, a close Moon Jae-in aide and former justice minister.A KBS labor union said in a statement Monday that nine reporters who covered criminal suspicions surrounding Cho faced unwarranted demotions last week. The reporters at the broadcaster’s radio news bureau have been reassigned to non-reporting positions and night shift jobs, according to the statement. “This

Social AffairsNov. 19, 2019

[Newsmaker] China says only it can rule on Hong Kong constitution

BEIJING (AFP) -- China insisted Tuesday it held the sole authority to rule on constitutional matters in Hong Kong, as it condemned a decision by the city's high court to overturn a ban on face masks worn by pro-democracy protesters.The statement could further fan the flames in Hong Kong after months of violent protests over concerns that Beijing is chipping away at the autonomy of the financial hub.The ban on face-covering came into force in October, when the city's unelected pro-Beijing leader

World NewsNov. 19, 2019

[Newsmaker] Korean man accused of murdering Vietnamese wife

A Korean man in his 50s was apprehended for allegedly murdering his Vietnamese wife, a woman 25 years his junior, the police said Monday.  The Yangju Police Station said they are investigating a 55-year-old man on suspicion of murdering his 30-year-old Vietnamese wife at around 5:30 a.m. Saturday at his home, putting her body in the trunk of his car and dumping it in his hometown of Wanju, North Jeolla Province. The man, who was apprehended at around 1 p.m. on Sunday, reportedly admitted to

Social AffairsNov. 18, 2019

[Newsmaker] Hong Kong police storm university held by protesters

HONG KONG (AP) -- Police breached a Hong Kong university campus held by protesters early Monday after an all-night siege that included firing repeated barrages of tear gas and water cannons.Anti-government protesters have barricaded themselves inside Hong Kong Polytechnic University for days. Police surrounded the area Sunday night and began moving in after issuing an ultimatum for people to leave the area. The crowd wore raincoats and carried umbrellas to shield themselves.Riot officers broke i

World NewsNov. 18, 2019

[Newsmaker] Lawyer who faked 184 refugee applications gets suspended sentence

A South Korean lawyer who illegally helped foreign nationals apply for refugee status was give a one year jail term, suspended for two years, the court said Sunday.The Seoul Central District Court ordered the 46-year-old attorney, surnamed Kang, for violating the Immigration Control Act on Wednesday. The court also gave the law firm to which Kang was affiliated a 5 million won ($4,280) fine for illegally employing a foreign national without a visa for Chinese interpretation work.Between October

Social AffairsNov. 17, 2019

[Newsmaker] Court orders consulate to rethink visa denial for K-pop singer

The Seoul High Court on Friday upheld a Supreme Court decision in favor of Korean American Steve Seung Jun Yoo, also known as Yoo Seung-jun, requiring the South Korean Consulate in Los Angeles to reconsider its 2017 decision to deny the former K-pop singer an F-4 residency visa. With the exception of a brief visit, the Korean-born singer and actor has been banned from his birth country since 2002, when he became a naturalized US citizen and evaded his mandatory military duty in Korea. Korea&rs

Social AffairsNov. 15, 2019

[Newsmaker] Koreans sit for national college entrance exam

Nearly half a million people sat for the annual state-administered college entrance exam Thursday, with the number of test-takers marking an all-time low.   The College Scholastic Aptitude Test, locally known as Suneung, began at 1,185 exam venues across the country at 8:40 a.m. and ended at 5:40 p.m.　A total of 482,348 people had sat for the exam for academic year 2020 as of 2:20 p.m. A total of 548,734 people applied to take the nine-hour back-to-back exams, down 46,190 from the

Social AffairsNov. 14, 2019

[Newsmaker] First hearing in ‘comfort women’ case held three years after lawsuit filed

The first hearing in a lawsuit brought against the Japanese government by former victims of Japanese military sexual slavery was held Wednesday, nearly three years after the suit was filed. The Japanese government, which had delayed court proceedings by refusing to accept South Korean court-issued documents demanding its presence in court, was absent from the hearing at the Seoul Central District Court. Eleven survivors and 10 bereaved family members representing six other victims file

Social AffairsNov. 13, 2019

[Newsmaker] Opposition floor leader appears for questioning on 'fast-track' scuffling

The floor leader of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party appeared at a prosecution office Wednesday for long-delayed questioning over parliamentary scuffles related to the fast-tracking of major reform bills.At issue is the party's use of physical means in April to block attempts by the ruling Democratic Party and other opposition parties to put contentious electoral and prosecution reform bills on a fast track.Rep. Na Kyung-won and 59 other LKP lawmakers, as well as a number of party staffer

PoliticsNov. 13, 2019

[Newsmaker] Teenager booked for sharing child pornography

Police booked a high school student in Incheon for sharing child pornography through a mobile messaging application.Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency said Tuesday a teenager -- whose name and age were withheld -- was booked Monday for violation of the Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles from Sexual Abuse. The male student is accused of sharing thousands of online links to pornography through the secure mobile messenger app Telegram. Police added that the boy was a different per

Social AffairsNov. 12, 2019

[Newsmaker] Ex-Minister Cho’s wife slapped with additional charges

Prosecutors on Monday indicted former Justice Minister Cho Kuk’s wife on 14 charges, including obstructing business, insider trading, embezzlement and destroying evidence.  Chung Kyung-shim is already on trial for forging a document to support their daughter’s college application. The judge presiding over the forgery trial is likely to review her other 14 charges as well. Chung, arrested on Oct. 23, has consistently denied most of the charges against her during six rounds

PoliticsNov. 11, 2019

[Newsmaker] Hong Kong police shoot protester as flashmob rallies target rush hour

HONG KONG (AFP) -- A Hong Kong police officer shot at masked protesters on Monday morning, hitting at least one in the torso, as anger sparked by the recent death of a student spilled into the rush hour commute.The shooting, which was broadcast live on Facebook, is the latest escalation in more than five months of seething pro-democracy protests that have engulfed the international financial hub and battered its reputation.Footage showed a police officer drawing his sidearm in the district of Sa

World NewsNov. 11, 2019

[Newsmaker] Police probe former YG chief over alleged drug cover-up

Former head and executive producer of K-pop talent agency YG Entertainment Yang Hyun-suk was grilled by police Saturday for about 14 hours.The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency, handling the case, said its special crime squad questioned Yang from 10 a.m. to 11:50 p.m.Police booked Yang on Wednesday on suspicion of blackmailing a witness to retract her statement to police in August 2016 alleging drug use by one of YG’s artists -- B.I of boy band iKON. Yang is also suspected of paying

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Interpol Red Notice issued for actress Yoon Ji-oh

Actress Yoon Ji-oh, who is under investigation for suspected fraud and defamation, lashed out at police for requesting an Interpol Red Notice for the Korean Canadian, despite her alleged crimes not being serious. Women’s rights activists accused police of showing “surprisingly” strong determination to conduct an investigation into Yoon, saying she is under tighter scrutiny by police because she is a woman. “A Red Notice is targeting those who committed heinous crimes

Social AffairsNov. 8, 2019

[Newsmaker] Travel ban slapped on Mongolian judge accused of sexual misconduct

Police said Thursday they have placed a travel ban on Dorj Odbayar, head of Mongolia’s Constitutional Court who is accused of groping a Korean flight attendant and verbally abusing a Mongolian crew member during a flight from Ulaanbaatar to Incheon on Oct. 31. “We feel confident that Odbayar’s charges are clear and well founded. We will hand him over to the prosecution on Friday or some time definitely before Nov. 15, when the 10-day travel ban expires,” an Incheon Metro

Social AffairsNov. 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] S. Korea deports 2 N. Koreans accused of killing 16 fellow crew members

South Korea deported two North Koreans back to the communist nation after learning that they killed 16 fellow crew members on their fishing boat and fled to the South, the unification ministry said Thursday.The two in their 20s were sent back to the North at around 3:10 p.m. through the truce village of Panmunjom, five days after they were captured near the Northern Limit Line sea border in the East Sea on Saturday, according to the ministry.It marks the South's first deportation of North Korean

North KoreaNov. 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] Tottenham's Son Heung-min becomes all-time S. Korean scoring leader in Europe

Son Heung-min now stands alone at the top of the South Korean scoring list in European club football history.The attacking ace for Tottenham Hotspur netted two goals in the Premier League club's 4-0 victory over Red Star Belgrade in their Group B match of the UEFA Champions League at Red Star Stadium in Belgrade on Wednesday (local time). Son now has 123 goals in his European career, breaking a tie with former Bundesliga star Cha Bum-kun's mark of 121 for most by a South Korean player on the con

SoccerNov. 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] Audition show producers arrested for alleged vote rigging

Two producers of a K-pop competition TV show were arrested late Tuesday over allegations they rigged the results of audience votes that decided which singers would progress through and win the competitions.The Seoul Central District Court issued warrants to detain a producer and the chief producer of the Mnet program “Produce X 101,” a fan-vote audition show through which popular K-pop bands, including Wanna One, debuted. The two are suspected of having conspired with music labels to

Social AffairsNov. 6, 2019