[Newsmaker] Protesters control key roads after historic Hong Kong rally

HONG KONG -- Holdout anti-government protesters remained in control of a major arterial road in Hong Kong on Monday a day after organizers said two million people flooded the streets in a historic rebuke of the city‘s pro-Beijing leader.Vast crowds marched for hours in tropical heat on Sunday calling for the resignation of chief executive Carrie Lam, who has been forced to suspend a widely loathed bill that would have allowed extraditions to the Chinese mainland.Critics fear the Beijing-ba

World NewsJune 17, 2019

[Newsmaker] BTS fans complain of tight ID checks at Busan concerts

On the first day of K-pop sensation BTS' first-ever fan event and concert in Busan this weekend, a number of people were blocked from entering the venue although they had tickets in their hands.Officials from Big Hit Entertainment, the management agency of BTS, demanded buyer information on the tickets match the ticket holder's identity documents at the event Saturday. Teenage fans who bought tickets using their parents' names were turned down, while students who brought copies of their stu

PerformanceJune 17, 2019

[Newsmaker] Yoon Seok-youl tapped to head prosecution

Yoon Seok-youl, a well-known prosecutor who participated in major investigations linked to conservative administrations, was tapped for the post of prosecutor general Monday.If appointed, he will replace Moon Moo-il as the country’s top prosecutor. Yoon, currently serves as the head of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, and came to public attention in 2012 when he headed the investigation into allegations that the National Intelligence Service interfered with the presidentia

PoliticsJune 17, 2019

[Newsmaker] Huge crowds march in Hong Kong, piling pressure on leader

HONG KONG — Tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents, mostly clad in black, jammed the city’s streets Sunday in a vehement show of opposition to proposed legislation that has stoked fears of expanding control from Beijing in this former British colony.The marchers are demanding that Hong Kong’s leader first scrap an extradition bill that would allow some suspects to be sent for trial in mainland China and then resign. The conflict, which slipped into unusually violent clashes w

World NewsJune 16, 2019

[Newsmaker] S. Korea, Sweden sign MOUs on trade, economic cooperation

South Korea and Sweden have signed six memorandums of understandings (MOUs) to expand trade and cooperation in emerging industries, the government said Saturday.The MOUs were signed in line with President Moon Jae-in's visit to Sweden on the last leg of his eight-day Northern Europe trip that also took him to Finland and Norway.The agreements include those signed by the Korea International Trade Association and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, as well as the signings between res

Diplomatic CircuitJune 15, 2019

[Newsmaker] Court dismisses filmmaker Hong Sang-soo's divorce suit

A Seoul court rejected award-winning director Hong Sang-soo's request for divorce at a verdict hearing on Friday.The Seoul Family Court handed down the sentence after Hong applied for a divorce settlement in November 2016 and filed a divorce suit in December that year."Hong and his wife's marriage is on the rocks, and yet the primary responsibility goes to Hong. Supreme Court precedent does not allow those who are responsible for a marriage's breakdown to seek divorce," judge Kim Seong

FilmJune 14, 2019

[Newsmaker] Witness accuses YG of collusion with police

YG Entertainment’s Yang Hyun-suk faced allegations Thursday that he pressured a witness to change his testimony in an attempt to cover up iKON leader B.I’s alleged use of an illegal drug.  The witness filed a report Tuesday with the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission claiming the investigation into B.I’s alleged drug use was dismissed due to corrupt ties between police and YG, according to local media. B.I, 23, whose real name is Kim Han-bin, bought the hallucinog

Social AffairsJune 13, 2019

[Newsmaker] Opposition lawmaker loses Nat'l Assembly seat as top court confirms bribery conviction

A lawmaker of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party lost his National Assembly seat Thursday after the Supreme Court upheld his bribery conviction.Rep. Yi Wan-young of the LKP was sentenced to an imprisonment of four months, suspended for two years, and a fine of 5 million won ($4,220) for borrowing 248 million won, interest-free, from a politician in 2012 in violation of the Political Fund Law. The ruling stripped the 62-year-old Yi of his parliamentary seat and disqualified him from running

PoliticsJune 13, 2019

[Newsmaker] Christian group chief under fire over attack on President Moon

Jeon Gwang-hoon, a pastor and the chief of the Christian Council of Korea, on Wednesday faced public backlash and opposition from Christian groups for frivolous claims concerning President Moon Jae-in.During a press conference earlier in the week, Jeon, who has been calling on the president to step down, said, “At this rate South Korea will fall. I thought I had to save the country before it perishes. … President Moon should leave Cheong Wa Dae by the end of this year.”Steppin

PoliticsJune 12, 2019

[Newsmaker] Lee Hee-ho, women’s rights pioneer, partner in inter-Korean reconciliation efforts

Lee Hee-ho was most often in the spotlight as late President Kim Dae-jung’s wife in the later parts of her life, but Lee was a champion of women’s rights whose beliefs and actions have left a lasting mark on Korean society.Lee was born into a wealthy family in 1922 during the Japanese occupation of Korea. While Korea was a patriarchal society where women took second priority to men, Lee’s parents are said to have raised her without such bias. Lee studied at a girl’s high

PoliticsJune 11, 2019

[Newsmaker] SK Innovation demands W1b from LG Chem in defamation countersuit

On the heels of a lawsuit filed by LG Chem in the United States, SK Innovation sued its South Korean competitor for defamation in a local court, claiming 1 billion won in damages in a new chapter in the ongoing legal battle. The country’s top energy business and newcomer to the lithium-ion battery market said Monday that it could no longer endure “groundless accusations” brought against it by rival LG Chem. LG Chem, in response, said it feels “regret” over SK Innova

TechnologyJune 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Search under way for S. Korean tourist missing after fall from Mediterranean Sea cruise ship

Search operations are under way to find a South Korean tourist who fell from a cruise ship into the Mediterranean Sea last week, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday.The 63-year-old woman, whose name was withheld, fell off the Norwegian Epic cruise ship at 5:30 a.m. on Saturday (local time) when the vessel was sailing in waters near the Spanish island of Menorca, the ministry said. She was traveling with her husband."The local (Spanish) rescue authorities are conducting the search for the m

Social AffairsJune 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Images of mother drinking while baby was dying spark fury

Shocking images of a teenage mother who drank for days while her baby daughter was allegedly left to die at home are touching off a firestorm of criticism on the internet. Pictures and postings on social media were revealed showing the 18-year-old mother out drinking with friends while her 7-month-old daughter was believed to be starving to death. The mother posted images of herself drinking every day between May 25 and 28, while her baby was allegedly home alone in Incheon. Her social medi

Social AffairsJune 9, 2019

[Newsmaker] Diplomat dismissed for violating anti-graft law

A former ambassador to Vietnam was dismissed from his post for violating the anti-graft law and other irregularities, the Foreign Ministry said Friday. Former Ambassador to Vietnam Kim Do-hyun received flight tickets and accommodation from a Vietnamese company when he attended an opening event for a golf course in Vietnam with his family in October. He is also suspected of verbally abusing his officials.  The irregularities were found when the Foreign Ministry conducted an inspection of the

Foreign AffairsJune 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] Labor leader grilled by police over violent rallies

The leader of a militant labor umbrella labor group voluntarily appeared before police on Friday to be questioned about allegations of organizing violent protests at the National Assembly in Seoul this spring.Kim Myeong-hwan, chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Union, arrived at the Yeongdungpo Police Station in southern Seoul in the morning before being grilled about his responsibility for allegedly masterminding violent illegal acts during KCTU members' protest rallies in front of th

Social AffairsJune 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] Moon urges national unity based on patriotism in Memorial Day speech

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday stressed that patriotism transcends ideology, as his liberal administration has faced constant political attacks over its approach toward North Korea.In his Memorial Day address at Seoul National Cemetery, which Moon described as a "site alive with patriotism," Moon said, "When it comes to patriotism, there is no difference between conservatives and liberals."Love of country is a matter of caring about the "destiny of a national communit

PoliticsJune 6, 2019

[Newsmaker] Blue House, main opposition dig in over meeting of president, party leaders

A proposed meeting between the president and the leaders of five political parties -- suggested to resolve the parliamentary deadlock -- has worsened the tug of war between the ruling and opposition blocs. On Tuesday, Cheong Wa Dae revealed plans for a meeting between President Moon Jae-in and the leaders of the five parties, to be followed by a one-on-one meeting with Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn. Cheong Wa Dae said it had suggested the meeting be held Friday, in a bid to fac

PoliticsJune 5, 2019

[Newsmaker] Korea to change liquor tax system for first time in 50 years

South Korea has decided to change its liquor tax system for the first time in 50 years, shifting from a price-based to volume-based system, starting with domestically brewed beer and rice wine, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said Wednesday. The tax revision bill for 2020 will state that liquor tax will be levied based on the amount of alcohol sold, rather than adopting ad valorem calculations, which is based on the retail base price. The government plans to submit the bill to the National A

IndustryJune 5, 2019

[Newsmaker] Tower crane workers stage all-out strike, halt construction nationwide

Tower crane workers affiliated with the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions took over some 2,500 tower cranes at construction sites nationwide in an all-out strike, calling for a ban on small tower cranes and a wage hike, the unions said Tuesday.Labor unions say small tower cranes are more vulnerable to accidents, whereas the Construction Association of Korea argues otherwise on the grounds that the driverless equipment can be controlled by a technician

Social AffairsJune 4, 2019

[Newsmaker] Former vice justice minister referred to trial on bribery charges

Former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui was indicted and referred to trial Tuesday on charges of receiving bribes and sexual favors worth 170 million won ($143,700) from a construction contractor.A special team of prosecutors, winding up months of a probe into Kim's suspected sexual assault a decade ago, announced the indictment of the 63-year-old who briefly held the No. 2 post at the Ministry of Justice in 2013.Kim is accused of receiving bribes and sexual favors worth 130 million won between

Social AffairsJune 4, 2019