[Newsmaker] Key questions surround president’s eldest brother

Lee Sang-eun, President Lee Myung-bak’s eldest brother, will be summoned by special investigators on Wednesday in a widening investigation into a property scandal surrounding the first family. On Wednesday morning, the 79-year-old chairman of automotive seat maker DAS will become the second member of Lee’s family to be questioned by the independent counsel over alleged irregularities in connection with the president’s now-scrapped retirement home project. Lee’s son Si-hyung was grilled on Thursd

Social AffairsOct. 29, 2012

[Newsmaker] Berlusconi defiant after conviction

After giving up prime ministerial ambitions Wednesday, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi responded to his conviction for tax fraud Friday with typical defiance, vowing to stay in politics. The court sentenced him to four years in jail, reduced to one year under a law ― introduced, ironically by his political opponents ― to reduce prison overcrowding.He may never serve a day. Berlusconi is entitled to two appeals before the sentence can take effect, a process that could last beyond

InternationalOct. 28, 2012

[Newsmaker] President’s only son probed as suspect

President Lee Myung-bak’s only son will face questioning by a team of independent investigators Thursday as part of an escalating probe into his father’s now-scrapped retirement home plan.Lee Shi-hyung, 34, will be greeted by an army of TV cameramen, photographers and journalists anxious to catch the moment the president’s son faces the music. Confronted by the special investigative team, which his father reluctantly agreed to, he now must fight to clear his and his father’s name in a corruption

Social AffairsOct. 24, 2012

[Newsmaker] Yahoo’s latest CEO hopes to break cycle of failure

Marissa Mayer wants to revive the flagging fortunes of Yahoo Inc. by returning to its roots. The recently appointed CEO, a former Google executive who joined Yahoo in July, has been signaling a new technology-focused strategy for the company through her hires and acquisitions. Moving away from her predecessors’ focus on media content, Mayer has pledged to revamp the company’s email and search engine services, and tailor more services to mobile devices. Yahoo’s plan for revival pits it squarely a

Social AffairsOct. 23, 2012

[Newsmaker] Climate fund boosts hopes for Songdo City

After years reeling from a lack of foreign investment and a moribund property market, Songdo is brimming with fresh vigor and a new vision as it was picked to house the secretariat of the Green Climate Fund. Long known for its seaside amusement park, the reclaimed island is the centerpiece of the Incheon Free Economic Zone, launched in 2003 with an aim of developing a leading business, logistics and tourism center in Northeast Asia.The ambition, however, was dented by doubts of its advantages ag

Foreign AffairsOct. 22, 2012

[Newsmaker] Jeongsu Foundation’s legacy too big to ignore

It was perhaps what the ruling Saenuri Party’s presidential candidate Rep. Park Geun-hye has been dreading the most. Following her successful presidential nomination in August, her aides have been bracing for the opponent’s anticipated attack against her purported ties to the Jeongsu Scholarship Foundation, one of the prominent remnants of her father’s, former President Park Chung-hee, authoritarian rule.Jeongsu Foundation was initially the Buil Scholarship Foundation, which was set up by Busan-

PoliticsOct. 21, 2012

[Newsmaker] A fall from loyal aide to heaviest burden

Choi Phil-lip, the 84-year-old chairman of the board for the Jeongsu Scholarship Foundation, has become seen as a public enemy.Son of a slain independence activist and former aide to late President Park Chung-hee, Choi has endured his opponents’ ceaseless calls for resignation as the foundation’s chief in succession to Park Geun-hye, the Saenuri Party’s presidential candidate, since 2005.His headstrong position that the foundation, considered a remnant of Park Chung-hee’s authoritarian rule, is

PoliticsOct. 18, 2012

[Newsmaker] Japan’s risk-taking mogul makes another gamble

Masayoshi Son, the founder and CEO of Japanese Internet and telecoms venture SoftBank Corp., is no stranger to playing the odds. The Japanese ethnic Korean has the distinction of losing more money than any other individual in history, having seen some $70 billion of his personal wealth evaporate during the dotcom crash of 2000. For Son, though, risk continues to bring great reward: Son remains Japan’s second-richest person, worth over $7 billion. In keeping with his reputation, Son, who recently

Foreign AffairsOct. 16, 2012

[Newsmaker] Law professor key figure in candidate unification push

Progressive law professor Cho Kuk is emerging as an unlikely kingmaker mediating a tricky process to generate a united opposition candidacy. Cho is one of the country’s best known liberal academics and fiercest critics of party politics. He made headlines in September when he was mentioned as a potential member of Democratic United Party Moon Jae-in’s campaign. However, the academic has so far remained away from the election campaigns saying that he will play a role in the unification process. 

PoliticsOct. 15, 2012

[Newsmaker] Can the ‘Boss’ pull together troubled Park campaign?

The “boss” is back. Former lawmaker Kim Moo-sung, 61, is the choice of Saenuri Party presidential candidate Rep. Park Geun-hye as she strives to defuse one of the biggest crises in her campaign.Dogged by rising internal protest against her controversial appointments, Park finally listened to her associates’ recommendation that she bring back Kim, a Busan native with tenacity to match his formidable physique.People, and not just the Saenuri Party members but also journalists, call him “Moodae,” s

PoliticsOct. 10, 2012

[Newsmaker] Once success story, founder of Woongjin in grave crisis

Everything Yoon Seok-keum touched seemed to turn to gold. He was a man who in just three decades, built a 6 trillion won ($5.3 billion) empire from the ground up, armed with nothing but a few good men and a natural gift for sales.But whether this success story will have a happy ending has become uncertain; Yoon’s company, Woongjin Group, recently filed for court receivership in a desperate bid to prevent a spreading bankruptcy after the group’s construction arm, Kukdong Construction, went down t

IndustrySept. 27, 2012

[Newsmaker] Korean Methodist Church bans father-to-son succession

Christian churches in Korea have kept an unusual, anti-democratic and unfair system for decades ― the practice of hereditary succession or “seseup,” just like the father-to-son power transition that occurs in conglomerate groups.This unnatural process has allowed some commanding pastors at the top mega-churches to turn over their leadership to their children. The proponents of the practice have claimed that the system is necessary to ensure church stability and security. However, this seseup tra

CultureSept. 26, 2012

[Newsmaker] Bomb thrower-state leader riles Israel, West yet again

No stranger to incendiary rhetoric, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad riled Israel and the West once again with his remarks on Monday that the world’s only Jewish-majority state had no roots in the Middle East and would be “eliminated.” Speaking in New York ahead of the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, Ahmadinejad also dismissed the credibility of Israel’s threats to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, and condemned the “Innocence of Muslims,” the film trailer depicting the prophe

Foreign AffairsSept. 25, 2012

[Newsmaker] Questions dog challenger to vulnerable president

Mitt Romney, the Republican challenger to President Barack Obama in November’s U.S. presidential election, tried to dampen speculation and political attacks over his finances on Friday with the release of his 2011 tax return and a 20-year overview of tax payments. Last year’s tax return showed that the former governor of Massachusetts paid $1.9 million in taxes on income of $13.6 million, for an effective tax rate of about 14 percent. Romney has indicated that he does not intend to release his t

PoliticsSept. 23, 2012

[Newsmaker] Security dominates agenda of new Libyan premier

After Libya’s 200-member General National Congress elected him prime minister Wednesday, the domestic security situation must be foremost on the mind of Mustafa Abu-Shakour.One of his last acts as Deputy Prime Minister was to condemn the killing of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens during an attack on the United States’ consulate in Benghazi just hours before he was elected. The attack brought more international attention to a situation Abu-Shakour had sought to downplay a month before. In a Reuters

InternationalSept. 13, 2012

[Newsmaker] Romney’s running mate comes out fighting

Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan accepted the Republican Party’s nomination for vice president Wednesday with a speech that showed he was not afraid to take on Obama.While pushing his outline for smaller government, he took several swipes at the U.S. president.“Ladies and gentlemen, these past four years we have suffered no shortage of words in the White House,” he said. “What’s missing is leadership in the White House.” Ryan even took on the left over health care, traditionally a weak suit for the Repu

InternationalAug. 30, 2012

[Newsmaker] Ex-prime minister fans Japan’s nationalist fever

Shinzo Abe, Japan’s former prime minister, seems desperate to grasp his nation’s top political post again, judging by his decision to jump into the intensifying diplomatic spat between Korea and Japan in a thinly veiled tactical move. Fully aware of the extreme sensitivity of the issue, Abe pledged to reverse all of Japan’s past apologetic statements over its colonial atrocities, if his party wins the election and he is again elected prime minister.Abe’s newly reaffirmed stance on the issue come

Foreign AffairsAug. 29, 2012

[Newsmaker] ‘People’s prosecutor’ joins Park GH camp

It was a deft move by the ruling Saenuri Party’s presidential candidate Park Geun-hye. The appointment of former Supreme Court justice Ahn Dae-hee on Monday as the chairman of the Saenuri’s political reform committee showed, to its maximum, the frontrunner’s determination on political reform.Thrown off balance, the main opposition Democratic United Party strongly criticized the designation, but with little grounds to back their condemnation.Dubbed “the people’s prosecutor” for his full-fledged c

PoliticsAug. 28, 2012

[Newsmaker] Korean-born teen makes history on LPGA Tour

A South Korean-born New Zealand teenager has written what might be the best golf story of the year. Lydia Ko won the Canadian Women’s Open on Sunday to become the youngest player to ever win an LPGA Tour event.The 15-year-old golf sensation also became the fifth amateur champion of the event. She finished the 72 holes on 13-under-par 275 at the Vancouver Golf Club course to beat this year’s Evian Masters champion Park Inbee by 3 shots. After Ko wrapped up her historic round, the World Golf Hall

GolfAug. 27, 2012

[Newsmaker] Probing the unknown

Curiosity, NASA’s unmanned vehicle currently exploring Mars, could hardly be more aptly named. The rover’s $2.5 billion mission is testament to the fact that, even in tough economic times, man has an insatiable desire to explore the unknown. After successfully touching down on the Red Planet on Aug. 6, Curiosity made its first short test drive on Mars’ surface on Wednesday. Images transmitted back to Earth show vast plains of rusty, gravelly landscape, liberally punctuated by valleys and mountai

Foreign AffairsAug. 23, 2012