[Newsmaker] Relocation of ROK-US combined command being discussed: Abrams

Seoul and Washington are discussing the relocation of their combined forces command, the commander of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command, Gen. Robert Abrams, said in a statement Thursday, following media reports that he had suggested relocating the command’s headquarters in Yongsan to the United States Forces Korea’s Pyeongtaek base.  ROK-US Combined Forces Command in Yongsan, Seoul (Yonhap)“At the appropriate future time, ROK and US government leadership will announce an alliance decision on th

DefenseMay 16, 2019

[Newsmaker] Renault Samsung, union sign tentative deal over wages

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. and its labor union said Thursday they have reached a tentative agreement over wages and working conditions, possibly ending their drawn-out labor dispute that was feared to undermine the automaker.The union said its members will vote on whether to accept the deal on Tuesday.The company and the union began negotiations in June last year to sign a wage and collective agreement deal.  (Yonhap)The company has wanted to maintain a certain output level at the plant by sec

IndustryMay 16, 2019

[Newsmaker] Burning Sun scandal probe ends without much

Police said Wednesday that they are set to refer a senior police officer to the prosecution on charges of abuse of power for allegedly pulling strings for Burning Sun, the nightclub owned by former Big Bang member Seungri. (Yonhap)The police, having dispatched some 150 officers for the investigation and targeted some 50 people over the past three months, are facing criticism that they conducted a slipshod probe and protected their own. Announcing the results of their probe into the embattled clu

Social AffairsMay 15, 2019

[Newsmaker] Minor opposition party picks new floor leader amid internal strife

Rep. Oh Shin-hwan was elected floor leader of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party Wednesday, facing the task of resolving an internal strife over whether to place key reform bills on a fast-track.Oh, a two-term lawmaker, beat Rep. Kim Song-sik in a vote by party members. He will replace Rep. Kim Kwan-young and serve a one-year term.Kim expressed his intent to step down from the post last week, about 40 days before his term was set to end in late June. (Yonhap)The minor party has been embroile

PoliticsMay 15, 2019

[Newsmaker] Woman rescued from militants in Africa returns home

A South Korean woman rescued from militants in Burkina Faso, West Africa, returned to Korea on Tuesday. The woman, whose identity has been withheld, returned from Paris aboard an Asiana Airlines flight. Korean woman (center) and French nationals rescued from militants speak to the media at a French military airbase on Saturday. YonhapShe was met by a joint investigation team consisting of personnel from the National Intelligence Service and other concerned government organizations. According to

Social AffairsMay 14, 2019

[Newsmaker] Trump thanks Lotte chief for job creation in rare meeting

Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin became the first South Korean conglomerate leader to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House since he assumed office, where the two discussed business investments and job creation, the company said Tuesday.The meeting, which was held at the firm’s request, took place during Shin’s visit to the US to attend the completion ceremony of Lotte Chemical’s ethane cracking center in Louisiana last week. The meeting on Monday was attended by US National Securi

IndustryMay 14, 2019

[Newsmaker] All foreign residents required to enroll in National Health Insurance

Foreign nationals without employer insurance who are staying six months or longer in South Korea are required to enroll in the country’s National Health Insurance Service starting in July, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Until now, enrollment in the program was optional for those without employer insurance. Visitors were eligible to enroll if they stayed longer than three months.Marriage immigrants and international students enrolled in degree programs will be covered by the sta

Social AffairsMay 12, 2019

[Newsmaker] Jung Joon-young admits to illicit filming of sex videos, seeks settlement

Singer-songwriter Jung Joon-young admitted to charges of secretly filming and sharing videos of himself having sex with women in an online chat room and sought to settle with the victims, as a local court began to hear his case Friday. (Yonhap)Jung, 30, was indicted on charges of illicitly filming himself have sex with women and sharing the footage on 11 occasions in the chat room where Big Bang’s former member Seungri and FT Island’s ex-member Choi Jong-hoon are also suspected of having shared

Social AffairsMay 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Two-time Olympic speed skating champion Lee Sang-hwa announces retirement

Two-time Olympic speed skating gold medalist Lee Sang-hwa announced her retirement Friday, putting an end to an illustrious career that includes a world record and multiple world championships.In a press release, Lee, 30, said she will have a formal retirement ceremony in Seoul next Thursday.Lee will go down as one of South Korea's greatest winter sport athletes ever and also among the very best speed skaters of her generation.Lee won the gold medal in the women's 500 meters at the 2010 Vancouve

More SportsMay 10, 2019

[Newsmaker] Ex-vice minister summoned for questioning over sex bribery scandal

Former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui appeared before the prosecution for the first time Thursday, to undergo questioning with regard to allegations of rape, abuse of power, and accepting bribes in the form of sexual services. Ex-Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-eui (Yonhap)Kim, who retired from public service in March 2013, is accused of having received sexual services in return for business favors at an orgy hosted by local contractor Yoon Jung-cheon. 　It is the first time Kim has appeared in

Social AffairsMay 9, 2019

[Newsmaker] Minor opposition party floor leader offers to step down amid fast-track row

The floor leader of a minor opposition party offered to step down Wednesday, apparently taking responsibility for internal strife over the push to "fast track" key reform bills. Rep. Kim Kwan-young of the Bareunmirae Party said he will serve his term as floor leader until his successor is elected next week. (Yonhap)"I decided to take all the responsibility for offending many lawmakers in the process of pushing for the 'fast-tracking' (of the bills) and other difficulties faced by the party," he

PoliticsMay 8, 2019

[Newsmaker] 27 hospitals violate narcotics law: ministry

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety found instances of overprescribing or giving patients illicit access to drugs at 27 clinics and hospitals, the ministry’s report said Wednesday.Out of the 36,000 medical institutions that handle medical-use drugs, the ministry singled out 52 medical institutions for suspicion of misuse of drugs, using data from a drug management system. Of the 52 singled out, 27 were found to be in violation of the Narcotics Control Act.(Yonhap)Administrative measures will be

Social AffairsMay 8, 2019

[Newsmaker] Top prosecutor holds meeting on investigation rights bill

The contention over revising the investigative powers of police and the prosecutors’ office appears set to intensify, with Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il holding a senior prosecutors’ meeting Tuesday. According to reports, Moon reiterated his stance that the bill on altering the investigative rights of the police agency and the prosecutors’ office violated fundamental principles of democracy at the meeting. Moon Moo-il. YonhapThe bill, which has been put on the fast track by the ruling Democrati

Social AffairsMay 7, 2019

[Newsmaker] Tension mounts over police-prosecution investigative rights reform

Tension is rising over plans to redistribute investigative rights between the prosecution and police in South Korea, in the wake of a public denunciation from the country’s top prosecutor. (Yonhap)Last week, Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il publicly criticized the recent parliamentary decision to approve the fast-tracking of reform bills, backed by the ruling Democratic Party and three minor opposition parties, saying the bills would undermine democratic principles mandating a system of checks and

Social AffairsMay 6, 2019

[Newsmaker] Justice minister urges prosecution and police to end judicial reform dispute

Amid an escalating conflict between the prosecution and the police over investigative rights reform, the justice minister called on both sides to approach the issue from the "perspective of the people" Friday.Justice Minister Park Sang-ki said now is the time to overhaul the prosecution's investigative practices and rights in accordance with the principle of checks and balances."Both the prosecution and the police should approach the issue of rearranging investigative rights from the people's st

PoliticsMay 3, 2019

[Newsmaker] N. Korea chides THAAD training by USFK

North Korean state media on Friday chided a weeklong Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile defense drill by the US Forces Korea, calling on the South Korean government to “behave with discretion.”The exercise at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, focused on reloading inert munitions in launchers of a THAAD battery.(Yonhap)North Korea’s propaganda website Uriminzokkiri said in its commentary that the recent drill was a “military provocation that ruins the hard-won peace atmosp

North KoreaMay 3, 2019

[Newsmaker] Ex-Korean Air vice president admits to illegally hiring Filipino maids

Former Korean Air Vice President Cho Hyun-ah admitted Thursday to illegally hiring Filipino maids as the trials began for her and her mother Lee Myung-hee, who faces the same charges. Cho, 45, and Lee, 70 -- the daughter and wife of recently deceased Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Yang-ho -- were indicted for hiring Filipino women as maids after inviting them under the guise of employment at Korean Air between 2013 and early last year, in breach of immigration law. (Yonhap)Cho, who earned global infa

Social AffairsMay 2, 2019

[Newsmaker] Seoul mayor condemns Liberty Korea Party sit-in plans

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on Wednesday said he will “not stand idly by” as the main opposition Liberty Korea Party plans to set up tents at Gwanghwamun plaza in central Seoul as part of its protest against key reform bills that have been fast-tracked.Pledging to take firm action against the Liberty Korea Party, Park posted on social media that “taking over the plaza without authorization from Seoul government is illegal. I will not stand idly by as (Liberty Korea Party) tramples on the plaza.”“I

PoliticsMay 1, 2019

[Newsmaker] Labor Day rallies held nationwide, ILO conventions at issue

Tens of thousands of South Korean workers marked Labor Day with a rally in central Seoul on Wednesday, urging the government to adopt major international regulations on promoting labor rights.Commemorating International Workers' Day simultaneously, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, an umbrella labor union, said it's urgent for the country to ratify key conventions of the International Labor Organization.  (Yonhap)But business lobby groups here have claimed it's premature to do so, citing

Social AffairsMay 1, 2019

[Newsmaker] Ex-KT chairman faces arrest over alleged hiring irregularities

Lee Suk-chae, former chairman of telecom firm KT Corp., appeared before a local court Tuesday morning to attend an arrest warrant hearing in connection with allegations that he gave preferential treatment in hiring to a high-profile opposition lawmaker’s daughter. (Yonhap)Lee, who served as KT chairman from 2009 to 2013, is suspected of involvement in giving preferential treatment to job applicants with ties to powerful figures -- including a daughter of Rep. Kim Sung-tae of the then-ruling Libe

Social AffairsApril 30, 2019