[Newsmaker] After THAAD crisis, major retailers turn to Southeast Asia

[News Focus] Major retail companies including Lotte and Shinsegae are turning to Southeast Asia to diversify their customer bases after a turbulent year amid tensions between Korea and China.“This year has been a lesson to a lot of retail companies that it is unhealthy to focus too much on China,” said an official with one retail company. “It’s a huge market that brings many benefits, but overdependence can be dangerous.” A Lotte duty-free store in Myeong-dong appears emptier than usual. It is u

IndustryNov. 28, 2017

[Newsmaker] Seoul delays plan to ban public smoking

Seoul appears to be taking a step closer to completely banning smoking in public with its move to outlaw lighting up on the streets, but its recent decision to delay the scheme is only deepening the dispute between smokers and non-smokers.According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the anti-smoking policy raised by the Seoul Metropolitan Council to ban all smoking on the streets recently went back to square one due to practical issues. A signboard shows a designated smoking zone in Seoul. Yo

Social AffairsNov. 26, 2017

[Newsmaker] Restaurants’ ‘no-kids’ policy a discrimination: human rights watchdog

The nation’s human rights watchdog ruled that restaurants’ “no-kids” policy banning children from entering at their premises was an act of discrimination.The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said on Friday that it advised the owner of a restaurant to lift its ban on children aged 13 or under.According to the human rights watchdog, a petitioner visited the restaurant in Jeju with his family including a nine-year-old child in September last year, but the restaurant asked them to leave as

Social AffairsNov. 24, 2017

[Newsmaker] Teen refugees pursue education that was denied in Syria

When Yana was six, living in Damascus, Syria, her school was destroyed in an aerial bombardment. Since then, she had been out of education. Now 12 years old and resettled in South Korea, Yana said she wants to study more and become an interpreter here in the future -- an opportunity that seemed out of reach in Syria where a 6-year civil war has left many children and youth without an education.(From left) Sadeed, Yana, Bakri and Park Jung-eun (Bak Se-hwan/The Korea Herald)“In Syria, I was kept a

Social AffairsNov. 23, 2017

[Newsmaker] Australian police detain Korean woman indicted on producing child abuse material

A Korean woman who was indicted Monday on charges of producing child abuse material will be detained until January, an Australian Federal Police official confirmed to The Korea Herald Wednesday. The suspect appeared before the Darwin Local Court on Tuesday for a bail hearing. According to the AFP official, the woman will be remanded in custody until a court hearing slated for mid-January next year. Meanwhile, the Police said Tuesday that the photos of child exploitation uploaded to the Korean we

Social AffairsNov. 22, 2017

[Newsmaker] Hwang Pyong-so: second-most powerful official in hermit kingdom

　In a country where dictatorship has ruled for three generations, Hwang Pyong-so has been widely seen as the second-most powerful man in North Korea since its leader Kim Jong-un took power in 2012. 　Having been promoted to the rank of vice marshal in 2014, Hwang was elected to be the new chief of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, a position considered the most senior in the military after the supreme commander Kim.　But even Hwang -- who is thought to be a key aide of Kim

North KoreaNov. 21, 2017

[Newsmaker] Ruling party seeks tighter control over NIS with revisions

The move to revise related laws to tighten the reins on the National Intelligence Service is gaining traction, with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea set to propose a revision this week. The revision, which the ruling party says will provide legal grounds for suggestions from the NIS’ own reform committee, calls for tougher control of the agency’s budget and the actions of the president and the NIS chief. National Intelligence Service. YonhapIf approved, the bill would make it mandatory to do

PoliticsNov. 20, 2017

[Newsmaker] Online video games reclaim spotlight at Korea’s biggest game convention

Online video games have been slowly losing ground in the increasingly mobile-driven gaming sector, but they made a colorful return to the spotlight at South Korea’s biggest game convention G-Star this week.　At the G-Star 2017 that kicked off in Busan on Thursday, hundreds of visitors have been lining up to check out newly showcased PC online games such as Nexon’s “FIFA Online 4,” while cheering on professional gamers at live esports tournaments.Unlike last year, when virtual reality and mobile g

TechnologyNov. 17, 2017

[Newsmaker] Samsung promotes 99 executives in chip units

Samsung Electronics on Thursday promoted a total of 221 executives with 99 of them coming from its lucrative chip business in a follow-up appointment of key executives earlier this month.By rank, the 221 executives include 27 executive vice presidents, 60 senior vice presidents, 118 vice presidents, one fellow and 15 masters. By unit, the money-making chip business accounted for 45 percent of total promotions with 99 executives promoted. “The promotion of 99 executives reaffirmed the firm’s pers

IndustryNov. 16, 2017

[Newsmaker] Why did South Korea not return fire to NK chasing defected soldier?

 With a North Korean solider remaining in critical condition from multiple gunshot wounds he suffered as he dashed across the border to defect, some South Koreans are questioning why the South Korean soldiers did not provide covering fire for him. 　Four North Korean soldiers at the Joint Security Area inside the heavily fortified border zone fired about 40 rounds at the escaping solider. They shot southward. It is unclear whether they continued to shoot after the solider entered the South’s terr

DefenseNov. 15, 2017

[Newsmaker] Is NK ‘laying low’ for another missile test?

North Korea has taken a break from military provocations, not firing anything into the air nor detonating underground munitions for two months, but signs pointing to further development of its weapons program lurk beneath the calm surface. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits the Chemical Material Institute of the Academy of Defense Science in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency in August. A display titled “Pukguksong-3” (circled) is shown in the background.

North KoreaNov. 14, 2017

[Newsmaker] Yoo Seong-min picked as new leader for Bareun Party

Rep. Yoo Seong-min was elected to lead the minor opposition Bareun Party on Monday, while the party treads a tightrope for survival following a mass defection. The new chairman, who was the party’s presidential candidate early this year, now faces the daunting challenge of navigating the looming wave of political realignment ahead of next year’s local elections. Last week, the Bareun Party, which was founded less than a year ago with 33 lawmakers, lost nine of its then-20 parliamentarians to its

PoliticsNov. 13, 2017

[Newsmaker] Woori Bank scandal sets off leadership alert in banking industry

Woori Bank’s recruiting scandal is not only causing a major setback to its decadeslong aspiration for complete privatization, but also bringing renewed attention to alleged irregularities surrounding other major banking groups, many of whose leaders are seeking re-election.The bank‘s plan to sell out remaining government stakes has been facing setbacks, mainly due to the latest scandal that it had offered special favors to children of high-profile officials and VIP clients in last year’s open re

IndustryNov. 12, 2017

[Newsmaker] Ex-spy chief admits to regularly providing agency money to Cheong Wa Dae

A former chief of the National Intelligence Service has largely admitted to allegations that the agency regularly provided funds to the presidential office while ousted President Park Geun-hye was in office, sources said Saturday.Lee Byong-ho, who headed the NIS from 2015-2017, underwent 15 hours of questioning by prosecutors on Friday over allegations that the NIS provided Cheong Wa Dae with money on a monthly basis under the name of "special activity fund." Lee told investigators to the effect

PoliticsNov. 11, 2017

[Newsmaker] Park Geun-hye could face new bribery charges

In the latest twist of the massive influence-peddling scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye, prosecutors are looking into allegations that the nation’s spy agency regularly made secretive money transfers to Park’s former aides when she was in office. Former President Park Geun-hye (Yonhap)Former National Intelligence Service chiefs under the Park administration allegedly abused the agency’s “special activities” budget, which investigators suspect was an illicit channel for bribes for

Social AffairsNov. 10, 2017

[Newsmaker] Naver steps up attack on Google

Naver, the operator of South Korea’s largest portal website and online search engine, has officially called on Google to openly discuss its practices and activities in the Korean market, raising the stakes in an escalating war of words between the two internet giants.Naver CEO Han Seong-sook on Thursday released a lengthy statement laying out point-by-point the company’s stance on a number of issues it had raised against its rival Google including taxes, employment, traffic costs and search and

TechnologyNov. 9, 2017

[Newsmaker] Wait is over - Michelin unveils latest Seoul guide

Korean restaurants Gaon and La Yeon kept their three Michelin stars in the 2018 edition of Michelin Guide Seoul.Michelin released the second edition of the Michelin Guide Seoul at a press conference at Signiel Seoul in Seoul on Wednesday, awarding the coveted Michelin stars to a total of 24 restaurants.Two new restaurants joined the ranks of the two-star restaurants -- Kojima-Sushi and Jungsik, a modern Korean restaurant which moved up a notch from last year’s one Michelin star-- while Gotgan an

FoodNov. 8, 2017

[Newsmaker] Melania Trump promotes gender equality in sports among youths

US first lady Melania Trump on Tuesday stood in front of some 80 teenagers in South Korea to speak about gender equality in sports among youths, on the first day of her two-day stay here. US first lady Melania Trump gives a speech during "Girls Play 2!" Initiative, an Olympic public diplomacy outreach campaign, at the US Ambassadors residence in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap)In blue stiletto heels and a structured dark brown coat, Melania set foot in South Korea alongside her husband Donald Trump on

Foreign AffairsNov. 7, 2017

[Newsmaker] Hanssem sexual assault claims spark boycott

Allegations of sexual assault between employees have marred furniture brand Hanssem in controversy, with consumers even calling for a boycott of the firm’s products.In late October, a woman who identified herself as a new employee at Hanssem posted on an online community, alleging that she had been sexually assaulted multiple times since joining the company late last year. Hanssem's headquarters in Southern Seoul (Yonhap)According to the post, the woman was sexually assaulted at a motel by an em

IndustryNov. 6, 2017

[Newsmaker] 26 killed in church attack in Texas' worst mass shooting

A man dressed in black tactical-style gear and armed with an assault rifle opened fire inside a church in a small South Texas community on Sunday, killing 26 people and wounding about 20 others in what the governor called the deadliest mass shooting in the state's history.Officials didn't identify the attacker during a news conference Sunday night, but two other officials _ one a US official and one in law enforcement _ who were briefed on the investigation identified him as Devin Kelley. They s

WorldNov. 6, 2017