[Newsmaker] Widow to restore DJ’s reconciliation legacy

For Lee Hee-ho, widow of former President Kim Dae-jung, cross-border tensions are a source of deep frustration as the deadlocked relationship has eclipsed the inter-Korean rapprochement Kim laboriously fostered under his signature “Sunshine Policy.” With a plan to visit the North soon, the 93-year-old former first lady hopes to restore Kim’s legacy of bilateral engagement and cooperation, which has faded amid Pyongyang’s pursuit of nuclear arms and provocative actions, and Seoul’s hard-line resp

North KoreaJune 30, 2015

[Newsmaker] ‘Northern Limit Line’: Korean patriotism

A scene from "Northern Limit Line" (Next Entertainment World)“Northern Limit Line” is a film with a very clear purpose. It seeks to assuage the pain of bereaved families who lost their sons during a North Korean naval attack, reveal the systematic failures of the South Korean Navy that facilitated this loss, and draw attention to the society’s misplaced priorities. Every minute is dripping with this sense of mission and self-consciousness.The film revolves around the story of three young soldier

FilmJune 29, 2015

[Newsmaker] The embattled whip

The governing party remained split Sunday over if it should stage a confidence vote on whip Rep. Yoo Seong-min due to his role in last week’s legislative crisis that is widely viewed as a power struggle between him and the president.President Park Geun-hye last Thursday vetoed a bill, chiefly sponsored by her former chief of staff Yoo, that would have given lawmakers the right to ask for revisions to government decrees. Park said the changes violated the principle of the division of powers and b

PoliticsJune 28, 2015

[Newsmaker] U.S. retailers pull Confederate flag

WASHINGTON -- Walmart and Amazon will no longer stock merchandise bearing the Confederate flag after the Charleston church massacre, in a growing movement against what critics say is a symbol of racism in the American South.The retail giants were joined by eBay, Sears and Kmart and follows calls from South Carolina state governor Nikki Haley to remove the controversial flag from the grounds of the state capital following protests at the weekend.Civil rights activists have long pushed for the fla

World NewsJune 24, 2015

[Newsmaker] NPS pressed on corporate reform

The National Pension Service, the nation’s largest institutional investor, is facing growing pressure to raise their voice in merger plans being pushed by conglomerates.On Monday, Solidarity for Economic Reform, a civic group pushing for reforms of family-controlled South Korean conglomerates, or chaebol, urged the fund to review the merger plan between SK Holdings and SK C&C and to decide whether to back or veto the deal before a shareholders meeting Friday. The merger plan between the two SK a

IndustryJune 23, 2015

[Newsmaker] Korea plans July bidding to sell Woori

Financial authorities plan to unveil a revised method for the sale of state-funded Woori Bank next month in their move to recoup taxpayers’ money, regulatory officials said Monday.Market attention is again focused on the coming announcement of the Public Fund Oversight Committee, after the agency successfully completed the sale of the now-defunct Woori Financial Group’s stock brokerage unit and two provincial bank units over the past year.Officials said the committee, as an arm of the Financial

June 22, 2015

[Newsmaker] Fitbit CEO raises pace with hot stock debut

With the hot stock debut of Fitbit, a maker of popular wearable fitness-tracking devices, the spotlight shone on its CEO and cofounder James Park, a 38-year-old Korean-American.In its first day of trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange, the company’s stock surged more than 50 percent to $30.40 a share from its initial price of $20 during regular trading hours. More than 40 million shares of Fitbit were traded, putting the company on track to rank among the top five stock market debuts o

TechnologyJune 21, 2015

[Newsmaker] Plagiarism claims haunt literary icon

In Korea’s moribund literary scene, novelist Shin Kyung-sook has been almost the only source of excitement. With a growing international profile, the author of 2011 New York Times bestseller “Please Look After Mom” seemed to be Korea’s best shot at producing a world star, like what Murakami Haruki is for Japan. Shin’s seemingly unassailable reputation here, and perhaps her fledgling global career, now faces a grave challenge after allegations of plagiarism surfaced. On Tuesday, fellow writer Lee

CultureJune 18, 2015

[Newsmaker] Donald Trump running for U.S. presidency

NEW YORK ― Property tycoon Donald Trump, one of America’s most flamboyant and outspoken billionaires, threw his hat into the 2016 race Tuesday for the White House, promising to make America great again.The 69-year-old long-shot candidate ridiculed the country’s current crop of politicians as “stupid” and vowed to take on the growing might of China in a speech launching his run for the presidency.“I am officially running for president of the United States and we are going to make our country grea

World NewsJune 17, 2015

[Newsmaker] KT shows renewed vigor under new leader

KT, the nation’s No. 2 telecom carrier, has shown renewed vigor recently under the leadership of chairman and CEO Hwang Chang-gyu, who took office in January last year.For more than a decade, KT has been a fast follower behind SK Telecom, which played a leading role in creating key consumer and technological trends in the telecom industry. Although the state-run KT was privatized in 2002, a deep-rooted sense of complacency had been holding back the company and its employees.But the new CEO, form

TechnologyJune 16, 2015

[Newsmaker] MERS-stricken Samsung hospital faces crisis

Widely considered one of the top hospitals in South Korea, Samsung Medical Center is now being blamed for spreading Middle East respiratory syndrome in the country.As of Monday, 72 cases occurred within its premises in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul, accounting for nearly half of the 150 Korean cases of the disease. The outbreak in the hospital alone is enough to rival United Arab Emirates, the world’s No. 3 country in terms of MERS cases with 76.An even bigger issue than the rising number of patien

Latest NewsJune 16, 2015

[Newsmaker] Clinton kicks off 2016 bid

NEW YORK ― Hillary Rodham Clinton formally kicked off her presidential campaign on Saturday with an enthusiastic embrace of her potential to become the first woman to win the White House, asking supporters gathered at her first major outdoor rally to join her in building an America “where we don’t leave anyone out, or anyone behind.”Hillary Rodham Clinton (Yonhap)With the downtown New York skyline and new World Trade Center over her shoulder, Clinton offered herself as a fierce advocate for thos

World BusinessJune 16, 2015

[Newsmaker] Swiss police seize FIFA computer data

LAUSANNE ― FIFA has handed over computer data to Swiss police investigating the 2018 and 2022 World Cup votes and suspended bidding for the 2026 tournament as it remained at the center of a football corruption storm.(Yonhap)Brazilian legend Zico, meanwhile, became the first person to officially declare himself a candidate to take over football’s scandal-tainted world governing body from Sepp Blatter.FIFA said that computer data from its Zurich headquarters had been handed to Swiss prosecutors.Sw

World NewsJune 16, 2015

[Newsmaker] POSCO, Daewoo Int'l clash over gas project

A crisis began escalating at Daewoo International ― the trading and overseas resource development arm of POSCO ― Wednesday following rumors that CEO Jeon Byeong-eal would quit in protest of the parent firm’s asset restructuring plan.POSCO officials declined to comment in the day, saying they would issue a statement after a decision regarding his status was made.According to industry sources, Jeon uploaded a message on the internal corporate board in May that he had sent an email to POSCO chairma

IndustryJune 10, 2015

[Newsmaker] Seoul mayor capitalizes on MERS response

Seoul City Mayor Park Won-soon’s latest response to Middle East respiratory syndrome appears to have given him an opportunity to demonstrate his capacity as a competent administrator and a potential alternative to the incumbent presidency that has struggled to control public fears over the MERS outbreak. Park on Tuesday met Rep. Moon Jae-in, the leader of main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, and vowed to consolidate efforts to address the outbreak that left seven people dead, clo

PoliticsJune 9, 2015

[Newsmaker] Self-care essential to combating MERS

Hammered over lax quarantine, the Health Ministry’s Middle East respiratory syndrome control tower belatedly released the details of must-know facts to prevent the spread of the dangerous disease on Sunday.The disease had claimed the lives of five by Sunday since the first carrier was diagnosed on April 20, according to the government report. The Health Ministry also reported 14 fresh cases of the disease, raising the toll of carriers to 64. For the past three weeks, online communities and socia

June 7, 2015

[Newsmaker] Billionaire’s Plan B: FIFA’s presidency

South Korean billionaire Chung Mong-joon’s possible bid to run for FIFA’s top job sparked speculation here Thursday that the world football body’s former vice president could use the high-profile contest to escape his political obscurity in Korea.Chung ― a seven-term lawmaker, FIFA vice president from 1994 to 2011 and former chairman of South Korea’s conservative party ― said Wednesday he was mulling plans to enter the race to succeed FIFA president Sepp Blatter sometime by next April.His bid co

PoliticsJune 4, 2015

[Newsmaker] Hyundai Motor hurt by falling overseas sales

A sense of crisis is escalating at Hyundai Motor as sales by the nation’s largest carmaker fell in its two biggest overseas markets ― China and the U.S. ― in May. Shares of Hyundai Motor plunged 10.36 percent to 138,500 won ($124.8) on Tuesday, affected by lackluster sales at home and abroad. The stock hit a four-year low. On Monday, Hyundai Motor said its domestic and overseas sales fell 8.2 percent and 6.1 percent last month, respectively, from the same period a year ago. The disappointing sal

MobilityJune 3, 2015

[Newsmaker] Health minister on hot seat over MERS

Health and Welfare Minister Moon Hyung-pyo is on the hot seat after Middle East respiratory syndrome hit the country late last month, leaving two dead and hundreds under quarantine as of Tuesday.The disease’s steady spread sparked criticism that health officials were ill-prepared. The government’s decision to keep secret the list of hospitals holding MERS patients worsened public anger. The confirmation of two tertiary infections early Tuesday exacerbated the public’s fear.The ministry’s failure

PoliticsJune 2, 2015

[Newsmaker] Samsung heir steps into limelight

Samsung Electronics vice chairman Lee Jay-yong on Monday attended the award ceremony for the Ho-Am Prize, Samsung Group’s most important annual award, on behalf of the owner family for the first time.Keen attention was paid to the Samsung heir’s appearance because representing the family at the event appeared to be one of the final steps to taking to the throne at South Korea’s largest conglomerate.Established by his father, chairman Lee Kun-hee in honor of late Samsung founder Lee Byung-chull i

TechnologyJune 1, 2015