[Newsmaker] Weak security for Korean credit cards

The country’s credit cards firms are facing their worst crisis on record with people rushing to cancel accounts following yet another massive data leak scandal.Data breaches of various scales have been uncovered recently and banks here have been raising their security measures to protect customers’ data. Yet, this time some of the major credit card firms, such as KB Kookmin Card, Nonghyup and Lotte Card, have fallen victim to data breaches. The prosecutors looking into the case announced that th

Jan. 20, 2014

[Newsmaker] Honda’s historical justice gains momentum

U.S. lawmaker Mike Honda’s push for historical justice gained greater momentum last week with the passage of a spending bill that included a provision pressuring Japan to apologize for its wartime sexual enslavement of Asian women.Albeit nonbinding, the provision brought fresh international attention to the women whose human dignity was trampled as they were forced to serve at frontline brothels by Japan’s Imperial Army during World War II.President Barack Obama signed the bill for the fiscal ye

PoliticsJan. 19, 2014

[Newsmaker] Feud rages over local election rules

The political arena is swamped by talk of June 4 local elections, but the political parties continue to bicker over one of its most basic rules. Abolishing party nominations for candidates for provincial governments and councils was central to President Park Geun-hye’s political reform pledge. The system was introduced in 2006 as part of political reform measures. However, it has since been abused leading to numerous cases of corruption and other irregularities. The ruling Saenuri Party, however

PoliticsJan. 16, 2014

[Newsmaker] Sunshine Policy DP’s bone of contention

The main opposition Democratic Party’s North Korean policy is under the spotlight following party chairman Rep. Kim Han-gil’s mention of a new policy on relations with Pyongyang. On Monday, Kim said that his party would draw up a North Korean policy centered on “national unity,” saying that the issue should no longer divide the nation. The progressive bloc has preferred engaging North Korea, while conservatives have criticized such policies as pandering to the communist state. His comments promp

PoliticsJan. 15, 2014

[Newsmaker] France’s Hollande hits new bump

PARIS (AP) ― A sex scandal is the last thing France’s president needs.Three-quarters of the French already think Francois Hollande is doing a lousy job of running the world’s No. 5 economy. And now a big policy address Tuesday is sure to be overshadowed by personal troubles so awkward that even the famously blase French can’t ignore them.His first lady, journalist Valerie Trierweiler, is hospitalized because of a tabloid report that Hollande is having an affair with a somewhat recognizable Frenc

World NewsJan. 14, 2014

[Newsmaker] Yeom to become Korea’s third cardinal

Seoul Archbishop Yeom Soo-jung will be the third Korean to become a cardinal ― the second-most senior position in the Roman Catholic Church after the pope. Yet, he will be the only representative of Korea in the case of a conclave, a convention of cardinals younger than 80 for electing a new pope.Korea’s first cardinal, Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, died in 2009, and its second Cardinal Nicolas Cheong Jin-suk is over 80, the canonical retirement age. “We believe that (Yeom’s appointment) is a blessing f

PeopleJan. 13, 2014

[Newsmaker] Sharon: Controversial, ruthless ‘Bulldozer’

JERUSALEM (AFP) ― Ariel Sharon, who died on Saturday aged 85, was one of Israel’s most skilled but controversial political and military leaders, whose ruthless methods earned him the moniker “The Bulldozer.”The veteran soldier fought in all of Israel’s major wars before embarking on a turbulent political career in 1973 which ended dramatically in January 2006 when he suffered a massive stroke and subsequent coma, from which he never recovered. Long considered a pariah for his personal but “indir

World NewsJan. 12, 2014

[Newsmaker] Ideology dominates textbook dispute

The dispute over a local history textbook is turning into an ideological war as lawmakers locked horns over reinstating a government textbook.Lawmakers from the main opposition Democratic Party condemned the ruling Saenuri Party’s proposal to bring back the state textbook system. Saenuri leaders had stressed the need for a single textbook in order to avoid disputes over historical accuracy such as the latest one surrounding the history textbook by Kyohak Publishing Co.“Don’t even think about it,

NationalJan. 9, 2014

[Newsmaker] Big freeze makes U.S. colder than Mars

As record-low temperatures dogged the northern United States for the past several days, the weather dominated the news stateside, and gained extensive coverage globally.Some electricity generators said they had been forced offline due to the cold, making it difficult for others to cope with the surging demand.Schools closed and flights were halted. Railways and roads suffered blockages and delays due to snow. The media worked to find creative ways to explain how cold it was.Montana’s minus 52 de

InternationalJan. 8, 2014

[Newsmaker] Heavy agenda awaits Yun in U.S.

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is set to confer with key officials in Washington over North Korea and relations with Japan frayed by its premier’s visit to a controversial war shrine. During a three-day stay, he is scheduled for talks with U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel on Monday and Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday. Yun also plans to meet with other former and incumbent officials from the administration, Congress and think tanks including Madeleine Albright, Colin Powell and Rober

Foreign AffairsJan. 6, 2014

[Newsmaker] Former mentor Yoon returns to Ahn

Former Environment Minister Yoon Yeo-jun has once again created a stir in the political arena by joining independent Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo’s “new politics” movement. In 2012, Yoon sent ripples across the conservative bloc when he joined the presidential campaign of the Democratic Party’s Rep. Moon Jae-in. The move, unexpected because of his long-running conservative ties, earned him strong criticism including being branded a “political prostitute” from disgraced former Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Yoon

PoliticsJan. 5, 2014

[Newsmaker] Businesses brace for New Year challenges

Chairmen of Korea’s top conglomerates started off the year on Thursday by urging executives and employees to brace for crisis. Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee emphasized that the business behemoth should keep trying to shed old things in running business in order to embrace a new global management system. “To be a leader in an environment that lacks certainty and visibility, we must go beyond the boundaries of current markets and technologies,” Lee said at an opening event for the New Year he

BusinessJan. 2, 2014

[Newsmaker] New video rebuts Japan’s Dokdo claim

Korea unveiled a new promotional video on Dokdo on Wednesday, countering Tokyo’s increasing territorial assertions and lambasting Japanese politicians’ visits to a controversial war shrine. The 260-second clip was released at midnight on YouTube and the Foreign Ministry’s website (dokdo.mofa.go.kr). It was an update to a previous piece that was uploaded in late October but taken down shortly due to its unauthorized use of clips from Japanese broadcaster NHK.The latest version is much shorter tha

Foreign AffairsJan. 1, 2014

[Newsmaker] Park begins second year with old problems

President Park Geun-hye enters her second year in office with a mass of tricky domestic issues unresolved and increasingly volatile dynamics in Northeast Asia. Disputes over the National Intelligence Service’s alleged election meddling still haunt her government despite the political parties spending much of 2013 on the matter at the cost of state affairs being delayed. With key elections slated for June and July, political wrangling is expected to further escalate in the New Year hampering her

PoliticsDec. 30, 2013

[Newsmaker] Abe’s gamble falters under criticism

Japanese leader Shinzo Abe is struggling to contain a backlash over his recent visit to a controversial war shrine that has sparked a barrage of criticism even from domestic supporters and international allies, notably the U.S.The prime minister’s visit on Thursday to the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo honoring war criminals has further aggravated diplomatic tension with South Korea and China, two major victims of Japan’s past militarism, and frustrated peace advocates in the island country.The visit

Foreign AffairsDec. 29, 2013

[Newsmaker] Jogye back in spotlight over rail strike

The country’s largest Buddhist order Jogye on Thursday took the side of railway workers in their ongoing strike, putting the government in a dilemma after last week’s botched police raid on the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. “(The Jogye Order) cannot look away when laborers have come in to the folds of the Buddha in desperation,” the order said in a statement on Thursday. The statement also said that helping and protecting those who are seeking refuge was the only right thing to do. “(The

Social AffairsDec. 26, 2013

[Newsmaker] Massacres feared as S. Sudan nears war

Thousands of South Sudanese have been killed in over a week of violence, according to the United Nations, with reports of bodies piled in mass graves fueling fears of a worsening of ethnic bloodletting in the world’s newest state.The U.N. Security Council approved plans on Tuesday to almost double the number of peacekeepers in the country in an effort to protect civilians. The top U.N. humanitarian chief in the country Toby Lanzer said Tuesday there was “absolutely no doubt in my mind that we’re

World NewsDec. 25, 2013

[Newsmaker] IBK names Korea’s first female bank chief

Besides the first female president, Korea has seen another woman break through a glass ceiling, this time in the banking industry. Kwon Seon-joo, the senior executive vice president of the Industrial Bank of Korea, was named the next CEO of the state-run IBK on the approval of the Financial Services Commission on Monday. Before Kwon, no woman had been named CEO of a Korean bank. “We believe that Kwon is well qualified as the country’s first female bank CEO, which she has demonstrated through her

Dec. 24, 2013

[Newsmaker] Choo joins Texas Rangers on $130m contract

Choo Shin-soo of South Korea has agreed to the biggest-ever contract for an Asian player in the U.S. professional baseball free agent market.A report on the Major League Baseball website said Sunday that outfielder Choo agreed to a seven-year, $130 million contract with the Texas Rangers.The deal will be finalized if Choo passes a physical test, which is expected to be done by Christmas. Any formal introduction in Texas would likely wait until after the holiday.Once signed, it will be the highes

BaseballDec. 22, 2013

[Newsmaker] Rodman visits Pyongyang in wake of purge

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman made his third visit to North Korea on Thursday, drawing keen attention as he is the first high-profile American allowed to stay in the reclusive country in the aftermath of the chilling execution of Kim Jong-un’s uncle. Rodman is trotting into the secretive society thanks largely to his special relationship with Kim, who recently surprised the international community by staging a harsh political purge involving his uncle Jang Song-thaek. South Korean and U.S. spy a

North KoreaDec. 19, 2013