[Newsmaker] Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon widens lead over Gyeonggi gov. in hypothetical 2-way presidential race: poll

Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, the leading opposition presidential contender, widened his lead over his rival from the ruling bloc, Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, in a hypothetical two-way presidential race, the latest poll showed Thursday. According to the poll conducted by Realmeter on 2,031 voters nationwide from Sunday-Monday, 42.1 percent of the respondents said they will vote for Yoon of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) in a hypothetical two-horse race against Gy

PoliticsAug. 12, 2021

[Newsmaker] Internal feud deepens at PPP ahead of primary

The main opposition party has set its primary schedule, but is hit by an internal feud, as some presidential contenders expressed discontent over how it’s going to be done. Former prosecutor general and currently the People Power Party’s strongest presidential hopeful Yoon Seok-youl is unwilling to take part in the first debate among preliminary candidates on Aug. 18. Yoon, who has not yet registered as a preliminary presidential candidate in the party, did not attend events organi

PoliticsAug. 11, 2021

[Newsmaker] Juvenile drug cases on the rise

Drug cases are on the rise in South Korea, with a marked surge in the number of juveniles arrested on drug charges, officials said Tuesday. According to government data, 7,565 people were arrested on drug charges and 1,138 people were imprisoned for drug offenses between January and June. Drug arrests rose 8.6 percent from the same period last year. The number of drug arrests stood at 12,613 in 2018, 16,044 in 2019 and 18,050 in 2020. The crackdown was carried out by the Ministry of Food a

Social AffairsAug. 10, 2021

[Newsmaker] Lee still faces court fight in two separate cases

Now granted parole, Samsung Group’s de facto leader Lee Jae-yong will be released from the Seoul Detention Center at 10 a.m. Friday. His freedom, however, could be short-lived, as he is fighting two more criminal trials -- one on alleged accounting fraud and other offenses during a merger of two Samsung affiliates and another for his alleged use of the anesthetic propofol without a prescription. He was behind bars for his conviction for bribing former President Park Geun-hye as part of

TechnologyAug. 9, 2021

[Newsmaker] Is sun setting on Hanhwa heir’s solar dream?

Kim Dong-kwan, the eldest son and apparent heir of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, has proved his mettle by taking the helm of the group’s money-bleeding solar business in 2011 and turning it into the world’s No. 6 solar energy player, Hanwha Q Cells. Poised to succeed his father to lead the country’s seventh-largest conglomerate, the 38-year-old now oversees Hanwha Solutions, launched last year after the merger of Q Cells and two other Hanwha companies, and is also s

IndustryAug. 9, 2021

[Newsmaker] Half of S. Koreans opposed to delaying allied military drills with US: Realmeter

Slightly more than half of all South Koreans do not support the idea of postponing the regular joint summertime military drills between Seoul and Washington, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 500 people aged 18 and older nationwide conducted by Realmeter last Friday, 50.4 percent of the respondents said they do not agree with calls for delaying the allied military drills. Meanwhile, 45.3 percent said they do. Talk of delaying or scaling down the annual joint military exercise set to take pl

DefenseAug. 9, 2021

[Newsmaker] Samsung chief’s parole to be decided

Every summer around this time, South Korea releases hundreds of prisoners either on parole or pardons, in celebration of Liberation Day on Aug. 15. This year, the traditional practice of clemency has drawn particular attention as it could include one of the richest men in the country: Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the de-facto chief of Samsung Group. Come Monday, a parole committee within the Ministry of Justice will convene for a final review of candidates, which will det

TechnologyAug. 8, 2021

[Newsmaker] [Tokyo Olympics] Moon applauds women's volleyball team for 'touching' Olympic match

President Moon Jae-in applauded the South Korean women's volleyball team Sunday, praising its unsuccessful but "extraordinarily touching" bid to win a medal at the Tokyo Summer Olympics. "The team extraordinarily touched (the hearts of Koreans)," Moon wrote on social media after the women's team ended its Olympic competition in fourth place. In the bronze medal match held earlier in the day at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, the South Korean women's team lost to Serbia 0-3, fallin

Olympic GamesAug. 8, 2021

[Newsmaker] Gyeonggi Gov. Lee outstrips ex-top prosecutor to claim lead in poll on presidential hopefuls

Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung outstripped ex-Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl to seize the lead among presidential hopefuls, an opinion poll showed Friday. Lee garnered 25 percent of support in the survey conducted on 1,001 voters across the nation from Tuesday-Thursday by Gallup Korea for the most favored next leader of the country. The governor was ahead of Yoon, who had 19 percent, by a margin of six percentage points, which is within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 3.1

PoliticsAug. 6, 2021

[Newsmaker] Air Force noncommissioned officer denies wrongdoing in sexual abuse hearing

An Air Force warrant officer on Friday denied allegations he pressured the victim of a sexual abuse case not to pursue punishment of the perpetrator in the infliction of "secondary harm" blamed for her suicide. During a preparatory hearing at a military court in Seoul, the warrant officer, surnamed Noh, claimed through his lawyer Kim Sang-ho that he did not blackmail the victim nor had an intention to obstruct the investigation into the case. The victim, a master sergeant surnamed Le

DefenseAug. 6, 2021

[Newsmaker] Jackpot or bubble? KakaoBank IPO sizzles

South Korea’s largest mobile-only bank, KakaoBank, will have its much-anticipated initial public offering Friday, seeking to raise 2.55 trillion won ($2.23 billion) on the country’s main bourse. Its market debut has been drawing excitement from investors who expect the mobile banking arm of Kakao to hit the jackpot, but skeptics warn of risks that there will be “too many” stocks available right after its IPO, as well as its heavy reliance on retail banking in a heavily re

MarketAug. 5, 2021

[Newsmaker] Seoul logs 20th tropical night this summer: KMA

Seoul's temperature again remained above 25 C overnight, bringing the total number of tropical nights the city experienced this summer to 20, the state weather agency said Thursday. The capital logged a minimum temperature of 25.6 C between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). A tropical night occurs when the temperature does not fall below 25 C during the nighttime. The nighttime low was 27.4 C on the southern Jeju Island and 26.

Social AffairsAug. 5, 2021

[Newsmaker] Lee Jun-seok says 'salute the rank, not the man'

Main opposition People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok warned the minor opposition People’s Party to not treat him like a kid as the two parties blamed each other for failing to discuss a merger. “I recommend to the People’s Party, ‘Salute the rank, not the man,’” Lee wrote on Facebook on Wednesday, quoting a line from the American war drama miniseries “Band of Brothers,” with a link to a scene in the series. “They (People’s Party) ca

PoliticsAug. 4, 2021

[Newsmaker] Funeral begins for world's 1st disabled climber to conquer 14 eight-thousanders

GWANGJU -- A five-day funeral process began here on Wednesday for South Korean mountaineer Kim Hong-bin, who went missing in mid-July soon after becoming the world's first person with a disability to ascend all 14 eight-thousanders in the Himalayas. Kim's funeral will be held at Yeomju Gymnasium in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, until Sunday, according to the city government. Kim's memorial altar was set up on the first floor of the gym for mourners, with his mountaineering equipment

PoliticsAug. 4, 2021

[Newsmaker] Gyeonggi’s push for relief funds fuels infighting

The clash among the ruling Democratic Party’s presidential contenders is gaining renewed steam, despite the candidates’ vow to work as “one team.” The infighting resurged over Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung’s idea of providing cash handouts for all residents in the province, as it drew criticism from other presidential hopefuls. He first mentioned the idea Sunday, saying that he is considering an option to give COVID-19 disaster relief funds to the 12 perce

PoliticsAug. 3, 2021

[Newsmaker] Wall paintings in central Seoul whitewashed amid criticism of misogyny targeting wife of presidential contender

A pair of paintings disgracing the wife of leading conservative presidential hopeful Yoon Seok-youl have been whitewashed from the walls of a bookstore in central Seoul after they drew criticism of misogyny. Two paintings on the outer walls of the used bookstore in the district of Jongno were covered over in white paint Monday afternoon a few days after grabbing headlines for their disparaging depiction of Kim Keon-hee, wife of the former prosecutor general currently leading most presidential o

PoliticsAug. 3, 2021

[Newsmaker] Police to summon KCTU head for holding mass rally in violation of Level 4 virus rules

Police in the coming days will summon the head of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions as they investigate the umbrella labor group’s rally last month for violating COVID-19 rules. Yang Kyung-soo, head of the KCTU, is scheduled to appear at Seoul Jongno Police Station by 2 p.m. on Wednesday for questioning, according to police on Monday. The timing of the meeting was reportedly at the request of Yang. Police asked Yang to appear for the investigation three times last month, but Yang

Social AffairsAug. 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon hustles to bolster support from main opposition after party entry

Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, a leading opposition presidential contender, is moving toward strengthening connections and support within the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) after becoming a member last week. Yoon, who resigned in March as prosecutor general over an extended feud with the ruling bloc over prosecution reform, signed up with the PPP on Friday after having campaigned as an independent for about a month. The PPP leadership and key members courted Yoon to join the pa

PoliticsAug. 2, 2021

[Newsmaker] More Koreans suffer mental disorders amid pandemic

The number of Koreans who have suffered from mental disorders and eating disorders has risen in the pandemic, data showed Sunday. Last year, the number of people diagnosed with either depression, insomnia, anorexia or bulimia stood at 1,504,181, up by 67,233, or 4.67 percent, from the previous year, according to government data. The data, from the state-run Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, was disclosed by independent lawmaker Lee Yong-ho. Depression accounted for 55.7 perce

PoliticsAug. 1, 2021

[Newsmaker] Department stores and big supermarkets start QR code scans as cases rise

Department stores and big supermarkets will start requiring customers to scan QR codes or submit to written entry logs to shop starting from Friday in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. The measure was drawn up and confirmed by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Tuesday as a way to strengthen COVID-19 prevention efforts as cases continue to rise in South Korea. Stores that are bigger than 3,000 square meters are required to adopt a QR entry log system, while

ConsumerJuly 30, 2021