Traces of radioactive materials have been discovered across South Korea due to the inflow of contaminants from Japan's stricken nuclear power station, a state nuclear safety body said Saturday.The Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety confirmed diminishing traces of iodine-131, cesium-137 and cesium-134 have been detected by the country's 12 detection centers.It, however, stressed that concentration l

Social Affairs April 16, 2011

A local lawmaker on Saturday forwarded a bill to transform the Dokdo islets into an inhabited area to silence Japan's sovereignty claims against the South Korean territory.Rep. Park Sun-young of the conservative Liberty Forward Party said the bill supports enhancing overall living conditions on the rocky islets in the East Sea. It outlines expanding the pier facility to accommodate larger vessels

Politics April 16, 2011

The North Korea's inaugural golf tournament has drawn 21 amateur golfers from 10 countries with a rare chance to visit the isolated country and play golf within its borders, a U.S. broadcaster said Saturday.The Democratic People's Republic of Korea Amateur Golf Open is scheduled to tee off on April 29 at a 18-hole golf course in Pyongyang, sponsored by British travel agency Lupine Travel, in Pyong

North Korea April 16, 2011

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was to arrive Saturday in South Korea to meet with senior officials here and discuss ways to bring a disciplined North Korea back to dialogue and put an end to its growing nuclear ambitions.The trip, her first since last July to this Asian ally with strengthening ties to the United States, comes after she attended a round of talks of foreign ministers from N

Foreign Affairs April 16, 2011

North Korea leader Kim Jong-il and his heir apparent son watched a art performance celebrating the birthday of his late father and founder of the communist country, a state-run media organ reported Saturday."Kim Jong-il enjoyed a performance given by the art squad of the National Security Agency on the occasion of the Day of the Sun," the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency monitored in S

North Korea April 16, 2011

Board directors of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology on Friday chose not to discuss sacking president Suh Nam-pyo despite the controversy over his policies triggered by the recent suicides of four students.The 16-person board received a report from KAIST on the latest suicide cases and the school’s plans to go back to providing scholarships to all of its students and to reduce

Social Affairs April 15, 2011

The North Korean military may eliminate the country’s leader Kim Jong-il and his heir Jong-un in case of a mass uprising, a researcher at a South Korean state-funded think tank said Friday.“If a commotion breaks out in North Korea, Kim Jong-il and Jong-un are likely to be the main target of public anger,” Park Hyeong-jung, senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, sai

North Korea April 15, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak will send his political archrival Rep. Park Geun-hye as his special envoy to the Netherlands, Portugal and Greece later this month, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.Park, a factional leader of the ruling Grand National Party who had competed against Lee for the party’s presidential ticket in the 2007 elections, is so far the GNP’s strongest contender for the presidential race ne

Politics April 14, 2011

Democrats in the Seoul City Council proposed that parents of elementary school children vote on whether schools should provide free meals to all students, reigniting a two-year-old political controversy.The suggestion came as civic groups opposing the across-the-board complimentary meals staged a signing campaign for a referendum on the issue.Forty-two Democrats in the city council submitted a pro

Social Affairs April 14, 2011

Shift in means of transport may signal changes under next North Korean leaderBeijing asked North Korea’s next leader Kim Jong-un to fly to China instead of using the train, which his father has resorted to for various reasons including safety, diplomatic sources in Seoul said, signaling changes in the traditional allies’ future relationship.Kim Jong-un is expected to visit China as early as late A

North Korea April 13, 2011

Seoul took a step closer to exporting T-50 trainer jets to Indonesia as the Southeast Asian nation selected South Korea’s state-run aircraft maker as the de facto preferred bidder of its trainer jet project, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.“The Indonesian defense ministry informed Korea Aerospace Industries that it will be treated as the preferred bidder of the trainer jet project,” presidential spokes

Defense April 12, 2011

The prosecution Tuesday raided Kumho Petrochemical headquarters and offices of its business partners to look for proof of alleged embezzlement to create slush funds. Investigators from the Seoul Southern Prosecutors’ Office seized hard disks containing accounting information. “We have found circumstantial evidence that Kumho Petrochemical misappropriated company money to amass slush funds, but it

Social Affairs April 12, 2011

Listed firms of certain size obligated to hire legal professionalsListed companies of a certain size will be required by law from next year to hire lawyers or law professors to monitor potential legal problems in addition to the counsels they already have to deal with legal disputes post factum.The Cabinet approved a revised commercial bill that includes the article on legal compliance in a weekly

Politics April 12, 2011

Han Seung-soo criticizes those who link Ban to Korea’s presidential election in 2012U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon should be “freed from domestic politics,” former Prime Minister Han Seung-soo said, referring to recent opinion polls that included Ban as one of the country’s presidential hopefuls.“It is our duty to free Secretary General Ban from domestic politics so he can serve the world,” Ha

Politics April 12, 2011