The defense ministry said Wednesday it plans to introduce a system of compensating conscripts for reporting violence at barracks as part of efforts to eradicate deep-rooted ills and reform an outdated military culture.The plan, unveiled at a meeting of major military commanders presided over by President Park Geun-hye, comes following a series of deadly incidents involving enlistees that has laid bare a decades-old ill practice of bullying and even assaults in barracks.An Army private first clas

Defense Aug. 13, 2014

"Sin stocks" of tobacco, alcohol and gambling companies have gained recently on hopes of bigger dividends after the administration's new economic team introduced measures to induce companies to pay higher returns to investors in a bid to revitalize the sluggish economy, data showed Wednesday. According to market researcher FnGuide, six "sin stocks" related to tobacco, alcohol or gambling rose an average of 7.71 percent over a two-month period since June 13 when Choi Kyung-hwan, a ruling party le

Aug. 13, 2014

Pope Francis will arrive in South Korea on Thursday for a five-day trip to attend a gathering of Asian Catholic youth and beatify Korean martyrs.It is the pope's first trip to Asia since he took over the papacy in March last year and the first by a pope to South Korea in 25 years.During the visit, the pope will lead four Masses, including the closing Mass of the sixth Asian Youth Day, a Catholic youth festival, and another to beatify 124 Korean Catholics killed by the authorities in the 18th and

World News Aug. 13, 2014

A fishing boat capsized on Tuesday in waters off the country's south coast, leaving six dead and five injured, the Coast Guard said.The 59-ton boat flipped over a rope between a tugboat and a barge at 4:32 p.m. in waters some 1.5 kilometers off the island of Geoje, some 470 km south of Seoul.Out of 11 crew members aboard, three were rescued initially. One of the rescued died after being in critical condition. The rest were searched later, with five found dead, officials said. The investigation i

Social Affairs Aug. 12, 2014

The first South Korean astronaut has left the state-run research institute for personal reasons, the institute said Tuesday, bringing to an end the country's first astronaut program and sparking criticism of government waste.The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) said Yi So-yeon sent a letter of resignation by mail and the offer was accepted.She had been on a leave of absence since 2012 to study for an MBA in the U.S.The 36-year-old scientist became the first Korean in space with two Russ

Technology Aug. 12, 2014

A panel of medical experts has determined it is ethical to provide experimental treatments to patients infected with the deadly Ebola virus, the World Health Organization said Tuesday as the global death toll topped 1,000.  "In the particular circumstances of this outbreak, and provided certain conditions are met, the panel reached consensus that it is ethical to offer unproven interventions with as yet unknown efficacy and adverse effects, as potential treatment or prevention," the UN's health

World News Aug. 12, 2014

A group of North Korean defectors were arrested on Tuesday by the Chinese military while trying to reach the China-Laos border, a source said."Eleven North Koreans were travelling in a bus driven by a Chinese guide. They were stopped and arrested by the Chinese military near the Laos border at 7:50 a.m. (local time), and then transferred to Kunming, Yunnan Province," the source said.The group of children and middle-aged men and women were believed to have been trying to cross the border into Lao

North Korea Aug. 12, 2014

The head of the Korean Catholic Bishops' Conference expressed hope Tuesday that Pope Francis will bring a message of consolation and hope to the Korean society suffering from many social disputes during his trip to the country later this week.The pope is scheduled to visit South Korea on Aug. 14-18 to participate in a gathering of Asian Catholic youths and beatify 124 Korean martyrs. This would be his first trip to Asia since he took over the papacy from his predecessor, Benedict XVI, in March 2

Social Affairs Aug. 12, 2014

A Spanish missionary priest being treated for Ebola died Tuesday in a Madrid hospital, authorities said. Spain's Health Ministry said a day earlier that it had obtained a course of the U.S.-made experimental Ebola drug ZMapp to treat Father Miguel Pajares, 75.Pajares died Tuesday at Carlos III Hospital, the hospital and his order said. The hospital would not confirm that he had been treated with the drug, but his order said earlier that he would be. He is one of only three Ebola patients thought

World News Aug. 12, 2014

Suffering from a severe cash shortage, Pantech Co., South Korea's No. 3 handset maker, filed for court receivership Tuesday with a Seoul court five months after it was placed under a debt workout program."We want to deeply apologize for failing to fulfill the responsibility and role as a company, which resulted in applying for court receivership," the company said in its official statement to investors after the decision was approved by its board of directors."We will continue to make strenuous

Industry Aug. 12, 2014

The United Nations' committee on racial discrimination plans to review this month whether rampant hate speech in Japan against Koreans living there constitute a violation of the international convention aimed at eliminating discrimination based on race, government officials said Tuesday.The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is planning to raise the issue of Japanese rightist activists' hate speech targeting Korean residents in Japan when they review Japan's implementatio

World News Aug. 12, 2014

South Korea will develop 10,000 new small and medium-sized exporters by 2017 as a way of enlarging its overall exports and boost electronic trade by more than 10-fold, the trade ministry announced Tuesday.In its report to the trade-investment promotion commission chaired by President Park Geun-hye in Seoul, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it plans to increase the number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) involved in exporting by 10,000 to total 100,000 by 2017. To suppo

Aug. 12, 2014

The South Korean government said Tuesday it will build more cable cars and resorts to help boost tourism in forests and mountain areas as it unveiled a set of measures to invigorate the country's trade and investment. South Korea has yet to explore and develop the mountain tourism industry, an area that the business community says has much growth potential. According to the business lobby group Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), a poll last year said hiking was the second most popular sports

Aug. 12, 2014

South Korea will allow wider fluctuation in daily stock prices in an attempt to give the dulled local equity market a much-needed boost and strengthen the autonomy in price-setting, the country's financial regulator said Tuesday.South Korea currently limits daily price changes to 15 percent, a rule that has been in place for nearly 16 years despite the growth in the size of the bourse and market cap."We will expand the daily price limit to some extent, for example, 30 percent, in order to beef u

Aug. 12, 2014