Despite impassioned pleas from several countries, the World Health Organization's annual assembly refused Monday to even discuss admitting Taiwan to the meeting, under pressure from China.   Self-governing Taiwan, which China sees as a renegade province awaiting reunification, has been invited to attend the WHO's main annual meeting as an observer every year since 2009, but this year it did not receive an invitation.   Relations with China have become increasingly frosty since Taiwan's Beijing-s

World News May 22, 2017

South Korean football coach Shin Tae-yong said Monday his team will show an even better performance in its second match at the FIFA U-20 World Cup than it did in a convincing victory last weekend.   Hosts South Korea opened the 2017 U-20 World Cup last Saturday by cruising to a 3-0 win over Guinea at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, some 240 kilometers south of Seoul.   South Korea will face Argentina at the same venue on Tuesday for their second Group A match and Shin was confident that his

Soccer May 22, 2017

Indonesian police have detained 141 men including several foreigners for allegedly taking part in a gay sex party at a sauna, an official said Monday, the latest sign of a backlash against homosexuals in the Muslim-majority country.   Officers late Sunday raided a building in the capital Jakarta that houses a sauna and a gym, and halted what they said was a sex party promoted as "The Wild One".   Pictures circulating online showed topless men sitting crammed in a room next to gym equipment after

World May 22, 2017

The number of foreign tourists to South Korea fell 27 percent in April from a year earlier as demand from China fell dramatically, the country's tourism agency said Monday.    Last month, a total of 1.07 million foreigners visited the country. Chinese travelers plunged 67 percent year-over-year to 227,811, according to data from the Korea Tourism Organization.    China banned the sale of travel packages to South Korea from March 15 in retaliation against the deployment of the Terminal High Altit

Travel May 22, 2017

The number of Chinese tourists in South Korea more than halved last month from a year earlier, dragged down by China's ban on sales of Korea-bound trips amid a diplomatic row over a U.S. anti-missile system, the state tourism body said Monday.    The tally of Chinese visitors came to 227,811 in April, down 66.6 percent from 682,318 recorded the previous year, according to the data by the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO). On a cumulative basis, the number dipped 25.8 percent on-year to 1.74 milli

Travel May 22, 2017

When children sexually assault other children at school, sometimes the only measure of justice comes through the courts.      The barriers are formidable, and can lead to long, grueling fights: Public schools in many states enjoy powerful shields, including caps on damages and high legal hurdles to prove misconduct. And a handful of states offer schools complete immunity from lawsuits in state court.      But the incentives for families are powerful, too -- protecting their children, winning ref

World News May 22, 2017

President Donald Trump threatened to shut down daily press briefings Friday as he sought to defend his White House from criticism of its shifting explanations and misstatements about the firing of FBI Director James Comey.    Trump's statements, through a tweet and later television interview, threaten a Washington institution that is the most high-profile forum for journalists to question the government about policy and the news of the day.    In the Trump era, it has become a cable TV hit and c

World News May 13, 2017

A North Korean parliamentary committee sent a rare letter of protest to the US House of Representatives on Friday over its new package of tougher sanctions. The sanctions were condemned as a "heinous act against humanity'' by the foreign affairs committee of the North's Supreme People's Assembly, according to a state media report. It was not immediately clear how the protest was conveyed -- if it was sent by mail or how it was addressed -- since North Korea and the United States have no diplomat

North Korea May 13, 2017

U.S. President Donald Trump said he doesn't oppose South Korea's newly elected President Moon Jae-in engaging in dialogue with Pyongyang, but reiterated that talks must be pursued under right circumstances.   According to a transcript of his interview with America's NBC News released on Thursday (local time), Trump said "He's (Moon) more open to discussion. I don't mind discussion, but its under certain circumstances."   "I could probably give you a much better answer to that in a month or two m

World News May 13, 2017