Chey Jae-won, SK Group’s senior vice chairman and younger brother of Chairman Chey Tae-won, has been banned from travelling overseas on allegations that he amassed tens of billions of won in illicit slush funds. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, which leads the probe, suspects that the younger Chey raised the funds by falsifying the value of transactions between the group’s subsidiar

Social Affairs July 6, 2011

Starting next year, those who commit cruelty to animals in Korea may face a jail term of up to 1 year or a maximum fine of 10 million won ($9,400). The Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said Monday that a revision to the animal protection law, which entails the toughened penalties for pet abusers, is to take effect on Jan. 1, 2012. Currently, the heaviest penalty is a fine of 5

Social Affairs July 4, 2011

South Korea has decided to submit a claim to an extended portion of the continental shelf in the East China Sea to a United Nations commission within this year, the government said Sunday, a move expected to rekindle its dispute with China and Japan over the extent of their respective exclusive economic zones.The submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf will claim that t

Foreign Affairs July 3, 2011

A Chinese tourism delegation has arrived in North Korea, Pyongyang’s state media said Saturday, amid the North’s efforts to revitalize a stalled tour program to a scenic mountain that once served as its key cash cow.The trip comes weeks after the North announced a law designed to develop Mount Kumgang as a special zone for international tours. It marked the first time Chinese have traveled to Nort

North Korea July 3, 2011

More than four out of every 10 South Koreans are afraid of walking outside late at night, a police poll showed Sunday, indicating a relatively high level of public anxiety over security at night.According to the poll by the National Police Agency, 43.7 percent of the total 28,103 respondents said they feel threatened when walking along streets late at night while only 28 percent responded they don

Social Affairs July 3, 2011

GOYANG (Yonhap News) ― Four South Korean mechanics died of apparent asphyxiation caused by refrigerant gas in an underground machine room at a major retail outlet near Seoul, officials said Saturday.The four were working to fix a refrigeration system in the machine room in E-Mart in Ilsan, northwest of Seoul, until 2:40 a.m., an E-Mart official said, adding that the ventilation system was working

Social Affairs July 3, 2011

Long-standing ban on plural unions at company level to be lifted FridayFollowing is the first in a two-part series featuring multiple labor unions that will be introduced in Korea on Friday. ― Ed.After 13 years of hesitation, Korea is finally easing its iron-fisted labor union policy to allow more than one trade union at a single workplace, a move widely expected to open a new page in the country’

Social Affairs June 28, 2011

Rival parties agree on filibuster, new rules aimed at ending violence on floorRival political parties on Monday agreed on a set of measures, including a filibuster, which they hope would help end legislative violence and upgrade the political process. “A meeting of the ruling Grand National Party and the opposition Democratic Party worked out a tentative agreement on a number of issues, including

Politics June 27, 2011

The feud between parliamentarians and some of the nation’s corporate leaders escalated Thursday, as politicians threatened legal action if the businessmen defied their request to testify before parliament next week. Members of the National Assembly’s Knowledge Economy Committee decided to call to a public hearing it is organizing three of the nation’s major business organizations’ chiefs ― Huh Cha

Politics June 24, 2011