Cheong Wa Dae, the government and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea announced a reformation plan Thursday that will check and balance the power of investigative and intelligence authorities. The purpose of the scheme unveiled after their joint meeting at the National Assembly is to “disperse authority that powerful agencies hold and control them in democratic ways.” “The core is overhauling powerful agencies that have reigned over the people into state institutions th

Social Affairs July 30, 2020

Debate has resurfaced over the need for surveillance cameras in hospital operating rooms, with strong support from the ruling party for the mandatory use of cameras to protect the rights of patients. Rep. Kim Nam-kuk of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and 12 other lawmakers submitted a bill on July 9 that would obligate hospitals to deploy security camera systems inside operating theaters in a bid to prevent medical mistakes, ghost surgeries by underqualified or untrained hospital staff

Social Affairs July 29, 2020

A surge in demand for cold and frozen food parcel deliveries is driving up the use of gel packs, sparking concerns over environmental and health risks of microplastic pollution. “As the use of ice packs is expected to increase rapidly due to the rise in online shopping during COVID-19 pandemic, government-level systematic measures are needed to resolve the problem,” said Rep. Woo Won-shik of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea in a statement Wednesday. According to the lawmak

Social Affairs July 29, 2020

A panel of outside experts on Friday recommended that the probe into the journalist in a suspected case of collusion with a prosecutor be continued, while ending the investigation into the prosecutor connected to the case. Lee Dong-jae, formerly a journalist for Channel A, and senior prosecutor Han Dong-hoon are alleged to have colluded to frame a leading liberal figure for corruption. The high-profile case has drawn much public attention for driving Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae and Prosecu

Social Affairs July 24, 2020

  US President Donald Trump could try for a breakthrough in the stalemated talks with North Korea by inviting the sister of the North’s leader Kim Jong-un to Washington, a senior Seoul politician versed in North Korean affairs has suggested. Rep. Song Young-gil, who chairs the South Korean parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, said an official invitation from Trump may be what Kim’s younger sister Yo-jong meant in her recent bewildering remarks about

North Korea July 24, 2020

The two vacant mayoral seats left behind by disgraced heavyweights from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea have put the party in a bind. To field candidates for the posts in Seoul and Busan in by-elections next year, it will have to break its own rules and campaign promises. But the country’s two largest cities, with a combined population of over 13 million, are too big to lose. The Seoul office has been vacant since Mayor Park Won-soon, who belonged to the ruling party, died earli

Politics July 21, 2020

Ruling Democratic Party of Korea Floor Leader Kim Tae-nyeon on Monday proposed relocating the National Assembly and the presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, from Seoul to the administrative city of Sejong to curb housing prices. “Through active discussions, the National Assembly, Cheong Wa Dae and central government ministries should move to Sejong in order to alleviate overcrowding and real estate problems in the Greater Seoul area,” Kim said during a floor negotiation speech at

Politics July 20, 2020

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s plan to investigate sexual harassment allegations against late Mayor Park Won-soon has faced a setback, as the city failed to recruit outside experts to join the investigation team. On Sunday, the city government said it sent out an official document for a third time Saturday to two women’s groups to recommend experts to join other experts in human rights and law for the investigation. The two organizations -- the Korea Sexual Violence Relief

Social Affairs July 19, 2020

The Seoul City government, law enforcement agencies and a rights watchdog on Wednesday vowed to leave no stone unturned on the sexual harassment allegations against late Mayor Park Won-soon and speculations surrounding the matter. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it will set up a team comprising city officials, civic group representatives and legal experts to clarify the truth about the allegations raised by its staff member against the mayor. “To guarantee fairness and object

Social Affairs July 15, 2020

The controversy over the #MeToo allegations against late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon is showing no signs of abating, with calls for an investigation growing Tuesday. Opposition parties, women’s groups and the alleged victim called for a full investigation into Park’s alleged harassment of his secretary, although a criminal case is usually dropped when a suspect dies. The main opposition United Future Party said Tuesday that it would request a parliamentary hearing in to the case,

Social Affairs July 14, 2020

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon sexually harassed his female secretary over four years, making unwanted physical contact and sending inappropriate text messages, claimed a lawyer and a women’s group representing the secretary on Monday, shortly after the funeral service for the heavyweight politician concluded. Park was found dead in the early hours of Friday at age 64 while serving his third term as mayor after allegations of sexual misconduct emerged. “This case is a sexual harassm

Social Affairs July 13, 2020

The official funeral ceremony for Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon was held at City Hall on Monday morning, with eulogists honoring his pioneering work in civic movements and his citizen-centric policies while in office. But the image of the capital’s longest-serving mayor was tainted by fresh details of his alleged sexual misconduct, announced at a press conference just hours after the service. About 100 people -- including the bereaved family, civic group representatives, Seoul Metropolitan

Social Affairs July 13, 2020

Thousands continued to mourn the death of former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on Sunday, but the somber mood was marred by controversy over his alleged sexual misconduct. A solemn ceremony will be held Monday morning with 100 people in attendance, including the bereaved family, civic group representatives and leaders of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, to which he belonged, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The funeral service will be streamed online, as the number of parti

Social Affairs July 12, 2020

Thousands of mourners filled a grassy plaza outside City Hall on Saturday to pay their respect to Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, who was found dead Friday. Citizens of all ages waited in a long line that snaked around the plaza to pay condolence calls to the memorial altar set up in front of the building.  City officials checked mourners’ temperatures before allowing them to join the line, and instructed them to maintain a one-meter distance from others in a precautionary measure again

Social Affairs July 11, 2020

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon’s will was revealed Friday, a day after he was found dead in an apparent suicide. “I’m sorry to everyone. I’m grateful for all the people who I shared my life with,” he wrote in a note left on his desk at home, which was revealed upon the bereaved family’s wishes on Friday. “I have been feeling sorry to my family for I could only give them pain.” In the five-sentence note, he also asked to be cremated and have his ash

Social Affairs July 10, 2020