North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has paid an inspection visit to an amusement park construction site, the North’s media said Wednesday, publishing Kim’s third reported visit to the newly built facility in Pyongyang.“Marshal Kim Jong-un visited the Rungna People’s Pleasure Ground just before the start of operation,” the (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported in an English-language dispatch. The official news outlet has covered Kim’s two previous visits in April and early July to the am

Social Affairs July 25, 2012

The U.S. ambassador on Wednesday urged North Korea to learn from the recent political and economic reforms in Myanmar to improve the lives of its own people, but warned the North’s new leadership will be further isolated unless it abandons its nuclear ambitions. U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim also said his government has “lost confidence” in working toward resuming dialogue with North Korea after it reneged on the Feb. 29th deal with Washington, an agreement to swap denuclearization ste

Social Affairs July 25, 2012

Kim Young-hwan claims North Korea was involved in detention of four activistsNorth Korea was closely involved in China’s detention of four South Korean activists who campaigned for human rights in the communist country, one of them said Wednesday. Kim Young-hwan also told a news conference that he was physically abused by Chinese investigators during interrogation and told not to disclose it.Kim and three others arrived in Seoul on Friday after 114 days of confinement in China. They were arreste

Social Affairs July 25, 2012

Lee Dong-kwan, a former presidential secretary of public relations, has been appointed to a new post of ambassador for cooperation in public opinion and culture, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.The Cabinet also created another ambassadorial position for human rights during a meeting and appointed Kim Young-ho, a former unification aide and now a professor at Sungshin Women’s University in Seoul. The two posts offer neither an office nor pay and last one year. Lee is believed to be one of President Le

Politics July 24, 2012

The Korea International Cooperation Agency said Monday it has completed a power plant in Haiti as part of its efforts to help rebuild the disaster-stricken country. The state-run aid agency has funneled $3 million into the project over the last two years in the sea town of Leogane, some 40 kilometers west of Port-au-Prince and the epicenter of a powerful earthquake that swept through the country in February 2010. The facility is expected to supply about 4,000 households and entails a mobile elec

Foreign Affairs July 23, 2012

Institute builds on global knowledge network in security, Asia, public policyWhen it started out in the spring of 2002, the East Asia Institute looked no different from many independent academic projects ― pure, proud but doomed to obscurity.Its organization was untenably tiny with only two staffers. It declared financial independence from government and businesses. Its motto ― “Ideas can change the world” ― sounded fairly idealist A decade later, the experiment has transformed into one of the w

Foreign Affairs July 23, 2012

Kim Young-hwan, the prominent anti-North Korea activist freed Friday from detention in China, pledged to continue his fight for democracy and human rights in the communist country. Kim, 49, and his three colleagues arrived in Seoul on the same day China expelled them after 114 days of detention. They were arrested on March 29 in the northeastern border city of Dalian apparently for helping North Korean refugees. They were charged with “endangering national security.”“The reality in North Korea i

North Korea July 22, 2012

Amid slight signs of change, North Korea’s recent disclosure of its presumed de facto first lady is reinforcing the prospect of reform under the budding leadership of Kim Jong-un. Little was officially announced about her status or background, other than video footage and pictures from the communist regime’s mouthpieces. The young, elegant-looking woman, reportedly surnamed Hong, accompanied Kim during official activities such as a visit to a kindergarten and concert. Analysts see her ongoing me

North Korea July 18, 2012

Travel writer and relief worker Han Bi-ya, called on the Korean government on Tuesday to shift its foreign aid policy to a more specialized, grant-based approach.She underlined the significance of close cooperation between the government, development-related agencies and non-governmental organizations in crafting programs that reflect the needs of recipients. “While Korean NGOs and other related sectors have secured some level of professionalism in development and relief activities, the governme

Foreign Affairs July 17, 2012

Minister avows onset of unification preparations, calls for dialogue with North KoreaWhite porcelain ceramics represent the epitome of Korea’s traditional aesthetics ― steeped in simplicity, purity and harmony with nature. The moon jar, dating back to the 17th and 18th centuries, is the most prized of its kind. Its exact symmetry, round shape and milky white hue are reminiscent of a full moon and characterize fertility and a good harvest. Due to their large size, the upper and lower parts of the

North Korea July 16, 2012