The Korea Herald

Criticism grows over N.K. racist, sexist slurs

Criticism is rising on the peninsula and abroad as North Korea continues to churn out a deluge of scathing invectives against the leaders of South Korea and the U.S. and other parts of what it calls hostile forces. Pyongyang’s state media is notorious for vitriolic remarks and warlike rhetoric against the allies. But its tone appears to have grown more hateful, especially since their summit in Seoul late last month, during which U.S. President Barack Obama warned the communist state against a fo

North Korea May 13, 2014

Korea, Japan set for new talks on sex slavery

Seoul and Tokyo plan to hold working-level talks Thursday on the long-standing issue of Japan’s sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II, the Foreign Ministry here said Tuesday.The meeting will mark a second round of consultations aimed at improving the two countries’ relations frayed by revisionist moves by Japanese officials and politicians. Lee Sang-deok, director general for Northeast Asian affairs at Seoul’s Foreign Ministry, is scheduled to arrive in Tokyo on Thursday for a t

Foreign Affairs May 13, 2014

Speculation rises over standing of N. Korea’s former No. 2 man

Speculation is growing over the political status of Choe Ryong-hae, who had been deemed North Korea’s second-most influential man, as his coveted military post was taken over by a newly emerged figure, though he still appears to boast formidable power in public. The rise of Hwang Pyong-so, the new director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, sparked a flurry of rumors and analyses that portrayed Choe as the target of a new purge. The announcement marked the latest in a s

North Korea May 12, 2014

Speculation rises over standing of N. Korea’s former No. 2 man

[Herald Interview] Bridging digital divide in Asia-Pacific

This is the sixth installment in a series of interviews with chiefs of United Nations offices in Korea. ― Ed.For Rhee Hyeun-suk, knowledge-sharing has been a lifelong task. She spent more than 20 years teaching information technology management at universities and helping Africa to improve its digital infrastructure at a U.N. agency in Addis Ababa. Now as chief of the UN-APCICT in Incheon, her mission hovers between continents on a daily basis: to help developing countries to build their human,

Foreign Affairs May 11, 2014

[Herald Interview] Bridging digital divide in Asia-Pacific

[Graphic News] North Korean infant mortality surges to 3.3 percent

North Korea’s infant mortality rate topped 33 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2012, a study showed Thursday, reflecting the country’s chronic food shortages and lack of widespread, adequate health care services. The finding resulted from analyzing nutrition surveys conducted jointly by the Pyongyang government and international organizations from 1998-2012. Lee Joung-hee, a professor at Kyonggi University’s graduate school of education in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, released the work in Review of

North Korea May 8, 2014

[Graphic News] North Korean infant mortality surges to 3.3 percent

Development at North Korea nuke test site furthers concerns

The U.S. has spotted a tarpaulin over a tunnel entrance at North Korea’s nuclear test site, a news report said Tuesday, adding to concerns that Pyongyang is preparing a fourth nuclear weapons test. The tarp was spotted by a spy satellite late last week at the nuclear site in the northeastern town of Punggye, CNN quoted a senior Washington official as saying. A similar cover was used ahead of the North’s third detonation in February 2013, in an apparent attempt to hide the atomic device during it

North Korea May 7, 2014

Seoul may reduce civilian control area south of DMZ

The defense ministry is considering reducing the civilian control area south of the Demilitarized Zone and easing regulations on other military reservation zones for the convenience of residents, a senior official said Wednesday.The latest move, part of President Park Geun-hye’s deregulation initiative, is aimed at making it easier for residents to exercise their land and property rights, officials said. “We are reviewing ways to reduce or scrap some military reservation zones and adjust the civ

North Korea May 7, 2014

Park’s North Korea policies face headwinds

From “trustpolitik” to the Dresden declaration, President Park Geun-hye’s signature North Korea initiatives face strong headwinds as the defiant neighbor ratchets up threats of another nuclear test and criticism against her administration. While adopting a dual-track approach of reengagement and deterrence shortly after taking office, Park launched a campaign for unification as the centerpiece of her term’s second year, saying it would present a “bonanza” to all Koreans and a chance for the unif

North Korea May 6, 2014

Park’s North Korea policies face headwinds

Reporter booked for calling Sewol victim’s family pro-North

A reporter for an online news outlet was booked Monday without detention for defaming the family of a high school student missing in the ferry accident, Daegu police said. The 47-year-old man, identified only by his surname Seo, on his Facebook page on April 19 harshly criticized an interview with the mother of a missing Danwon High School student, in which she blamed the government and president for their sloppy response to the disaster. He called the mother “insane” and the interview “a play o

Social Affairs April 30, 2014

North Korea says nuke test has no ‘statute of limitations’

North Korea on Tuesday lashed out at U.S. President Barack Obama’s warning against its fourth nuclear test during his tour of Asia last week, vowing to continue its experiment that has no “statute of limitations.” Concerns have been growing since Pyongyang threatened a “new form” of underground blast on March 30 in protest against the U.N. Security Council’s condemnation of its firing of midrange ballistic missiles.In Seoul on Friday, Obama warned that the communist state will face further press

North Korea April 30, 2014

Parliament passes resolution on memorial park for ferry victims

The National Assembly passed a resolution Tuesday on the establishment of a memorial park and monument for scores of teenage students killed in the sinking of a ferry off Korea’s southwest coast nearly two weeks ago.The resolution calls for efforts to build the park and monument in the grief-stricken city of Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, home to a school hit hardest by the tragedy.More than 300 people were confirmed dead or missing after the ferry Sewol capsized and sank on April 16. Most of the vic

Politics April 29, 2014

[Herald Interview] Envoy seeks green partnership with Kuwait

As Kuwait seeks to diversify its oil-heavy economy, Korea is ready to help expedite the transition by fostering partnerships in low-carbon technologies and the service and other knowledge-based industries, Seoul’s new envoy to the Gulf country said. Shin Boo-nam, former ambassador for climate change and green growth, is anchoring his hopes on Korea’s knowhow in education, healthcare and green technologies, citing these as promising areas for collaboration. “Kuwait is striving to chart its path t

Foreign Affairs April 29, 2014

[Herald Interview] Envoy seeks green partnership with Kuwait

[Newsmaker] Hwang Pyong-so new in N. Korean power circle

Over the last few weeks, a notable change was spotted within the core of the reclusive North Korean ruling elite: Hwang Pyong-so, formerly the first vice director of the ruling party’s organization guidance department, was elevated to the rank of four-star general and then to the rarefied, coveted rank of vice marshal. The decision was made Saturday by the powerful National Defense Commission and the Workers’ Party’s Central Military Commission, the official Korean Central News Agency announced

North Korea April 28, 2014

[Newsmaker] Hwang Pyong-so new in N. Korean power circle

[Herald Interview] ‘E-government key to good governance’

This is the fifth installment in a series of interviews with chiefs of United Nations offices in Korea. ― Ed.With Korea’s advanced information technology, its know-how in e-government services could provide a key tool for developing countries to help achieve good governance and effective public administration, the head of the U.N. Project Office on Governance said. “E-government is one of the best paths to good governance that the humans have found so far, playing a key role in achieving a wide

Foreign Affairs April 27, 2014

[Herald Interview] ‘E-government key to good governance’

Allies to review command transfer timing

The leaders of South Korea and the U.S. agreed Friday to reconsider the timing of Washington’s transfer of its wartime operational control of Korean troops, scheduled for 2015, in the face of persistent North Korean nuclear threats.During their summit in Seoul, Presidents Park Geun-hye and Barack Obama also warned the communist state against conducting a fourth nuclear test, vowing further pressure and sanctions that have “even more bite.” With Seoul-Tokyo ties remaining frosty, Obama took a swi

Foreign Affairs April 25, 2014

Allies to review command transfer timing

Articles by Shin Hyon-hee