North Korea’s fifth and strongest nuclear test is fueling fierce debate among political parties here over whether South Korea should shift away from its decades-old non-nuclear commitment for self-defense. Ranking members of the ruling Saenuri Party are stepping up demands that the government consider seeking measures equivalent to obtaining nukes. Their calls, officially denied by the government, are joined by some of the opposition members but are also met with criticism from both within and o

Politics Sept. 12, 2016

The ruling Saenuri Party’s former floor leader Rep. Won Yoo-chul on Friday renewed his call for nuclear armament in South Korea, in response to North Korea’s fifth and strongest nuclear test earlier in the day. The fifth-term lawmaker said the government should promptly begin the process of developing nuclear weapons. Other preventive measures, such as sanctions by the United States and the United Nations, have failed to discourage the communist regime’s nuclear ambitions, he added. “Obtaining n

Politics Sept. 9, 2016

The main opposition party leader on Friday apologized over her earlier attempts to meet with former president Chun Doo-hwan, a move which caused divides within the party leadership.The Minjoo Party of Korea’s chairwoman Rep. Choo Mi-ae said that her decision to visit the disputed former president was “inappropriate,” highlighting that Chun has yet to admit his involvement with the massacre during the Gwangju May 18 democratization uprising back in 1980. The meeting, if not cancelled, would have

Politics Sept. 9, 2016

The number of traffic accidents involving foreign drivers increased by four times in the last three years, a report showed Thursday.A total of 1,411 traffic accidents caused by foreigners were reported in 2015, four times more than 2012. Of this number, 487 cases involved those driving without licenses, two times higher than 2012, according to the report by The Minjoo Party of Korea Rep. Kim Young-jin, who referred to data from the National Police Agency.A total of 2,235 foreigners had their dri

Social Affairs Sept. 8, 2016

The third-biggest People’s Party’s interim leader criticized President Park Geun-hye’s handling of the government in a parliamentary address Wednesday, blaming her administration for worsening cross-border relations and fueling public anger over South Korea’s politico-economic system. Describing the president as the only change agent to national reform, the central-left floor leader Rep. Park Jie-won urged the president to hold a summit with North Korea and pursue constitutional amendment to cha

Politics Sept. 7, 2016

The newly elected leader of the main opposition party urged the government to take strong measures to jumpstart the nation’s sluggish economy, blasting what President Park Geun-hye has suggested as the nation’s growth strategy.In her debut speech as a party leader at the National Assembly, The Minjoo Party of Korea’s Chairwoman Rep. Choo Mi-ae said South Korea should move beyond a conglomerate-dominated, export-driven economy toward a “fair economy” by revamping the tax code and increasing the c

Politics Sept. 6, 2016

Opposition parties on Monday agreed to seek the removal of the new agriculture minister, lashing out against President Park Geun-hye for pushing ahead with the appointment despite actions by the legislature to block it. Agriculture Minister Kim Jae-soo came under fire for engaging in dubiously lucrative land-purchasing deals and for writing down his mother’s assets o profit from the government’s social security subsidies. The move came a day after President Park Geun-hye, currently in Hangzhou,

Politics Sept. 5, 2016

With the infamous bribery scandal involving a top presidential aide showing no signs of abating, a prominent politician from the ruling party Sunday voiced his approval of building an independent anti-corruption agency, despite vehement opposition from his party leadership. Kim Moon-soo, a former Gyeonggi Province governor and a presidential hopeful within the ruling Saenuri Party, claimed that in order to eradicate high-profile corruption scandals, it is crucial to build an independent body ded

Politics Sept. 4, 2016

Freshman lawmakers are not typically respected as sources of expertise at the National Assembly. But Rep. Kim Jong-dae is an exception, especially on a topic that often dominates debate among prominent politicians or presidential hopefuls: national security.  “My decades-old journey for security issues culminates here,” Kim said in an interview with The Korea Herald at his office in the 20th Assembly, where he serves as a member of a parliamentary committee dealing with national defense and mili

Politics Aug. 30, 2016

 Rival parties on Thursday agreed to hold a parliamentary hearing on the alleged excessive use of force by police during a massive protest last year that led to Baek Nam-gi, a 69-year-old farmer, falling into a coma after being knocked down by a water cannon. The ruling Saenuri Party and opposition parties agreed to hold the hearing on a date between Sep. 5 and 7. The agreed-upon witness list includes former National Police Agency Chief Kang Sin-myeong, who has been under criticism for instructi

Politics Aug. 25, 2016

When 25-year-old job-seeker Shin Ji-min prepared to apply for a marketing job at a manufacturing company earlier this month, she was worried about her English test score and lack of experience studying overseas -- credentials often considered crucial in resumes submitted to Korean companies. “Unlike most college graduates my age, I have never been abroad to study English,” Shin, who graduated with a dual degree in political science and economics from a Seoul-based university, told The Korea Hera

Politics Aug. 24, 2016

The prospect of passing an 11 trillion won ($9.8 billion) supplementary budget in the near future appeared grim, as rival parties continued to clash over the witness list for a separate parliamentary hearing on a controversial government-led restructuring program. 　The ruling Saenuri Party and opposition parties continued to debate on whether high-profile government officials should testify on allegations that they secretly plotted a massive injection of government funds into the financially str

Politics Aug. 23, 2016

President Park Geun-hye’s approval rating was not significantly affected by a corruption scandal involving her aide, a pollster said Monday.According to the survey conducted by Realmeter on 2,018 adults, Park’s approval rating stood at 34.6 percent, a 0.2 percentage point increase from a week earlier. Her disapproval rating was 58.8 percent, 1.3 percentage point up from last week. Realmeter attributed the outcome to a surprise defection of a high-profile North Korea diplomat overshadowing the is

Politics Aug. 22, 2016

With North Korea continuing to hone its nuclear and missile capability, possibly to push ahead a fifth nuclear test, South Korea should have its own nuclear weapon for self-defense, the ruling Saenuri Party’s former floor leader told The Korea Herald. Rep. Won Yoo-chul urged the government to shift away from observing a decades-old non-nuclear policy toward embracing nuclear armament for self-defense, proposing to use the North’s potential nuclear test as a “trigger” to begin the armament proces

Politics Aug. 21, 2016

Cheong Wa Dae on Friday strongly denounced an alleged information leak by a special inspector looking into the corruption scandal of a presidential aide, saying that such an act would constitute a “grave violation of law.”The remarks came amid the allegation that former prosecutor Lee Seok-su -- tasked with reviewing corruption allegations surrounding senior presidential secretary for civil affairs Woo Byung-woo -- leaked related information to local media. Local broadcaster MBC reported Tuesday

Politics Aug. 19, 2016