Seoul City plans to provide students in middle and high schools with books that chronicle the names of those who sympathized with imperial Japan during its colonial rule of Korea, stoking opposition from the conservatives who claim it is a move to thwart the government’s reinstatement of state-authored history textbooks.　Kim Moon-soo, a member of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, said Monday that the Seoul Metropolitan Education Office would distribute the “Register of Sympathizers of Imperial Jap

Social Affairs Nov. 9, 2015

Home Affairs Minister Chong Jong-sup, who was recently slammed for allegedly breaking political neutrality, offered to resign from his post Sunday, joining scores of other former Cabinet members preparing to run in next year’s general elections.　“After watching the speculation surrounding my position, I decided it was the right time to offer my resignation, as I believe continuing such a situation is not appropriate for the sake of the administration’s operations,” Chong said in a press conferen

Politics Nov. 8, 2015

Parliamentary sessions are set to resume this week after the main opposition party withdrew its six-day legislative boycott over the weekend, but prospects remain bleak as rival parties brace for heavy negotiation over key bills and next year’s budget.　　Starting from Monday, the lawmakers are set to jump-start their review of the government’s proposal for the 2016 budget and resume their discussion on plans to determine electoral maps for the 2016 general election. 　　The rival parties are to hol

Politics Nov. 8, 2015

SHAANXI PROVINCE, China -- Many cities in China epitomize the country’s economic prosperity and rich history. Shanghai’s skyscraper-lined Pudong district displays Western-style modernity, while Gulin’s picturesque mountain villages demonstrate its ancient beauty. But Xian in China’s northwest has withstood the test of time as the juncture where ancient and modern China intersect.Filled with tourist attractions boasting China’s cultural diversity, Xian has arguably withstood the test of time. Its

Travel Nov. 6, 2015

The ruling party pushed ahead with the parliamentary review of next year’s budget on Thursday, despite the main opposition’s boycott of the National Assembly in its protest against the government’s reinstatement of government-issued textbooks. 　The ruling Saenuri Party’s lawmakers unilaterally opened the Assembly’s budget committee to resume the 2016 review that had been stalled since the opposition boycotted the Assembly on Nov. 3. The law stipulates that the committee must finish the review by

Politics Nov. 5, 2015

The main opposition party leader Rep. Moon Jae-in Wednesday vowed to stop the government from reinstating state-authored history textbooks, saying that the party would seek “every means necessary” to block the policy that the opposition declared “null and void.”　The New Politics Alliance for Democracy chairman said in a press conference that the party would enact a law that bans the government from monopolizing publication of history textbooks and file a suit with the Constitutional Court agains

Politics Nov. 4, 2015

Political tensions intensified Tuesday as the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy boycotted parliamentary sessions in protest against the government and the ruling party’s final decision to adopt state-authored textbooks.　But the ruling Saenuri Party urged the NPAD to return to the National Assembly and focus on legislative works, denouncing the opposition for crippling the Assembly by preventing the legislature from passing pending bills that the ruling party said would boost th

Politics Nov. 3, 2015

South Korea’s defense procurement agency reiterated Friday that it was capable of developing fighter jets with key technologies that the United States had refused to transfer to Seoul.Defense Acquisition Program Administration Minister Chang Myoung-jin testified before lawmakers that the system for the Korean Fighter Experimental (KF-X) project aimed at producing 120 combat jets would be completed by 2025 and that the first round of production would be made between 2025 and 2028. With additional

Defense Oct. 30, 2015

Having lived in the United States since her childhood, 27-year-old graduate student Lee Hee-jung was surprised when she saw her roommates sifting through the garbage to separate milk cartons from trash bags filled with paper. “Back in the U.S., I would lump together trash and put it on the road where trash operators would pick it up. Since recycling is not mandatory in our state, that was pretty much all I had to do. Now I struggle here with my roommate nagging me for not following the recycling

Social Affairs Oct. 30, 2015

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday awarded honorary citizenship to “the homeless billionaire” Nicolas Berggruen, in appreciation of his contribution to the city’s management and reform initiatives. 　Named one of the world’s richest people by the Financial Times, the billionaire is renowned for his interest in philanthropy work and social reforms. He founded the Berggruen Institute, an advisory group that worked with former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other global lead

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2015

The Seoul Metropolitan Government selected a new slogan on Wednesday, seeking to revamp its brand image and entice more tourists. 　In a ceremony held at the city’s public square Seoul Plaza, the city announced that “I. SEOUL. U” won the logo contest, beating two other candidates -- “Seoulmate” and “SEOULing” -- to replace “Hi Seoul,” the current slogan that had been used for 13 years. 　Some 58 percent of voters supported “I. SEOUL. U” in a poll that consisted of online votes by citizens and an o

Social Affairs Oct. 29, 2015

GIMPO -- South Korea’s labor unions left for North Korea on Wednesday to participate in an inter-Korean friendly soccer match in Pyongyang, resuming after an eight-year hiatus to give a boost to cross-border exchanges in the private sector.  A total of 162 workers from the nation’s biggest trade union umbrella groups – the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions -- flew to the communist country for the four-day event that will run through Saturday. This is

Politics Oct. 28, 2015

South Korea will start accepting more applicants for compulsory military service to narrow down the gap between the number of young men signing up for enlistment and the number of places available for them. 　The Ministry of National Defense and the ruling Saenuri Party agreed Tuesday to expand the quota for military enlistment by 10,000 in 2016 and 2017. They decided to budget some 60 billion won ($53 million) to accommodate the increase in the number of enlisted service members. 　“We agreed to

Defense Oct. 27, 2015

  President Park`s approval rating. YonhapPresident Park Geun-hye’s approval ratings have dipped amid the escalating controversy over the government’s move to adopt state-authored textbooks, a weekly poll showed Monday.　Seoul-based pollster Realmeter said that 46.9 percent of respondents considered the Park administration’s performance to be “great” or “good,” down 1.1 percentage points from last week’s survey. Of those, about 18 percent said “great” and 29 percent said “good.” 　The poll questio

Politics Oct. 26, 2015