The leaders of South Korea and Turkmenistan agreed Monday to reinforce economic ties in energy, finance, policy and infrastructure to take their economic partnership to the next level.At the summit in Seoul, President Park Geun-hye and visiting President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov signed agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation in energy development, financial support, policy infrastructure and public transport. Under the agreement, the two countries are expected to expand supp

Politics April 13, 2015

The government is considering requiring universities to collect plans of trips organized by students in advance as part of efforts to enhance safety measures.“We are reviewing a measure to mandate that college field trips should be notified to the college authorities in advance,” said an official from the Ministry of Education on Sunday. “The point of the measure is to ensure safety by sharing field trip plans with the college authorities,” said the official. “We are coordinating with colleges o

Social Affairs April 12, 2015

South Korean lawmakers on Friday released a statement condemning Japan’s latest attempt to lay claim over Korean territory and play down its colonial atrocities.The lawmakers from the Special Committee on Distortion of History in Northeast Asia adopted a resolution denouncing the Japanese government’s approval of controversial textbooks, which describe the Seoul-controlled islets Dokdo as a part of Japanese territory and that the southern region of the Korean Peninsula was ruled by Japan from th

Politics April 10, 2015

Sung Wan-jong, former chairman of Keangnam Enterprise Ltd., denied Wednesday allegations he engaged in irregularities related to former President Lee Myung-bak’s overseas resources development projects. Sung also denied at a news conference that he was one of the so-called “MB men,” referring to businessmen and politicians closely associated with the former president.“I never abused my authority as a public servant,” Sung said. “Contrary to media reports, I am not one of the ‘MB men.’ How could

Social Affairs April 8, 2015

More than a 100 journalists from all over the world will gather in South Korea next week to attend the third World Journalist Conference and discuss Korea’s reunification and freedom of the press.The Journalist Association of Korea said Wednesday it will host the event from April 12 through 18 in major cities including Seoul, Daegu and Busan. Titled “the 70th Anniversary of National Division: Think about Unification on the Korean Peninsula,” the conference will consist of two main sessions: “Thi

Social Affairs April 8, 2015

Main opposition party leader Rep. Moon Jae-in upped the ante against his rival party Monday, saying he would attend the hearing for an investigation into an overseas resource development project, and demanded former president Lee Myung-bak join him. “The Saenuri Party insisted that the former president Lee would attend the hearing as long as I joined him. Fair enough. I will attend the hearing, and you should join me,” said Moon from the New Politics Alliance for Democracy. The ruling party, how

Politics April 6, 2015

Safety accidents at schools in Korea became more frequent last year despite reinforced efforts to protect children following the Sewol ferry sinking last April that claimed 246 students’ lives, statistics showed Sunday.According to the Ministry of Education, 116,527 accidents occurred at schools in 2014, a 10.9 percent increase from 2013. By school type, middle schools saw the most accidents at 39,101, followed by elementary schools (37,075), high schools (31,941), kindergartens (7,602) and spec

Social Affairs April 5, 2015

The government is considering expanding the length of military training for college students in the reserves as part of efforts to beef up Korea’s military readiness and make the system fairer.“The Defense Ministry is trying to see if there is a way for college students to join mobilized training for reservists, given that they are not required to attend the training,” an official said Friday.If the plan is implemented, college students who have completed their mandatory military service will be

Social Affairs April 3, 2015

The Korean government will begin offering compensation to victims of last year’s Sewol ferry sinking disaster from this month, as the nation continues to deal with disputes over the mishandling of the disaster.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced Tuesday that it has finalized the scope of compensation for bereaved families and 157 survivors and will start receiving requests for compensation. The move comes nearly one year after the ferry sank on April 16. More than 300 people died in t

Social Affairs April 1, 2015