The Korea Times

Peter Beck named Korea chief of Asia Foundation

The Asia Foundation said Wednesday it has named Peter Beck as its representative in Korea. He will succeed Edward Reed, who joined the foundation in 2004 as the nation’s representative and successfully expanded the scope of the Korean program. “While we are sad to bid farewell to Reed whose tremendous leadership, commitment, and perseverance have positioned the foundation well for future success in Korea, we are thrilled about Peter Beck’s appointment,” said David D. Arnold, president of the Asia Foundation. “Beck brings extraordinary strengths and experience to expand the foundation’s ongoing engagement of Korean opinion leaders, and we are excited to welcome him back.” The Asia Foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental organization committed to the development of a peaceful, prosperous and open Asia-Pacific region. A seasoned Korea specialist and former Asia Foundation Haas intern, Beck will contribute strong research, academic and international development credentials to the position. A prolific writer and lecturer, Beck has taught at Georgetown University, th

Dec 28, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

2 falls to death while fleeing fire

By Cho Jae-hyon A man and woman died while descending a device in an attempt to escape a hotel that caught fire on Christmas Day, police said Sunday. The fire broke out at 1:15 a.m. Sunday, on the eighth floor of a small hotel in Goyang City, Gyeonggi Province. The victims — Park, 45, and Sung, 39, — were staying in the room next to the room where the fire started. Police believe the fire was started by a candle left unattended by two other guests who had fallen asleep in the room next to the victims. The two guests responsible for the negligence are under investigation to discern the exact cause of the fire. The fire destroyed 30 square meters inside the building, causing about 20 million won worth of damage.

Dec 25, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

Paju seeks to host Ferrari theme park

By Cho Jae-hyon Paju is seeking to host the Ferrari World theme park, with officials from the city in Gyeonggi Province and Ferrari S.p.A. discussing the possibility. Paju City said Ferrari, the exclusive intellectual property license holder for the theme park, has agreed to evaluate details of the city’s master plan to develop the area. Paju Mayor Lee In-jae said, “Korea is in a strategically important point in Far East Asia and the city of Paju is the perfect place to host Ferrari World in terms of location, because it has almost 25 million people residing within a one-hour drive and offers convenient access from the center of Seoul, Incheon International Airport and Gimpo International airport.” City officials said the city aims to develop a “New Town Complex” which will consist of various facilities, like a theme park, residential, leisure and cultural and commercial facilities. It also aims to create an industrial complex in the new town to attract a bigger population. By doing so, the city hopes to create an inflow of about 30,000 people and a large number of new

Dec 23, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

SK Group chairman to be summoned Monday

By Cho Jae-hyon The prosecution will summon SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won Monday to question him over allegations that he embezzled 100 billion won ($87 million) worth of corporate funds in collusion with his younger brother. The summons came days after his brother Jae-won, vice chairman of the group, was questioned two times on Dec. 1 and 7. It is said that the younger brother has admitted to some claims, reversing his earlier denial of the embezzlement charges. The two brothers are suspected of having colluded to embezzle part of 280 billion won earmarked by 18 SK affiliates for investment purposes. Prosecutors believe they misappropriated the money to offset about 300 billion won in losses from the chairman's investments in stock futures. It will be the first time in about eight years that the head of the nation’s third-largest conglomerate will be summoned by the prosecution. In January, 2004, Shon Gil-seung, then chairman of the group, was called in over illicit business practices.

Dec 16, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

Total lunar eclipse witnessed

By Cho Jae-hyon Stargazers were able to watch the spectacular sight of a total lunar eclipse overnight in Gangwon Province and some other eastern coastal areas. But heavy cloud cover, which blanketed the night sky, stripped residents of Seoul and most other regions of the chance to witness what was the last full eclipse until 2018. The Earth’s shadow began creeping across the moon’s disk from 9:45 p.m. Saturday, with the stunning display lasting for about three and a half hours on the east coast, weather officials said. “A partial eclipse is witnessed several times a year on the Korean Peninsula. But this is the first time in 11 years since July 16, 2000 that this whole process of full lunar eclipse has been witnessed here,” said an official from the Korea Meteorological Administration. “We won’t be able to see the next full eclipse until Jan. 31, 2018.” The moon appeared red during the eclipse. The apparent color change is caused by a scattering of sunlight as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere, removing blue light and passing on the red, some of which illumina

Dec 11, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

Corrupt female prosecutor arrested

A former female prosecutor was arrested Wednesday on charges of receiving a luxury designer bag from a law firm and using its corporate car in exchange for peddling her influence to get favorable court rulings. A district court in Busan issued a warrant to arrest the former prosecutor named Lee, 36, citing “the possibility of the destruction of evidence and suspect flight.” The former prosecutor has been suspected of having interfered in a case in which a 49-year-old lawyer at the law firm had filed a complaint against two of his former business partners. She allegedly asked the lawyer to send her 5.4 million won ($4,600) so that she could buy a Chanel bag, in a text that included her bank account number. On Dec. 5, the bag was purchased from a department store in southern Seoul and paid for with the lawyer’s corporate credit card. She also allegedly drove a Mercedes-Benz leased under the law firm’s name and spent millions of won monthly using the firm’s corporate credit card. The former prosecutor resigned last month after allegations about “sponsorship” by the law firm

Dec 7, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

SK’s Chey quizzed over embezzlement

SK Group's Vice Chairman Chey Jae-won, 48, turned himself in to the prosecution Thursday to be questioned over allegations that he embezzled nearly 100 billion won ($89 million). Chey is suspected of having colluded with his elder brother Chey Tae-won, chairman of the nation’s third largest family-controlled chaebol, for the alleged crime. Chey appeared at the prosecution’s office in southern Seoul in the morning. Asked whether he embezzled corporate funds by reporters before entering the prosecution office, Chey said would only say, “I will respond sincerely to the investigation.” He refused to make any further comments. Chey, the second son of SK Group's founder Chey Jong-hyon, reportedly misappropriated 99 billion won from SK affiliates to make up for losses resulting from his investment in futures. He is suspected of having led the scheme and orchestrated money laundering. Chey and his elder brother allegedly diverted the funds from 280 billion won pooled by the group's 18 affiliates for investment purposes. The group’s chairman is also expected to be subpoenaed s

Dec 1, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

Conviction of MC Mong upheld at high court

A Seoul court upheld a suspended jail term for singer MC Mong, 32, for deliberately delaying enlistment. The Seoul Central District Court’s appellate division said Wednesday it rejected the appeal after concluding that the TV personality obstructed justice by avoiding enlistment on account of false excuses. The same court in April sentenced the celebrity to a six-month prison sentence, suspended for one year, plus 120 hours of community service, for obstructing justice. The appeals body, however, found the celebrity not guilty of trying to evade military duty by extracting one of his healthy teeth, upholding the original court ruling. It said the extraction was made for medical reasons and required. The not-guilty decision will likely mean Shin’s military exemption will remain intact. According to the charges prosecutors raised against the entertainer, he had healthy tooth pulled out in 2006 in order to avoid the two-year mandatory service at a military camp and put off enlistment by lying, including taking an exam for a public official position and going on an ove

Nov 16, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

FAU Busan Campus attracts graduate students

FAU Busan Campus, the first German university in Korea, held an introductory session to attract graduate students last Friday on its campus in the nation’s largest port city. The school, located in the Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone, is recruiting 25 graduate students in six departments, including bioprocess and chemical reaction engineering, for the spring semester. Students with Korean nationality will be able to receive a scholarship for the first semester. “Excellent graduate students looking for new challenges are invited to apply for the Master’s course at FAU Busan,” the school said. Students can submit applications at the school’s homepage (www.fau-busan.ac.kr).

Oct 26, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

South Korea

Qatar Airways offering free tickets

Qatar Airways, one of a handful of “five-star” airlines in the world, is offering a lottery for free round-trip tickets to travelers who book tickets by Dec. 15. The event is to commemorate the airline being named “Airline of the Year” by the authoritative market analyst Skytrax. Anyone who books tickets through www.qatarairways.com/kr is eligible. Two passengers will be chosen to take free trips on Qatar Airways (taxes and other airport taxes are not included). Winners of the promotion will be announced at the end of December and can choose from any of Qatar Airways’ 105 destinations around the world. For more information, call 02-3708-8571.

Oct 24, 2011By Cho Jae-hyon

Cho Jae-hyon

Read more

Peter Beck named Korea chief of Asia Foundation

2 falls to death while fleeing fire

Paju seeks to host Ferrari theme park

SK Group chairman to be summoned Monday

Total lunar eclipse witnessed

Corrupt female prosecutor arrested

SK’s Chey quizzed over embezzlement

Conviction of MC Mong upheld at high court

FAU Busan Campus attracts graduate students

Qatar Airways offering free tickets

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