Environment Minister Cho Myung-rae, right, and Pyeongtaek Mayor Jung Jang-sun examine waste that was illegally exported to the Philippines and returned to Korea, at a container terminal wharf in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Provice, Wednesday. The ministry is devising measures to prevent illegal exports of unrecyclable waste. / Yonhap
Japanese pastor Kozo Yoshida poses with a letter written on a Korean flag he received from Japanese students about their impression on Korea's 1919 Mach 1 Independence Movement when they visited Korea in 2002. / Korea Times photo by Kim Jae-heunBy Kim Jae-heunPastor Kozo Yoshida thinks Japanese tourists to Seoul should visit sites related to Korea's independence movement during the 1910-45 occupation.“People say hallyu, or the Korean wave, is no longer popular in Japan but it is still ongoing. When Japanese tourists come to visit filming sites for actor Yonsama's (Bae Yong-joon) TV series in Seoul, they should also stop by Tapgol Park and the Ahn Jung Geun Memorial Museum in the capital city,” Yoshida said during an interview with The Korea Times on April 11 at Japanese Church in Seoul, where he preaches. “Most Japanese do not know we committed atrocious acts in the past. Some don't even know Japan had once colonized Korea and suppressed their freedom. I was one of them,” he said.The pastor first learned about Korea's modern history 50 or 60 years ago whe
By Kim Jae-heunK-pop idol and actor Park Yoo-chun faces arrest over his alleged purchase and use of methamphetamine with his former fiancee Hwang Ha-na.Police asked the prosecution to request an arrest warrant for the member of boy band JYJ, Tuesday. The request followed the police's three summonses of Park to grill him over his alleged crimes since last Wednesday. Park is suspected of buying the illegal drug and using it at Hwang's residence in Seoul early this year.Hwang, the granddaughter of Namyang Dairy Products founder Hong Du-yeong, has already been arrested on related charges. She partially admitted to her illegal drug use, and told police she used it with Park.Police said they would not conduct joint questioning of Park and Hwang, implying they have secured enough evidence to seek an arrest warrant for the singer.They said they secured surveillance camera footage showing Park transferring money via a cash machine at a bank and collecting an item at another site 30 minutes later. The police believe he sent money to a drug dealer and picked up the drug from a pre-arranged
Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory Rector Alexander Sokolov, back row fifth from left, Shin Il Educational Foundation and Seoul Cyber University Chairman Lee Sang-kyun, sixth from left, and Association of Tchaikovsky Competition Stars General Director Andrey Scherbak, seventh from left, pose with other jurors of the first International Tchaikovsky Online Piano Competition for Young Musicians, after the award ceremony at Tchaikovsky Hall at Seoul Cyber University in Seoul, Friday. The first prize went to Akito Tani, front row center. / Courtesy of Seoul Cyber UniversityBy Kim Jae-heun A 15-year-old Japanese boy, Akito Tani, has won the first International Tchaikovsky Online Piano Competition for Young Musicians, co-hosted by Seoul Cyber University (SCU) and the Association of Tchaikovsky Competition Stars and sponsored by the Korea-Russia Arts and Culture Society.A total of 163 young musicians from 17 countries participated in the online contest, with 30 making it through the first round.Seven young pianists advanced to compete in the final round, which was held at SCU's Tchaikovsk
The Government Complex in Seoul runs odd-even vehicle operation on Feb. 20 when emergency measures against fine dust were issued. / Korea Times photo by Koh Young-kwonBy Kim Jae-heunSeoul is seeking to adopt compulsory odd-even vehicle operation when emergency measures against fine dust are issued for over four consecutive days.Seoul Metropolitan Government has been reviewing a special law on reducing fine dust to provide ordinance on restricting vehicles when the air pollution records hazardous levels on the day, according to the environment authorities Sunday.Cars are currently divided into five different categories based on their eco-friendliness. Those with grade 5 are banned from Seoul streets when the city government enacts emergency measures. Grade 5 cars are mostly old diesel vehicles and sometimes gasoline or liquid petroleum gas (LPG) cars. Three provinces and cities in metropolitan areas have been forcing employees at some 7,400 public firms to follow the government's odd- and even-day driving system when the heavy fine dust alerts are issued, but Seoul City wants to adopt
Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong plays traditional Filipino game Tinikling with multicultural family members prior to Lunar New Year' day at Namgwang Elementary School in Jeju on Feb. 6. / Courtesy of Jeju Special Self-Governing ProvinceBy Kim Jae-heunTeenagers are more open to people with multicultural backgrounds than adults, according to government research published Thursday. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family released the 2018 results of its study on the nation's receptivity to multiculturalism, a study which it conducts every three years. The research grades people's receptivity from zero to 100.The study showed that teenagers' acceptance of a multicultural society had improved ― they scored 71.22 points last year, up from 67.63 points in 2015. However, the level of receptivity for adults dropped slightly from 53.95 points to 52.81 points over the same period.The ministry attributed such a result to an increase in opportunities for teenagers to build more relationships with friends or neighbors who were from different racial and cultural backgrounds. The rate of adults who h
Singer Park Yu-chun speaks to reporters as he arrives at Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday, to undergo questioning. / YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunActor and K-pop band JYJ member Park Yu-chun was summoned by police, Wednesday, to be questioned over his alleged drug abuse with former fiancee Hwang Ha-na.“I will fully cooperate with the investigation,” Park said as he stood in front of some 100 reporters waiting for him at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province.Park did not answer reporters' direct questions about the charges and if he had forced Hwang to take drugs.Park is suspected of purchasing methamphetamine and using it with Hwang, the granddaughter of Namyang Dairy Products founder Hong Du-yeong, early this year at her residence in Seoul. Hwang has already been arrested and her case was transferred to the prosecution after police questioning where she admitted to some of the charges against her.Hwang told the police that Park had encouraged her to try methamphetamine and injected her with it while
Gil Won-ok, right, a former victim of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, delivers a scholarship certificate to an awardee during a regular Wednesday rally near the former Japanese Embassy building in central Seoul, Wednesday. The scholarship was offered by a foundation set up by the late former sex slave and human rights activist Kim Bok-dong. / Yonhap
Police officers search a vehicle owned by singer Park Yu-chun at his residence in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday, to secure evidence of alleged illegal drug use earlier this year with his former fiancee Hwang Ha-na. YonhapBy Kim Jae-heunPolice have searched the home of K-pop singer Park Yu-chun, Tuesday, in their investigation into a drug scandal involving his former fiancee.The actor and member of boy band JYJ will be questioned today as well.Eleven investigators from the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency searched Park's home in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province, for about three hours in the morning, to secure evidence for the allegation that he and his former fiancee Hwang Ha-na, the granddaughter of Namyang Dairy Products founder Hong Du-yeong, used methamphetamine together.The search followed testimony from Hwang who has already been arrested on drug charges.The investigators searched a car, seized his mobile phone and took a hair sample for drug testing. Park stayed at home while the investigators conducted the search.They also searched Hwang's studio apartment in Yongsan, Seoul
Two doctors faced arrest for allegedly accidently killing a newborn baby three years ago and covering up the death. / GettyimagebankBy Kim Jae-heunTwo doctors faced arrest for allegedly accidently killing a newborn baby three years ago and covering up the death. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it had asked the prosecution to request arrest warrants for the two doctors at CHA Bundang Women's Medical Center in Gyeonggi Province, who allegedly organized the destruction of all evidence. In addition to the doctors, seven staff and officials from the hospital have been implicated in the cover-up. Police have been investigating the matter since last July after receiving a report that the hospital had fabricated and concealed the death during a Caesarean section operation in August 2016.According to police, a doctor slipped while carrying the newborn baby after the operation and dropped the baby on the floor of the operating theater. The infant was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit, but died several hours later. However, the hospital did not tell the parents what happened a