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Jun Ji-hye

Korea Times Finance Reporter

Jun Ji-hye, a reporter at the finance desk of The Korea Times, focuses primarily on economic policy and government agencies, mainly covering the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Ministry of Budget and Planning, the National Tax Service and the Korea Customs Service. She previously covered financial authorities, including the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service, and earlier worked on the political, city and business desks, reporting on a wide range of issues.

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South Korea

Chae's probe result stirs up controversy

By Jun Ji-hyeControversy surrounds the prosecution’s conclusion that former Prosecutor General Chae Dong-wook fathered an illegitimate son, while clearing Cheong Wa Dae of allegations that it conducted illegal surveillance of civilians during a highly politicized investigation.Given the timing of the announcement made Wednesday, several questions are being asked ― why did the prosecution announce the result of an eight-month-long investigation now, and how did it reach such a conclusion without questioning Chae?Some critics also doubt the conclusion that Cheong Wa Dae’s broad background check of Chae as well as his alleged mistress named Lim and the teenage boy was legitimate, saying it smacks of the prosecution succumbing to pressure from the presidential office.The announcement was made at a time when the entire nation is in mourning following the tragic sinking of the Sewol ferry.“The timing has inevitably raised questions about the intention because the announcement could be regarded as an attempt to create additional news to deflect criticism against the g

May 8, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Chae's probe result stirs up controversy
South Korea

Rival parties elect new floor leaders

Rep. Lee Wan-kooRep. Park Young-sunBy Jun Ji-hyeReps. Lee Wan-koo and Park Young-sun were elected new floor leaders of the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD), respectively, Thursday.The two will orchestrate the National Assembly activities of their parties for a year. Their term starts May 15.In his acceptance speech, Lee, a noted supporter of President Park Geun-hye, said that he will not hesitate to give bitter-pill advice to the President.“I believe that some tension is necessary in relations between the party, the government and Cheong Wa Dae,” said Lee.For her part, Park Young-sun, the leading opposition party’s first ever female floor leader, said, “The NPAD is a party for the underprivileged. We will cooperate with the government and the ruling party only when they take the right path. If not, we will strictly hold them in check.”The two are expected to face tough challenges, considering that the opposition is calling for the appointment of a special prosecutor and a National Assembly inves

May 8, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Rival parties elect new floor leaders
South Korea

Victims' families call for special law

Families of sunken ferry victims camp at a gymnasium in Jindo County, South Jeolla Province, awaiting news from search operations, Wednesday./ Korea TimesBy Jun Ji-hyeThe committee representing relatives of the missing and dead from the ill-fated ferry Sewol are calling for the enactment of a special law to ascertain the truth behind the sinking of the ferry and prevent the recurrence of such a tragic accident.It is a change from their initial demand for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the case, along with conducting the National Assembly hearings about the incident.“Our call for the establishment of a special law reflects family members’ skepticism about the effectiveness of the special prosecutor verifying the truth,” said Kim Byung-kwon, a representative of the committee, Wednesday.They have been distributing revised new pamphlets to visitors to a joint altar in Ansan Hwarang Park since Tuesday. The revised pamphlet does not contain their initial call for the special probe and parliamentary hearings.The change in their position came as the

May 7, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Companies

Basic pension bill approved

By Jun Ji-hye Some 70 percent of seniors will be able to get monthly government subsidies ranging from 100,000 won ($96) to 200,000 won from this July as the National Assembly approved the long-overdue bill for that, Friday.Out of 195 attending lawmakers, 140 voted for the bill, 49 voted against, and 6 abstained.Under the approved bill, the country will provide 70 percent of seniors in the low-income bracket with the above-mentioned amount of basic pension every month through linkage between the scheme and the national pension.The passage was enabled after the government and ruling Saenuri Party sent an ultimatum to the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD).The Saenuri Party could manage to pass it thanks to its majority of the parliamentary seats. Among the total of 298 seats, the ruling party holds 156 against the NPAD’s 130. The NPAD separately suggested its bill to offer 200,000 won to the poor 70 percent of seniors en bloc without linking the basic pension to the national pension. But it failed to gain majority vote.The passage came after lawmakers of

May 5, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Basic pension bill approved
South Korea

Gov't to respond to rescue effort criticism

By Jun Ji-hyeThe government’s emergency task force center said Wednesday that it will soon make a statement regarding complaints from the public that its efforts to rescue passengers from the sunken ferry Sewol were slow and inefficient.The move came one day after relatives of the victims denounced its lax management of the tragic accident and apology from President Park Geun-hye.“We are aware that victims’ families have been angered by delayed operation on rescue and search,” said spokesman Koh Myung-suk in a regular briefing. “We will soon make an announcement regarding our position about the rescue operations.”He did not give a specific time when this would occur.The committee representing the relatives of the missing and dead held a news conference the previous day to criticize President Park for making an apology during a Cabinet meeting, rather than addressing them and the people directly.They also urged the government to actively identify the cause of the accident and continue working on rescue efforts.The committee argued that government of

Apr 30, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Gov't to respond to rescue effort criticism
South Korea

Innocence of students seen in video clips

By Jun Ji-hyeVideo clips retrieved from the mobile phones of teenagers missing after the Seowol ferry disaster, show them making jokes and laughing as the vessel was sinking off the southwest coast of Jindo on April 16. “Mom and daddy! I love you. I’m saying this; I might die,” one student says during a 14-minute video clip released by a committee representing relatives of the dead and missing.Members of other families also provided several clips filmed by their children to cable news channels, saying they hope the footage will help establish the full truth behind the maritime disaster.In the clips broadcast on cable network channels, students of Danwon High School show no sense of danger while on the sinking vessel, apparently because crewmembers told them to stay put.One video shot by 17-year-old Park Ye-seul in a cabin shows scenes at around 9:40 a.m. around 50 minutes after the ferry carrying 476 passengers first sent a distress call to the vessel traffic service (VTS) center on Jeju Island.Park’s father found the clip while checking through some

Apr 30, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Innocence of students seen in video clips
South Korea

Parties fail to agree on basic pension bill

By Jun Ji-hyeThe rival parties failed to reach a conclusion on a long pending bill to provide seniors with a monthly basic pension, Monday, due to a lack of consensus among lawmakers of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD).At its meeting, the NPAD discussed whether to accept the ruling Saenuri party’s compromise suggestion, which Reps. Ahn Cheol-soo and Kim Han-gil, co-chairmen of the party, and some lawmakers appeared to want to accept.They have expressed concerns that should they fail to approve the welfare bill, the ruling party will most likely exploit this failure to score political points in the upcoming June 4 local elections.   The governing party earlier proposed an ultimatum that calls for providing 70 percent of seniors in the low-income bracket with a basic pension ranging from 100,000 won ($96) to 200,000 won after linking the scheme to the national pension.The rivals originally planned to pass the bill at the National Assembly plenary session today, had the NPAD given its nod.However, some NPAD members were opposed, saying such

Apr 28, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Parties fail to agree on basic pension bill
South Korea

Calls examined between captain, crew and ferry operator

By Jun Ji-hyeInvestigators are examining the content of phone calls made from the captain and crewmembers of the Sewol ferry to the ship’s operator, Chonghaejin Marine, around the time the vessel was sinking off the southwest coast of Jindo.“Right after the accident, the first mate made reports to Chonghaejin Marine a number of times, and the company also had a separate phone conversation with Captain Lee Joon-seok,” said an official from a joint investigation team.The team did not disclose details of the conversations, as their investigation is continuing.But investigators reportedly suspect that the company sent orders to crewmembers to try and normalize conditions on the tilting ferry and continue operating, given that the crew instructed passengers to remain in their cabins and other rooms, rather than telling them to go on deck and prepare to abandon ship.If the company told Lee to abandon the ferry and save all passengers, the captain would not have ordered passengers people to remain where they were.The phone calls were made between 8:50 a.m. and 9:38 on Apri

Apr 28, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Calls examined between captain, crew and ferry operator
South Korea

Parties ready to resume local electioneering

By Jun Ji-hyeThe ruling and opposition parties plan to restart their schedules for the June 4 local elections this week after a hiatus of almost two weeks following the Sewol ferry disaster.The governing Saenuri Party will conduct its first primaries on Tuesday to elect final candidates to run for Daegu mayor and the governor of South Chungcheong Province.“A primary for the Seoul mayoral election will be held on May 12,” said the party in a statement.The governing camp originally planned to hold that primary, which is at the center of public attention, on Wednesday, but postponed it twice amid a public atmosphere of grief.Seven-term lawmaker Chung Mong-joon and former Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, along with a member of the Supreme Council, Lee Hye-hoon, are competing to win the ticket to take on incumbent Mayor Park Won-soon of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD).In particular, Rep. Chung has had a rough time in the last few days following an improper remark made by his youngest son regarding the disaster that killed 187 passengers with 115 sti

Apr 27, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Parties ready to resume local electioneering
South Korea

Ahn calls premier cowardly

By Jun Ji-hyeRep. Ahn Cheol-sooRep. Ahn Cheol-soo, co-chairman of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD), criticized Prime Minister Chung Hong-won for  resigning over the ham-handed handling of the Sewol ferry tragedy.“At a time when the nation has fallen into chaos, Chung and the Cabinet should have devoted all their energies to resolving the situation first,” the software mogul-turned-lawmaker told a press conference on Sunday.He described Chung’s action as “cowardly and irresponsible,” saying that President Park Geun-hye should apologize to the nation.The government has been under fire for a series of gaffes committed during the search and rescue operations of what is certain to be the nation’s biggest maritime accident.As of Sunday afternoon, 188 were confirmed dead with 114 still missing. Only 174 were saved during the initial hours following the accident that took place off Jindo on the southwestern coast on the morning of April 16. Most of the dead and missing are high school students from Ansan.Chung was mobbed

Apr 27, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Ahn calls premier cowardly
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