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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

Lawmakers collect W38 Bil. in donations

By Jun Ji-hyeA total of 298 lawmakers received 38.2 billion won ($35.7 million) in political donations last year, according to the National Election Commission (NEC) Thursday.An average of 128 million won was given to each.The NEC disclosed material containing the amount lawmakers received in fund-raising in accordance with the Political Fund Law.The total amount fell by 6.7 billion won compared to the previous year when the election watchdog conducted the general elections.“The decline seems to be because the maximum legal limit for the political donations is less than that in an election year,” said an NEC official.The law stipulates that each lawmaker can collect a maximum of 150 million won per year, and 300 million won for a year when general elections are held.   The material showed that lawmakers from the ruling Saenuri Party collected a total of 19.5 billion won, while those from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) received 16.3 billion won. Legislators from the minor opposition Unified Progressive Party (UPP) were given 869 million won,

Mar 13, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Lawmakers collect W38 Bil. in donations
South Korea

Saenuri candidate rule causes protest

Jeju governor resists use of opinion pollBy Jun Ji-hyeThe ruling Saenuri Party decided Thursday to conduct a public opinion survey before selecting a final candidate to run for Jeju governor in the June 4 local elections.Its decision has triggered objections from sitting Mayor Woo Keun-min and several other hopefuls.In other regions, the party plans to hold primaries to choose a final candidate through a combination of methods including votes from party delegates and selected members of the public.But it decided to conduct opinion polls only for the Jeju gubernatorial election, claiming that the region doesn’t reflect the views of most party members.The poll was requested by former Saenuri Party lawmaker Won Hee-ryong, while Woo demanded a combination of methods to select a candidate. The latter is seeking to be reelected.Following the governing party’s decision in favor of the former lawmaker, Won plans to announce his official bid for the gubernatorial election Sunday. He believes that the opinion survey method will work favorably for him because he has taken the l

Mar 13, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Saenuri candidate rule causes protest
South Korea

'NIS director should be given fixed term of office'

By Jun Ji-hyeOpposition lawmakers called for a decentralization of power within the National Intelligence Service (NIS), Wednesday.“It should begin with scrapping its authority to investigate and indict in espionage cases,” Rep. Moon Byeong-ho told The Korea Times. “Plus, the NIS director has too much power without being held accountable.”It is alleged that the NIS fabricated evidence against a man accused of spying for North Korea.Moon pointed out that another problem lies with the NIS director, who directly makes reports to the president.“Failure to keep political independence of the agency provides fertile ground for abuse,” he said, suggesting that NIS director’s term of office should be guaranteed, while putting it under the control of the prime minister.”Moon added that the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) will make National Assembly approval for the appointment of the head of the NIS compulsory.Under the current law, nominees for the position must go through a parliamentary confirmation hearing, the results of which the pres

Mar 12, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
'NIS director should be given fixed term of office'
South Korea

Gubernatorial race heating up

Kim Sang-gonKim Hwang-sikEx-PM Kim to announce bid for Seoul mayorBy Jun Ji-hyeKim Sang-gon, former superintendent of the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education, declared his candidacy for the Gyeonggi Province gubernatorial ballot in the June 4 local elections, Wednesday.The 65-year-old said, “I will change Gyeonggi Province, like I reformed the province’s education system.”Speaking at the Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly in Suwon, he spoke of his aspirations of shaping the province into a “happy welfare community” and “innovative city.”While in the education office, Kim implemented a plan on free school meals, and adopted a student rights ordinance that banned corporal punishment and the inspection of students’ hair length and clothes.Following his announcement, Kim is expected to be in a three-way primary with Reps. Won Hye-young and Kim Jin-pyo of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) to select a final candidate for the opposition’s new coalition party.Independent lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo, who agreed with DP Chairman Kim Han-gil

Mar 12, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Gubernatorial race heating up
People & Events

Dancing group promotes multiracialism

Kim Eun-miBy Jun Ji-hye Kim Eun-mi leads a dance team composed of foreign wives married to Korean men.She set up the Asia Mom Dance Team in 2010 with four immigrant wives, including Im Hye-jeong, a Vietnam-born naturalized Korean, and Jang Ji-yun, a China-born naturalized Korean. The team now has 20 members.“My team performs in various festivals for multiracial families. We give charity performances to help needy neighbors as well,” Kim said in an interview. “Also, we sometimes enter dance contests.”The main goal of these activities is to try and remove misunderstanding or prejudice against members of multiracial families, she said.“It was not easy for me to overcome biased perceptions toward Koreans married to foreign spouses. But I decided to speak out as I was worried about confusion in identities that my children would experience,” she said.Kim and her Pakistani husband Kim Asghar Khan have a daughter and son. The two met when she visited Pakistan with her friends in the late 1990s.“I lost my bag there, and my husband helped me find

Mar 12, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Dancing group promotes multiracialism
South Korea

Naming new party poses challenge

DP, Ahn in tug of war over retaining ‘democratic’ in nameBy Jun Ji-hyeWhether a new coalition party to be set up between the Democratic Party (DP) and Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo will retain “minju,” or democratic, in the new name has emerged as one of the most contentious issues between the two camps.The main opposition party wants to include the word “Democratic” in the name, arguing that it has been a symbol of the opposition force throughout the party’s history.On the other hand, Ahn’s side says that “new politics” should be included, as it has long been Ahn’s main buzz phrase since the last presidential election in 2012.Ahn’s aides are even calling for pulling “Democratic” out of the name entirely, on the basis that the word would contribute little to promote the coalition’s new politics.DP Chairman Kim Han-gil and Ahn announced their plan last week to form a new coalition party to confront the ruling Saenuri Party in the June 4 local elections, and eventually challenge the government in the next pr

Mar 11, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Naming new party poses challenge
South Korea

Will spy scandal sway voters in local polls?

By Jun Ji-hyeHow will the spy agency’s alleged attempt to fabricate evidence in an espionage case affect the June 4 local elections?There is a general consensus amongst experts that the “spy scandal” might work favorably for the opposition bloc, but they disagree on the extent of the impact on the overall results.Kookmin University professor Mok Jin-hyu claimed that it will have no significance for the elections since it is basically not a political matter.“The National Intelligence Service (NIS) is now cooperating in the prosecution’s investigation, which is still ongoing,” said Mok during a KBS radio interview. “I think it’s not an issue significantly political enough to substantially affect the local elections.”However, Kim Yun-chul, head of Korea Society Opinion Institute, said the scandal will have an enormous impact on the polls given that the effects of any fallout from the probe will be felt by both President Park Geun-hye and the governing Saenuri Party.Kim said that should Cheong Wa Dae fail to resolve the issue decisive

Mar 11, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Will spy scandal sway voters in local polls?
South Korea

'Parties need to sincerely take care of youth'

Son Su-jo, a 29-year-old member of the ruling Saenuri Party, speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at the Lexington Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, last month. / Korea Times photo by Jun Ji-hyeBy Jun Ji-hye Political parties have often used the young adult issues, including the high jobless rates for college graduates, as a ploy to win the hearts and minds of voters.They usually promise to actively resolve the problems facing young people by making the most of their “youth” committees. They step up this effort to woo voters, especially ahead of elections.Members of both the ruling and opposition parties have already begun to take advantage of these issues ahead of the upcoming June 4 local polls to elect governors, mayors and local council members.Son Su-jo, a 29-year-old politician of the ruling Saenuri Party, criticized the political parties for resorting to the ploy.She said if parties look to younger people only when elections are looming, they hold little promise for the latter’s future.Son Su-jo, second from right, attends a presidential youth com

Mar 10, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
'Parties need to sincerely take care of youth'
South Korea

Parties clash over spy scandal

By Jun Ji-hyeThe rival parties went head to head Monday over allegations the state spy agency fabricated evidence involving an espionage case of a former Seoul government official.   The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and independent lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo called for the appointment of an independent prosecutor to unearth the truth behind the allegations. They also demanded Nam Jae-joon, director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), step down.Meanwhile, the ruling Saenuri Party took a defensive stance, urging the opposition bloc to stop politicizing the issue.The NIS is suspected of fabricating Chinese government documents to prove its espionage case against Yu Woo-sung, the 34-year-old former Seoul government official who was indicted last year for allegedly using his post to pass on the personal information of some 200 defectors to Pyongyang.  The controversy further intensified after a key witness in the alleged evidence forgery case tried to kill himself last week after being questioned by the prosecution. The witness surnamed Kim, allegedly a North K

Mar 10, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
Parties clash over spy scandal
South Korea

Senior advisor troubles Rep. Ahn

Yoon Yeo-joon, co-chairman of a preparatory committee for Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo’s New Political Vision Party, enters with a smile into the committee’s office in Yeouido, Seoul, Monday, to attend a meeting. He has been embroiled in controversy over remarks seen as attacking Ahn. / YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeYoon Yeo-joon, a senior advisor to Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo, is in the hot seat and has placed the first-term lawmaker in an awkward position after making a number of controversial remarks.Yoon, a co-chairman of a preparatory committee for Ahn’s budding New Political Vision Party, has not hidden his displeasure over Ahn’s failure to inform him of the surprise agreement to form a new coalition party with the main opposition Democratic Party (DP).Following Ahn and the DP’s announcement about the coalition, the former’s plan to establish own party is all but abandoned.Yoon, a former environment minister and seasoned political strategist, initially expressed displeasure when he first learned about the decision taken by Ahn and DP Chairman Kim Han-gil. But the next da

Mar 10, 2014By Jun Ji-hye
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