The Korea Times

Obama sent thank-you letter to Korean military

By Jun Ji-hye U.S. President Barack Obama wrote to the Korean chief of the security battalion in the Joint Security Area (JSA) expressing his gratitude for the Korean military’s guard performance during his visit to Panmunjom in March. It was the first time for a U.S. President to send a thank-you letter to the Korean military. Obama wrote: “I appreciate all of your sincere support and help during my visit to Korea. Your assistance was really helpful to complete my visit,” according to the Defense Ministry, Wednesday. The letter contained the U.S. President’s signature and was written on July 19 and indicated the chief of security battalion Lt. Col. Yoon Bong-hee, 42, as its recipient. The head of the United Nations Command JSA Security battalion, Lt. Col Daniel Edwan, delivered the letter to Yoon on Aug. 20. The letter, which took a month to arrive, is regarded as an exceptional case given that it was the first letter written to the Korean military by a U.S president. Panmunjom is north of the Military Demarcation Line, where the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement wa

Sep 12, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

2 Samaritans fighting English divide

By Jun Ji-hye Talent donation is quite popular among those who have it. In an underprivileged district of Seoul, a group of people are donating their time and English proficiency to students who would otherwise be stuck on the poor side of the so-called English divide. Sydney University graduate Lim Sa-rah and Columbia University graduate Kim Yoo-min give free English lessons at a church located in Shindang-dong, Seoul, every Saturday. “I heard from the pastor that children here have few education opportunities because the region is one of the more impoverished areas of Seoul,” the 32-year-old Lim said. “The issue about the widening disparity between the rich and the poor and the educated and the uneducated was behind our starting this.” Kim, 30, joined the project following a request by Lim. She said she has been interested in teaching since working for human rights education projects at Amnesty International. “I can feel students’ passion to learn when I see them voluntarily participating in the class and asking me to teach,” she said. Han Byul, 15, who has a

Sep 11, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

Crackdown alone can’t solve child abuse issue

By Jun Ji-hye A crackdown on child pornography can’t be the sole solution to rape and molestation targeting minors, an expert said. Hwang Eui-gab, professor of the Police Administration Department at Kyonggi University, said, “Sex offenses are more about social structure and culture, therefore a solution requires legal and procedural acts to prevent people from viewing children and women as sex abuse targets.” The professor raised an issue over the police and government’s recent crackdown, saying “If they crack down on child porn only when child rape becomes a big issue, it will be seen as an administrative convenience or just a show,” he said. “Furthermore, there is a limitation to control porn because it is widely spread through the Internet these days.” Hwang admitted that punishment for possessing child porn in Korea has been light, compared to other countries. In the United States, prison sentences of varying lengths for possession of child pornography are issued, while Korea only fines violators. “It is true that the government pays little attention to matters of

Sep 10, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

'Gangnam Style' offers Korea PR opportunity

By Jun Ji-hye A U.S. diplomat thinks that now is the time for Seoul to focus on further raising Korea’s global profile as an attractive tourist and investment destination because the Korean wave or “hallyu” knows no bounds. “Seoul has become a much more cosmopolitan and global type of city as well as Korean culture is being exported overseas with the increasing popularity of movies, TV and music like Psy’s Gangnam Style,” Dewey Moore said in an interview with Korea Times Tuesday. Gangnam Style, a dance pop song written and performed by singer Psy, has become a global phenomenon since it was released two months ago. More than 100 million people from all around the world have seen the music video so far. “Even before that, right before I was going to China (on a foreign posting), Wonder Girls were playing a concert in Washington D.C. It is something that you wouldn’t have seen before,” the U.S. diplomat said. Moore said hallyu helps more people understand more about Korea and what it offers to the world. “Korea will help itself and its economy by making itself well-kno

Sep 6, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

'Guardian of teenagers' joins presidential race

By Jun Ji-hye Kang Ji-won, a lawyer who earned the nickname “guardian of teenagers” for his dedication to preventing juvenile delinquency, announced his bid to run in the presidential election as an independent candidate, Tuesday. In a phone interview with The Korea Times, Kang, 63, said he was determined to join the presidential race to reform the political arena. He said voters had a high level of political apathy toward politicians because corruption and bribery scandals were still prevalent in their election campaigns. “I am announcing a bid to run in the presidential election, not because I am ambitious. I would like to overhaul the political culture by ending the bad practices that are still found in the political arena,” he said. Since he published a book about mentoring in June, Kang said many of his readers, who were touched by the book, encouraged him to consider running in the presidential election as a candidate. “Their encouragement was the key driving force behind my announcement to run in the presidential election today,” he said. After passin

Sep 4, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

Lee consoles late Zenawi's wife

By Jun Ji-hye President Lee Myung-bak expressed his deep condolences over the death of Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in a handwritten letter delivered to his grieving wife Azeb Mesfin through Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan. The foreign minister attended the late leader’s funeral Sunday (local time) to console the bereaved family. Meles, who ruled the county for 21 years, passed away on Aug. 20 after a long illness at a foreign hospital. President Lee had maintained good relations with Meles while he was alive. “Prime Minister Meles was an extraordinary, passionate leader who made unceasing efforts for the sake of the future of Ethiopia and Africa as a whole. Since Ethiopia was democratized in 1991, he has demonstrated outstanding leadership and helped the country to achieve political stability and economic development,“ he said in a statement. “He also worked hard to foster human resources through education and to eradicate poverty and diseases.” “Korea will continue to honor all the promises it has made to Ethiopia and stand by its people.” he added.

Sep 2, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

Park embroiled in Yushin controversy

By Jun Ji-hye The ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye’s recent efforts to promote national unity hit a setback this week due to heated debate over the Yushin Constitution, an amendment to the national statute in 1972 by her father, the late President Park Chung-hee. The dispute further escalated due to statements by pro-Park figures, eulogizing the incident. Park’s father, who served as military junta leader for two years after the 1961 coup and became president in 1963, announced a presidential decree in October 1972 to establish the notorious Yushin regime. The Yushin regime is what the daughter of the late President Park regards as the most sensitive issue in the upcoming presidential election. Hong Sa-duk, co-chairman of Park Geun-hye’s election campaign committe, told the press Wednesday that “Park Chung-hee conducted the Yushin system to help the country’s exports go beyond $10 billion, not to seize power.” The remark immediately drew fire because it was taken to glamorize the regime. Hong’s comments drew criticism even from pro-Park fa

Aug 31, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

South Korea

Animosity between Koreas rises

By Jun Ji-hye South and North Korea have became more hostile toward each other since two tense incidents in 2010 ― the sinking of the warship Cheonan and shelling of Yeonpyeong Island by the North, according to a recent survey released Wednesday. Some 15.4 percent of North Korean defectors in 2011 said Pyongyang’s stance on Seoul is hostile, up from 15.2 percent in 2010. The South’s animosity toward the North increased much higher from 12 percent to 17 percent during the same period, according to the poll conducted by Seoul National University’s Institute for Peace and Unification Studies. Fifty five percent of North Korean defectors responded that they are worried about Seoul’s armed provocation, while 68.9 percent of South Korean citizens said they think there is a possibility for the North to use military force. Although the figures fell slightly compared to the year before by 5.5 percent and 9.4 percent respectively, there is no doubt that the public fear of armed attack remains high. Kim Byung-ro, a research professor of the Institute, said in an interview with Yonha

Aug 29, 2012By Jun Ji-hye

Jun Ji-hye

Read more

Obama sent thank-you letter to Korean military

2 Samaritans fighting English divide

Crackdown alone can’t solve child abuse issue

'Gangnam Style' offers Korea PR opportunity

'Guardian of teenagers' joins presidential race

Lee consoles late Zenawi's wife

Park embroiled in Yushin controversy

Animosity between Koreas rises

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