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Lee Hyo-jin

Korea Times Finance Reporter

Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.

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President condemns alleged abuse of migrant worker as 'blatant human rights violation'

President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday condemned the alleged abuse of a migrant worker at a brick factory, calling it a "blatant violation of human rights" and pledging stronger protection for vulnerable groups. His remarks came a day after migrant rights activists urged authorities to punish those involved in the incident, which was captured in video footage that circulated online this week. "I could hardly believe my eyes after watching the video. It is unimaginable that such an incident could occur in a country known as a global cultural powerhouse and a model of democracy," Lee wrote on Facebook. He described the act as "an unacceptable act of violence against minorities and the vulnerable." "We will ensure that no one suffers from human rights abuses or labor exploitation due to their unstable status," the president added, calling on relevant government agencies, including the Ministry of Employment and Labor, to take swift action. The Gwangju Jeonnam Migrant Workers' Human Rights Network on Wednesday released video footage showing a man in his 30s from Sri Lanka tied to bricks with pla

Jul 24, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
President condemns alleged abuse of migrant worker as 'blatant human rights violation'
Foreign Affairs

Seoul weighs choices for ambassadors to 4 major regional powers

The Korean government is expected to fast-track the appointments of new ambassadors to the United States, China, Japan and Russia — countries central to South Korea’s foreign policy and regional strategy. With Foreign Minister Cho Hyun formally taking office on Monday, attention has shifted to how swiftly the ministry will act to fill the four critical ambassadorial posts left vacant following the recall of envoys earlier this month. Ambassadors are formally appointed by the president, but the foreign ministry plays a central role in the selection process. Particular focus is on the Washington position, as strain in the Korea-U.S. alliance has deepened amid President Donald Trump’s escalating tariff threats and his demands for a steep increase in Seoul’s contribution to the cost of stationing 28,500 American troops on the peninsula. According to diplomatic sources, the two leading contenders for the U.S. ambassador role are former First Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam and former Korea National Diplomatic Academy Chancellor Cho Byung-jae. Lim is a veteran diplomat who has held s

Jul 23, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Seoul weighs choices for ambassadors to 4 major regional powers
Global Community

Seoul taps foreign influencers to promote multilingual call center

Seoul's city government has appointed three foreign content creators as promotional ambassadors for its 120 Dasan Call Center, a multilingual public service hotline, in a bid to improve information access for the city's growing international population. The Dasan Call Foundation announced Tuesday that it had selected three social media influencers — Abhishek Gupta of India, Rahil Ahmadova of Azerbaijan, and Laure Mafo, a French national of Cameroonian descent — as ambassadors for the service. Gupta, better known by his nickname Lucky, rose to fame through the JTBC talk show "Abnormal Summit" and was named an honorary citizen of Seoul in 2022. Ahmadova works as a cultural heritage commentator and also serves as a multicultural instructor and mentor for immigrants. Mafo is a well-known pansori (Korean narrative music) performer. The appointments are part of the call center's new initiative to raise awareness of the city-run call center among non-Korean residents and bridge information gaps for foreigners navigating daily life in Seoul. As promotional ambassadors, the three will share u

Jul 23, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Seoul taps foreign influencers to promote multilingual call center
North Korea

South Korea mulls allowing individual tourism to North

The South Korean government is considering allowing individual tourism to North Korea as part of the Lee Jae Myung administration's broader push to rebuild fractured inter-Korean relations. "The government is reviewing and implementing its North Korea policy with the aim of easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula and improving inter-Korean relations. Various measures are under review as part of this process," Koo Byung-sam, spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification, said during a briefing Monday. Koo was responding to a local media report suggesting that the tourism idea had been discussed during a recent National Security Council meeting presided over by the president. While he did not deny the report, the spokesperson declined to comment on any specific measures under consideration. The presidential office said that "various plans are under review to improve inter-Korean relations," but offered no further details. South Koreans' tours to North Korea have been suspended since 2008, after a South Korean tourist was shot and killed by a North Korean soldier in the Mount Geumgang resort

Jul 21, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
South Korea mulls allowing individual tourism to North
Foreign Affairs

Special envoy to US set to depart soon, with outcome remaining uncertain

President Lee Jae Myung’s special envoy to the United States is expected to depart for Washington as early as this week, amid growing interest in whether the delegation can help advance dialogue on key bilateral trade issues ahead of the upcoming tariff deadline. Leading the delegation is Park Yong-maan, former chairman of Doosan Group and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). He will be joined by Rep. Han Jun-ho, a ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) lawmaker and close aide to the president, and Rep. Kim Woo-young, also of the DPK. The appointment, announced Thursday, came after initial plans to name veteran politician Kim Chong-in fell through amid internal disagreements within the ruling party. Instead, the selection of Park, a former chief of Korea’s largest business lobby, signals the Lee administration’s emphasis on economic diplomacy, as Seoul seeks to renegotiate trade terms before the imposition of a 25 percent tariff on all Korean exports to the U.S., currently expected to take effect Aug. 1. While the timing of the presidential envoy’s visit is critical

Jul 20, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Special envoy to US set to depart soon, with outcome remaining uncertain
Foreign Affairs

Former US diplomat stirs controversy in Seoul with election fraud claims

Morse Tan, a Korean American former U.S. diplomat, has sparked controversy during his visit to Seoul this week after voicing support for conspiracy theories about election fraud in Korea and attempting to meet with detained former President Yoon Suk Yeol. Tan, who arrived in Seoul on Monday, was scheduled to meet Yoon on Wednesday at Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, where the former president has been held since his re-arrest last Thursday while a special counsel looks into insurrection charges related to his Dec. 3 martial law declaration. But the meeting was canceled after the special counsel placed a ban on visits for Yoon except for family and legal representatives, citing standard procedures for criminal suspects. "Today’s planned meeting between former President Yoon and Ambassador Morse Tan will not take place," Yoon’s legal team said in a text message to reporters early Wednesday, adding that they were unaware of any further plans for a meeting. Tan, who is senior executive director of the Center for Law and Government at Liberty University, previously hel

Jul 16, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Former US diplomat stirs controversy in Seoul with election fraud claims
Politics

Special probe into ex-president's insurrection charges gains momentum

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol is under growing pressure as a special counsel investigation into his alleged role in an insurrection has widened to include possible treason charges, bolstered by mounting evidence and key witness testimony. Special counsel investigators on Tuesday carried out a second day of searches at military-related sites, including the Army’s Drone Operations Command, in pursuit of evidence tied to Yoon’s alleged involvement in a drone mission targeting North Korea. The previous day, investigators searched more than 20 locations tied to the military, including the Ministry of National Defense, the presidential office and the residence of Drone Operations Commander Kim Yong-dae. A key focus of the ongoing probe is Yoon’s alleged authorization of a drone mission over Pyongyang in October last year. Prosecutors suspect the operation aimed to provoke a hostile response from North Korea, providing a pretext for Yoon to declare martial law on Dec. 3. On Oct. 11, 2024, North Korea accused the South of sending leaflet-carrying drones into its capital on three occasions

Jul 15, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Special probe into ex-president's insurrection charges gains momentum
North Korea

Unification minister-designate suggests scaling back military drills to restart N. Korea talks

Unification Minister nominee Chung Dong-young hinted Monday that scaling back the intensity of annual South Korea-U.S. joint military drills could be a viable option for resuming halted dialogue with North Korea. He made the remarks during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, as the Lee Jae Myung administration seeks to reengage with Pyongyang to end a yearslong deadlock in inter-Korean relations. "What opened the door for a thaw on the Korean Peninsula in 2018 was then-President Moon Jae-in's proposal in late 2017 to the United States, ahead of the PyeongChang Olympics, to postpone the joint military exercises scheduled for March. That carried important implications," Chung said in response to a question from Rep. Kim Joon-hyung of the minor progressive Rebuilding Korea Party about his position on the joint drills. "I believe it’s something that should be discussed within the government and the National Security Council," Chung added. The nominee's comments are widely interpreted as a signal that adjusting or scaling down the joint military exercises could once again ser

Jul 14, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Unification minister-designate suggests scaling back military drills to restart N. Korea talks
Foreign Affairs

When queerness meets diplomacy: Canadian diplomat's path from Pride parades to UN

On Sept. 30, 1984, 26-year-old Canadian Douglas Janoff marched down Sixth Avenue in New York City, joining hundreds of others protesting outside the United Nations headquarters. It was the International March for Lesbian and Gay Freedom, a bold call for recognition of sexual minorities at a time when LGBTQ+ rights were largely invisible in North America, let alone on the global stage. More than three decades later, in 2015, Janoff stepped inside those U.N. walls — not as a protester, but as a diplomat and scholar. While on academic leave from Canada’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he interviewed diplomats, U.N. officials and human rights advocates for his doctoral research on how international institutions respond to LGBTQ+ issues. Since joining the foreign ministry in 2009, Janoff has worked from within the system to advance LGBTQ+ rights. His journey, spanning from street protests to diplomatic missions, is chronicled in his book Queer Diplomacy, published in 2022 and released in Korean translation this June. Meeting new readers in Korea, he says, is an "indescribable feeling." "It's

Jul 13, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
When queerness meets diplomacy: Canadian diplomat's path from Pride parades to UN
Defense

Korea weighs reclaiming wartime military control from US

South Korea is set to renew talks on transferring wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington to Seoul, a shift that could reshape the structure of a decades-long military alliance that dates back to the 1950-53 Korean War. The move, one of President Lee Jae Myung's key security pledges, comes at a delicate moment for the allies. Washington is increasing pressure on Seoul to shoulder more of its own defense costs and support an expanded role for U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) in deterring China's growing assertiveness in the region. "The transfer of wartime operational control is not a new issue. It has long been discussed between South Korea and the U.S. and remains a pledge of our administration," a presidential official said Friday. "We will continue close communication with the U.S. on this matter." The comment followed a briefing for Lee during a National Security Council (NSC) meeting on Thursday. It was the first NSC meeting held since his inauguration on June 4. National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac, who returned on Wednesday from a trip to Washington, told reporters that the O

Jul 11, 2025By Lee Hyo-jin
Korea weighs reclaiming wartime military control from US
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