The Korea Times

INTERVIEW North Korean girl's story of searching for mother, freedom and herself

Han Song-mi, a North Korean defector and the co-author of "Greenlight to Freedom," and Casey Lartigue, the other co-author, pose with their new book at Freedom Speakers International's office in Seoul, June 16. Korea Times photo by Jung Min-ho'Greenlight to Freedom,' Han-Lartigue yearlong book project, comes to fruitionBy Jung Min-hoLife is pain. It was particularly so for Han Song-mi, a North Korean girl. Her earliest memory was her father beating her mother. Her younger sister suddenly died without a clear cause. After her parents' divorce, she and her mother endured years of hunger, eating grass. At the age of nine, she thought about killing herself and was told that her mother had already tried it once with poison.Yet Han, now 28, has not only survived but thrived with resilience and a strong determination to live. After escaping the North in search of her mother and freedom, she settled down in South Korea, where she discovered her “second life” and became an inspiration to many.“Greenlight to Freedom,” her book, co-authored with Casey Lartigue, co-presid

Jun 22, 2022By Jung Min-ho

North Korea

Minister confirms establishment of North Korean human rights foundation

Unification Minister Kwon Young-se speaks during a press conference at the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul, Tuesday. NewsisBy Jung Min-hoEstablishing a foundation for human rights in North Korea will be one of the three key projects in 2022 after six years of delay, Unification Minister Kwon Young-se confirmed Tuesday.The statement comes as the Yoon Suk-yeol administration is moving away from the stance of the previous Moon Jae-in government, which was extremely cautious about touching on issues that could anger the North.“I will personally ask lawmakers from both the right and the left for the foundation launch,” Kwon said during a press conference at the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul. “As soon as it opens, under the North Korean Human Rights Act, our ministry will step up efforts to improve the lives of ordinary North Koreans through research and new policies.”The law was enacted in March 2016, but has since remained in name only, after then President Park Geun-hye was impeached and ousted from office in 2017 following a major sca

Jun 21, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Minister confirms establishment of North Korean human rights foundation

Politics

Corruption probes: Yoon dismisses accusations of political vendetta

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks to reporters as he enters his office in Seoul, Friday. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk-yeol reaffirmed his commitment to cracking down on corruption and dismissed accusations that the investigations targeting opposition heavyweights and former government officials are politically motivated.Asked about investigations into high-profile politicians of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), Yoon told reporters Friday that they are nothing more than the normal operation of the country's justice system and stressed that it is improper to politicize the issue.“After a change of government, there have been investigations into allegations brought up in the past, because what will happen cannot be the subject of investigation,” Yoon said in comments aimed at those claiming that the ongoing probes are a form of political retaliation. “Wasn't it the same case during the previous DPK administration?”Baek Woon-gyu, who served as the minister of trade, industry and energy under the Moon Jae-in administration, is being inves

Jun 17, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Corruption probes: Yoon dismisses accusations of political vendetta

Defense

Pulling US troops out of Korea was Trump's second-term priority, Esper's memoir reveals

In this July 23, 2019, file photo, U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, left, delivers remarks in front of President Donald Trump, shortly after being sworn in at the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. EPA-YonhapEx-Pentagon chief says evacuation announcement for Americans amid NK tensions canceled at last momentBy Jung Min-hoFormer U.S. President Donald Trump's desire to pull U.S. troops completely out of South Korea was serious and he kept the plan alive as his second-term priority, according to former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper's memoir, published last month.In the book, “A Sacred Oath,” Esper said Trump repeatedly pushed to withdraw the U.S. forces from South Korea, which, in his view, was not paying its fair share of the associated costs.Esper, 58, Republican former secretary of the Army (November 2017 to July 2019) and former secretary of defense (July 2019 to November 2020) under the Trump administration, became uneasy whenever the commander-in-chief talked about the need for American withdrawal.“I was able to make my best case against an

Jun 15, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Pulling US troops out of Korea was Trump's second-term priority, Esper's memoir reveals

North Korea

South Korea seeks to establish North Korean human rights foundation

In this Sept. 7, 2018 file photo, kids sing at a kindergarten for employees' children at a silk factory during a government-organized visit for foreign reporters ahead of the 70th anniversary of North Korea's foundation in Pyongyang, North Korea. Reuters-YonhapMove signals Seoul's policy shift on North Korean human rights issuesBy Jung Min-hoSouth Korea is pushing to establish a North Korean human rights foundation in an apparent bid to implement the North Korean Human Rights Act, a law that has remained in name only over the past six years.The move signals the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's intention to press North Korea to improve its human rights situation, in contrast with the previous Moon Jae-in administration, which opted not to challenge the North.“Setting up the foundation is one of the key projects we are working on this year,” an official at the Ministry of Unification told The Korea Times Tuesday.The confirmation comes a day after a ministry official, who works at a division dedicated to human rights issues in North Korea, said he had been seeking the cooperat

Jun 14, 2022By Jung Min-ho

South Korea seeks to establish North Korean human rights foundation

Foreign Affairs

Moving past old grudges: Yoon faces tall task of restoring relations with Japan

President Yoon Suk-yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee leave a theater in eastern Seoul, Sunday, after watching "Broker," a film written and directed by Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda. YonhapPresident praises Japanese film director in another sign of rapprochementBy Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk-yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee made headlines on Sunday for going to the theater for the first time since taking office a month ago, to watch the Korean film “Broker.”What drew less attention was the person who made it. Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda explores what makes a family, through teamwork with Korean actors including Song Kang-ho, Gang Dong-won and Lee Ji-eun, better known as singer IU.In a message to the director and cast, Yoon congratulated them for winning the Best Actor Award and the Ecumenical Jury Award for Best Film at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. “I give my respect for the hard work director Hirokazu Kore-eda, the cast and crew put into the film,” he said.It remains uncertain whether Yoon's praise of the Japanese filmmaker was intended to be

Jun 13, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Moving past old grudges: Yoon faces tall task of restoring relations with Japan

North Korea

INTERVIEW Anti-leaflet law, clear violation of UN treaty, must be revoked: rights expert

Activists fly balloons bearing the message, “Kim Jong-un is the enemy of the people,” in Paju near the inter-Korean border, in this June 4, 2020, file photo. South Korea's anti-leaflet law that bans sending anti-regime leaflets across the inter-Korean border is a clear violation of a United Nations treaty and it must be revoked, according to an international human rights advocate. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukYoon urged to learn from Moon's policy that served to 'just embolden' North KoreaBy Jung Min-hoPhil RobertsonSouth Korea's anti-leaflet law that bans sending anti-regime leaflets across the inter-Korean border is a clear violation of a United Nations treaty and it must be revoked, according to an international human rights advocate. Under the law, enacted in 2020 during the previous Moon Jae-in administration after North Korea threatened retaliation over the sending of such leaflets into its territory, violators could face up to three years in prison. Park Sang-hak, the head of a group known for launching balloons with human rights and pro-democracy messages into

Jun 13, 2022By Jung Min-ho

[INTERVIEW] Anti-leaflet law, clear violation of UN treaty, must be revoked: rights expert

Politics

Young leader vows to transform ruling party

The ruling People Power Party Chairman Lee Jun-seok speaks during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, Sunday. YonhapInfighting intensifies between Lee, pro-Yoon lawmakersBy Jung Min-hoFactional infighting is intensifying within the ruling People Power Party (PPP) as Lee Jun-seok, its young, Harvard-educated leader, clashes with veteran lawmakers over control ― and therefore, the future ― of the party.A power struggle has emerged mainly between Lee, 37, and politicians close to President Yoon Suk-yeol, such as party leader Rep. Kweon Seong-dong and Rep. Chang Je-won. They all appear to be aiming to secure nomination rights for the 2024 National Assembly elections.Speaking at Sunday's press conference marking the first anniversary of his leadership, Lee expressed his ambition to transform the party.“So far, I have tried my best for election wins. From now on, I will shift my focus to myself,” he said at the National Assembly in Seoul. “I will reform the party so that it will reflect my political will more, creating a world I think is right and making

Jun 12, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Young leader vows to transform ruling party

Politics

Yoon under fire for too many ex-prosecutors taking key posts

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks to reporters as he enters his office in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapPresident defends appointments; critics warn of 'republic of prosecutors'By Jung Min-hoDuring the run-up to the presidential election a month ago, liberal parties warned that Yoon Suk-yeol would open an era of “the republic of prosecutors” as head of state, given his limited experience outside the prosecution.With too many former prosecutors with personal connections to the president taking key government posts, Yoon has come under increasing criticism that the warning is becoming a reality.So far, 14 former prosecutors have taken top-level positions at presidential secretary offices, government ministries and agencies, including the justice minister, the unification minister and the intelligence agency's executive director. Lee Bok-hyun, the new governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, is the latest addition to that list.Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Yoon defended his appointment decisions, saying many figures with government attorney experience play important roles in

Jun 8, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Yoon under fire for too many ex-prosecutors taking key posts

What changes will prosecutor-turned-FSS chief bring?

Politics

Freedom of assembly: Not in my president's backyard

Former President Moon Jae-in gestures while conversing with two unidentified men at his house in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province, May 11. YonhapOpposition lawmakers shift stance, seek to ban protests near Moon's houseBy Jung Min-hoWhen protesters screamed near the house of former President Lee Myung-bak for months about five years ago, calling on authorities to arrest him immediately, most lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) remained silent or even encouraged such rallies.Their aggressive voices and mockery ― with some calling Lee a rat ― began to subside only when it looked certain that he would be arrested on charges of bribery and abuse of power less than a year after President Moon Jae-in took office with a promise to “restore justice.”About a month after Moon's term ended last month, DPK lawmakers are now seeking to ban such rallies citing “privacy concerns” when the former leader himself became a target of critics claiming to be the victims of his policies, including the families of people who died or suffered from severe side effects o

Jun 8, 2022By Jung Min-ho

Jung Min-ho

Read more

INTERVIEW North Korean girl's story of searching for mother, freedom and herself

Minister confirms establishment of North Korean human rights foundation

Corruption probes: Yoon dismisses accusations of political vendetta

Pulling US troops out of Korea was Trump's second-term priority, Esper's memoir reveals

South Korea seeks to establish North Korean human rights foundation

Moving past old grudges: Yoon faces tall task of restoring relations with Japan

INTERVIEW Anti-leaflet law, clear violation of UN treaty, must be revoked: rights expert

Young leader vows to transform ruling party

Yoon under fire for too many ex-prosecutors taking key posts

Freedom of assembly: Not in my president's backyard

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