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Jung Min-ho

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.

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Defense

US Forces Korea confirms no coronavirus among service members

Vehicles wait to enter Camp Walker in Daegu, North Gyeongsang Province, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2020. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoU.S. Forces Korea (USFK) confirmed Sunday (KST) that it has no case of the new coronavirus among service members.“There remains zero confirmed cases of USFK personnel with COVID-19 despite the rise in confirmed South Korean cases to more than 550 patients,” USFK said in a statement. “Out of a strong abundance of caution and utilizing the USFK Commander's authority to protect the force, the risk for USFK peninsula-wide personnel and installations remains MODERATE.”Delivering the news that the COVID-19 virus has been confirmed in 17 major provinces and cities, including Seoul, Daegu, Busan, Chinhae and Pyeongtaek, USFK urged service members and their families to pay close attention to health.All the cities were near USFK military bases, USFK said.“Good hygiene practice is the best preventive measure to controlling the spread of viruses,” it said.“USFK leadership and staff have strong preventative control measures in place. We mus

Feb 24, 2020By Jung Min-ho
US Forces Korea confirms no coronavirus among service members
  • US Forces Korea bans travel to Daegu as virus cases soar
Entertainment

Actor Ha Jung-woo denies drug abuse

By Jung Min-hoHa Jung-wooActor Ha Jung-woo has denied allegations he abused propofol, a hypnotic drug used for general anesthesia.“Ha received laser treatment (for scars on his cheeks) about 10 times between January and September last year,” Walkhouse Company, Ha's agency, said Wednesday. “The doctor made the decision to use the drug for anesthesia. There was no abuse.”The statement comes after media reports said Ha, 41, was investigated by the prosecution for allegedly using someone else's name to abuse propofol.The agency admitted that Ha used his brother's name to take the drug at a clinic in Seoul, which could be considered a violation of medical law.“The doctor thought it was important to protect Ha's privacy … Ha believed using a different name was part of his effort to protect his privacy,” the agency said. “Ha regrets that he gave personal information of his brother and manager to the doctor … We apologize for causing a misunderstanding.”The prosecution is expected to question him soon.

Feb 20, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Actor Ha Jung-woo denies drug abuse
Defense

US Forces Korea bans travel to Daegu as virus cases soar

U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams / Korea Times fileBy Jung Min-hoU.S. Forces Korea (USFK) has banned personnel from traveling to and from Daegu after a spike in new coronavirus cases there.“All service members' non-essential travel to and from Daegu will be prohibited, and off-installation travel minimized; I highly request all family members, civilians and contractors do likewise regarding their travel as well,” USFK Commander Gen. Robert Abrams said Thursday (KST).The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has confirmed more than 50 additional cases of the COVID-19 virus since Wednesday, saying most are from the city and the surrounding North Gyeongsang Province.A member of a religious sect called “Shincheonji” is blamed for the surge.“All service members who've attended the New World Church (Shincheonji) since Feb. 9 will undergo a mandatory self-quarantine ― and it is highly recommended for family members, civilians and contractors ― until the KCDC completes their contact trace procedures to determine who has been expos

Feb 20, 2020By Jung Min-ho
US Forces Korea bans travel to Daegu as virus cases soar
  • US Forces Korea confirms no coronavirus among service members
Health

Korean adoptee searches for birth parents and 'big brother'

Photos of Lee Kook-za as a girl in Korea / Courtesy of Lee Kook-zaBy Jung Min-hoMore than 50 years have passed since Lotti was adopted by a couple in Sweden. But she still struggles with a nagging feeling of grief and emptiness in her heart.“It is a feeling of something that is digging a hole in my heart and a longing that never leaves me in spite of my love to my girls and husband,” Lotti, 55, whose Korean name is Lee Kook-za, told The Korea Times. “A feeling of loss and an identity that was taken from me over 50 years ago and an ache of belonging that I hope I will find someday.”According to adoption documents, Lee was found by a passerby in Incheon. How and when it happened is unclear. On Sept. 24, 1965, she was brought to the Sung Kwang Orphanage, where she was given the name and a birthday of Aug. 20, 1964.One of the few things she remembers is playing with her “big brother,” a 17-year-old son of her foster parents, before being adopted in 1970 via the agency Child Placement Service.“I remember the courtyard where I was playing and runni

Feb 20, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Korean adoptee searches for birth parents and 'big brother'
Law & Crime

Nightclub homicide: Suspects deny intent to kill

YonhapBy Jung Min-hoThree taekwondo athletes in the infamous Seoul nightclub murder case claimed at Thursday's court hearing that they did not intend to kill the victim, who was trying to protect his girlfriend.The suspects ― all 21-year-olds majoring in taekwondo at college ― were indicted earlier this month on charges of murdering the man in his 20s after he took issue with them for taking his girlfriend by the wrist at a nightclub in Seoul's Gwangjin district on Jan. 1.Media reports that the suspects ate ice cream after brutally beating the man to death have infuriated many people. One petition calling for justice on the Cheong Wa Dae website has garnered more than 52,000 signatures.At the first court hearing, the suspects' lawyers claimed they should have been charged with manslaughter, not murder.“They should have been charged with manslaughter,” one lawyer said.But prosecutors argued that the suspects knew of the risks of their actions and willfully ignored these risks.“All of them are fourth-degree black belt holders and they knew how precise and powerful the

Feb 14, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Nightclub homicide: Suspects deny intent to kill
  • Three taekwondo athletes jailed for beating man to death
Law & Crime

Two Peruvians held in Spain for stealing cash from Korean casino

Kangwon Land / Korea Times fileBy Jung Min-hoTwo Peruvians have been detained in Spain after allegedly stealing 24 million won ($20,000) in cash from a casino in Korea.Jeongseon Police Station said Thursday that the suspects ― a man, 45, and a woman, 32 ― were expected to be extradited soon, after allegedly opening a slot machine cash box to steal the money at Kangwon Land on Feb. 7. It is unclear how this was done.Their alleged accomplice ― a Hong Kong man in his 30s ― is still on the run.The three entered Korea on Feb. 6 with fake passports. Only a few hours after the alleged theft, the two Peruvians boarded a flight to Bangkok. They then took another flight that made a stopover at Doha, Qatar, before arriving in Madrid, where they were detained. Police said that by then they had asked Interpol to issue a red note detention order for the suspects.

Feb 14, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Two Peruvians held in Spain for stealing cash from Korean casino
Health

14 Koreans aboard cruise ship quarantined in Japan

A passenger of the Diamond Princess stretches next to the Korean flag at the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, Japan, Feb. 14, 2020. Fourteen Koreans are among the people stuck on the virus-stricken cruise ship. EPAA security guard in front of the Diamond Princess, with around 3,700 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the new coronavirus. AFPBy Jung Min-hoFourteen Koreans are among the people aboard the virus-stricken cruise ship Diamond Princess, quarantined off the coast of Japan.According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Friday, nine passengers and five crew members, most of whom are residents in Japan, “remain healthy” on the ship, where 218 people were confirmed to have been infected with the new coronavirus (Covid-19).The Korean Consulate General in Yokohama has kept in contact with the Koreans to check their condition since the U.K.-flagged vessel was moored off Yokohama on Feb. 3.More than 3,700 people are stuck on the ship after a few people tested positive for the virus, which has killed more than 1,400 people and infected more t

Feb 14, 2020By Jung Min-ho
14 Koreans aboard cruise ship quarantined in Japan
North Korea

No report of coronavirus in North Korea: WHO

People wearing face masks walk on a street at the Munsu-dong diplomatic compound in Pyongyang Feb. 5, amid the outbreak of the new coronavirus. TASSIn this Feb. 1 photo, a State Commission of Quality Management staff member disinfects a ground transportation area at North Korea's Pyongyang Airport. APBy Jung Min-hoNorth Korea has not reported any confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, a World Health Organization (WHO) official told The Korea Times Wednesday.“WHO has not received any report of coronavirus cases from the Ministry of Public Health,” Edwin Ceniza Salvador, the U.N. agency's representative to North Korea, said. “DPR Korea, like other countries, is taking measures to protect the health of its people.”Salvador said the WHO is working with all member states, including North Korea, to respond to the virus, which has killed more than 1,300 people and infected 60,000 in 29 countries in the past few weeks. Most of the victims are in China.At North Korea's request, the WHO is providing laboratory reagents and personal protective equipment ― goggles, glove

Feb 13, 2020By Jung Min-ho
No report of coronavirus in North Korea: WHO
  • North Korea reaffirms no new coronavirus infection
Films

Why some right-wing politicians aren't thrilled about success of 'Parasite'

Director Bong Joon-ho with the Oscars for "Parasite" at the Governors Ball after the 92nd Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Monday (KST). Ironically, Bong came up with a story idea, which eventually turned into the movie, when he was blacklisted during previous administrations for his liberal political views. ReutersBy Jung Min-ho“Parasite” made history by winning Best Picture and three other honors at this year's Academy Awards Monday (KST). Since then, the Korean movie's success has been widely celebrated across the country ― but not by everyone.Bong Joon-ho, director of the scathing satire on class division in Korea, was a member of the Democratic Labor Party, a now-defunct liberal party, and he has had an uneasy relationship with some conservative politicians.This is why Hong Joon-pyo, former leader of the main conservative Liberty Korea Party (LKP), said he would not watch “Parasite” when asked by reporters last month. By then, the film had won many prestigious awards, including the Palme d'Or at Cannes.Bong rarely talked about his political views, at leas

Feb 12, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Why some right-wing politicians aren't thrilled about success of 'Parasite'
  • LKP trying to be parasitic on 'Parasite'
  • Ruling party to introduce unemployment insurance systems for artists
Law & Crime

Korean woman dies after tram hits her in Milan

A Korean woman has died after a tram struck her in the Italian city of Milan. GettyimagesbankBy Jung Min-hoA Korean woman in her early 20s has died after a tram hit her in Milan.According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wednesday, the victim, who was visiting the city with two Korean friends, was struck near Porta Venezia in the northeast of the city center about midnight Monday (local time).She was about to start her first year at college in Britain.The Korean Consulate General in Milan said it has told her family in Korea of the accident.A local media outlet reported Tuesday that the incident occurred when the tram was rounding a curve. Police are investigating.The friends and the tram driver were taken to a nearby hospital suffering shock.

Feb 12, 2020By Jung Min-ho
Korean woman dies after tram hits her in Milan
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