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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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Sports

Mugger ends up in hospital after trying to rob UFC fighter

By Jung Min-hoUFC president Dana White shared a picture of the aftermath of the attempted robbery of Polyana. InstagramA female UFC fighter has left a mugger bruised, bloodied and “scared” after he tried to rob her in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday (local time).Polyana Viana, 26, said she was waiting for an Uber driver in front of her apartment in Jacarepagua, when a man approached her with a “gun.”“He said, ‘Give me the phone. Don’t try to react, because I’m armed.’ Then he put his hand over (a gun), but I realized it was too soft,” Viana was quoted as saying by MMAJunkie.“He was really close to me. So I thought, ‘If it’s a gun, he won’t have time to draw it.’ So I stood up. I threw two punches and a kick. He fell, then I caught him in a rear-naked choke.”Then she told him, “Now we’ll wait for the police.”Viana was right about the gun. She later found out that it was a piece of cardboard shaped like a handgun.After taking control of the situation, she asked other people to c

Jan 8, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Mugger ends up in hospital after trying to rob UFC fighter
Defense

Gov't to stop using the term 'conscientious objectors'

The government has officially jettisoned the term "conscientious objectors." Korea Times fileBy Jung Min-hoThe South Korean government will stop using the term “conscientious objectors” when referring to people who refuse to serve in the military and will replace the term with “religious objectors.”The Defense Ministry announced Friday that it would no longer use “conscientious objectors” for official documents, saying “religious objectors” would be more accurate.The move comes after tens of thousands of people found the term misleading and complained to the ministry.“We decided to replace the term to address the concerns that those who have served their duties can be misconstrued as not conscientious (because of its semantic implication),” said ministry spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo.In its ruling on Nov. 1, the Supreme Court for the first time accepted “religious beliefs” as a justifiable reason to refuse compulsory military duty while overturning a lower-court ruling in which a Jehovah's Witness was sentenced to 18

Jan 7, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Gov't to stop using the term 'conscientious objectors'
Tech & Science

Huawei staff punished for tweeting from iPhone

A sales assistant looks at her mobile phone as she waits for customers behind at a Huawei booth in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Chinese companies have been encouraging the use of Huawei products. ReutersBy Jung Min-hoChinese smartphone maker Huawei has punished employees for using an iPhone to send New Year greetings.Each of two Huawei employees responsible for the tweet had their salaries cut by more than $700 a month and were demoted one level.The message, posted on the company's official Twitter account on New Year's Eve wished followers a happy New Year while displaying the tag “Twitter for iPhone,” a flagship product of American rival Apple.The tweet was removed later, but screenshots of the blunder spread across social media.“The traitor has revealed himself,” a netizen reportedly quipped on microblog Weibo, in a comment “liked” by hundreds of others.The punishment was handed out after companies in China recently began boycotting Apple products in response to the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver last month.Some companies reporte

Jan 7, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Huawei staff punished for tweeting from iPhone
  • Huawei's 'Happy New Year' message sent from iPhone
Travel & Food

New Zealand to introduce tourist tax

A colorful sky and mountains above a tranquil bay at sundown in New Zealand. gettyimagesbankBy Jung Min-hoTourists to New Zealand will be stung with a new tax this year.From mid-2019, international visitors will have to pay $NZ25-$35 ($US17-23) to enter into the country.Australian citizens and permanent residents, New Zealand's top source of tourism revenue, people from Pacific Islands Forum countries and children under two will be exempt.An increasing number of tourists in recent years has fueled New Zealand's economic growth but has put a strain on infrastructure in tourist areas.The money from the tax, which the government expects to be up to $NZ80 million in the first year, will be used to improve infrastructure and to protect the environment.

Jan 7, 2019By Jung Min-ho
New Zealand to introduce tourist tax
Foreign Affairs

'Comfort woman' statue removed in Philippines

A statue symbolizing “comfort women” in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul. Another comfort woman statue has been removed in the Philippines. YonhapBy Jung Min-hoA memorial statue for “comfort women,” the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, has been removed in the Philippines.According to UPI new agency, the bronze statue of a young woman with fists resting on her lap was removed from a Catholic-run shelter for the elderly and the homeless in San Pedro, Laguna, Sunday, only two days after the statue was unveiled to the public.It is unclear who is responsible for the decision.Nuns at Mary Mother of Mercy shelter said the statue was removed without explanation or notification.The move came after the Japanese embassy in Manila complained.“We believe that the establishment of a comfort woman statue in other countries, including this case, is extremely disappointing,” the embassy reportedly said.This is not the first time a comfort woman statue had been removed. Last year, a statue on Roxas Boulevard in Manila faced the same fate.Japan plays

Jan 4, 2019By Jung Min-ho
'Comfort woman' statue removed in Philippines
Tech & Science

FULL TEXT Letter from Tim Cook to Apple investors

Apple CEO Tim Cook / ReutersBy Jung Min-hoApple CEO Tim Cook said Wednesday that the company has cut its sales forecast for its first-quarter performance in 2019. He warned that investors should expect lower sales amid uncertainty around U.S.-China trade relations.January 2, 2019To Apple investors:Today we are revising our guidance for Apple's fiscal 2019 first quarter, which ended on December 29. We now expect the following:Revenue of approximately $84 billionGross margin of approximately 38 percentOperating expenses of approximately $8.7 billionOther income/(expense) of approximately $550 millionTax rate of approximately 16.5 percent before discrete itemsWe expect the number of shares used in computing diluted EPS to be approximately 4.77 billion.Based on these estimates, our revenue will be lower than our original guidance for the quarter, with other items remaining broadly in line with our guidance. While it will be a number of weeks before we complete and report our final results, we wanted to get some preliminary information to you now. Our final results may differ somewhat fro

Jan 3, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Letter from Tim Cook to Apple investors [FULL TEXT]
  • Apple cuts forecast, citing weak China sales amid trade tensions
Tech & Science

Huawei's 'Happy New Year' message sent from iPhone

iPhone lovers are everywhere, even in the building of Apple's rival. AFPHuawei's New Year message sent from an Apple iPhone. Screen grab of MKBHD's TwitterBy Jung Min-hoHuawei has wished everyone a happy New Year on the last day of 2018 ― using a phone made by its rival.In a Twitter message sent from an Apple iPhone, a Huawei official said: “Happy #2019 from all of us at Huawei. Our resolution this new year is to give you more reasons to connect to those you care about.”The Chinese smartphone maker's gaffe was first spotted by famous tech YouTuber MKBHD.The message had spread quickly before Huawei deleted it.This came after companies in China recently began boycotting Apple products in response to the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver last month.Some companies reportedly threatened employees with fines, confiscation of Apple devices and even contract termination for using Apple gadgets.

Jan 3, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Huawei's 'Happy New Year' message sent from iPhone
  • Huawei staff punished for tweeting from iPhone
World

Cult follower rams van into Tokyo crowd 'in retaliation'

Police and firefighters inspect the site of a van attack near Takeshita Street in Tokyo, Jan. 1. A car slammed into pedestrians on a street where people had gathered for New Year's festivities. Kyodo News via APA policeman guards a roped-off crime scene the morning after a man deliberately drove into the crowd on New Year's Eve on Takeshita Street, in Tokyo's fashion district of Harajuku, on Jan. 1. Nine people were hurt, one seriously.By Jung Min-hoA suspected member of a Japanese cult rammed his vehicle into pedestrians in central Tokyo on New Year's Day, injuring eight people, in what he said was “retaliation.”According to local media Tuesday, police have arrested Kazuhiro Kusakabe, 21, on charges of attacking a random crowd on Takeshita Street with his vehicle, “with an intention to kill.”“I did that to retaliate against the death penalty,” the suspect told police.Police said they are still investigating his motives, but some media reports said the man had linked the attack to the executions in July of 13 members of Aum Shinrikyo, a doomsday cu

Jan 2, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Cult follower rams van into Tokyo crowd 'in retaliation'
Korean Heritage

Confusing 'Korean age' system dies hard

How old are you in Korean age? gettyimagesbankBy Jung Min-hoThe year 2019 has arrived. This means all Koreans have just become a year older.Welcome to the “Korean age” system, in which everyone becomes a year old at birth and gains an additional year every New Year's Day.This method originated in China centuries ago and was once used by several countries in the region, including Japan. But today, Korea is the only country where it is still dominantly used.Many people think the system is confusing and needs to be abolished; thousands of people have even signed petitions on the Cheong Wa Dae website demanding change. But it dies hard ― why?One of the reasons is that there is little the government can do about it. Laws were enacted in 1962 to adopt the international age system that counts how many years it has been since a person was born. Since then, Korean ages have disappeared from legal documents.In other words, Korean ages only exist in the perceptions of Koreans.In other countries, such legislative change would have gradually led to perceptional change. But in a cultur

Jan 2, 2019By Jung Min-ho
Confusing 'Korean age' system dies hard
  • Transition team eyes scrapping 'Korean age'
  • How South Korea's complex age custom has endured
World

In photos: Last sunset of 2018

By Jung Min-hoBeautiful sunset photos taken in different parts of the world on the last day of 2018.Kids play on the beach enjoying the last sunset of the year in Manhattan Beach, Calif., the United States. AFPA mother and child walk along the beach during sunset in the southeast coastal resort of Ayia Napa in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. APA horseman rides on the beach at sunset in west of Gaza city. AFPA man takes a picture near Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. ReutersA man rows a boat near a frozen portion of Dal Lake in Srinagar, India. AFPA couple take a selfie photo in Naypyidaw, Myanmar. AP

Jan 1, 2019By Jung Min-ho
In photos: Last sunset of 2018
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