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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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Foreign Affairs

Filipino killer of Korean businessman nabbed as Lee hails arrest

A dismissed high-ranking Philippine police officer convicted of orchestrating the 2016 killing of Korean businessman Jee Ick-joo has been arrested in Manila after nearly two years on the run, authorities said Wednesday. President Lee Jae Myung welcomed the arrest, vowing to seek justice for criminals targeting Korean citizens abroad and expressing gratitude to officials in both countries for their joint efforts. Rafael Dumlao, who was a top official of an anti-drug unit within the Philippine National Police at the time of the killing, was apprehended at around 5:15 a.m. on Tuesday (local time), according to Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The mastermind behind Jee's killing had been in hiding since the Philippine Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that convicted him and sentenced him to at least 30 years in prison. The case involved the abduction and killing of Jee inside the national police headquarters in 2016. With the direct involvement of several active-duty and former police officers, the case shocked both countries as it exposed serious corruption within law enforce

Jun 10, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Filipino killer of Korean businessman nabbed as Lee hails arrest
Politics

12 student bodies to issue joint declaration over voting rights violations

As rallies calling for a redo of last week’s local elections continued into their fifth day, student leaders from 12 universities across Korea said Tuesday they will issue a joint declaration denouncing ballot shortages that they say deprived citizens of their right to vote. Student leaders said student bodies from 12 universities — Yonsei, Konkuk, Kyung Hee, Sogang, Korea, Seoul National, Hongik, Sungkyunkwan, Soongsil, Chonnam National, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the University of Seoul — will simultaneously hold a joint declaration and protest on their campuses at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. The timing was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the June 10 Democratic Uprising of 1987, a key milestone in Korea’s pro-democracy movement against the Chun Doo-hwan military regime, in a bid to frame the current dispute as a struggle over basic political rights. In their declaration, the participants are expected to demand a thorough investigation into the ballot shortages, which they say undermined the integrity of the democratic system and effectively deprived many citi

Jun 9, 2026By Jung Min-ho
12 student bodies to issue joint declaration over voting rights violations
  • Election commission faces probe, major overhaul
Health

Korea to put counselors in every school in teen suicide prevention push

Professional counselors will be deployed to every school in Korea and school principals will be able to arrange counseling and treatment without parental consent under a sweeping pangovernment plan to curb teen suicide announced Tuesday amid a rise in youth deaths and mental health problems in recent years. The plan involves 15 ministries and government agencies and targets a reduction in the youth suicide rate from eight per 100,000 people in 2024 to 6.5 by 2030 and 4.2 by 2035 — back to levels last seen in 2015. Officials say such a broad, cross-ministry approach is needed because teen suicide is often driven by strong impulsivity and a complex mix of causes, from academic and career pressures to family conflict, harmful online content and media influence, which cannot be addressed by a single institution. "Teen suicide is not an issue that can be resolved simply by focusing on an individual’s mental and emotional well-being or on the efforts of school communities alone. It is a challenge that demands a collective response and sense of responsibility from everyone who shapes the e

Jun 9, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Korea to put counselors in every school in teen suicide prevention push
Law & Crime

Election commission faces probe, major overhaul

The National Election Commission (NEC) is under criminal investigation and intense pressure to make sweeping reforms after unprecedented ballot paper shortages in the local elections last week triggered public fury and allegations of a systematic electoral failure. President Lee Jae Myung met on Monday with the heads of the nation's four key state institutions — National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik, Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae, Constitutional Court President Kim Sang-hwan and Prime Minister Kim Min-seok — and agreed to push ahead with necessary reforms for the NEC. Following the meeting, Cho accepted the resignation of NEC Chairman Roh Tae-ak. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency on Monday questioned Kim Soon-hwan, head of the People’s Welfare Countermeasure Committee, a Seoul-based nongovernmental organization. Kim lodged a complaint against NEC officials over cases in which many voters were unable to cast ballots because of the shortages. Speaking to reporters, Kim likened the incident to the April 19 Revolution, the first democratic movement in Korea in 1960, cal

Jun 8, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Election commission faces probe, major overhaul
Politics

Election fallout leaves rival party leaders on shaky ground

Korea’s June 3 local elections have left both the ruling and opposition parties with wounded leaders who are politically weakened yet unwilling to step aside. Traditionally, a heavy electoral setback prompts party leaders to offer an apology and resign, paving the way for an emergency interim leadership. This time, neither side followed that script. Instead, the chairmen of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the People Power Party (PPP) insist they preserved “hope” or “victory,” even as their leadership and authority are being increasingly questioned by party members. On the surface, the ruling liberal party can claim victory, as Chairman Jung Chung-rae did on Thursday, given that it captured 12 of the 16 top posts of the nation’s metropolitan and provincial offices. But key, symbolic losses have forced insiders to acknowledge that the outcome looks far less reassuring. The most painful blow came in Seoul, where incumbent PPP Mayor Oh Se-hoon defeated DPK candidate Chong Won-o, despite early polls showing Chong’s substantial lead and President Lee Jae Myung’s approv

Jun 5, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Election fallout leaves rival party leaders on shaky ground
Politics

Seoul Mayor Oh defies exit poll to win reelection

In a stunning political turnaround, incumbent Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon secured his reelection in Wednesday's vote, overcoming an early exit poll projection that had forecast a loss to his liberal rival Chong Won-o. According to the National Election Commission (NEC) Thursday, as of 9 p.m., with 99.93 percent of the votes counted, Oh of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) obtained 49.19 percent of the vote, defeating Chong of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), who garnered 48.09 percent. The formal announcement of the winner has not been made. This came after an exit poll for Wednesday’s local elections released jointly by major broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS put Chong at 51.4 percent and Oh at 46 percent. During the initial stages of the count, Chong had maintained a comfortable lead. But by around 7:20 a.m. Thursday, some 13 hours after counting started, Oh had steadily erased the deficit to clinch a dramatic come-from-behind win. “This election is a victory for common sense,” Oh said at his campaign office. “It is a victory for young people who, even as they des

Jun 4, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Seoul Mayor Oh defies exit poll to win reelection
Politics

Ruling party projected to secure sweeping win in local elections

The liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is projected to dominate Wednesday’s local elections, with an exit poll showing its candidates leading in a majority of key races across the nation while the conservative main opposition People Power Party (PPP) trailed behind. In Seoul, however, ballot shortages emerged as a major flashpoint, disrupting voting in Songpa District and several other locations. The PPP called for an immediate halt to ballot counting throughout all of Seoul and, if necessary, a revote, insisting that the shortages had “seriously undermined the fairness of the election.” According to a joint exit poll, released at 6 p.m. by major broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS, DPK candidates were leading in 11 of the nation’s 16 mayoral and gubernatorial contests, while the PPP was ahead in just one. Contests in four cities and provinces — Busan, Daegu, Gangwon Province and North Jeolla Province — were too close to call as of 11:30 p.m. In the closely watched Seoul mayoral race, DPK candidate Chong Won-o led the race at 51.4 percent, outpacing incumbent Mayor Oh

Jun 3, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Ruling party projected to secure sweeping win in local elections
Politics

Conservative ex-presidents hit campaign trail

Former President and former Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak stepped back into his old legacy he built in the capital, Monday, standing at the edge of Seoul Forest as he urged voters to choose “mayors and district chiefs who get things done, not those who only talk and play politics.” Surrounded by conservative hopefuls, Lee framed the park, along with Cheonggye Stream, as proof that leadership willing to push through opposition can transform a city. “I hope we Seoul residents will elect mayors and district chiefs who get things done,” he said. “There was a lot of political opposition when we developed Cheonggye Stream and when we planned the dedicated bus lanes, but once they were actually built, they became good spaces that all Seoul citizens use very conveniently.” The previous day, the final weekend of the official election campaign period ahead of the June 3 vote, impeached former President Park Geun-hye visited Seomun Market in Daegu, alongside the People Power Party’s (PPP) mayoral candidate, Choo Kyung-ho. As she moved through the crowds, shaking hands with visitors, she

Jun 1, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Conservative ex-presidents hit campaign trail
Global Community

Gov’t denies foreign worker scheme aims to expand cheap labor

The government has rejected concerns that its new foreign worker scheme for depopulated regions is designed to expand access to cheap migrant labor, insisting it is meant to sustain local economies facing structural labor shortages. In written responses sent to The Korea Times recently, the Ministry of Justice said the goal is not “simple cost-cutting through low-paid foreign workers,” but to help solve the “structural labor shortage problem in depopulation areas where hiring Koreans” is very difficult. Announced earlier this month, the “regional vitality special employment scheme for small businesses” allows small businesses and agricultural corporations in designated areas to hire foreigners who hold the F-2-R visa, which lets certain noncitizens live and work long term in designated depopulated areas. Previously, the F-2-R visa could only be used by employers that already had Korean staff on their payroll, a condition officials said was difficult to meet amid worsening labor shortages across the country, excluding major cities. Under the initiative, employers in 89 design

May 31, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Gov’t denies foreign worker scheme aims to expand cheap labor
Politics

Negative campaigning overshadows local elections

Korea’s June 3 local elections have entered their final stretch amid a surge of allegations and political attacks, with negative campaign tactics overshadowing races across major battlegrounds. Just days before voters head to the polls, candidates in key cities and provinces have traded accusations ranging from misinformation to illegal election interference. This reflects a familiar end-of-campaign pattern, but this year in particular highlights rising concerns over digital manipulation and the political neutrality of public officials. In Seoul, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea’s (DPK) mayoral candidate Chong Won-o filed a complaint Friday against incumbent Mayor Oh Se-hoon of the People Power Party (PPP), alleging organized online defamation and opinion manipulation. This follows a media report claiming Oh’s campaign was involved in systematically producing and distributing negative content about his rival. Oh's camp has denied the allegations as groundless. Similar clashes have emerged in Busan, where the PPP accused DPK candidate Chun Jae-soo of spreading false information

May 31, 2026By Jung Min-ho
Negative campaigning overshadows local elections
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