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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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Law & Crime

Critical week lies ahead as nation awaits verdicts on PM, opposition leader

The judiciary is poised to deliver rulings on at least two high-profile cases this week, which are expected to reshape the nation’s political landscape. The political aftermath of the court decisions could be even larger with the possibility for yet another, which, if taking place this week, will be the most important ruling — that for President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment over his Dec. 3 martial law declaration. On Monday, the Constitutional Court will render a verdict on Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, after 192 lawmakers at the National Assembly voted to impeach him on Dec. 27. The Assembly passed the impeachment motion after accusing him of rebellion by conniving with Yoon to declare martial law on Dec. 3 and of refusing to appoint three Assembly-selected candidates for the Constitutional Court bench, among other charges. His alleged cooperation in imposing military martial law is intertwined with the impeachment trial for Yoon, the final decision-maker. The justices’ views on the legitimacy of that act could be expressed in their ruling on Han, who allegedly tried to prevent th

Mar 23, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Critical week lies ahead as nation awaits verdicts on PM, opposition leader
Politics

Ruling party proposes bill to deprive noncitizens of voting rights amid anti-China sentiment

Ruling party lawmakers seek to take away the right to vote from all foreign permanent residents through legislation, a move apparently targeting Chinese residents here amid anti-China sentiment increasingly shared among Korean conservatives. According to the office of Rep. Kang Dae-sik, Thursday, he and nine other lawmakers of the People Power Party (PPP) recently proposed a bill to revise the Public Official Election Act, under which noncitizens who have held permanent resident visas here for three years or longer can vote to elect local officials such as governors and mayors. “The law is not aligned with the principle of reciprocity, given that most of our citizens who live in other countries as permanent residents do not have the right to vote there,” the legislators said in the proposal. “Also, the number of foreign residents here has been rising and many live in certain areas together, which poses the risk of distorting citizens’ political opinions.” Particularly, they raised concerns that there is a risk of foreign intervention in local elections as around 80 percent of

Mar 20, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Ruling party proposes bill to deprive noncitizens of voting rights amid anti-China sentiment
People & Events

Table tennis star donates $68,000 to help sick children

Shin Yu-bin, 20, a table tennis star and bronze medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics, donated 100 million won ($68,800) to help support children battling illness.

Mar 19, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Table tennis star donates $68,000 to help sick children
Global Community

Yeongyang County under mounting pressure to scrap plan to host Myanmar refugees

Yeongyang, a peaceful county with a population of just around 15,000 in North Gyeongsang Province, hardly ever draws attention from outsiders. But the county has recently been thrust into the spotlight after its announcement last week that it was in talks with the central government to invite 40 refugees from Myanmar to one of its villages and help them settle there permanently, as part of efforts to help address the issue of its shrinking population. In the days that followed the announcement, the online bulletin board run by the office has been filled with dozens of complaints calling for county head Oh Do-chang to ditch the plan. “The idea that depopulation can be solved by multicultural or refugee immigration policies is absurd. That’s wrong,” one petitioner wrote. “I hope you come up with a policy to help your own people.” Many petitioners appear worried that it could be the beginning of what will eventually lead to more immigrants and problems they could potentially bring into Korea such as public safety and religious issues. “The issue of hosting Myanmar refugees in our

Mar 18, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Yeongyang County under mounting pressure to scrap plan to host Myanmar refugees
  • Korea's asylum acceptance rate at 2.7% amid 122,000 applications
  • County seeks to host Myanmar refugees amid population cliff
Society

Korea faces shortage of over 820,000 workers by 2033: report

The size of Korea’s economically active population is predicted to start declining in five years and the country will face a shortage of 820,000 workers by 2033, according to a report, Monday.

Mar 17, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Korea faces shortage of over 820,000 workers by 2033: report
Global Community

Gov't to use 2 prominent global ranking systems to assess top-tier visa applicants

Korea will use the QS World University Rankings and the U.S. News & World Report Best Global Universities Rankings as criteria to assess potential beneficiaries of its Top-tier Visa System, which aims to attract tech experts to the country.

Mar 14, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Gov't to use 2 prominent global ranking systems to assess top-tier visa applicants
Global Community

County seeks to host Myanmar refugees amid population cliff

Yeongyang, a sleepy county with a population of just 15,000 in North Gyeongsang Province, is seeking to host refugees from Myanmar amid its demographic cliff.

Mar 14, 2025By Jung Min-ho
County seeks to host Myanmar refugees amid population cliff
Global Community

Korea to train Uzbek workers for shipbuilding jobs

Korea will train and employ workers from Uzbekistan through a special program designed for the southeastern port city of Ulsan, which is a major hub for the country's shipbuilding industry, officials said on Thursday. According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, about 280 workers will receive training in Uzbekistan to acquire the skills and knowledge required to build ships and will arrive in Korea later this year to work at shipbuilding companies. They will have E-9 work visas, which are for foreign laborers employed in labor-intensive industries such as agriculture, construction and manufacturing. The program was launched under the ministry’s broader plan to hire 130,000 workers from other countries on that visa this year amid Korea’s growing labor shortages resulting from its persistently low birthrate. “The program is expected to benefit both the workers and companies here as education and training for the worker would reduce the risk of industrial accidents and increase their work productivity,” an official told reporters. This decision came after ministry officials ap

Mar 13, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Korea to train Uzbek workers for shipbuilding jobs
  • EXCLUSIVE Foreigners account for 15% of workplace fatalities this year: source
Health

Number of Koreans with dementia nears 1 million as population ages

The number of Koreans suffering from dementia is expected to surpass 1 million next year and double in 20 years, due to the country's rapidly aging population, the government said Wednesday.

Mar 12, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Number of Koreans with dementia nears 1 million as population ages
North Korea

Rights groups urge Zelenskyy to send N. Korean POWs to South Korea

Human rights activists in South Korea and overseas on Tuesday urged Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to send North Korean prisoners of war (POW) to the South, saying it would not only be the right thing to do but would also help Ukraine’s war efforts against Russia.

Mar 11, 2025By Jung Min-ho
Rights groups urge Zelenskyy to send N. Korean POWs to South Korea
  • Rights activists tell NK soldiers fighting Ukraine to 'stand on the side of justice'
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