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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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North Korea

More North Koreans find freedom as China eases border restrictions

North Korean defectors attend a bakery class at Hanawon, a government-run adjustment and education center for North Koreans, in Anseong, Gyeonggi province, Monday. Joint Press Corps'If there was safe route to South Korea, everyone would come here,' escapee saysBy Jung Min-hoANSEONG, Gyeonggi Province ― As the COVID-19 pandemic prompted countries around the world to tighten their borders, the number of North Korean escapees arriving in South Korea plummeted from more than 1,000 a year to 63 in 2021 and has remained at that level since. The number is expected to swell this year as the world, particularly China, emerges from the health crisis. According to three North Korean women who shared their stories on Monday, leaving China became imaginable only because it started easing draconian virus restrictions, which had largely kept them away from public places over the past three years.Life was tough for everyone during the pandemic, but it was especially so for North Koreans living in China, where officials can deport them back to North Korea against their will. The women ― who all arriv

Jul 10, 2023By Jung Min-ho
More North Koreans find freedom as China eases border restrictions
Politics

Main opposition party attacks IAEA's credibility over Fukushima report

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi, right, listens to Rep. Wi Seong-gon of the Democratic Party of Korea, during his meeting with main opposition party lawmakers at the National Assembly in Seoul, Sunday. YonhapDPK calls report 'tailored for Japan'; PPP slams DPK for fighting against scienceBy Jung Min-hoAfter two years of safety inspections on Japan's plan to release treated wastewater from Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the final report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was supposed to settle the argument.However, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) rejected its conclusions on Sunday, expressing regret over the IAEA's report, claiming it was “tailored for Japan” and attacking the credibility of the international organization.Speaking directly to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi at the National Assembly in Seoul, Rep. Woo Won-shik accused him of conducting research with a “predetermined conclusion.” “I think there was a lack of neutrality and objectivity from the beginning,”

Jul 9, 2023By Jung Min-ho
Main opposition party attacks IAEA's credibility over Fukushima report
  • Opposition lawmakers depart for Japan to protest Fukushima water release
Defense

1st Korea-US Nuclear Consultative Group meeting set for July 18

President Yoon Suk Yeol looks at a special exhibition on the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance at the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History in downtown Seoul, June 25, making the 73rd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoonBy Jung Min-hoThe inaugural meeting between South Korea and the United States on the operation of U.S. nuclear weapons in response to North Korea's growing security threats will be held in Seoul on July 18.According to the presidential office, Saturday, the meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group will be co-chaired by Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo, White House Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Campbell and U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition Cara Abercrombie.The allies had initially planned to appoint deputy minister-level delegates to lead the talks but decided to elevate the discussions to the vice minister level for the upcoming session, officials in Seoul said.“Issues including information-sharing, consultation mechanisms as well as joint planning and

Jul 9, 2023By Jung Min-ho
1st Korea-US Nuclear Consultative Group meeting set for July 18
North Korea

ANALYSIS What is Seoul aiming for by prioritizing human rights in North Korea?

People bow to portraits of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang, in this November 2021 photo. YonhapPeaceful unity impossible without 'revolutionary change' in Pyongyang first: US expertsBy Jung Min-hoAfter his decision to replace three key figures in charge of handling inter-Korean relations, President Yoon Suk Yeol called on the unification ministry to fundamentally change the way it operates, saying its unification efforts should be based on the Constitution.Article 4 of the Constitution says that Korea should “formulate and carry out a policy of peaceful unification based on the principles of freedom and democracy.” What does that mean for the ministry's future role and the prospects of unification?According to U.S. analysts, it would mean achieving freedom and democracy in North Korea first before pursuing peaceful unification. Without a “revolutionary change” in Pyongyang, unification is impractical to attain or maintain, they said. In other words, if the North regime remains as it has always been ― trampling on the freedom of its citizens as a m

Jul 6, 2023By Jung Min-ho
[ANALYSIS] What is Seoul aiming for by prioritizing human rights in North Korea?
Politics

From weightlifting star to top sports administrator

Jang Mi-ran, new second vice minister of culture, sports and tourism, walks out of a car to enter the ministry building in Sejong, Tuesday, her first day at work. The weightlifting star joins the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, drawing excitement and concerns about her role as the top sports administrator. YonhapEx-colleagues express trust in Jang amid leadership ability concernsBy Jung Min-hoBoth Park Jong-kil and Choi yoon-hui ― former athletes who both rose to the top post of sports administration in the past respectively ― vowed to bring hope to politics as they had done at the 1982 and 1986 Asian Games, only to eventually disappoint the public.Jang Mi-ran, 39, only the third sports star to become the vice minister of culture, sports and tourism, aims to set the first successful precedent. Entering the ministry building in Sejong on Tuesday, her very first day on the job, she said she will deliver her utmost efforts to exceed all expectations.As an athlete, Jang was the nation's biggest weightlifting star and is a certified legend. She held her World Championship title consecutivel

Jul 5, 2023By Jung Min-ho
From weightlifting star to top sports administrator
Defense

Caution needed in developing defense ties with Vietnam, North Korea's comrade

President Yoon Suk Yeol and Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong shake hands at the Presidential Palace of Vietnam in Hanoi, June 23. YonhapExperts say Seoul should tread carefully in taking advantage of Hanoi's bid to diversify arms import sourcesBy Jung Min-hoThe abysmal performance exhibited by Russia's military in Ukraine has been a PR disaster for its arms exporters and an alarming revelation for the nations that rely heavily on Russian weapons for their security.As many countries seek to reduce their dependence on Russian military hardware, President Yoon Suk Yeol said that South Korea would reinforce defense ties with Vietnam ― one of the top buyers of Russian weapons ― at a summit with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong in Hanoi last month.Yoon's surprising move has prompted South Korean arms makers to rethink their overseas business strategies, which have almost exclusively targeted those in the free world. Vietnam, a one-party state ruled by the Communist Party of Vietnam, still maintains cordial diplomatic relations with North Korea.Foreign relations experts and industry off

Jul 3, 2023By Jung Min-ho
Caution needed in developing defense ties with Vietnam, North Korea's comrade
North Korea

Unification minister nominee vows not to compromise on human rights in dealing with N. Korea

Kim Yung-ho, nominee for next unification minister, speaks to reporters in front of the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul, Friday. Korea Times photo by Choi Joo-yeonHis 'uncompromising' principles set to collide with very nature of Pyongyang regimeBy Jung Min-hoKim Yung-ho, the nominee for next unification minister, vowed on Friday not to compromise on any of his principles in the ministry's efforts to improve inter-Korean relations, saying that human rights are among the unnegotiable values.Speaking to reporters at the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul, Kim said the rights violations of ordinary North Koreans are “very serious” and South Korea has so far shown a lack of willingness to resolve the issue.“Freedom, human rights and the rule of law are among the uncompromising things,” said Kim, who is a political diplomacy professor. “From a scholar's perspective, the international community has paid extensive attention to addressing the issue, while South Korea has relatively been less so … As stakeholders in the unification m

Jun 30, 2023By Jung Min-ho
Unification minister nominee vows not to compromise on human rights in dealing with N. Korea
Society

Rights watchdog names 1st North Korean non-standing commissioner

By Jung Min-hoLee Han-byeolLee Han-byeol has become the first North Korean refugee to join the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) as one of its seven non-standing commissioners, the rights agency announced on Thursday. Lee, director of the Improving North Korean Human Rights Center and an advocate for the rights of North Koreans, escaped her birth country in 1999 at the age of 17 and spent three years in China before arriving in South Korea.In previous media interviews, she said she began to get involved in helping North Korean refugees after the news in 2013 that the government of Laos deported nine North Korean teenagers back to the totalitarian country they had escaped. She said she empathized with their pain because of her personal story; the Chinese government also sent her brother back in 2009 and he has not been heard from since. After studying Chinese and law at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, she worked as a public servant in Anyang for three years from 2010 while consulting with North Korean refugees.

Jun 29, 2023By Jung Min-ho
Rights watchdog names 1st North Korean non-standing commissioner
Politics

Yoon names new unification minister in Cabinet reshuffle

Kim Yung-ho, nominee for new unification minister, speaks during a press briefing at the presidential office in Seoul, Thursday. Newsis Ex-human rights diplomat to lead NK policy; weightlifting star tapped as vice sports ministerBy Jung Min-hoPresident Yoon Suk Yeol replaced his minister of unification and other key Cabinet members, Thursday, in a bid to breathe new life into his second year in office ahead of the most crucial political test of his five-year term early next year.Kim Yung-ho, a professor of political diplomacy at Sungshin Women's University and a former human rights ambassador, was named as the new unification minister in charge of handling relations with North Korea. His background, which includes his academic focus on the Korean War and past criticism of the regime's rights violations, suggests a continuation of the administration's unwavering tough stance toward the North.In a March interview with the Hankook Ilbo, the sister paper of The Korea Ti

Jun 29, 2023By Jung Min-ho
Yoon names new unification minister in Cabinet reshuffle
North Korea

North Korea tightens state control of food

A farmer tends to rice seedlings at the Namsa Co-op Farm of Pyongyang's Rangrang District, May 25, 2021. Signs are palpable that North Korea has been tightening state control over its entire economy, particularly food, a veteran journalist said on Wednesday. AP-YonhapFamine worsens as Kim steps up fight against market forces: inside sourcesBy Jung Min-hoNorth Korea's great famine in the 1990s, which was a direct result of failures by the state, gave rise to “jangmadang,” the informal markets that eventually grew to play an essential role in the economic lives of its people.But history is set to repeat, as Kim Jong-un, the state's young leader, is poised to tighten state control on the market economy, particularly on food, a veteran journalist said at Wednesday's seminar on the issue in Seoul. He added that Kim will likely unleash another devastating period of mass hunger upon his own people. Citing six sources who are living in North Korea-China border regions, Jiro Ishimaru, who has been covering the rogue state for the past 30 years, said its food crisis may have alread

Jun 28, 2023By Jung Min-ho
North Korea tightens state control of food
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