Employment rate of North Korean defectors drops 3.8 percent last year amid pandemic: ministry YonhapThe employment rate of North Korean defectors in South Korea fell 3.8 percent last year amid the coronavirus pandemic, the unification ministry said Tuesday.The ministry released the latest data in a new master plan on settlement support for North Korea defectors for 2021-2023 and the implementation plan for this year.The employment rate of North Korean defectors last year was 54.4 percent, down from the previous year's 58.2 percent, behind that of South Korean-born citizens (60.4 percent)."This is attributable to job losses and a decrease in economic activities due to COVID-19," the ministry said in the report. North Korean defectors appear to be hit harder by the coronavirus pandemic, a ministry official said, pointing out that the employment rate of South Korean-born citizens last year decreased by only 1 percent.In its three-year master plan, the unification ministry laid out 24 tasks to assist defectors, including strengthening psychological support programs and building a new center with the police and other ministries to reach out to vulnerable defectors at risk of sexuaMay 18, 2021
North Korean propaganda website calls 1980 pro-democracy movement 'historic event' in anti-fascism movement In this photo from May 2019, President Moon Jae-in consoles the bereaved mother of a victim of the 1980 May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement at the National Cemetery there. Moon paid his respects at the cemetery after participating in a memorial ceremony marking the 39th anniversary of the movement. YonhapA North Korean propaganda outlet on Tuesday described a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in South Korea as a "historic event" in the anti-fascism movement, highlighting people's fearless fight in the face of a bloody crackdown. On Tuesday, South Korea marks the 41st anniversary of the May 18 uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju quelled ruthlessly by the military junta led by then Gen. Chun Doo-hwan. The crackdown left more than 200 people killed and 1,800 others wounded."The Gwangju people's uprising is a historic event that shines in the history of South Korean people's anti-fascism struggle," DPRK Today, one of the North's propaganda websites, said. "It is the first and biggest ever in the modern history of struggle in eastern countries."The website said that a large number May 18, 2021
Seoul wants Washington to reaffirm Singapore agreement during summit Then-President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un pose during their summit in Singapore in this June 12, 2018 photo. YonhapBy Nam Hyun-wooThe South Korean government is seeking to use this week's summit between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden as a vehicle to revive its North Korea diplomacy and facilitate inter-Korean peace talks, according to government sources and experts, Monday. In doing so, Seoul is looking to send a message to North Korea through a joint statement to be announced after the Moon-Biden summit, hoping this will include the Biden administration's reaffirmation of the 2018 Singapore agreement between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Biden's predecessor Donald Trump, or an end-of-war declaration.According to sources, the government wants to have the Singapore agreement put on the agenda for the summit scheduled for this Friday (local time). This is interpreted as a bid to have the Biden administration build its North Korea policy upon the declaration which includes the establishment of new U.S.-North Korea relations, a lasting and May 17, 2021By Nam Hyun-woo
Court dismisses civic groups' request to ban North Korea founder's memoirs North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, left, and the cover of “With the Century,” a memoir of Kim available in South Korea / Korea Times fileA Seoul court has dismissed local civic groups' request to block the sales and distribution of memoirs of North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, judicial sources said Sunday.According to the sources, the Seoul Western District Court rejected Thursday an injunction sought by several conservative organizations, including the New Paradigm of Korea, to ban the sales of the eight-volume memoirs, titled "With the Century." The book was printed here by a local publishing company on April 1 for the first time since they were published by the North Korean regime in the early 1990s.The memoirs, mainly about Kim's anti-Japanese fight, have sparked controversy as it is known to contain fabricated and glorifying information about his life. The North's national founder is the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un.The plaintiffs have claimed that the distribution of the memoirs "glamorizing the Kim family" infringes on human rights and harms the dignity May 16, 2021
US, Australia share commitment to UNSC resolutions on North Korea: Blinken U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a news conference to announce the annual International Religious Freedom Report at the State Department in Washington, May 12. AP-YonhapU.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed his country's commitment to U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea on Thursday, amid U.S. outreach for engagement with the reclusive North.The top U.S. diplomat said he and his Australian counterpart, Marise Payne, discussed a range of challenges, including North Korea, in their bilateral meeting in Washington."The (Australian) foreign minister and I touched on a number of key challenges that we face together," he said in a joint press conference with Payne at the State Department.Blinken said such challenges included China's economic coercion."I reiterated that the United States will not leave Australia alone on the field, or maybe I should say alone on the pitch in the face of economic coercion by China. That's what allies do. We have each other's backs, so we can face threats and challenges from a position of collective strength," he said."May 14, 2021
Abrams says solid military alliance is 'single greatest deterrent' against North Korea's threats Outgoing U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams, left, receives a Korean name, Woo Byung-soo, as a gift from a South Korea-U.S. friendship group for his "contribution to the alliance and defense of South Korea" during a farewell event in Seoul, May 13. YonhapOutgoing U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) Commander Gen. Robert Abrams said Thursday that a "rock solid" combined defense posture between South Korea and the United States is the "single greatest deterrent" against any potential adversaries, including North Korea. Abrams made the remark at a farewell event in Seoul, saying the U.S. will continue to work with its allies "to address the threats posed by North Korea through diplomacy and credible deterrence." "Any potential adversary should never, ever underestimate our resolve and commitment to defend the Republic of Korea," the general said, referring to South Korea by its official name. The remarks came as denuclearization negotiations between the U.S. and the North remain stalled since the collapse of the Hanoi summit in 2019. The new U.S. Joe Biden administration recently concMay 13, 2021
US will address North Korea's religious freedom issues: senior official In this June 6, 2020, file photo, North Korean students stage a rally to denounce South Korea following that defectors and other activists in South Korea flew anti-Pyongyang leaflets over the border, at the Pyongyang Youth Park Open-air Theatre in Pyongyang, North Korea. The United States will continue to tackle the North Korean nuclear issue while at the same time pressing for improved human rights conditions, including freedom of religion, in the reclusive state, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday. AP-YonhapThe United States will continue to tackle the North Korean nuclear issue while at the same time pressing for improved human rights conditions, including freedom of religion, in the reclusive state, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday.Daniel Nadel, a senior official from the U.S. Department of State office of international religious freedom, also argued that a push for improved human rights conditions in the North would ensure "better outcomes" by addressing fundamental problems."The nuclear issues are real. They are a significant challenge. We intend to address those issuesMay 13, 2021
North Korea unlikely to respond to US vaccine offer gettyimagesbankBy Nam Hyun-wooThe U.S. is making efforts to facilitate talks with North Korea with an offering of COVID-19 vaccines, but the probability of Pyongyang accepting this offer seems to be low, given the Kim Jong-un regime's ignoring of humanitarian aid offers and its strict quarantine policy. Experts said Wednesday the U.S. move can be interpreted as a tactic of showing various benefits available to the North if it joins the party, in the wake of the Joe Biden administration's new North Korea policy. However, they have expressed doubts whether the North will find the vaccine offer attractive, as the regime seeks to be on equal footing with Washington and has not been acting desperate for vaccines.On Tuesday, CNN reported that the U.S. is open to sharing coronavirus vaccines and other humanitarian assistance to help North Korea, citing sources familiar with internal discussions. “While we are open to considering DPRK requests for humanitarian assistance, these would need to be accompanied by effective monitoring to ensure that it reached the intended beneficiaries,&rdMay 12, 2021By Nam Hyun-woo
Incheon stirs controversy with airport development plan in North Korea A photo taken on Sept. 10, 2019, shows the terminal building of the airport in North Korea's northern city of Samjiyon, Ryanggang Province. AFP-YonhapBy Nam Hyun-wooIncheon Metropolitan Government has sparked a controversy for contracting out a study on developing airports in North Korea, drawing criticisms from conservative lawmakers over the plan's feasibility and political motivation.According to Incheon Metropolitan Government's data submitted to Rep. Han Ki-ho of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), the city government contracted out the study to a consortium led by Korea National University of Transportation in May last year, at a cost of 135 million won ($120,000).The study was aimed at exploring ways to nurture Incheon International Airport as a travel hub for North Korea. For this purpose, the study proposed improvements to eight existing airports in North Korea and the building of a new one there. According to the plan, three airports ― Pyongyang Sunan International Airport, Wonsan Kalma Airport and Samjiyon Airport near Mount Paektu ― need to be developed as hub aMay 11, 2021By Nam Hyun-woo
North Korea reports no coronavirus cases: WHO A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency on May 6 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, and his wife Ri Sol-ju watch a performance given by the art groups of servicemen's families in Pyongyang, North Korea, May 5. The World Health Organization said Tuesday that North Korea has not found any COVID-19 cases. EPA-YonhapNorth Korea has conducted coronavirus tests on around 26,000 people so far but found no infections, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday.According to the WHO's weekly report on COVID-19, 751 North Koreans underwent virus tests from April 23-29, bringing the total number of tested citizens to 25,986 so far, but none were found to have been infected.Of the 751 newly tested citizens, 139 people showed flu-like symptoms but all of them turned out to be those of acute respiratory illnesses, the report said.North Korea has claimed to be coronavirus-free but has taken relatively swift and tough measures against the pandemic, such as imposing strict border controls since early last year.The North is expected to receive around 2 millioMay 11, 2021
