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'Bicycle trip is bold challenge'

Former Wonju City Vice Mayor Choi Gwang-cheol and his wife take a break while touring Germany by bicycle. / Courtesy of ChoiEx-vice mayor of Wonju to travel to China, Korea, JapanBy Jhoo Dong-chanChoi Gwang-cheol, 61, a former vice mayor of Wonju City, Gangwon Province, plans to cross Northeast Asia on a bicycle, his second big ride in about a year.Choi will travel from Xian to Beijing and Dandong in China; then enter Korea to go from Imjingak to Busan; and then on to Fukuoka, Japan, finishing his tour in Tokyo.The three-month adventure will start in July and cover about 4,000 kilometers.This is not the first long ride Choi has made.Choi and his wife cycled through five European countries, including England, France and Austria, last year. It took three months, from July to October, and totaled 3,500 kilometers, at an average of 50 kilometers a day.Choi described his bicycle tour as a “bold challenge.”“We only took a tent, sleeping bags and some cookware for our tour,” he said. “My wife and I had to overcome various challenges, such as the weather an

Mar 27, 2015By Jhoo Dong-chan
'Bicycle trip is bold challenge'

Hanssem founder donates W440 bil. to nurture future leaders

Hanssem DBEW (Design Beyond East & West) Research FoundationCho Chang-gulBy Park Jin-haiCho Chang-gul, 76, the founder of furniture maker Hanssem, will donate 2.6 million company shares, half of his stake, worth 440 billion won to his company’s non-profit foundation for talented young people, the firm said Thursday.The founder and honorary chairman gave 600,000 of his company shares worth 105 billion won in a first batch to the Hanssem DBEW (Design Beyond East & West) Research Foundation.The foundation is a non-profit think tank Cho founded in 2012 to give guidance to young Koreans on reading and changes in geopolitics, in a bid to nurturing future global leaders.   The remaining 2 million worth of shares will be injected into the fund over the next few years.“Chairman Cho used to say that Korea should play a leading role among the super powers of the U.S., China, Russia and Japan,” said a company official. “The foundation will be run in a way that develops future strategies for Korea and incubates leaders, emulating the Brooking Institu

Mar 26, 2015By Park Jin-hai
Hanssem founder donates W440 bil. to nurture future leaders

Scholarship

Chung Hai-young, fourth from right in the front row, chief director of the Ga San Foundation for Culture, and Cho Sang-un, to Chung’s right, executive managing director of Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical Co., pose with students during a scholarship award ceremony at the company’s factory in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. The Kwang Dong-affiliated foundation presented 62 high school students living in five regions, including Pyeongtaek, with scholarship amounting to 93 million won ($84,292). The foundation has provided a total of 400 million won in scholarship for 450 students since 2008./ Courtesy of Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical

Mar 26, 2015

University presidents forum

University presidents attend the inaugural forum of presidents of 20 Seoul-based universities at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Wednesday. They included, from left in the front row, Chun Hei-jung of Seoul Women’s University; Song Hee-young of Konkuk University; Yoo Ki-pung of Sogang University; Lee Yong-goo of Chung-Ang University; Choi Kyung-hee of Ewha Womans University; and Hwang Sun-hye of Sookmyung Women’s University. They discussed how to cope with the rapidly changing education environment. Lee, who was elected chairman of the forum, called on the government to give universities more autonomy in school operations and lift restrictions on tuition hikes. He also suggested that universities should be allowed to offer admissions in return for financial contributions./ Yonhap

Mar 25, 2015

UN chief nominates ex-Korean diplomat for arms control post

Kim Won-sooBy Yi Whan-woo U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has nominated Kim Won-soo, a former career Korean diplomat, as the U.N.’s acting high representative for disarmament affairs.In a statement in New York Tuesday (local time), Ban said Kim would replace Angela Kane, who wanted to resign.Kim has been a U.N. assistant secretary-general and also special adviser to the secretary-general since September 2013.“I conveyed my appreciation for the work done by Ms. Kane in implementing my five-point action plan, which was launched in 2008 to revitalize the international disarmament agenda,” the U.N. chief said. “While much has been done, still a lot remains to be achieved. I expect Mr. Kim to follow through on it.”According to diplomatic sources, Kim will take over from Kane when she officially steps down after the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). It will run from April 27 to May 22.Kim will be responsible for supporting Ban on arms control, non-proliferation and related security ma

Mar 25, 2015By Yi Whan-woo
UN chief nominates ex-Korean diplomat for arms control post

BPA chief runs for IMO secretary general

Lim Ki-tackBy Kang Seung-woo Lim Ki-tack, president of the Busan Port Authority (BPA), is seeking to become the secretary general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).According to BPA on Tuesday, Lim is registering to run in the election, scheduled for June 30.As a specialized agency of the United Nations, the London-based IMO is the global standard-setting authority for the safety, security and environmental performance of international shipping, according to its website. Its main role is to create a regulatory framework for the shipping industry that is fair and effective, universally adopted and universally implemented.The incumbent secretary general is Japanese Koji Sekimizu, whose term will expire at the end of this year.It is the second time for a Korean to run for the position after Chae I-sik, a law professor at Korea University, did in 2011.“Should Korea produce the IMO secretary general, the status of the nation’s shipping and shipbuilding industries will be able to take a leap forward,“ Lim said.The secretary general will be chosen by a s

Mar 25, 2015By Kang Seung-woo
BPA chief runs for IMO secretary general

Ex-IBK chief Cho installed as YTN head

Cho Jun-heeBy Baek Byung-yeulCho Jun-hee, former CEO of the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), 61, has been sworn in as CEO of local cable news channel YTN.Cho, who was appointed at a general meeting of YTN on March 2, was confirmed as new head of the news channel at the stockholders meeting on March 20, succeeding Bae Suk-kyu.The appointment comes after the company experienced financial problems last year. YTN recorded a 26 billion won ($23.6 million) loss in 2014.In his inaugural speech on Monday, Cho said he would change the 24-hour news channel into a more financially solid firm.“A news channel in financial difficulty cannot guarantee the public’s right to know,” he said. “As new cable news channels have been added to television networks in recent years, the viewer’s ratings of our company have fallen and advertisement revenues, which account for the biggest portion of our sales profit, have slumped as well.“It is time to consider the entire business structure of the company.”Although Cho has taken the post to help lift the financially

Mar 25, 2015
Ex-IBK chief Cho installed as YTN head

Korean-Japanese becomes KGA director

Choi Jong-taeBy Jhoo Dong-chanKorean-Japanese Choi Jong-tae, 64, chairman of Japanese recreation giant Yamazen Kosan, was appointed a board director of the Korea Golf Association (KGA), Friday. “This year marks the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic normalization between Korea and Japan. I would like to help two countries ease their strained ties with an amateur golf tournament this year,” Choi said upon being elected to the post.Born in Japan in 1952, he took over his father’s transport business and has proved his business talent, expanding into the pachinko and leisure industry. The pachinko is a coin-operated amusement device that is very popular in Japan.He then served various social posts, including vice president of the Junior Chamber International Korea and chairman of the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan.Choi himself was also an athlete. He was once nominated to the Japanese junior football team when Choi was a high school student. However, due to his nationality ― “Zainichi” Korean ― Choi did not join the team.Zain

Mar 24, 2015By Jhoo Dong-chan
Korean-Japanese becomes KGA director

New Sejong Center CEO emphasizes cultural values

Lee Seung-yeop, CEO of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, explains at a press conference, Tuesday, his plans to improve the quality of the theater’s artistic content. / YonhapBy Kwon Mee-yooLee Seung-yeop, CEO of the Sejong Center, vowed to improve the quality of the theater’s artistic content at a press conference Tuesday.The Sejong Center, located in the heart of Seoul, is one of the top art complexes in Korea, including a 3,000-seat grand theater, a medium-sized theater, a concert hall and galleries. It opened in 1978.The new CEO, who took the post on Feb. 11, announced four major strategies to rebuild the center into one of the most prestigious performing art venues in Korea."The Sejong Center has been out of the limelight for the past few years, which resulted in less loyalty," Lee said. "I will promote the brand of the Sejong Center for its cultural and artistic value, so that citizens can have faith in the quality of performances and exhibits held here."His plan includes scheduling annual programs in advance and producing more performances with its nin

Mar 24, 2015
New Sejong Center CEO emphasizes cultural values
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