my timesThe Korea Times
Lifestyle

People & Events

Official-Turned-CEO Upgrading Hynix

By Cho Jin-seo Staff Reporter When Hynix Semiconductor Chief Executive Kim Jong-kap had a ``samgyeopsal'' dinner with a group of employees last week in Seoul, he was surprised that about a half of them are living in Icheon, not Seoul. ``I had thought that most of them would have homes in Seoul,'' Kim said. ``Then one man said, ``Mr. president, I couldn't afford a house in Seoul because I lost a lot of money from company stock options. So please let them go up this time.''' The stock options were issued to employees in 1999 at what was later seen as a bubble price. Some employees were thrown into debt as the stock value shrank to less than one hundredth by 2003 from the 1999 price. Despite such bad memories, the firm offered more stock options to employees this month. ``Having had the experience, the workers now know the risk of the options. But I think they will all sign up this time because we are a completely different company from what we were then,'' Kim said. Hynix was on the verge of bankruptcy in 2003 but has successfully rebounded to become one of the

Jul 15, 2007

Korean Jazz Vocalist at Newport

By Seo Dong-shin Staff Reporter Jazz vocalist Sunny Kim will become the first Korean to appear on stage at the JVC Jazz Festival in Newport, United States, next month. The 28-year-old will perform with the Roswell Rudd Quartet on Aug. 11, showcasing eight songs in an hour long set at the prestigious festival. Formerly known as the Newport Jazz Festival, the event has featured such legendary vocalists and musicians as Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Duke Ellington over its 52-year history. While Kim, whose Korean name is Kim Yun-sun, is relatively unknown in her home country, she has gained recognition in the United States where she studied. Growing up in Malaysia where she moved with her parents at the age of 14, she discovered jazz music as a means of expression when she found herself caught between the walls of unfamiliar languages and cultures. She went on to study music at the University of Denver in the US at the age of 19. After graduating with a master's degree from the New England Conservatory in Jazz Studies, she

Jul 15, 2007

Ex-Chief Justice Min Dies

By Kang Shin-who Staff Reporter Min Bok-ki, former chief justice of the Supreme Court, died of old age Friday morning at Seoul National University Hospital. He was 94. After retiring, Min worked as a consultant for a law firm, BAE, KIM & Lee, from 1987. Min is remembered for his unique career, heading three organizations: the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice and the Prosecutors’ Office. Born in 1913, Min graduated from Kyungsung Imperial College with a degree in law and passed the bar exam in 1938. In 1939, Min began his career presiding as a judge. He also worked for the Prosecutors’ Office from 1947 for three years and served as secretary to the President, top prosecutor and minister of Justice between 1963 and 1966. After that, he came back to serve the courts as the fifth and sixth chief justice of the Supreme Court for 10 years, from 1968. Min is survived by two sons and two daughters. He will be buried in the Seoul National Cemetery on Monday. kswho@koreatimes.co.kr

Jul 15, 2007

Best Selling Author Imparts Harsh Reality of Life

By Park Chung-a Staff Reporter Kim Hoon has become one of the most significant novelists in South Korea since he first made his debut seven years ago upon ending a 27-year career as a newspaper journalist. With polished and unsentimental writing style, Kim won three prestigious literary awards and now is one of the best-selling novelists, injecting fresh air into the domestic literary scene which has been dominated by Japanese novels. His novels often investigate the intensity of human emotions in dire circumstances with subtlety and insight. His latest history-inspired work, ``Namhan Fortress (Namhansanseong),’’ focusing on the 47 days King Injo of the Joseon Kingdom and his aristocrat subjects spent in isolation inside the fortress surrounded by the enemy, has maintained its top spot on best-seller lists for seven consecutive weeks since its publication in April. He had just returned from a promotional event at a major bookstore when he sat down for an interview with The Korea Times last week. Rejecting Nationalism, Romanticism Asked why he thinks his novels a

Jul 13, 2007

Lee Won-hee to Head Teachers’ Association

By Bae Ji-sook Staff Reporter Lee Won-hee, Korean language teacher at Jamsil High School in Seoul, was elected as the 33rd president of the Korean Federation of Teachers' Association (KFTA) on Thursday. Lee is the first schoolteacher to be elected as the head of the association. The group announced that Lee has gained 46.7 percent of a total of 157,245 votes. Lee, famous for his broadcasted lectures at local education TV channel EBS, had worked as an advisory member for the president and served as the vice president of KFTA. Lee and his staff _ Prof. Park Yong-jo of Chinju National University of Education, Choi Jung-hee of Pungam Elementary School and three others _ have pledged to put his three-year tenure in making the association powerful and pride-worthy. Lee said that he will try to increase the membership to 250,000, about 60 percent of the nation's entire teachers. The new president said he is against the revision of the Pension Law for Public Servants and will openly support one candidate for the December presidential election. He has many pending issu

Jul 12, 2007

Air Force Chief Visits Spain, Poland

By Jung Sung-ki Staff Reporter Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kim Eun-ki Thursday began a six-day trip to Spain and Poland to discuss cooperation between their air forces, the Air Force said. Kim is scheduled to meet with his counterparts from Spain and Poland to promote South Korea's indigenous trainer jets _ KT-1 Woongbi and T-50 Golden Eagle _ and ask their support for the upcoming Seoul Air Show, it said in a press release. ``Kim's visit is expected to be a stepping stone for South Korea to develop military ties with European nations,'' an Air Force spokesman said. It is the first visit by South Korea's Air Force Chief of Staff to Poland since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1989, he said. gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr

Jul 12, 2007

Biennale Director Sacked for Academic Forgery

By Seo Dong-shin Staff Reporter Gwangju Biennale Thursday withdrew its decision to appoint Shin Jeong-ah, an assistant professor at Dongguk University as the artistic director of the 2008 biennale due to her forgery of academic records. ``We're sorry to those who have nurtured the Gwangju Biennale as it is today _ Gwangju citizens and people who love culture and arts,'' said Han Kap-su, executive chairman of the nation's foremost art biennale, in a press conference in Gwangju. Claiming the executive board of the biennale knew nothing about Shin's forgery, he said, ``We're seeking to take legal action against Shin.'' In a series of dramatic revelations, elite academic records of Shin all turned out to be false. She has been known as ``Cinderella'' in art circles because she reached several coveted major positions at age 35. Her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Kansas did not exist; she dropped out after attending from spring in 1992 to fall in 1996, according to the university spokesman. Therefore she could not have had a doctor's degree from t

Jul 12, 2007

Trade Remedy Panel Chief Vows to Improve Fairness

By Ryu Jin Staff Reporter South Korea needs an organization that will fairly protect domestic industries from unfair trade practices by foreign players in the era of free trade and the Korea Trade Commission (KTC) aims to do just that, striving to be one with the highest level of credibility, its new chairman says. Dr. Bark Tae-ho, 55, dean of the Graduate School of International Studies at Seoul National University, who was designated as the new KTC chairman late last month, laid great emphasis on ``fairness’’ and ``expertise’’ as the most required virtues of the country’s trade remedy agency. ``We need to continue our efforts to improve our expertise, objectivity and fairness in trade to remain as an impartial judge in the case of unfair trade actions such as dumping or subsidies,’’ Bark said in an interview with The Korea Times Wednesday. Set up in July 1987, the KTC is a quasi-judicial agency that determines the impact of dumped or subsidized imports on domestic industries. It also directs actions against certain unfair international trade practices such as infringem

Jul 12, 2007

Qatari Royal Guards Trained in Seoul

By Kim Yon-se Staff Reporter Royal guards of Qatar are staying at Cheong Wa Dae to benchmark the presidential security skills of South Korea. As of June 25, the presidential office has been offering its security personnel to a 22-member Qatari royal guard group. When President Roh Moo-hyun visited the Middle East country last March, the royal guards expressed their willingness to study Cheong Wa Dae guards’ upgraded security system, presidential aides said. They are learning martial arts, such as taekwondo, judo and Oriental fencing, and observing on-the-spot security actions by Korean presidential guards. All of the 22 royal guards are composed of best-performing soldiers, who were directly interviewed by Qatar’s king for selection, according to the aides. A trainee said the most impressive education was the skill of eliminating possible risks including gunmen without agitating normal spectators. Mentioning taekwondo, he said the martial arts of Qatar are not systematic compared with those of Korea. According to Cheong Wa Dae officials, Korean guards put prio

Jul 11, 2007

Sungshin Ambassadors Produce School News

This is the last in a series of interviews with student ambassadors of universities in the country. _ ED. By Kang Shin-who Staff Reporter Sungshin Women’s University ambassadors don’t merely want to get to the heart of the news, rather they want to use news to promote the school. This is how the Sungshin student ambassador group, ``Forus,’’ differentiates itself from other school ambassadors. Forus members are assigned to publish newsletters of the school, ``S Story.’’ This is why students who want to become a member of the group also need to possess superior writing skills. To publish the newsletter, which is distributed every quarter, the ambassadors interview popular professors, notable students or famous alumni. Also, they have to take pictures and design the paper. ``It is hard but meaningful job. Our newsletter is very unique compared to those of other schools; you can read all news on one page,’’ said Kim Bo-bin, 23 former Forus vice president who is studying economics. ``We can inform more about our school as we cover school stories and interview school m

Jul 11, 2007
previous page
568569570571572
next page

Most Read in Lifestyle