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Strawberry beers developed at Gyeonggi agriculture lab

Mimiberry and NYJ-Strawberry are new fruity beer brands developed by the Gyeonggi Agricultural Technology Institute and manufactured by two local breweries. Courtesy of Gyeonggi Provincial GovernmentBy Ko Dong-hwanA new breed of strawberry-flavored beers has been developed by an agricultural research lab in Gyeonggi Province, expanding the domestic beer market where flavored beers are hard to find.The Agricultural Produce Research Division under the provincial government's Research and Development Bureau said Monday that Mimiberry and NYJ-Strawberry went on sale to the public on Saturday. The technology behind the beers was developed by the Gyeonggi Agricultural Technology Institute in the city of Hwaseong. Eight People Brewery in Namyangju manufactured Mimiberry and Vaneheim Brewery from the same city that made NYJ-Strawberry. The institute developed new technology to further expand the market for local strawberries. Mimiberry is a mixture of strawberries and rice-fermented beers that used Chamdream, a new rice breed developed by the provincial authority. The beer contains 30 percen

Jun 20, 2023By Ko Dong-hwan
Strawberry beers developed at Gyeonggi agriculture lab

PPP lawmaker quits party over illegal political fund allegations

This photo shows Rep. Hwangbo Seung-hee of the ruling People Power Party debating during the Whole House Committee meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul, April 11. YonhapRep. Hwangbo Seung-hee of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) said Monday she will voluntarily leave the party and will not run in next year's parliamentary elections amid suspicions of accepting illegal political funds.Hwangbo has been under a police investigation for allegedly accepting the funds from regional politicians prior to the 2020 parliamentary election and the 2022 regional election, in return for nominating them for district council and city council seats in her constituency located in the southeastern port city of Busan.Additional allegations have emerged surrounding the lawmaker's personal life involving her boyfriend, who's accused of using the lawmaker's official vehicle and aides for personal purposes."I have decided to leave the PPP and will not run in the 22nd general elections," Hwangbo said on her social media account, while also offering an apology to her constituents.The lawmaker has denie

Jun 19, 2023
PPP lawmaker quits party over illegal political fund allegations

DPK leader vows to give up immunity from arrest

Main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) leader Lee Jae-myung gives a speech as the representative of the parliamentary negotiating body of the DPK, at the National Assembly in Seoul, June 19. YonhapOpposition leader Lee Jae-myung said Monday he will give up his immunity from arrest as a lawmaker, accusing the government of President Yoon Suk Yeol of unfair investigations of him and other political opponents.Lee, chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), made the pledge during an address at the National Assembly, claiming that the Yoon administration is bent on "raids, arrests and political strife" without taking care of the economy and diplomacy.Lee said the prosecution has conducted more than 300 raids in a probe targeting him while investigating almost all the people close to him during his years as mayor of Seongnam, south of Seoul, and governor of Gyeonggi Province."I think they are trying to cause discord and division in the Democratic Party of Korea," Lee said during his address as leader of a parliamentary negotiating bloc. "I won't give them a p

Jun 19, 2023
DPK leader vows to give up immunity from arrest

NIS director's job at stake over personnel issues

National Intelligence Service Director Kim Kyou-hyun attends a meeting of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee in Seoul, March 7. Korea Times photo by Koh Young-kwonBy Nam Hyun-wooThe National Intelligence Service (NIS) is in trouble over its Director Kim Kyou-hyun's human resources (HR) policies and subsequent unrest over the spy agency's personnel allocation. Reportedly, chiefs of the NIS' key overseas stations ― in the United States and Japan ― have been summoned back home due to troubles related to human resources. The presidential office is now inspecting the NIS' HR policies, and reports are alleging that President Yoon Suk Yeol has ordered Kim to “keep his hands off” personnel issues, sparking up questions over whether the director will retain his job. According to sources at the presidential office, its civil discipline office is now looking into the NIS' personnel management issues. “Though I cannot confirm details, it is true that the office is now taking the matter very seriously,” an official said. The move came after reports that Yoon revo

Jun 19, 2023By Nam Hyun-woo
NIS director's job at stake over personnel issues

DPK's new revamp team draws criticism for controversial remarks

By Nam Hyun-wooKim Eun-kyung, main opposition Democratic Party of Korea's innovation committee head / Korea Times fileThe main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is struggling to find a way out of a quagmire involving the party's innovation committee, as its new head, Kim Eun-kyung, drew criticism for her controversial remarks about the DPK's cash-for-votes scandal ahead its race to elect a new chairman in 2021.“The innovation committee head said in an interview that the cash-for-votes scandal could have been made up by the prosecution, which could offer a way for the criminals involved to evade punishment,” ruling People Power Party senior spokesperson Rep. Yoo Sang-bum said in a statement on Sunday.“Criticism aimed at the innovation committee is escalating within the DPK itself,” Yoo added.The DPK established the innovation committee as part of efforts to rebuild the party's reputation in the aftermath of a slew of scandals, including the cash-for-votes controversy involving ex-party leader Song Young-gil. DPK Chairman Lee Jae-myung has said that the

Jun 19, 2023By Nam Hyun-woo
DPK's new revamp team draws criticism for controversial remarks

ANALYSIS Neither Seoul, Beijing want to further escalate tensions

Main opposition Democratic Party of Korea Chairman Lee Jae-myung, right, talks with Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming at the ambassador's residence in Seoul, June 8. YonhapS. Korea advised to maintain 'strategic ambiguity' stance at least regarding Taiwan Strait issueBy Kim Yoo-chulSouth Korea's pursuit of balance in its relationship with China and the U.S. was quite consistent throughout the former Moon Jae-in administration, as the former president believed that Beijing could significantly help Seoul improve its ties with Pyongyang ― a top foreign policy priority at the time.As Moon was determined to mend ties with Beijing, he developed the Three Nos stance ― no additional deployments of the U.S.' terminal high altitude area defense (THAAD) battery missile shield system in South Korea, no participation in a U.S.-led missile defense network and no establishment of a trilateral military cooperative with the U.S. and Japan.However, the incumbent Yoon Suk Yeol administration is favoring strategic clarity over strategic ambiguity by aligning ever more closely with Washingto

Jun 19, 2023By Kim Yoo-chul
[ANALYSIS] Neither Seoul, Beijing want to further escalate tensions

Gov't, PPP agree on expanding public disclosure of violent criminals' personal info

Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), speaks during a policy consultation meeting between the PPP and top government officials held at the prime minister's official residence in Seoul, Sunday. YonhapThe government and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) agreed Sunday to enact a special bill aimed at expanding the disclosure of personal data of violent crime assailants to the public, in response to heightened public concern over a series of heinous crimes.The agreement was discussed during a policy consultation meeting between the PPP and top government officials, including Prime Minster Han Deok-soo and Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon.According to the agreement, the plan will further include suspects involved in grave crimes, such as terrorism, organized gangs, drugs, and sex crimes targeting children, as well as violence targeting random female victims.Rep. Yoo Sang-bum, a PPP spokesperson, told reporters after the meeting that the goal of the bill is to expand the scope of disclosure, as the two sides "acknowledge the gravity of heinous crimes."The bi

Jun 18, 2023
Gov't, PPP agree on expanding public disclosure of violent criminals' personal info

Yoon to give speech promoting Expo bid at BIE meeting in Paris

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a meeting discussing plans to organize the 2030 World Expo in the southeastern port city of Busan, in May, 2022. YonhapPresident Yoon Suk Yeol will give a speech promoting Korea's bid to host the 2030 World Expo during a general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the international body in charge of overseeing the event, in Paris this week, his office said Sunday.Yoon will deliver the speech in English on Tuesday, the first day of the two-day assembly to be held in Issy-les-Moulineaux, a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris.Korea is bidding to host the Expo in its southeastern city of Busan in a competition against Rome, Italy; Odesa, Ukraine; and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia."President Yoon Suk Yeol, who will appear as the last speaker, plans to conduct the presentation in English, and by strongly expressing the Republic of Korea's commitment to hosting the World Expo in Busan, draw the enthusiastic response and support of member states," the presidential office said in a press release, referring to Korea by its for

Jun 18, 2023
Yoon to give speech promoting Expo bid at BIE meeting in Paris

Yoon's remarks on college entrance exam cause confusion among students, parents

gettyimagesbankYoon's office says he was not talking about difficulty level of examBy Jun Ji-hyePresident Yoon Suk Yeol's comments regarding the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), which were construed as instructing the education ministry to make the test easier, are causing confusion among students and parents, just five months before the state-administered college entrance exam is to be held. The remarks in question were made on Thursday, when Education Minister Lee Ju-ho said during a media briefing that he was instructed by the president to exclude what is not taught at schools from the annual exam, as part of educational reforms.One of the top three reforms being pursued by the Yoon administration, along with labor and pensions, is overhauling Korea's education system.Students and parents say the president has aggravated their worries by making the controversial remarks, which could exert an influence on the difficulty level of the CSAT, which is regarded as one of the most important academic events in a Korean person's life.Education Minister Lee Ju-ho speaks during a medi

Jun 16, 2023By Jun Ji-hye
Yoon's remarks on college entrance exam cause confusion among students, parents

Yoon did not mean making college entrance exam easier: presidential office

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a ceremony to mark the promotion of Gangwon Province to a special self-governing province at a university in Chuncheon, 75 kilometers northeast of Seoul, June 9. YonhapPresident Yoon Suk Yeol did not mean making the annual college entrance exam easier when he said the test should exclude what is not taught at schools, his office said Friday, after the remark sparked confusion about how easy or difficult the test will be.Yoon instructed Education Minister Lee Ju-ho the previous day to exclude material not covered by public education from the College Scholastic Ability Test, or Suneung in Korean, amid criticism the test includes extremely hard questions that students without private tutoring cannot solve.The remark led to criticism there could be confusion among students ahead of the November exam, with one newspaper running the headline "Make Suneung easier.""President Yoon Suk Yeol was not talking about an 'easy Suneung' or a 'hard Suneung,'" senior presidential secretary for press affairs Kim Eun-hye said in a written briefing."A fair assessment

Jun 16, 2023
Yoon did not mean making college entrance exam easier: presidential office
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