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Yoon to pay visit to ex-President Park

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol gestures as he acknowledges his supporters at a market in Sangju, North Gyeongsang Province, southeastern Korea, April 11. Yoon traveled to the city as part of a two-day swing through the region that includes a meeting with former President Park Geun-hye in the nearby city of Daegu. Yonhap President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol was to pay a visit to former President Park Geun-hye in her hometown of Daegu, Tuesday, amid attention over whether they will be able to patch up their troubled relationship.Yoon led a 2016 investigation into a corruption scandal involving Park that led to her impeachment, ouster from office and imprisonment. Yoon said during the election campaign that even though he did what he was supposed to do as a prosecutor, he feels apologetic toward Park.Park was pardoned in December after serving four years and nine months of a 22-year sentence for corruption. After months of treatment at a Seoul hospital, she returned to a new r

Apr 12, 2022
Yoon to pay visit to ex-President Park

Presidential office relocation expected to usher in new era for Yongsan

The Ministry of National Defense's headquarters is seen from the top of Mount. Nam on April 12. Behind President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's new office in Seoul's Yongsan district are residential and commercial buildings to the south of the ministry's headquarters. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulRelocation move raises hopes among some, while others scratch headsBy Ko Dong-hwanLess than 300 meters from the main entrance of the Ministry of National Defense's headquarters in Yongsan district is a small Chinese restaurant that has been open more than 40 years. The owner of the restaurant sounded rather indifferent to the news about the presidential office moving close to her place of business from Cheong Wa Dae in Jongno district.But she added that she hopes the relocation will bring more customers to her restaurant.“I know I may sound greedy to think the relocation could bring more customers to our store,” she said. “But I just take in customers whether there are many of them or not. I don't know what will happen (after the relocation), so I can't say anything for sure n

Apr 12, 2022By Ko Dong-hwan
Presidential office relocation expected to usher in new era for Yongsan

Forest fire in Gangwon border town 95% extinguished

Firefighting helicopters drop water on wildfires in Yanggu, northeastern Korea, April 11. (Yonhap) Firefighting authorities mobilized all available manpower and equipment Tuesday to contain the main fires in the northeastern border town of Yanggu, which has been hit by a large-scale forest fire that has been burning for three days.According to the Korea Forest Service (KFS), 95 percent of the fires had been extinguished as of 6:30 a.m. in Yanggu, 175 kilometers northeast of Seoul and about 20 km south of the border with North Korea.The authorities deployed 30 helicopters and 788 firefighting personnel shortly after sunrise to completely put out the wildfires, KFS officials said.The forest fire, which began Sunday afternoon, has burned 720 hectares of woodland, but there have been no casualties or significant damage to facilities.The fire was reportedly caused by a resident burning fallen leaves in the mountainous town in Gangwon Province. A dry weather advisory has

Apr 12, 2022
Forest fire in Gangwon border town 95% extinguished

Yoon's selection of Cabinet members faces mixed outlook

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol raises his arms to greet citizens at a traditional market in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, Monday. Joint Press CorpsPresident-elect underscores expertise over diversityBy Nam Hyun-wooPresident-elect Yoon Suk-yeol has announced the first round of his Cabinet member picks, mostly from a group of people who helped his presidential campaign. Yoon said he chose the nominees based on their capabilities and expertise. But he also faces criticism for failing to reflect more diversity in the gender, birthplace and age of the nominees.According to Yoon's aides, the average age of eight ministerial nominees announced Sunday was 60.5, with three being in their 50s and five being in their 60s. None were in their 20s or 30s and only one woman ― gender equality minister nominee Kim Hyun-sook ― was included in the announcements. Of them, four were born in the Gyeongsang provinces and one was born in Daegu. The two regions are traditional conservative strongholds and no one from the Jeolla provinces, a liberal stronghold, was selected. Three others were from Seoul,

Apr 11, 2022By Nam Hyun-woo
Yoon's selection of Cabinet members faces mixed outlook

Judges question chief justice over cronyism allegations

Supreme Court Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su, center in blue tie, walks in to attend a regular meeting of the National Council of Representative Judges at the Judicial Research and Training Center in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Monday. YonhapBy Lee Hae-rinSupreme Court Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su is facing cronyism allegations, for favoring his close associates in personnel affairs of the judiciary.A group of delegate judicial officers across the country, the name of which would translate into English as the National Council of Representative Judges, submitted an official letter to the National Court Administration of the Supreme Court requesting an explanation for Kim's alleged bias in hiring. The top court responded by saying it does not see any problems.The court administration told the judges in a written reply that “Kim's personnel matters follow former practices and pose no particular problem.”However, the administration's response failed to convince judges and could lead to additional questioning and debates at the council's regular meeting, held at the Judicial Resear

Apr 11, 2022By Lee Hae-rin
Judges question chief justice over cronyism allegations

BTS will not perform at Yoon's inauguration

Park Joo-sun, center, chief of the preparatory committee for the inaugural ceremony of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, gives a briefing on his panel's preparations for the event at the office of the presidential transition committee in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap By Kang Seung-wooPresident-elect Yoon Suk-yeol's inauguration ceremony will not feature a performance by K-pop sensation BTS, his transition team said Monday, citing budget constraints and an intention to promote national unity instead of glitz during the event.The prospect of the K-pop sensation performing at the May 10 ceremony faced a backlash from fans critical of the incoming president attempting to use the boy band for political purposes.In addition, it remains to be seen if former President Park Geun-hye will attend the event, although Yoon is trying to rebuild relations with her. In 2016, Yoon was the lead prosecutor of an investigation into Park's corruption allegations that eventually led to her impeachm

Apr 11, 2022By Kang Seung-woo
BTS will not perform at Yoon's inauguration

Top prosecutor vows to fight against ruling party push to 'reform' prosecution

Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo speaks during a meeting of the chiefs of regional prosecution offices in Seoul, April 11. YonhapProsecutor General Kim Oh-soo on Monday publicly opposed the ruling Democratic Party's push to deprive the prosecution of its investigative power, saying he will have no reason to remain in the job if the proposed reform is realized.The DP has been pushing for what it calls a "complete deprivation of the prosecutorial investigative right" as part of efforts to reform the powerful law enforcement agency that has long been accused of abusing its power for political purposes.Ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on May 10, the liberal party is widely seen as quickening steps to complete its reform centered on weakening the state prosecution and eventually stripping it of its authority to investigate."There will no longer be any meaning in me carrying out my duties as prosecutor general if the prosecution's investigative power is abolished," Kim said during opening remarks at a meeting of the chiefs of regional prosecution offices held to oppo

Apr 11, 2022
Top prosecutor vows to fight against ruling party push to 'reform' prosecution

Transition team eyes scrapping 'Korean age'

Rep. Lee Yong-ho, chief of the presidential transition team's political, judicial and administrative subcommittee, speaks during a press briefing at its headquarters in Seoul, April 11. YonhapThe transition team of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol said Monday it will push to scrap the "Korean age" system to reduce the social cost of determining a person's age in multiple ways.In Korea, three age systems are currently in use. The most commonly used system is the so-called Korean age, under which a person turns 1 on the day they are born and adds a year on the first day of the new year.The second system is the internationally recognized system, whereby a person's age is determined on their birthday, while the third system adds a year to a person's age on the first day of the new year.For example, a person born on Dec. 31, 2020, is currently 3 in Korean age, 1 in the international age and 2 under the third system.Rep. Lee Yong-ho, chief of the transition team's political, judicial and administrative subcommittee, said the transition team is pushing to merge the three systems into a single

Apr 11, 2022
Transition team eyes scrapping 'Korean age'

Gender minister nominee will seek people's opinions on ministry's future

Kim Hyun-sook, the nominee for gender equality minister, speaks during a press conference at the transition team's headquarters in Seoul, April 10. Yonhap Gender Minister nominee Kim Hyun-sook is a tax and pension expert who was deeply involved in reforming pension policy during the previous conservative administration of President Park Geun-hye.If confirmed, Kim, 55, will be tasked with leading a ministry that President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol pledged to abolish during his campaign. The ministry has been the subject of a heated debate about whether it has been serving its proper function.But the ministry will be kept for now, along with the rest of the current government layout, as the Yoon administration seeks to avoid clashing with the National Assembly, where the outgoing administration's party holds a huge majority.Government reorganization can only take place through the passage of relevant legislation.When asked about the ministry's abolition, Kim said Sunday it

Apr 10, 2022
Gender minister nominee will seek people's opinions on ministry's future

Yoon expected to visit ex-President Park's home this week: sources

Former President Park Geun-hye expresses thanks to the people in a public statement upon arrival at her new residence in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, March 24. YonhapPresident-elect Yoon Suk-yeol reportedly plans to visit former President Park Geun-hye this week and is arranging last-minute details, according to informed sources Sunday.Yoon plans to embark on a national tour this week starting with a trip to the southeastern city of Daegu, Park's home city, where she settled last month after being released from prison under a presidential pardon and subsequently from a hospital.According to multiple sources familiar with Yoon's itinerary, the president-elect was reportedly arranging his schedule to visit Park's residence in Daegu, about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Tuesday.When asked whether Yoon plans to meet with the former president in Daegu, Bae Hyun-jin, Yoon's spokesperson, said Friday, "That is certainly under consideration, but nothing has been decided yet."In 2016, Yoon was the lead prosecutor for Park's corruption scandal that eventually led to her imp

Apr 10, 2022
Yoon expected to visit ex-President Park's home this week: sources
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