Politics

Seoul prudent about North Korea humanitarian aid

Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul welcomes David Beasley, executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme, to his office in Seoul, Monday, ahead of their discussions on providing humanitarian food aid to North Korea. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungThe government will only provide humanitarian food aid to North Korea after establishing a national consensus, Cheong Wa Dae said Monday. This shows the government is becoming prudent in providing aid after Pyongyang lambasted the plan through its propaganda media outlets Sunday.“President Moon Jae-in said in a recent televised talk show on KBS that the government needs to win public consensus and hold discussions with the National Assembly before pushing ahead with the plan,” Cheong Wa Dae spokeswoman Ko Min-jung told reporters in a media briefing.The President has asked for a meeting with leaders of five parties, and the next concrete step for the food aid plan can be discussed afterwards, Ko said.The meeting, however, is not expected to be realized in the immediate future, as the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP

NK resumes bellicose rhetoric against South

A suspected short-range missile is launched into the sea off North Korea's east coast on May 9. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungNorth Korea is stepping up criticism of the South for “being too passive” in handling inter-Korean affairs by “walking on eggshells” around the United States, the North's propaganda outlets said Monday. “The North doubts whether the South is willing to fulfill inter-Korean agreements, as the latter keeps a low profile in dealing with inter-Korean issues and pays too much attention to outside forces,” one such outfit named Maeari said in a statementThe criticism came a day after the propaganda outlet denounced South Korea over its food aid plans for the North. Pyongyang said Seoul's plan to provide humanitarian aid was nothing more than a show while the crucial nuclear talks on the Korean Peninsula have not been settled.Starting this month, inter-Korean relations began to deteriorate at a rapid pace, with the North launching missiles into the East Sea.The military provocation came about a year after President Moon Jae-in and North Ko

Ex-US President George W. Bush to visit Korea for Roh's memorial service

Former U.S. President George W. Bush. ReutersFormer U.S. President George W. Bush plans to visit South Korea next week to attend a memorial service to mark the 10th anniversary of former President Roh Moo-hyun's death, an official said Monday.Bush is expected to participate in the memorial event to be held on May 23 at Bongha Village in Gimhae, some 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, hometown of the late president, according to a foundation set up in honor of Roh.Bush was Roh's U.S. counterpart during the South Korean president's presidency from 2003 to 2008."His attendance of the memorial service has been confirmed. We will reveal details later this week," an official at the Roh Moo-hyun foundation said.In May 2009, Roh jumped to his death off a cliff behind his retirement home amid a widening probe by prosecutors over allegations that members of his family accepted illicit funds.Bush's planned visit is believed to be arranged by local arms manufacturer Poongsan Corp., which has long ties with the Bush family.He reportedly will visit Seoul for affairs related to the company. Bush's

Korea to step up anti-corruption drive

These are questions and answers from an interview The Korea Times and its sister paper, Hankook Ilbo, conducted with Park Un-jong, chairwoman of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC). ― ED.By Lee Min-hyungPark Un-jong, chairwoman of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Q: This May marks the second anniversary since the Moon administration took office. Could you evaluate how well the government has carried out its anti-corruption policies over the past two years?A: Anti-corruption reform has topped the list of the state management for the past two years. The Moon administration started these efforts amid hopes to build a transparent society. For this reason, I think anti-corruption reform is the calling of the times. To meet public expectations, we have overhauled anti-corruption policies across the country and eradicated many unfair practices on public demand. One noteworthy achievement can be a restoration of anti-corruption systems in government agencies. We have improved related laws, corrupt hiring practices and the Corruption Perceptions Ind

INTERVIEW 'Culture of integrity' key to fighting corruption

Park Un-jong, chairwoman of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC), speaks in an interview with The Korea Times and Hankook Ilbo at her office in Seoul on May 8. She underlined the need to build a culture of integrity across society to root out corruption. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoonMarking the second anniversary of the Moon Jae-in administration, The Korea Times, jointly with the Hankook Ilbo, interviewed Cabinet ministers to review his government’s policies on tackling corruption to create a more just society, as well as other pending issues. This is the first of the interviews. ― ED.By Lee Min-hyungThe end goal of the nation's anti-corruption policy drive should be to establish a culture of integrity in the private sector, but the ongoing government-led institutional reforms focus mainly on the public area, according to Park Un-jong, chairwoman of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC).“The government has carried out anti-corruption policies with a focus on the public sector, so there is still much to be desired in the private

Korean hostage in Burkina Faso rescued by French forces

A Korean woman arrives at the Villacoublay Air Base in the southwest of Paris, Sunday, along with French President Emmanuel Macron on her right. She was rescued about a month after having been taken hostage by armed militants in the West African nation of Burkina Faso. AP-YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungAn unnamed Korean woman arrived at a French air force base, Sunday, about a month after having been taken hostage in the West African nation of Burkina Faso, according to Korea's foreign ministry.“The Korean national arrived safely at around 1 a.m. Sunday (KST) at the base and she was taken to a military hospital for a medical examination,” a ministry spokesman said. The French medical authority said they did not find any health problems, so she will leave the hospital soon.She was among the four former hostages rescued by French Special Forces last week from militants in the African country. Two French soldiers died while carrying out the rescue mission in northern Burkina Faso.French President Emmanuel Macron met with the rescued ex-hostages at the Villacoublay Air Base southwest

Facebook sues South Korea data analytics firm

CEO and co-founder of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg waves to journalists as he leaves the Elysee Palace after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron (unseen) in Paris, May 10. EPA-Yonhap Facebook has filed a lawsuit against South Korean data analytics firm Rankwave to ensure it does not break agreements the two signed up to, the U.S. company said Friday.The lawsuit was filed in a California State court in Silicon Valley to enforce the terms the company agreed to in order to operate apps on the social network, according to Facebook's director of platform and litigation, Jessica Romero.Facebook was looking into Rankwave's data practices relating to advertising and marketing and the South Korean company didn't co-operate with efforts to confirm it was complying with the policies all developers agree to when synching with the platform, Romero said in an online post.Facebook suspended apps and accounts associated with Rankwave, and asked the court to order it to abid

Ruling DPK to push forward NK food aid

Liberty Korea Party Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn speaks during a meeting with citizens in Yeongcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, Friday. Hwang, who has embarked on a nationwide tour on Tuesday to protest the government, said he is against President Moon Jae-in's idea of having a meeting with him and other political parties over giving food assistance to North Korea. Yonhap By Park Ji-wonThe ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) said Friday it will begin discussions with party leaders regarding the provision of food aid to North Korea, after President Moon Jae-in continued to push the plan despite repeated missile launches by Pyongyang.The DPK said it welcomed President Moon's idea of sending food to the impoverished North to build mutual trust.“We should build more trust between the Koreas by giving immediate humanitarian assistance to the North. The North's military acts are against peace building on the peninsula. But food assistance should be regarded as separate from

Water fun

Reporter at center of national attention for being 'rude'to president

KBS reporter Song Hyeon-jeong asks a question to President Moon Jae-in during a TV interview on Thursday. Screengrab of KBS By Oh Young-jin KBS reporter Song Hyeon-jeong is taking a great deal of flak for her alleged lack of respect during a televised one-on-one interview with President Moon Jae-in on Thursday night.Such is the controversy that Song has found herself in the crosshairs of ideological warfare between the liberals and conservatives, pushing the story to the top 10 on news portal Naver. Song occasionally cut President Moon in mid-sentence when he showed signs of procrastinating during the 86-minute live interview aired on the state-run channel. She also quoted the conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party calling the liberal president a "dictator" for his alleged role in the ruling Democratic Party of Korea's fast-track action on Moon's key campaign pledge to establish an anti-corruption agency targeting high-ranking public servants. Moon supporters f