Today on The Korea Times Podcast: The United States expresses its desire for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to adhere to past wartime apologies and an Army Colonel is suspected of rape. Plus health insurance reform won't get the once over and taxi drivers and passengers face stiff fines for behaving badly.
The United States supports Japan’s two landmark apologies on its wartime atrocities and aggression, even though Tokyo is contemplating changing the wording of the 1995 Murayama Statement. “We in the U.S. continue to have expressed support for the Kono and Murayama statements and continue to believe that those are important statements that undergird this issue,” said U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, Mark Lippert.
An Army colonel was arrested for allegedly raping a lower-ranking female solider, the Army headquarters announced Tuesday. “Military Police arrested him at about 3 p.m. after securing testimony that he raped a staff sergeant at his residence multiple times from late last month to early this month,” an Army official said.
Health and Welfare Minister Moon Hyung-pyo said Wednesday that the ministry has dropped a plan to reform the country’s healthcare insurance system this year. Speaking to reporters at the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS), Moon said he decided not to review the reform plan this year due to the “sensitive” nature of the policy, which was expected to increase the financial burden of middle- and upper-income groups.
Citizens have long complained about drivers who refuse to travel short distances in search of routes that will fetch higher fares. Starting this week, those caught refusing passengers three times over the course of two years will have their license revoked and face 600,000 won ($550) in fines, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. Offenders must wait a year before reapplying for a license.
But passengers also need to behave better. Starting from next month, passengers who vomit inside taxis will be fined 150,000 won.
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