The Korea Herald

Prosecutors set to summon Kwak

Social affairsAug 30, 2011

Seoul education chief uspected of bribing former election rivalSeoul’s education chief Kwak No-hyun may face subpoena as early as Wednesday in an intensifying probe into allegations that he bought a rival candidate out of race during last year’s election, sources at the prosecution said Tuesday. The
Lee to replace at least 4 ministers

PoliticsAug 30, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak is expected to name on Wednesday successors to ministers of health, unification, gender equality and perhaps culture, as three of the incumbents plan to run in the general elections seven months away. Ministers Lee Jae-oh of special affairs, Chung Byoung-gug of culture and Ch
Seoul calls for Tokyo to ‘look squarely at its past’

Foreign affairsAug 30, 2011

South Korea on Tuesday urged Japan’s new government to “look squarely at its past,” setting a brusque tone following reinforced Japanese moves to lay claim to the South’s easternmost islets of Dokdo. Japan’s parliament approved former finance minister Yoshihiko Noda as the new prime minister earlier
EU delegation to visit N.K. next month

North KoreaAug 30, 2011

An EU delegation will visit North Korea next month, a U.S.-funded radio station reported Tuesday, confirming the annual visit which had been cancelled last year after the North’s provocations on Seoul. The European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with the Korean Peninsula, led by Christian Ehl
Savings bank lobbyist to weigh on elections

PoliticsAug 30, 2011

Parties stirred uneasily as the prosecution continued its interrogation of Park Tae-gyu, the key lobbyist involved in the Busan Savings Bank.Park’s case, together with that of Seoul Educational Superintendent Kwak No-hyun’s bribery allegations, is shaking up the political landscape ahead of the upco
Gas pipeline to provide breakthrough in inter-Korean ties: GNP chief

Foreign affairsAug 30, 2011

Lee sought Russian pipeline project since taking office: GNP chiefThe purported project for Russia to pipe Siberian natural gas through North Korean territory into South Korea will help the two Koreas thaw the months-long ice and move on to a new chapter in ties, the leader of Seoul’s ruling party s
Samsung, SNU top patient survey on health checkups

Social affairsAug 30, 2011

Samsung Medical Center and Seoul National University Hospital Healthcare System Gangnam Center in southern Seoul were selected as the best hospitals for medical checkups in a Korea Consumer Agency survey. The agency said Tuesday that in a poll of 450 consumers, both Samsung and SNU hospitals scored
Standoff escalates over Jeju naval base

Social affairsAug 30, 2011

Court accepts government petition to prohibit obstruction of constructionCalls are mounting for a referendum on the ongoing construction of a Jeju Island naval base just one week after Seoul City’s failed vote on free school meals, which saw the mayor’s resignation,Ever since the Defense Ministry na
Children start learning English by age 4: report

Social affairsAug 30, 2011

Children in and around Seoul start learning to speak English at an average age of 3.7 years, the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education said. Its latest survey of 1,200 elementary school first- and second-graders in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, found that 92.7 percent received their first-ever
Judiciary pendulum set for conservative swing

Social affairsAug 30, 2011

The Aug. 18 announcement of the nominee for new Supreme Court chief justice came as a surprise to most reporters and judiciary members, who had been closely watching the selection process for the past weeks.Former Justice Yang Sung-tae was not considered to be on the shortlist, as he went on a trip
Samsung to aid retired cancer-diagnosed workers

IndustryAug 30, 2011

Samsung Electronics announced Tuesday it will support the treatment costs of workers at semiconductor and liquid crystal display manufacturing lines if diagnosed with cancer within three years of retirement.The company said it will pay the patient’s treatment costs for 10 years and provide 100 milli
Hyundai Group drops libel suit against Hyundai Motor Group

IndustryAug 30, 2011

Hyundai Group said Tuesday that it has decided to withdraw its lawsuit against Hyundai Motor Group in a sign of a thaw in their relations, long sour since an acquisition battle for Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co.In November, Hyundai Group filed a libel suit against Hyundai Motor for publishin
Medium-sized builders face crisis

IndustryAug 30, 2011

Troubled Prime Group companies headed for workout programThe fates of Prime Development Co. and affiliate Sam An Corp. will be decided Friday with their creditors set to decide on whether to allow them to begin debt workouts, sources said Tuesday.According to industry sources, Nonghyup and other cre
Smaller firms to get W19.4tr in financial support

Aug 30, 2011

The government will provide 19.4 trillion won ($18.06 billion) in loans and other financial support for small and medium enterprises as part of its efforts to stabilize the livelihoods of ordinary people ahead of the Chuseok holiday, the finance ministry said Tuesday.Under the plan, which was approv
Korean builders to spend $500,000 in Libyan aid

IndustryAug 30, 2011

Korea’s 16 construction firms on Tuesday unveiled a plan to provide $500,000 worth of humanitarian aid to Libya’s new leaders, joining the government’s efforts to step up economic and diplomatic ties.The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs named Hyundai Engineering & Construction and Da