Granted we now live in the age of radical social change, but we should keep the beautiful custom of respecting older people.When planning the agenda for the Seoul International Forum for Literature last May, the organizing committee encountered one minor problem: Who should have the honor of proposing a toast at the welcome reception among the 14 distinguished international guests? A committee mem

British police under scrutiny as scandal grows biggerLONDON (AFP) ― British lawmakers were to grill police chiefs Tuesday amid reports that royalty and ex-prime minister Gordon Brown were targeted in a phone-hacking scandal that felled Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World.Four past and present senior Scotland Yard officers were due to appear before a home affairs committee as the scandal spiraled an

LONDON (AP) ― WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was due back in court Tuesday for the latest installation of his fight against extradition to Sweden, where the 40-year-old Australian is accused of rape and molestation.Assange’s disclosures of classified U.S. documents has infuriated the Pentagon, embarrassed State Department diplomats and energized critics of American foreign policy, but allegation

Work will begin on a museum of Hangeul, the Korean writing system, at the National Museum of Korea in Seoul on Wednesday.The Hangeul Museum will be a three-story building with 4,200 square meters of space for exhibition rooms, lecture rooms, seminar rooms, a cafeteria and a souvenir shop, the ministry said. The building will also have a parking lot in the basement. An artist’s rendition of the Han

Yamaha Korea CEO targets Korean musicians with Austrian premium pianoBösendorfer, a premium piano brand from Austria, has been added to the list of other well-known piano brands such as Steinway and Bechstein for professional pianists in Korea, as Yamaha Music Korea, the brand’s exclusive distributor, launched it Thursday in Seoul.Bösendorfer was established in 1828 in Vienna, Austria and currentl

NEW YORK (AP) ― An oil painting recently authenticated as the work of Leonardo da Vinci will be on display at the National Gallery in the fall as part of a larger exhibition on the Renaissance artist, the London museum said Monday.“Salvator Mundi,” which dates to around 1500, depicts a half-length figure of Christ with one hand raised in blessing and the other holding an orb.The National Gallery s

SYDNEY (AFP) ― Australia’s Aboriginal dance company Bangarra has won global accolades but says it has been a victim of its own success in terms of funding at home and at times faces demands for “ooga booga” abroad.Formed in 1989, the Bangarra Dance Theatre is the country’s foremost indigenous performing arts company and is often called on to be Australia’s cultural ambassador at major events.But t