Amid debate over recent demands to close down the prosecution’s core investigation unit, the parliamentary subcommittee on judicial reform is considering banning prosecutors from working in the Justice Ministry.The committee met on Wednesday to discuss the possible revision of the current prosecutor’s office law, officials said.The bill would forbid prosecutors from working in the ministry and est

The Seoul Metropolitan Government unveiled Wednesday a road map to make life “smarter” by expanding IT services.Currently, free wireless Internet services are available in 83 percent of the city, with the number of smart device users exceeding the 10 million mark in March. The South Korean capital, one of the most-wired cities in the world, plans to extend the free Wi-Fi network at all public buil

Ruling bloc prefers fees help tailored toward disadvantaged studentsDebate over college tuition cuts once again picked up momentum in the parliamentary interpellation on social, education and culture issues on Thursday.The opposition parties called for an immediate tuition cut, whereas the ruling party claimed that an unconditional cut could lower the education level.“Some 7 trillion won or half o

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― The U.S. House of Representatives will consider a bipartisan bill on reinforcing sanctions on North Korea, along with Iran and Syria, for their proliferation activities, a senior congresswoman said Tuesday.The bill, co-drafted by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Florida), who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-California) calls for the expans

North Korea has trained its special forces to be capable of infiltrating and striking more than 90 percent of targets in South Korea, a report said Tuesday, ringing alarm bells over the threat posed by the North’s elite troops. The report, released by retired one-star Army general Lee Won-seung, was based on a series of drills simulating an infiltration by North Korean special forces that hit targ

On the death penalty...China, India, the U.S., Japan and several other major countries still use the death penalty. Especially when you consider that technically Korea is still in a state of war, and does suffer the threat of attack, assassinations or sabotage from North Korean agents, I believe the death penalty is an appropriate deterrent/punishment to consider. Korea’s death penalty seems quite

Koreans are the most eager among global consumers to purchase a smartphone, Nielsen, a global information research firm, said on Wednesday.Half of South Korean consumers without the smart device responded in a survey by Nielsen that they would purchase a smartphone in the future.The figure was the highest among global consumers also surveyed by Nielsen, the company said.About one-fifth of the 50 m

Samsung Electronics is featuring high-quality solar cell technology at the Intersolar Europe 2011 held in Munich, Germany, from June 8-10.Under the catchphrase of “Samsung Delivers High Efficiency,” the company presented solar modules, which were made through screen-printed solar cells, according to Samsung officials.It will show 260-watt crystalline white commercial module and 250-watt premium bl

POSCO announced Wednesday it has acquired control of U.S. graphene nanoplate manufacturer XG Sciences, boosting the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker’s bid to transform into an all-round materials developer. Graphene is a transparent nano-carbon material that has electric conductivity and flexibility. It is widely used as an electrode in various industrial materials, energy and electronic devices.

LG Electronics said Wednesday that it will hire up to 800 disabled people by next year, double its existing number of disabled staff.The hiring will be part of the company’s plan to employ workers in the fields of research and development, production, marketing and business support until June 15. Applications will be accepted at the firm’s website (www.lge.co.kr).“LG Electronics expects to meet th

Regulator instructs savings banks to secure sufficient cashThe financial authorities are moving to extend the maturity of bad loans the government purchased from savings banks in a bid to ensure a soft landing for the distressed industry.Between 2008 and 2010, the state-run Korea Asset Management Corp. acquired bad loans of savings banks. The latter are supposed to repurchase the loans in three ye