Police were told Monday that there are situations when use of their weapons is appropriate. The National Police Agency Commissioner-General Cho Hyun-oh said in a meeting of high-ranking officials that police officers are encouraged to use weapons such as pistols, tear gas guns and taser guns in situations including those taking place in police stations, especially if they threaten the authority of

Looking at Internet cafes with many messages disparaging migrant workers based on their appearances and nationalities, Soe Moe Thu feels Korea still has a long way to go to establish a “mature” online culture.To maintain the country’s reputation for state-of-the-art Internet infrastructure, the Seoul government needs to make more efforts to ameliorate “online manners,” the 36-year-old Myanmarese s

Ministry seeks to dissuade patients from relying on top-tier hospitalsMore than 11 percent of Korea’s gross domestic product may be consumed by medical care in 2020, the Ministry of Health and Welfares said Monday, stressing the need to reform medical facilities nationwide. Snowballing medical expenses will burden the nation’s economy as the population ages, putting further pressure on the medical

The South Korean military is strengthening its protective facilities on the country’s five northwestern border islands with corrugated steel plates a military official said Monday.It has been bolstering its defense capabilities on the islands near the tense western sea border since the artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island in November last year, killing two soldiers and two civilians.Additional hi

Vocational high schools, mostly attended by students who intend to land jobs right after graduation, are losing their reputation as a sure path to employment. According to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, 463,888 students attended 692 vocational schools across the country in 2010, down from 578,865 students at 775 schools in 2001. While 54.7 percent of them got jobs after graduat

The wireless Internet connection through WiFi networks in public places is set to improve following joint efforts from the nation’s three telecommunication companies to set up more networks. Industry sources on Monday said the trio ― SK Telecom, KT Corp. and LG Uplus ― has already reached a consensus on the need to jointly establish networks at city halls, airports, train stations and government a

The buzz about the May 19 meeting of the Federation of Korean Industries’ executives has begun to fizzle as industry sources said chiefs of the nation’s top conglomerates are unlikely to attend. Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee, LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Hyundai Motor Chairman Chung Mong-koo have all tentatively notified the FKI that they will not be

Four major financial groups are expected to reap more than 10 trillion won ($9.3 billion) in combined net profit this year, mainly buoyed by revised accounting standards.The market is focusing on the growing feasibility of their all-time high earnings as they reported remarkable earnings during the first quarter.Profits posted by the four groups ― KB, Woori, Shinhan and Hana ― reached 2.6 trillion

U.S. urges Pakistan to investigate helperWASHINGTON (AP) ― Osama bin Laden benefited from “some sort of support network” inside Pakistan, President Barack Obama said in a Sunday broadcast interview, but he added it is not clear whether government officials knew the terrorist leader was living inside their country when U.S. commandos killed him in a raid last weekend.“We don’t know whether there mi

Inter-faith violence kills 12 and injures more than 100CAIRO (AP) ― Relations between Egypt’s Muslims and Christians degenerated to a new low Sunday after riots overnight left 12 people dead and a church burned, adding to the disorder of the country’s post-revolution transition to democracy.The attack on the church was the latest sign of assertiveness by an extreme, ultraconservative movement of M