The Korea Herald

S. Korea officially recognizes wartime kidnap victims

PoliticsAug 2, 2011

South Korea acknowledged Tuesday that 55 people were abducted by North Korea during the Korean War six decades ago, marking the first official recognition of kidnap victims.The announcement, intended to disclose the truth about kidnap victims during the 1950-53 war and restore their honor, came near
Seoul hits back at Tokyo’s renewed claim to Dokdo

Foreign affairsAug 2, 2011

Japan’s defense white paper lists Korean islets as its territorySouth Korea strongly protested against Japan’s move to claim Dokdo and will take strong countermeasures against any action to hurt its sovereignty, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. Japan described South Korea’s easternmost islets of D
Loan shark faces trial for massive spamming scheme

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

An illegal loan agent was indicted on charges of sending millions of spam messages to mobile phones to lure potential customers, prosecutors said Monday.The 34-year-old man, surnamed Kim, sent unwanted text messages to random cell phone users in violation of the local communications law, the Seoul C
Panel confirms 55 citizens abducted by N. Korea

PoliticsAug 2, 2011

A government panel to verify kidnappings of South Koreans by North Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War officially confirmed 55 South Korean abductees for the first time, the Prime Minister’s Office said Tuesday.The National Committee on Investigating Abductions during the Korean War, which is headed
N. Koreans apparently reaching outside world via Internet

North KoreaAug 2, 2011

More North Koreans are apparently surfing the Web to find out about their country’s ties with South Korea and the U.S., and other issues affecting them, according to the U.S.-funded Radio Free Asia.Questions have been raised over the surfers’ identities as the autocratic communist state has severely
DP slams P.M., Cheong Wa Dae over savings banks scandal

PoliticsAug 2, 2011

Opposition lawmakers once again lashed out at the presidential and prime minister’s offices for neglecting their supervisory duties during a special committee meeting on the savings banks state investigation on Tuesday. “President Lee Myung-bak promised in June to fully cooperate in the savings bank
Aid groups send flour to North Korea

North KoreaAug 2, 2011

Seoul considers sending emergency relief to flood-stricken northern neighborA South Korean nongovernmental organization sent 300 tons of flour aid to North Korea on Tuesday, following up on the first batch sent last week after an eight-month hiatus in humanitarian aid from the South.The Seoul govern
GNP chief vows to strengthen policies for ordinary people

PoliticsAug 2, 2011

The chief of the ruling Grand National Party said Tuesday that his party’s move to withdraw additional tax cuts for conglomerates is aimed at strengthening policies for ordinary working households.The tax cuts for businesses and high-earning individuals, which form the backbone of President Lee Myun
HUFS chief probed over misuse of funds

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

Hankuk University of Foreign Studies President Park Chul has received a summons from prosecutors on suspicion that he may have misappropriated school funds for personal use.The Seoul Northern District Prosecutors’ Office issued the summons to Park last week but Park hasn’t responded, an official fro
Military academy professor indicted for taking kickbacks

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

Prosecutors have indicted a professor at a military academy on charges of receiving 20 million won ($19,020) in kickbacks from a local defense firm in return for business favors, officials said Tuesday.The 60-year-old professor at the Korea Military Academy, indentified only by his surname Kim, was
Who’s at fault for Umyeon landslide?

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

Investigation finds some earth began to cascade near military baseLocal officials are playing a blame game over who’s at fault for the deaths of 18 citizens last week by multiple landslides from Mount Umyeon in the southern tip of Seoul. Seoul municipality and the ward of Seocho, which have bee
Measures drawn up to deal with natural disasters

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

Rainfall will be measured hourly through water level gauges at river basins all across the country to increase flood control measures, amid the erratic weather patterns, according to the state’s weather agency Tuesday.The Korea Meteorological Administration is increasing efforts to give citizens and
A low-trust society

Social affairsAug 2, 2011

Koreans’ lack of faith in strangers, foreigners holds country backA 25-year-old man surnamed Choi beat and raped his girlfriend in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, in July last year after she demanded they break up. When he faced police investigation, Choi’s mother, 50, hurt his son with a ston
Mainstream Japanese scholars doubt Tokyo's claim to Dokdo

InternationalAug 2, 2011

Despite the ongoing diplomatic tension over Japan's territorial claim to South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo, most mainstream Japanese scholars remain skeptical or cautious about the claim.In its latest provocation, Japan's government on Tuesday referred to Dokdo as Japanese territory again in
S. Korea to get tough on Japan's fresh claim to Dokdo

InternationalAug 2, 2011

Seoul will respond strongly to Tokyo's latest claim to the South Korean islets of Dokdo included in Japan's annual defense document, officials said Tuesday, in an indication of the country's growing intolerance for Japan's territorial claims.Japan approved its 2011 defense white paper earlier in the