The state anti-corruption investigation office has checked the phone logs of 60 lawmakers of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), the party said Wednesday, accusing the powerful investigative agency of illegal surveillance. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) has come under fire following revelations that it obtained the phone records of journalists, politicians and their family members in an alleged attempt to identify the source of leaks to the media.

Lee Jae-myung, the presidential nominee of the ruling Democratic Party, on Tuesday expressed opposition to granting a pardon to former President Lee Myung-bak, saying it could hamper national unity in the long term. After the government decided to pardon former President Park Geun-hye last week, some conservative supporters have been demanding that Lee, currently serving a 17-year prison term over embezzlement and bribery charges, should also be released. "We first need to think about whe

Most South Koreans, especially younger people, don't like China even though the administration of President Moon Jae-in has pursued pro-China policies, main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday. Yoon of the People Power Party (PPP) made the remarks during a discussion hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in South Korea (AMCHAM) in his answer to a question about the country's dependence on exports to China. "The current government used policies skewed toward C

South Korea called Tuesday for Japan's retraction of a push to list a former mine linked to wartime forced labor as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, calling it "very deplorable." Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs has reportedly been pushing to register the Sado mine on the coveted list where Koreans were forced into hard labor during Tokyo's 1910-45 colonization of the Korean Peninsula. The move came as Seoul has repeatedly taken issue with Tokyo's failure to properly fulfill its pled

North Korea hit back Tuesday at a recent US decision to retain it on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, accusing Washington of having engaged in terrorist acts under the pretext of "counterterrorism." Earlier this month, the State Department unveiled its annual Country Reports on Terrorism 2020, which kept the North on the list, along with Iran and Syria. In a post on its foreign ministry website, Pyongyang criticized Washington for posing as the "judge of terrorism,"

With less than three months to go before the presidential election, slips of the tongue by candidates and election committee bigwigs are continuing to cause problems for their campaigns. The Korea Herald rounded up some of the more notable times the presidential candidates and politicians around them have put their respective feet in their mouths. 　 Lee Jae-myung, presidential candidate for ruling Democratic Party When and where: Social media, November 24 What: “One of my family memb

People Power Party election committee chief Kim Chong-in stepped in Tuesday to calm the conflict between the party’s presidential candidate and its chairman. Discord in the conservative main opposition party has continued since it chose Yoon Suk-yeol, a former prosecutor general, as its flagbearer in November. Acknowledging internal disputes made public by remarks of the party members, Kim said in an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper that he will step up to “control the

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday he feels sorry for former President Park Geun-hye over a corruption probe he conducted as a senior prosecutor a few years ago that eventually led to her impeachment. "Even though the investigation of former President Park was my job as a public official, I feel truly sorry politically and emotionally as a human being," Yoon of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) said during a discussion hosted by the Korea Broa

The annual salary of President Moon Jae-in for 2022 was set at 240.6 million won ($202,815) as the Cabinet approved the personnel and management ministry's pay raise plan for public servants Tuesday. According to the plan, public servants will get a 1.4 percent raise for their salary for 2022. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum will get an annual salary of 186.5 million won, while deputy prime ministers and chief state auditor will receive 141.1 million won next year. The annual salary of ministers

The government will buy 200,000 tons of locally produced rice this year to help stabilize the market price of the staple grain, the ruling party said Tuesday following a meeting with agriculture authorities. "Of the surplus amount of 270,000 tons of rice, the government will isolate 200,000 tons from the market in the near future," said Rep. Park Wan-joo, the chief policy maker of the ruling Democratic Party (DP). "The government will announce a detailed plan for the purchase of

Late former President Chun Doo-hwan described a military document recommending a crackdown on the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju as a “good idea,” a fact-finding panel said Monday. 　 　Marking the second anniversary of its launch, the May 18 Democratization Movement Truth Commission released interim results of a probe into the clampdown that led to the deaths of hundreds of protesters in the city, now the cradle of the country‘s democracy. 　 　T

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol visited the city of Seongnam on Monday to demand an independent investigation into a corruption scandal tied to a development project overseen by his ruling party rival Lee Jae-myung. Yoon of the People Power Party (PPP) renewed his demand for the appointment of a special counsel after arriving on the grounds of the apartment complex built in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, when Lee was the city's mayor. "A special counsel is the only an

President Moon Jae-in said Monday the life of South Africa's late Archbishop Desmond Tutu will be "remembered in the mind of humanity forever," paying his tributes to the passing of the anti-apartheid icon. In a statement, Moon praised Tutu, who died Sunday at the age of 90, for showing the power of "forgiveness and reconciliation" throughout revelations of the truth on apartheid-era crimes. Moon said Tutu inspired South Korean people in their efforts to show the truth an

South Korea said Monday it will inject 642.4 billion won ($541.1 million) on research and development (R&D) in strengthening safety of the country's nuclear reactors by 2029. The budget is part of a five-year plan for 2022-2026 that is focused on reinforcing safety of the country's nuclear industry and to create new strategic business based on accumulated technology. The plan was finalized at a government meeting presided over by Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum earlier in the day. The govern

Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung asked Tokyo's top envoy to Seoul on Monday to help arrange a meeting between him and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, a campaign official said. The Democratic Party nominee expressed the wish during a meeting with Ambassador Koichi Aiboshi at the party's headquarters, Kim Joon-hyung, a foreign policy adviser for Lee's campaign, told reporters after attending the meeting. The ambassador promised to convey the request, he said. "Candid