An enforcement decree for the new workplace disaster law aimed at better protecting workers from industrial accidents was approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday despite criticisms from both management and labor groups. In January, the National Assembly passed a bill that strengthens the punishment for business owners and CEOs of companies with five or more employees in the event of serious workplace disasters. Under the new law set to take effect in January, business owners and CEOs could face a

Rival parties will continue their negotiations Tuesday to find a negotiated solution to a controversial media bill under criticism for potentially undermining press freedom. Reps. Yun Ho-jung and Kim Gi-hyeon, floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), respectively, will sit down for a meeting chaired by National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug later in the morning to negotiate the ruling party-proposed amendment to the media arbitrati

President Moon Jae-in ordered his national security team Tuesday to comprehensively analyze North Korea's intentions behind its latest missile launch and statements, issued a few days earlier, on inter-Korean relations. He issued the call after receiving a briefing on the outcome of an emergency National Security Council (NSC) session from Suh Hoon, director of national security, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. Earlier in the day, North Korea test-fired a short-range mi

Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, the front-running presidential contender for the ruling party, retook the lead in a presidential hopefuls poll released Monday, beating former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl of the main opposition party. In a poll of 1,006 voters conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute (KSOI) on Friday and Saturday, Gov. Lee of the Democratic Party (DP) garnered support from 30 percent of respondents, pushing down Yoon of the People Power Party (PPP) to second

President Moon Jae-in on Monday stressed the need for discussions about a ban on dog meat, renewing a decades-old dispute here over the slaughter of animals, especially dogs, for food. “Hasn’t the time come to prudently consider prohibiting dog meat consumption?” the president asked Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum during their weekly meeting, according to his spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. Moon made the comments after he was briefed on the government’s new measures to prote

People Power Party threatened to filibuster if Democratic Party pushes ahead

The office of President Moon Jae-in said Monday North Korea needs to put its hotlines with South Korea back in operation first for consultations on ways to improve bilateral ties, including the possibility of another summit between their leaders. Park Soo-hyun, senior Cheong Wa Dae secretary for public communication, described it as a method to confirm Pyongyang's "will" to hold dialogue. He was referring to a statement by Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korea leader Kim Jong-un, that her

  A lawmaker of the People Power Party (PPP) offered Sunday to leave the main opposition party amid mounting criticism over his son receiving a massive severance pay from a firm at the center of a controversial land development scandal. Rep. Kwak Sang-do submitted to a regional party chapter a document to end membership with the party, Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, the party's floor leader, said, as his political opponents ramped up an offensive against Kwak over the severance pay. His son reporte

Five groups of media workers urged political parties Sunday to renounce a possible parliamentary vote this week on a bill accused of hurting press freedom, stressing the need to form a consultative body to build social consensus on the issue. The groups, including the Journalists Association of Korea, issued a joint statement, as the ruling Democratic Party hopes for the bill to be passed Monday, following talks with the main opposition People Power Party. The legislation, titled the Press Arbit

Despite loss and lingering speculation, Lee Jae-myung’s cumulative vote still far ahead

WASHINGTON -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in thanked and praised South Korean superband BTS for using their powerful influence in encouraging people to act on various global issues such as climate change and COVID-19. "Since BTS represents the younger generation and many young people relate to them, I believe they can spread awareness and empathy," Moon said in an interview with U.S. TV network ABC. The interview, also attended by the seven members of BTS, took place on Tuesday,

A South Korean media bill under criticism for potentially undermining press freedom, if passed, could give a "negative message" to the world about the country's stance on freedom of media, a UN expert said Friday. Irene Khan, a UN special rapporteur on promoting the right to freedom of expression, made the remark during a virtual press briefing, weeks after she sent a letter to the Seoul government calling for a revision of the bill. The legislation, titled Press Arbitration Act

President Moon Jae-in has said North Korea is maintaining its own moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests, apparently leaving the door open for dialogue. Pyongyang seems to be making "various considerations," refraining from taking serious provocative acts that would lead the United States to give up dialogue, Moon said in his rare in-flight press briefing on his way back to Seoul on Thursday following a five-day visit to New York and Hawaii. He was explaining the backgrou

  President Moon Jae-in returned to South Korea on Thursday after a hectic five-day visit to the United States. Just ahead of his departure from Hawaii, he attended a joint ceremony with the US for the handover of the remains of their troops killed in the 1950-53 Korean War. South Korea received 68 sets of remains. The caskets containing the remains of two identified soldiers were carried by Moon's Air Force One presidential jet. The other remains, still unidentified, were airlifted by

Two allied opposition parties on Thursday proposed a bill for a special counsel probe into growing corruption allegations against Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, the front-running presidential contender for the ruling party. The main opposition People Power Party and the conservative minor People's Party together said they submitted the bill to the legislature earlier in the day, along with a letter officially requesting a parliamentary investigation into the allegations. The bill, propose