Doctors and the government are likely to return to the negotiation table over new medical policies ahead of a nationwide strike planned later this month.The Korean Medical Association, the country’s largest group of physicians, said Wednesday afternoon that they would accept the government’s proposal for talks in order to stop the inconvenience of patients.“We welcome the government’s offer to talk and its refraining from a hardline stance,” the KMA said in a statement. The group, however, said

A student attending Korea University was arrested on charges of murdering his former girlfriend after she refused to date him again, police said Tuesday.According to Seoul Seongbuk Police Station, the 20-year-old suspect surnamed Lee was arrested Thursday after he admitted to killing the victim ― another student at Korea University ― at her boarding house on Dec. 7.According to the investigators, Lee ― who had been stalking the victim for months after breaking up with her last year ― forced his

The Seoul municipal government plans to develop diverse tour programs in an effort to lure more foreign tourists to the capital and increase their convenience, officials said Tuesday.A total of 125 tours will be developed by 2018 to reflect the unique tastes and preferences of tourists from different cultural backgrounds, according to the officials.The city first plans to launch four tour courses for Japanese this year with a focus on diverse hands-on experiences, as tourists from the neighborin

Prosecutors on Tuesday raided the office of the state-run nuclear power plant operator’s senior executive in Seoul, as part of its investigation into the company’s corruption scandal. Investigators have been widening their probe into Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Corp. since last year for turning a blind eye to the falsification of test certificates for parts and materials used in nuclear reactors. The Busan District Prosecutors’ Office confiscated hard drives and documents from KHNP executive v

A group of officials from the Swedish Intercountry Adoption Authority (MIA) recently visited Korea to study its controversial “baby box” system, which allows people to anonymously drop off children, child care groups said Monday.The baby box, operated by the Ju-sarang Community Church in Seoul, was created to prevent parents who are not able to raise children from discarding or even killing them. “They (Swedish officials) wanted to know what kind of process the children who were dropped in a bab

Police said on Monday they had found no evidence that a female contestant on a matchmaking show had been put under intense pressure by the TV crew before committing suicide. The 29-year-old woman, only identified by her family name Chun, was found dead in a guesthouse on Jejudo Island last Wednesday during shooting of a popular reality show titled “Jjak.” Chun’s body was found by the show’s producer in a bathroom of the guesthouse with a note saying she did not want to live anymore, the police s

Rival political parties called for strict political neutrality from public officials on Monday following allegations that a presidential secretary intervened in nominations for upcoming local elections.The calls come after Lim Jong-hoon, the presidential secretary for civil petitions, resigned Saturday over allegations that he interviewed more than a dozen councilor hopefuls from an electoral district in his hometown of Suwon, just south of Seoul, last month.Based on the interviews, Lim excluded

The local branch of an American university opened in one of South Korea’s free economic zones Monday, offering management and economics classes.George Mason University is the second foreign university to open a local branch at the Songdo Global University Campus at Songdo FEZ in Incheon, about 40 kilometers west of Seoul. The State University of New York at Stony Brook opened in 2012 and currently offers graduate and undergraduate classes to both foreign and local students. The foreign schools a

Prosecutors on Monday raided the headquarters of the state spy agency as part of their ongoing investigation into allegations that it was involved in fabricating evidence to charge a high-profile North Korean defector with espionage.   The National Intelligence Service (NIS) is under suspicion of systematically fabricating immigration records that were used in the case of Yoo Woo-seong, a former Seoul city government official charged with handing over to Pyongyang personal information of more th

Doctors pushed ahead with a one-day strike Monday in protest of the government's medical policy, including one allowing telemedicine and profit-oriented hospitals.The massive walkout by doctors, the first of its kind in 14 years, involves medical clinics and interns and resident physicians working in hospitals. The exact number of participating medical clinics was yet unknown."We oppose the government's plan to allow remote medical examinations and treatment, as well as for-profit hospitals, and