BUSAN (Yonhap News) -- The remains of two South Korean victims who were killed in a Lao plane crash were brought home on Saturday, government and airport officials said.The French-made ATR-72 jet crashed into the Mekong River while attempting to land in bad weather on Oct. 16, killing all 49 passengers and crewmembers on board, including three South Koreans.The remains of Lee Jae-sang and Lee Kang-pil, whose bodies were identified days after the accident and then cremated, arrived at Gimhae Inte

South Koreans held various events on Friday to commemorate the fourth "Day of Dokdo," renewing their determination to defend the country's easternmost islets of Dokdo from Japan's sovereignty claim.In 2010, some local municipalities and civic groups designated Oct. 25 as Day of Dokdo in a move viewed as bolstering the country's sovereignty over the East Sea islets. A series of flash mobs of dancers and celebrations were held in Seoul and other large cities around the country to mark the day 113

Seoul City announced on Friday a new tourism scheme to increase sightseeing infrastructure and attractions in an attempt to bring in 10 million more visitors and become the fifth city in the world in tourist numbers by 2018.Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon announced the new plan in the annual general meeting of Seoul International Business Advisory Council. Seoul will transform 25 historical spots into major sightseeing attractions and build about 77,600 more accommodations in the next five years, acco

Seoul City said Friday it plans to diversify its tourism programs and boost infrastructure investment as part of its efforts to become the world's fifth most-visited city by 2018.Under a five-year plan, the South Korean capital city aims to attract 20 million visitors a year by 2018. In 2012, more than 10 million foreigners visited Seoul, making it the world's 11th most-visited  city, according to government data."More efforts will be made to transform the city into a perfect model place for bot

South Korea ranked among the lowest in terms of gender equality as women's economic participation, health and education conditions remained poor, an international organization's report showed Friday.According to the report by the World Economic Forum (WEF), South Korea came in at 111th place out of 136 countries on the "gender gap index," which is three notches lower than a year earlier.The report is based on its analysis of women's economic participation, level of education, health and politica

A court on Thursday took the side of a Korean retailer who filed a damages suit against Burberry Korea after being accused of importing counterfeit clothing. Seoul Central District Court ordered the Korean branch of the British company to compensate the plaintiff with 10 million won ($9,475) for both mental and pecuniary damages derived from the allegation.The retailer in 2010 requested an import declaration for 5,700 scarves from China worth 40 million won.Korea Customs Service, which received

Tens of thousands of teachers in Korea are expected to be affected as the government on Thursday moved to deregister the country’s largest teachers’ union for infringement of the labor law.Employment and Labor Minister Phang Ha-nam and Education Minister Seo Nam-soo announced in a joint news conference that they had officially notified the Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union that it would “no longer be recognized” as a legal union.The Ministry of Labor and Employment gave the progressiv

Tens of thousands of teachers in Korea are expected to be affected as the government on Thursday moved to deregister the country’s largest teachers’ union for infringement of the labor law.Employment and Labor Minister Phang Ha-nam and Education Minister Seo Nam-soo announced in a joint news conference that they had officially notified the Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union that it would “no longer be recognized” as a legal union.The Ministry of Labor and Employment gave the progressiv

A map published by Japan in the 19th century marked the name of the water between South Korea and Japan as "the Joseon Sea," citing the name of the Korean Dynasty, the national archives said Thursday, presenting another example that its current naming is an imperialistic legacy.South Korea has locked horns with Japan for decades over the name of the body of water, with Seoul calling it the "East Sea" while Tokyo calls it the "Sea of Japan."Korean historians and experts believe that the original

A Seoul court on Thursday acquitted a well-known reporter on charges of falsely claiming that the younger brother of President Park Geun-hye was behind a murder case.Joo Jin-woo, a reporter of the monthly news magazine Sisa IN, was cleared of charges that he spread false and defamatory information in his article that the president's younger brother, Park Ji-man, was involved in the killing of a relative.In the same ruling, the Seoul Central District Court also delivered a not-guilty verdict for

Gangwon Province is considering a plan to turn one of its beaches into the country’s first-ever nudist beach, a state-run institute in charge of maritime attractions in the region said Wednesday.“In the course of coming up with a new policy ... some people mentioned a nudist beach as a possibility,” an official from the East Sea Headquarters of Gangwon Province told The Korea Herald. The province, some 214 kilometers east of Seoul, hosts various well-known tourist sites.According to the official

The government’s move leading to the delegalization of the country’s largest teachers’ union could infringe upon its freedom of association, the head of the human rights watchdog said Tuesday.“We already advised the government that weaker disciplinary action should be considered in this case,” Hyun Byung-chul, the chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, said in a statement.Hyun’s statement was released the day before the deadline of the ultimatum provided by the Labor Minis