The Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s ruling that granted refugee status to a Chinese Falun Gong practitioner who sought refuge here to avoid persecution.The court said in its ruling last Thursday that the fact that the man named Choi was a practitioner of Falun Gong was not a strong enough reason to give him refugee status. “Refugee status can be granted only to those Falun Gong practitioners who are clearly subject to oppression by the Chinese government because of their active involvem

A Korean court has granted refugee status to a Ugandan woman who claims she cannot return home for fear of being persecuted for her sexual orientation, officials said Wednesday.The 27-year-old Ugandan woman, whose name remains undisclosed, fled to Korea in 2011 after her family members were killed by neighbors because she was a lesbian.She soon petitioned the Seoul government for refugee status but the justice ministry rejected her application, saying she did not meet the criteria of a “well-fou

Former Vice Justice Minister Kim Hak-ui has been banned from leaving the country amid an ongoing police probe alleging that he received sexual favors from a local contractor in return for business favors, police said Wednesday.The sex bribery scandal centers around allegations that a number of high-profile figures, such as former and incumbent high-ranking government officials and the head of a hospital, received sex services from about a dozen women hired by the 52-year-old construction contrac

Police have raided the office of a pro-North Korean activist group as part of a probe into its alleged violation of the nation’s draconian security law, officers said Wednesday.The so-called “sopoong” is a Seoul-based organization formed in2006 by pro-North activists. The group claims its goal is to call for the reunification of the two Koreas.The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it has also searched the houses of 10 members of the organization to search and seize relevant digital files and

A recently proposed bill that defined online video games as an addictive substance and put it in the same category with drugs and gambling is arousing backlash from the video game industry.Lawmakers on Tuesday proposed a bill aimed to deal with problems caused by the four so-called major addictive substances: drugs, alcohol, gambling and online games. The move is in line with the Park Geun-hye administration’s policy to tackle social problems brought on by addiction.“In the light of increasing a

A South Korean court has granted refugee status to an Ugandan woman who claims she cannot return home for fear of being persecuted for her sexual orientation, officials said Wednesday.The 27-year-old Ugandan woman, whose name remains undisclosed, fled to South Korea in 2011 after her family members were killed by neighbors because she was a lesbian.She soon petitioned the Seoul government for refugee status but the justice ministry rejected her application, saying she did not meet the criteria o

A South Korean university has become a new destination for Chinese tourists who believe a myth that taking a photo at the school will bring them fortune. As over 100,000 Chinese are expected to visit Korea during the Labor Day holiday, April 27-May 5, tourist buses are busy shuttling a large flock of Taiwanese and Chinese to the Ewha Womans University area.Among Chinese tourists, a rumor has been circulated that those who take a picture at the university will gain nobility and wealth. The rumor

The prosecution raided the National Intelligence Service Tuesday as part of its widening probe into the agency’s alleged politicking in the presidential election last year. It was the second time in history for the top spy agency to undergo a search and seizure.The prosecution’s move came a day after former NIS chief Won Sei-hoon was questioned for more than 14 hours for his alleged role in the scandal.A team of 25 prosecutors reportedly seized relevant documents, digital files, and hard disks f

Public outcry shook social networks on Tuesday over an incident in which a CEO allegedly hit and verbally abused a front door manager at a major hotel in Seoul after a quarrel over a parking space. According to reports in the local press, the CEO of a well-known bakery company on Friday parked his car in the first-floor VIP space of the hotel that is originally reserved for public officials and lawmakers. The CEO reportedly obtained the hotel’s approval to use the parking lot in advance but, con

Seoul City government has published a new food and restaurant guide in three foreign languages for travelers visiting the city, officials said Tuesday.The booklet named “Soul Food of Seoul” recommends representative Korean dishes and the 10 must-visit restaurants in the city and is available in English, Chinese and Japanese. It introduces various dining places on popular food streets such as Shindang-dong Tteokboggi (rice cake with spicy sauce) Alley, Hamheung Naengmyun (cold noodle) street and

Korea is strengthening anti-bribery rules to improve transparency in business, the head of the government’s anti-corruption agency said in a meeting with foreign business leaders Tuesday.Anti-corruption and Civil Rights Commission Chairman Lee Sung-bo said the agency was pushing for new anti-corruption rules to root out illegal solicitation of public officials.“There are already the anti-corruption law and the Public Service Ethics Act against illegal solicitation, but the current rules have lim