The Korea Herald

Burmese activists see lessons to be learned from Korea’s history

Mar 12, 2013

There are now more foreign nationals in South Korea than at any other time in its history. People are coming here from all over for work, education, love or to explore their interest in Korean culture. Nay Tun Naing is one of the some 1.4 million foreigners in Korea, but his reason for coming, and the motivation to stay, sets him apart from others.Naing, 44, came to Korea in 1994 from Burma, also known as Myanmar, fleeing out of fear for his freedom and safety. Naing’s pro-democracy activism got
S. Koreans learn to live with N. Korean war threats

Mar 12, 2013

Nearly two decades ago, South Koreans cleared store shelves after a North Korean threat to turn Seoul into a “sea of fire” raised war panic. On Saturday, South Koreans expressed some fear but mostly apathy and restraint after a week of warlike rhetoric from the North, including another “sea of fire” vow. Many South Koreans have grown up with a steady drumbeat of over-the-top threats from the North. So while they are aware of soaring tensions as North Korea reacts with anger to major U.S.-South K
Sex offenders target female smartphone users

Mar 12, 2013

Several female smartphone users in South Korea have been the targets of sexual assault, raising alarms about the use of the devices on the streets.According to the police, sex offenders targeted women using smartphones or wearing earphones.Police arrested a man who sexually harassed three women listening to music or surfing the Internet through their mobile devices on their way home at night. The 22-year-old man, surnamed Cho, victimized women in their 20s in Anyang and Uiwang, both in Gyeonggi
Man fakes ‘kidnap plot’ to get hired by Samsung

Mar 12, 2013

A man was indicted for an attempt to defraud the family of Samsung executive Kim In-ju, in which he faked a kidnap plot to get hired by Samsung, Seoul prosecutors said Tuesday,.According to Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, the 34-year-old suspect contacted Kim’s wife over the phone last October and told her there had been a kidnap attempt on her. He told her that someone had offered him 1 billion won ($910 million) for the abduction.The suspect even met her at her apartment in Gangnam
U.S. soldier confesses to attacking S. Korean police officer in car chase

Mar 11, 2013

An American soldier, who has been under investigation over shooting a BB gun at pedestrians and fleeing police in a car along with two other service members, confessed on Monday that he was driving the vehicle and had attacked a South Korean police officer last week.The 26-year-old staff sergeant, who serves in the 8th U.S. Army at Yongsan Garrison, voluntarily appeared before South Korean police with his lawyer and a U.S. representative to give the testimony over the March 2 late-night car chas
Popularity of English kindergartens grows under free child care policy

Mar 11, 2013

President Park Geun-hye may wish for all preschoolers to have universal and free child care services under her ambitious welfare plans.However, for some rich parents, the state program is meaningless as they choose to send their kids to private “English kindergartens.”In stark contrast to state-run or supported child care centers now offered for free under Park’s administration, these English-learning institutes can cost up to 2 million won a month.Despite the high price, demand is high as many
Two nabbed for alleged U.S. visa application fraud

Mar 11, 2013

Two brokers have been booked without physical detention on suspicion of producing fraudulent documents to help about 100 South Koreans get U.S. visas, police here said Monday.The suspects, including a 43-year-old broker surnamed Cheong, are accused of fabricating the documents such as proof of employment, so that the visa applicants, who were ineligible for issuance for various reasons, could submit the falsified papers to the United States embassy in Seoul, according to the Seoul Metropolitan P
Indonesian actress dedicated to promoting Korea

Mar 11, 2013

An Indonesian actress, who was appointed last year as a “Goodwill Ambassador for Public Diplomacy” for South Korea, said Monday that she aims to “make a difference” in developing people-to-people links between the two nations. Actress Revalina S. Temat, 27, took the post last September after she starred in the first joint Korean-Indonesia TV drama, “Saranghae, I Love You.” She is visiting Seoul this week as part of her activities marking the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the t
Ministry assigns schools to teach about Dokdo

Mar 11, 2013

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has designated 60 schools to teach the history of Dokdo amid Japan’s enhanced territorial claims to the easternmost islets.The schools will offer educational programs for students and family members and also conduct guided tours of exhibitions and field trips to Dokdo. The ministry started the Dokdo School project in support of the Northeast Asian History Foundation in 2008. The ministry has made it mandatory for all elementary, middle and high s
U.S. Army mechanic nabbed for wielding knife

Mar 10, 2013

PYEONGTAEK (Yonhap News) ― A U.S. Army mechanic working in South Korea was caught by police for threatening a South Korean citizen with a knife during a road dispute, officers here said Saturday. A 48-year-old aircraft maintenance crew member from the 8th U.S. Army, identified only by the initial J, allegedly threatened a 42-year-old South Korean citizen, known as Choi, with a knife the previous day while having an argument over a near accident involving their cars on a street in Pyeongtaek, som
Nine people killed, one missing in fishing boat fire

Mar 10, 2013

GUNSAN (Yonhap News) ― Nine fishermen were killed and one was missing when their boat caught fire and sank off South Korea’s central west coast Saturday, maritime police said.The fire started at about 4:30 a.m. on the 20-ton fishing boat in waters about 24 kilometers southwest of Gunsan, according to the police. Gunsan, a port city, is 274 kilometers southwest of Seoul.The police said they received a distress call from the boat at about 5:20 a.m.The boat’s only survivor so far said the fire star
One dead, 14 injured in forest fire in Pohang

Mar 10, 2013

POHANG (Yonhap News) ― One South Korean was killed and 14 others injured in a mountain fire that spread to residential areas in this southeastern coastal city of Pohang.Police said they are interrogating a middle school student as a suspect. The fire that started on a hill around 4 p.m. Saturday was almost extinguished by Sunday morning after burning nearly 5 hectares of mostly residential areas, according to firefighters.The fire killed an 80-something person and left 14 others injured, the fir
More than 100 doctors face indictment for bribery

Mar 10, 2013

A joint government investigation team looking into illegal kickbacks said Sunday that it booked more than 100 doctors on charges of receiving bribes from Donga Pharmaceutical Co., the largest pharmaceutical firm in the nation.The bribery case involving an unprecedented number of doctors prosecuted is based on a fledgling law that bans both giving and receiving kickbacks in the medical and drug fields. Doctors and drug makers have long been alleged to have close and secretive ties. The joint team
Koreans learn how to play as they retire faster

Mar 10, 2013

It’s been just a year and a half since Suk Jae-yul started learning how to play the bass guitar, but he is already the leader of a band. It’s a non-professional band of beginners like him and he doesn’t even believe it’s going to last long, as all the members are full-time employees and are under constant pressure to find spare time.Still, Suk, a 40-year-old project manager for an Internet company, makes sure he spends every other Friday night practicing with his six other band members. What fre
Five injured in raging mountain fire

Mar 10, 2013

At least five people were injured in a mountain fire that spread to residential areas in this southeastern coastal city Saturday, police and rescue workers said. The fire started at around 4 p.m. in a mountain near an elementary school and destroyed 56 homes, they said. Over 2,500 fire fighters, along with 11 helicopters and some 100 fire engines were mobilized, but a wind of over 10 meters per second fanned the fire to spread to nearby residential areas, police said. Thousands of people in the