Debate over capital punishment has been rekindled in Korea in the wake of a series of murders, rapes and other heinous crimes.The country, which has not carried out any executions for the last 15 years, has been defined as “abortionist in practice” by Amnesty International. The number of death row inmates here stands at around 60.The country is in tandem with the global trend toward abolishing capital punishment. According to AI, at least 20 countries were known to have carried out executions in

 Thousands of environmental activists, policymakers and representatives of the business world are gathering on the southern resort island of Jeju for a meeting on nature conservation. The 2012 IUCN World Conservation Congress will open Thursday at Jeju International Convention Center. Under the theme “Resilient Nature,” participants will hold discussions on 176 initiatives that range from climate change, protection of endangered species and a green economy. Over 8,600 people have registered for

Police said on Wednesday that they have arrested two men for registering more than 8,000 mobile phones using forged identities of foreigners.The suspects are believed to have sold the mobile phones to a 50-year-old surnamed Lee as well as to other brokers who used them for illegal activities, such as fraud and phone scams. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, a 38-year-old suspect surnamed Ban allegedly signed contracts on more than 4,000 mobile phones between February and July by

An average of two Seoul citizens would have to work to support one elderly by 2039 amid the falling birth rate and rising life expectancy, statistics showed Wednesday.Statistics data from the Seoul Metropolitan Government predicts that in 27 years, the working-age population between 15 and 64 would drop 26 percent to 5.99 million and senior citizens aged 65 and over are expected to grow 172 percent to 2.95 million. Currently an average of 7.4 working people support each senior citizen.The demogr

(123rf)A 15-year-old student received a prison term on Wednesday for habitually bullying a classmate until he jumped to his death.A 15-year-old victim, surnamed Kim, leapt to his death from an apartment building in Daegu, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in early June after enduring months of beatings and extortion.Shortly before his suicide, the bullied student wrote that he might take his

The authorities failed to arrest the suspects in more than 9,000 cases of sexual assault between 2007 and 2011, data showed Wednesday.According to National Police Agency data, 81,860 sex crimes including rape were investigated during the five-year period.A protestor demanding tougher measures against sex offenders holds a sign that says “Protect our children” in Seoul. (Yonhap News)However, law en