Gangjin, my hometown on the south coast, has no ob-gyn clinic in the entire county with a population of 40,000. For years, the county office has unsuccessfully tried to recruit a doctor to open a maternity facility in the main town, offering a decent salary as well as a furnished space for free use. No qualified doctor has applied.Residents have cars, so they can take their wives to the cities of Gwangju or Mokpo for checkups and delivery. But women fear an emergency, and fatalities from pregnan

With the expiry of the six-month cooling-off period, Lone Star officially started an international investment dispute against the Korean government last week by filing its notice of arbitration with the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington, D.C. This is the first international investment dispute for Korea under a bilateral investment treaty since Korea’s subscription to the investor-state dispute settlement (commonly called as ISDS) mechanism in 1975. Korea is

Once again, the Chinese novelist Mo Yan’s Nobel Prize win reminds us of the role of film in promoting a literary work. To scholars of Chinese literature, Mo Yan has long been a celebrated writer for his critically acclaimed works. To the general public, however, Mo Yan is better known for internationally renowned films like Zhang Yimou’s “Red Sorghum” and Chen Kaige’s “Farewell My Concubine,” which are based on Mo Yan’s novel and play, respectively. The former was awarded the Golden Bear Award a

WASHINGTON ― The Syrian opposition took a big step forward this month by forming a broad political coalition that includes local activists who started the revolution. But the opposition’s military command is still a mess, and until it’s fixed, jihadist extremists will keep getting more powerful. As I wrote after my trip inside Syria in early October, a stronger command-and-control structure is crucial in creating an opposition force that can accomplish two essential tasks: defeating President Ba

Just two weeks after the election all but declared an end to white male dominance, yet another nail was driven into the wood-paneled coffin of old-fashioned America. Hostess Brands, maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, announced that even after eleventh-hour talks with union leaders, it would permanently cease operations.In other words, it’s not just white males of a certain age that are on the endangered list but the delicious if strangely sealant-tasting white bread (and snacks) that once upon

HAVANA ― For a United States citizen, the short trip to Havana requires navigating an obstacle course, owing to the trade and travel embargo that the U.S. maintains against Cuba. It also turns out to be a trip to the past ― specifically, to 1959.Signs of this time warp are instantly apparent: the American automotive behemoths of the 1950s stand out among the few cars on the streets in Havana. Most, obviously maintained with loving care, run well and look magnificent.Unfortunately, the rest of Cu

The Justice Department has entered into the largest criminal settlement in U.S. history with the giant oil company BP, in connection with the 2010 disaster in the Gulf of Mexico that killed 11 people and caused the worst oil spill in American history. BP pleaded guilty to 14 criminal counts, including manslaughter, and agreed to pay $4 billion over the next five years.This is nonsensical. BP isn’t a criminal. Corporations aren’t people. They can’t know right from wrong. They’re incapable of crim

Among the still existing Greek tragedies, Sophocles’ “Oedipus Rex” (ca. 429 BCE) is generally singled out as the quintessential example of ancient dramatic art. While celebrating the poetic power and originality of “Oedipus Rex,” it is often forgotten that Sophocles wrote well over hundred plays ― of which only seven exist today. It is reasonable to assume that Oedipus Rex was one of Sophocles’ more accomplished plays, since the Greek philosopher Aristotle characterizes it as an exemplary litera