Former South Chungcheong Province Gov. An Hee-jung, was a prominent liberal politician, often cited as the ruling Democratic Party’s next presidential candidate.But everything changed Monday night after his former secretary accused him of raping her in an interview with a television news program. The 52-year-old has stepped down from his post as governor and faces expulsion from his party. An is now an accused rapist facing an investigation.　On Monday, Kim Ji-eun, the alleged victim, claimed in

Former President Lee Myung-bak has been asked to appear for questioning next week over a string of allegations of bribery and other irregularities, officials said Tuesday.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office subpoenaed Lee to come to the office for questioning as a suspect at 9:30 a.m. on March 14, officials said."It is essential to investigate Lee in order to uncover the truth in a transparent and efficient way," a prosecution official said. "We're not considering calling him in for q

Poet Choi Young-mi, who revealed her experience of being groped by an unnamed senior poet through her poem, on Monday reaffirmed sexual harassment allegations made against renowned poet Ko Un, who recently denied the allegations.In a statement uploaded on Facebook on Sunday, Choi said, “The statements related to the poem ‘Monster’ are facts. I will reveal the details further, when there is an official body dedicated to investigating claims of sexual wrongdoings in the arts circle here.”  Poet Ko

Prosecutors looking into sweeping allegations of financial fraud involving former President Lee Myung-bak are set to complete their investigation as early as this week and likely to summon Lee for questioning soon. Former President Lee Myung-bak. YonhapIf Lee is summoned by the prosecution, he would be the fourth president of South Korea to be questioned by investigators following detained ex-leader Park Geun-hye. Although no charges have been filed yet, Lee faces allegations that he ran a 12 bi

President Moon Jae-in retained on Friday Lee Ju-yeol, the incumbent Bank of Korea Gov. and the head of Monetary Policy Committee, to serve another four-years for the nation‘s central bank, sending the market a sign that it will not pursue a drastic change in its monetary policy.Cheong Wa Dae said the decision to reinstate Lee as the BOK chief signifies Moon’s willingness to “ensure neutrality and independence” of the central bank.The reappointment came amid the South Kore

The government has begun to take steps to remove works by world-renowned South Korean poet Ko Un from school textbooks amid growing sexual misconduct allegations, multiple industry sources said Friday. The Ministry of Education sent an official letter earlier in the day to the Korea Authorized & Approved Textbooks, in which it requested the association to ask its member publishers if they have plans to delete any of the content in the textbook that belongs to a person of “public controversy.” Th

In the wake of #MeToo movement, truth may soon be acknowledged as defense against defamation charges

Actor Oh Dal-su on Wednesday issued a public apology for sexually harassing fellow actors a few decades ago.“The series of events are all my fault...I bow my head in apology for anyone who has been hurt because of me,” he said.Stage actress Uhm Ji-young and others have recently accused Oh of sexual attacks in the 1990s.Oh, who had initially denied the allegations, said the allegations were not exactly the same as he remembered. “I wanted to verify (the allegations) and talk to them. I was frustr

WASHINGTON -- Joseph Yun, a 30-year veteran of the US foreign service who retained quiet contacts with North Korea amid the Trump administration’s turbulent first year, is retiring as Washington and Pyongyang step up considerations for formal diplomatic talks.Yun told The Associated Press he will stand down as special representative for North Korean policy on Friday. He said his decision to retire is entirely his own but it comes at a surprising juncture, just after American ally South Korea rel

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Monday called on North Korea to abandon its nuclear and missile programs and improve human rights of its people in her keynote speech to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. Kang also raised the issue of Japan’s sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II, saying a controversial 2015 deal between Korea and Japan on “comfort women” lacked a “victim-oriented approach.”“North Korea must heed the call of the international commu

About 200 South Korean athletes, coaches and officials gathered outside the Olympic athletes’ village in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on Monday to attend the disbandment ceremony for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic team.For the South Korean delegation, it was the final step of a journey that started on Feb. 9 when world-renowned figure skater Kim Yu-na illuminated the tiny rural town of PyeongChang by lighting the Olympic torch atop the Olympic Stadium. The torch served as a beacon of dreams

When South Korea’s first curling rink was completed in Uiseong, North Gyeongsang Province in 2006, little could the county administration that backed its construction expect the unfamiliar facility to produce Olympic medal winners in the sport a dozen years later. The story of how the Korean women’s curling team came about has now become known worldwide. In 2007, classmates Kim Yeong-mi, whose name has reverberated through the curling venue at PyeongChang and global media outlets in the past wee

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea -- South Korean alpine snowboarder Lee Sang-ho, who became the first Asian man to win an Olympic medal in an alpine snowboarding event with his silver medal run, is a native of Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, where Olympic alpine skiing speed events were being staged.He first started snowboarding at a sledding slope that was previously a cabbage patch. This gave him the nickname “Napa Cabbage Boy” after he established himself in the snowboarding scene. Lee Sang-ho (Yonhap)L

Dutch skaters at center of controversies at PyeongChang Games

Former presidential aide Woo Byung-woo was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on Thursday for dereliction of duty, abuse of power and perjury linked to the massive corruption scandal that led to the ouster of former President Park Geun-hye.In handing down the sentence, the Seoul Central Court said Woo abused his authority and neglected his duty to look into wrongdoings by Park’s confidante Choi Soon-sil. The prosecution had demanded eight years in prison. The ruling came 311 days after Woo was i