[News Focus] Major retail companies including Lotte and Shinsegae are turning to Southeast Asia to diversify their customer bases after a turbulent year amid tensions between Korea and China.“This year has been a lesson to a lot of retail companies that it is unhealthy to focus too much on China,” said an official with one retail company. “It’s a huge market that brings many benefits, but overdependence can be dangerous.” A Lotte duty-free store in Myeong-dong appears emptier than usual. It is u

Majority of public backs smoking ban on streets; smokers reignite debate over ‘right to smoke’

The nation’s human rights watchdog ruled that restaurants’ “no-kids” policy banning children from entering at their premises was an act of discrimination.The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said on Friday that it advised the owner of a restaurant to lift its ban on children aged 13 or under.According to the human rights watchdog, a petitioner visited the restaurant in Jeju with his family including a nine-year-old child in September last year, but the restaurant asked them to leave as

When Yana was six, living in Damascus, Syria, her school was destroyed in an aerial bombardment. Since then, she had been out of education. Now 12 years old and resettled in South Korea, Yana said she wants to study more and become an interpreter here in the future -- an opportunity that seemed out of reach in Syria where a 6-year civil war has left many children and youth without an education.(From left) Sadeed, Yana, Bakri and Park Jung-eun (Bak Se-hwan/The Korea Herald)“In Syria, I was kept a

A Korean woman who was indicted Monday on charges of producing child abuse material will be detained until January, an Australian Federal Police official confirmed to The Korea Herald Wednesday. The suspect appeared before the Darwin Local Court on Tuesday for a bail hearing. According to the AFP official, the woman will be remanded in custody until a court hearing slated for mid-January next year. Meanwhile, the Police said Tuesday that the photos of child exploitation uploaded to the Korean we

　In a country where dictatorship has ruled for three generations, Hwang Pyong-so has been widely seen as the second-most powerful man in North Korea since its leader Kim Jong-un took power in 2012. 　Having been promoted to the rank of vice marshal in 2014, Hwang was elected to be the new chief of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, a position considered the most senior in the military after the supreme commander Kim.　But even Hwang -- who is thought to be a key aide of Kim

The move to revise related laws to tighten the reins on the National Intelligence Service is gaining traction, with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea set to propose a revision this week. The revision, which the ruling party says will provide legal grounds for suggestions from the NIS’ own reform committee, calls for tougher control of the agency’s budget and the actions of the president and the NIS chief. National Intelligence Service. YonhapIf approved, the bill would make it mandatory to do

Online video games have been slowly losing ground in the increasingly mobile-driven gaming sector, but they made a colorful return to the spotlight at South Korea’s biggest game convention G-Star this week.　At the G-Star 2017 that kicked off in Busan on Thursday, hundreds of visitors have been lining up to check out newly showcased PC online games such as Nexon’s “FIFA Online 4,” while cheering on professional gamers at live esports tournaments.Unlike last year, when virtual reality and mobile g

Samsung promotes nine foreign executives and seven female executives for diversity

 With a North Korean solider remaining in critical condition from multiple gunshot wounds he suffered as he dashed across the border to defect, some South Koreans are questioning why the South Korean soldiers did not provide covering fire for him. 　Four North Korean soldiers at the Joint Security Area inside the heavily fortified border zone fired about 40 rounds at the escaping solider. They shot southward. It is unclear whether they continued to shoot after the solider entered the South’s terr

North Korea has taken a break from military provocations, not firing anything into the air nor detonating underground munitions for two months, but signs pointing to further development of its weapons program lurk beneath the calm surface. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits the Chemical Material Institute of the Academy of Defense Science in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency in August. A display titled “Pukguksong-3” (circled) is shown in the background.

Rep. Yoo Seong-min was elected to lead the minor opposition Bareun Party on Monday, while the party treads a tightrope for survival following a mass defection. The new chairman, who was the party’s presidential candidate early this year, now faces the daunting challenge of navigating the looming wave of political realignment ahead of next year’s local elections. Last week, the Bareun Party, which was founded less than a year ago with 33 lawmakers, lost nine of its then-20 parliamentarians to its

Woori Bank’s recruiting scandal is not only causing a major setback to its decadeslong aspiration for complete privatization, but also bringing renewed attention to alleged irregularities surrounding other major banking groups, many of whose leaders are seeking re-election.The bank‘s plan to sell out remaining government stakes has been facing setbacks, mainly due to the latest scandal that it had offered special favors to children of high-profile officials and VIP clients in last year’s open re

A former chief of the National Intelligence Service has largely admitted to allegations that the agency regularly provided funds to the presidential office while ousted President Park Geun-hye was in office, sources said Saturday.Lee Byong-ho, who headed the NIS from 2015-2017, underwent 15 hours of questioning by prosecutors on Friday over allegations that the NIS provided Cheong Wa Dae with money on a monthly basis under the name of "special activity fund." Lee told investigators to the effect

In the latest twist of the massive influence-peddling scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye, prosecutors are looking into allegations that the nation’s spy agency regularly made secretive money transfers to Park’s former aides when she was in office. Former President Park Geun-hye (Yonhap)Former National Intelligence Service chiefs under the Park administration allegedly abused the agency’s “special activities” budget, which investigators suspect was an illicit channel for bribes for