South Korean households' spending on education declined to a six-year low last year due to an economic downturn and increased government subsidies, data showed Sunday. The ratio of education expenditures to consumption spending in a household with two or more family members reached 12 percent, the lowest level since 2006 when it was 11.5 percent, according to the data by Statistics Korea. Households' education expenditure-to-consumption spending ratio rose at double-digit rates in 1997, posting

Park Geun-hye will be sworn in as South Korea's first female president on Monday with her administration pledging to open a new era of people's happiness and hope for the future.Park, 61, assumes executive power just after midnight Sunday, with her inaugural speech the next day set to focus on creating more jobs, expanding welfare, and strengthening national defense.She is also expected to emphasize at her inauguration ceremony at 11 a.m. on the front lawn of the National Assembly the need to se

Tens of thousands of people marched on Spain's parliament on Saturday to protest austerity measures, a demonstration that came on the 32nd anniversary of a failed attempt by the armed forces to overthrow the government. Protest groups joined forces under the slogan ``Citizens' Tide, 23F,'' referring to the Feb. 23, 1981, attack by the armed forces on the parliament. Organizers said that Spain ``is under a financial coup'' and called on people to march against what they said was government favori

Italy on Saturday said it had found its first case of horsemeat contamination in a batch of frozen lasagne produced in the region around the city of Bologna where the famous Italian dish originated.The health ministry said horse DNA was found in tests on six tons of mincemeat and 2,400 packages labeled as "lasagne bolognese" -- literally "from Bologna" -- that were seized from the company."There was a positive test for horsemeat, which was not declared on the label," the ministry said.The packag

A car bomb exploded at a security checkpoint near the headquarters of the ruling Baath party in the heart of the Syrian capital on Thursday, leaving smashed cars scattered across a main thoroughfare and killing at least 31 people, according to opposition activist and state media.The bomb attack came amid a string of attacks inside the capital. A blast shook another Damascus neighborhood Thursday and mortars rounds fell near the Syrian Army General Command, the third such attack in Damascus in as

A fish transportation vessel with 12 crewmembers on board sank Monday in waters between South Korea and Japan, killing three, including two South Koreans, officials said.The third crewman killed was identified as Chinese, said the South Korean Coast Guard officials.The 296-ton, Cambodian-registered vessel was on its way from the northern Japanese port of Aomori to South Korea's eastern port of Sokcho when it went down amid high waves around 7 a.m. about 548 km west of the Korean island of Ulleun

The Zambian government has seized control of a Chinese-owned coal company due to poor compliance with safety and environmental standards, the mines minister said Wednesday."Collum Coal mine has had a history of poor safety, health and environmental compliance," Mines Minister Yamfwa Mukanga said in a statement."In view of this, my ministry has with immediate effect cancelled all three small scale mining licenses held by Collum Coal Mine.""Government has also taken over the running of the mine an

Nike has suspended its contract with Oscar Pistorius, the double-amputee runner from South Africa who is facing a charge of premeditated murder in the Valentine's Day slaying of his girlfriend.Pistorius, who became the first double-amputee runner to compete on the track at the Olympics at last year's London Games, is accused of intentionally killing model Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius says he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and that the shooting was accidental.``We believe Oscar Pistorius should

Five North Koreans working on a building site in the Russian Far East have been found dead, apparently after inhaling fumes from a diesel-powered generator, investigators said on Monday.The North Koreans were among the several thousand citizens of the secretive Stalinist state believed to be working around the city of Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, which has a small land border with North Korea."The preliminary cause of death appears to have been carbon monoxide poisoning from a diesel gen

North Korea on Thursday refused to accept South Korea's parliamentary resolution condemning its nuclear test.An official source said that it tried to hand over the resolution through the liaison office at the truce village of Panmunjom, but it was turned down by a representative from the North."The North Korean side said he was not told about (accepting) the document," the official claimed citing the reason why the resolution was not delivered.The resolution was passed by the National Assembly o

우리나라 국민은 주요 공적 기관 가운데 국회를 가장 불신하고 있는 것으로 나타났다.또 10명 가운데 8명은 사회 빈곤층과 부유층 간 계층 갈등이 심하다고 인식하는 것으로 조사됐다. 절반 가까운 국민은 북한을 ‘동반자’로 인정하지 않았다. 21일 대통령 직속 사회통합위원회의 2012년 연례보고서에 따르면 성인남녀 2천 명을 대상으로 사회통합국민의식조사를 한 결과 정부•국회•법원•경찰•언론•금 융기관 등 6개 주요 공적기관 가운데 국회에 대한 신뢰도가 가장 낮았다.국회를 신뢰한다는 대답은 5.6%뿐이었고, 72.8%가 신뢰하지 않는다는 반응을 보 였다. 정부 역시 신뢰한다는 답변(15.8%)이 불신(46.0%)의 3분의 1 수준에 불과했다 . 법원과 언론의 신뢰율도 각각 15.7%, 16.8%에 그쳤다. 상대적으로 금융기관의 신뢰율이 28.5%로 가장 높았고, 경찰도 20%를 웃돌았다. 정부의 경우 2010년 조사와 비교해 불신율이 41.8%에서 46.0%로 크게 높아졌다.계층•노사•이

대구 도심의 한 백화점에서 불이 나 고객들이 긴급 대피하는 일이 벌어졌다.20일 오후 6시30분께 대구시 중구 덕산동 동아백화점 쇼핑점의 건물 8층 옥외 테라스 의류창고에서 불이 났다. 불이 나자 백화점 측은 영업을 중단하고 고객과 직원들을 대피시켰으며 소방차 49대가 출동해 진화작업을 벌였다. 이 불로 사망자는 없었지만 쇼핑점 직원 등 2명이 얼굴에 화상을 입었고 어린이 고객 3명이 연기를 마셔 병원에서 치료를 받았다.하지만 화재 당시 백화점에 있던 고객들은 안내 방송을 듣지 못한 채 대피하느라 아수라장이었다며 분통을 터뜨렸다. 하지만 동아백화점 이상민 대외협력실 매니저는 “화재 발생신고를 받고 즉시 대피방송을 내보냈다”며 “하지만 방송횟수가 몇 차례인지는 모르겠다”고 해명했다.경찰과 소방당국은 건물 외벽과 의류 적재물 등을 태워 500만여 원(소방서 추산)의 피해를 내었다고 추정했다.  경찰과 소방당국은 목격자 등을 상대로 정확한 화재 원인을 조사 중이다. 또 옥외 테라스에 의류

Incoming President Park Geun-hye's transition team on Thursday announced the new government's key vision and goals are centered on building a job-oriented creative economy and providing tailored welfare services.The incoming government will also adopt as its major goals a life of culture and creativity education, a safe and integrated society, and a foundation for a happy reunification of South and North Korea, transition team chief Kim Yong-joon said.The new government's overarching vision will