정부가 주관하는 아이돌봄 사업이 저소득층 지원확대라는 본래의 취지에서 벗어난 것으로 보인다.25일 2013-14년치 여성가족부 문서에 따르면, 여가부는 되레 형편이 어렵지 않는 중산층가정에 육아돌보미 파견을 권장해온 것으로 드러났다. 전국 돌봄서비스 제공기관에 ‘정부미지원 아동 연계실적’을 반영해 직원들에게 성과급을 지급하도록 명기한 것이다.평가 지표를 보면 제공기관 근무자는 정부 지원을 받는 가정을 모집했을 때보다 그렇지 않은 가정을 유치했을 경우 추가 배점을 받을 수 있도록 되어 있다. 고소득층 가정들을 최대한 끌어들임으로써 전체 돌봄 서비스 이용자 수는 늘었지만 그와 동시에 저소득층 이용 가정의 비율은 지난 몇년 간 지속적으로 줄었다는 것이 관계자들의 지적이다.여가부는 아이돌봄 서비스 이용 가구의 소득소준에 따라 본인 및 정부부담 비율을 정하고 있다. 전국가구평균소득 50% (241만원) 이하의 경우는 (가)형, 50-70% 구간은 (나)형, 70-100%구간는 (다)형, 10

SYDNEY, (AFP) -- Foreign Minister Julie Bishop called on Indonesia to give two Australians on death row an "indefinite stay of execution" as she clarified her Prime Minister's comments linking their fate to aid, media reports said Saturday.Tensions between the two nations have grown after Indonesia confirmed Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, ringleaders of the so-called Bali Nine heroin trafficking group, were among the next group of prisoners to face the firing squad.Prime Minister Tony Abbott

TOKYO (AP) -- Yutaka Katayama, a former president of Nissan Motor Co.'s U.S. unit who built the Z sportscar into a powerful global brand in the 1970s, has died. He was 105.Known as the "father of the Z," Katayama won international respect for the Datsun Z as an affordable sportscar at a time when Japan-made products were synonymous with slipshod quality. Katayama, who died Thursday, retired from Nissan in 1977. Carlos Ghosn, who has led a turnaround at the Japanese automaker under an alliance wi

SACRAMENTO, California (AP) -- Gov. Jerry Brown has blocked parole for a former leader of the notorious Mexican Mafia prison gang who has turned on his former comrades and now aids law enforcement.Brown announced Friday that he was blocking the release of 52-year-old Rene ``Boxer'' Enriquez.Enriquez has been in prison since 1993 serving a sentence of 20 years-to life in prison for two murders, multiple assaults and conspiracy to traffic in controlled substances.He drew attention last month when

PARIS, (AFP) -- The continued fighting in eastern Ukraine has made a mockery of the West's latest attempts to negotiate a ceasefire but may ultimately pave the way for a more durable peace, say analysts.It did not take long for the latest truce, brokered by France and Germany and signed in the Belarussian capital Minsk last week, to look as impotent as previous deals.With barely a pause, pro-Russian rebels continued their assault on the key transport hub of Debaltseve, ultimately forcing the Ukr

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Opponents of President Nicolas Maduro poured into the streets Friday to condemn the surprise arrest of Caracas' mayor for allegedly participating in a U.S.-backed plot to overthrow his government.     The protests came a day after an armed commando unit dressed in camouflage raided Mayor Antonio Ledezma's office and hauled him away. The detention, recorded by security cameras, set off a wave of spontaneous demonstrations in middle-class neighborhoods loyal to the oppos

 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- The French interior minister says he has asked Google, Facebook and Twitter to work directly with French officials during a live investigation and to immediately remove terrorist propaganda when authorities alert them to it.French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve met Friday with representatives from the search engine and social networks during a one-day visit to the Silicon Valley and San Francisco.Cazeneuve says he hopes the meeting is the first step in building a stro

ROCKHAMPTON (AFP) - Australia was clearing up Saturday after two severe cyclones left a trail of destruction, wrecking hundreds of homes and cutting electricity to tens of thousands, even as authorities warned of more flooding and gusty winds to come.Tropical Cyclone Marcia barrelled through the northeastern state of Queensland Friday at the highest-rated category five, ripping apart houses, uprooting trees and bringing down power lines.The severe system hit hours after category four Tropical Cy

LOS ANGELES, (AFP) -- US West Coast dockworkers and port operators have reached a tentative deal on a new labor contract, a source close to the negotiations said late Friday, averting a shutdown that would have hit about half the country's trade.The new agreement could free up operations at the ports that have slowed significantly since the labor contract expired in July at key ports for trade with Asia.A source close to the investigation confirmed the deal to AFP, but details were not immediate

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- One of the world's tallest residential towers caught fire early Saturday in Dubai's Marina district, sending bright yellow flames several stories high, but there were no reports of casualties, civil defense officials said.The fire broke out at about 2 a.m. in the 86-story Torch tower on the northeastern end of the densely populated district, which is packed with multi-story skyscrapers.  Debris from the fire cluttered nearby streets after the blaze appeared to

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki has been named the new communications director for President Barack Obama after serving as the face of the department for more than two years.Psaki will take over the White House job on April 1, replacing Jennifer Palmieri, who is leaving reportedly to join Hillary Clinton's campaign."Jen worked on both my campaigns. She's served in the White House, and she's traveled the world as an adviser to Secretary Kerry," Obama said in a statement. "I fully trus

HONG KONG, (AFP) -- Investors in a Hong Kong-based Bitcoin trading company fear they have fallen victim to a scam after it closed down, a lawmaker said Monday, adding losses could total HK$3 billion ($387 million).Leung Yiu-chung said his office recently received reports from dozens of investors in Hong Kong who paid a total of HK$40 million ($5.16 million) into the scheme run online by MyCoin, but the total loss may be vastly more."The number of cases is increasing. These two days I received ca

JAIPUR, India (AP) -- Police were searching Monday for a man who raped a Japanese student sightseeing in northern India, while elsewhere they announced the arrest of eight men suspected of brutally raping and killing a Nepalese woman, as authorities continue to struggle with a spate of attacks on women. The 20-year-old student attacked Sunday is the second Japanese woman raped in India in recent months. The man had met her in Jaipur and offered to act as her tour guide, according to police inspe

JAKARTA (AFP) -- The mothers of two Australian drug smugglers on death row in Indonesia tearfully begged authorities on Monday to "spare our sons' lives", as their lawyer revealed plans for a last-gasp legal bid. Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, ringleaders of the so-called "Bali Nine" drug smuggling gang, were arrested in 2005 and sentenced to death the following year after being caught trying to traffick heroin out of Indonesia.They lost a legal bid last week to have their cases reviewed, eff