The conviction of Samsung Group’s heir apparent Lee Jae-yong bodes ill for former President Park Geun-hye, who is on trial for receiving bribes from Lee, observers said Monday. The trial of the impeached president and her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil, who are at the center of the corruption scandal that removed Park from office in March and landed Lee in jail for a five-year term last week, is ongoing. The ruling is expected in October. In Friday’s ruling for Lee, the Seoul Central District

A Seoul court on Friday sentenced Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong to five years in jail on charges connected to the corruption scandal that led to former President Park Geun-hye’s ouster.  　The Seoul Central District Court convicted Samsung’s de facto heir of bribing former President Park Geun-hye and her close friend Choi Soon-sil in return for the government’s help in tightening his control over Samsung Group, saying he was in position to benefit most from the bribery scheme. 　“

Thousands of women plan to file a class action suit against a South Korean firm after civic groups found harmful chemicals in sanitary pads and a growing number of women reported health problems after using them. 　As of Thursday afternoon, more than 15,000 expressed their intention to join the legal action, claiming that they have suffered negative effects, such as reduced menstrual bleeding, skin rashes and painful cramps after using Lilian brand pads produced by Klean Nara. A local law firm, w

After five months of trial, a Seoul court will determine Friday the fate of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong. Lee’s final court session, which will not be televised in accordance with the court’s decision Wednesday, will begin at 2:30 p.m. Judges will deliver the verdict on Lee and four other former or incumbent executives of Samsung and if they are found guilty, will issue a sentence. This is a lower-court trial and either side could appeal. Competition for the 30 audience seats a

A Seoul court on Tuesday ordered a man who was convicted of murdering a young woman last year at a public bathroom near Gangnam Station in Seoul to compensate her bereaved family for their mental and physical distress. Mourners march in tribute to the 23-year-old victim killed at a uni-sex public bathroom near Gangman Station last year during a memorial event held in Gangnam, southern Seoul, in May.(Yonhap)The Suwon District Court’s Seongnam branch ruled that the 35-year-old man, surnamed Kim, m

With the Seoul Central District Court set to rule on Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Friday, hundreds of people formed a long line on Tuesday to win a chance to witness the historic moment in person. As the seat allocation process opened at 10 a.m. at the Seoul Bankruptcy Court in southern Seoul, applicants filled out forms, threw them into a box and crossed their fingers to be one of the lucky 30 people to watch the court issue its verdict on the country’s most prominent busin

Animal rights groups on Monday called for measures to reform the livestock industry, saying that factory farming is behind the egg contamination scandal. 　The pesticide-tainted egg crisis is only a prelude to bigger threats to the food safety and public health unless the practice of cramming chickens into battery cages to maximize profits is stopped, they said. 　“It is a consequence of industrialized livestock production and it poses a threat to our food security,” said Jeon Jin-kyung, executive

MELAKA/PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia -- “Don’t mess with Melaka.”Flags bearing the English campaign slogan were blowing in the wind in every corner of Melaka, as scores of students from Southeast Asian countries and Korea explored the historic Malaysian city to learn from its experience and know-how in an eco-friendly way of urban development. The catchphrase, which urges Melakan citizens to reduce littering in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a reflection of the city’s strong drive to make it inclusive

Faced with a severe famine and struggling to recover from the 1950-1953 Korean War, South Korea’s government launched an initiative in the 1960s to keep the economy afloat and stem rapid population growth, urging people to have fewer babies and distributing birth control. 　Some 50 years on, the country faces the opposite problem, with one of the lowest fertility rates in the world and a graying population posing a threat to Asia’s fourth-largest economy. 　There is inherent uncertainty in populat

Not accepting immigrants is no longer a choice for South Korea, as it faces a shrinking working population. But the country, a homogeneous society ethnically, linguistically and culturally for so long, must devise a well-advised policy in order not to follow the same path as Europe, which is struggling with social problems related to immigrants. “Accepting immigrants should no longer be confined to filling jobs in sectors facing labor shortages, nor to finding spouses for unmarried Koreans,” sai

South Korea’s top prosecutor apologized Tuesday for the prosecution’s failure to abide by the law and protect human rights in investigating political cases in the past, vowing to make the law enforcement body politically neutral and transparent. At the press briefing held at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, Prosecutor-General Moon Moo-il issued the apology for prosecutors’ past wrongdoings for the first time as an incumbent chief prosecutor and laid out plans to reform the prosecution. “I apolog

The prosecution on Monday asked a Seoul court to sentence Samsung Group’s heir apparent Lee Jae-yong to 12 years in jail for alleged bribery in connection with the corruption scandal that led to former President Park Geun-hye’s ouster. The court will rule on Aug. 25.　At the final hearing held at the Seoul Central District Court, Special Counsel Park Young-soo said that the Samsung Electronics vice chairman was a direct beneficiary and final decision maker in the bribery scheme.　“Samsung Group vo

The slogan “Men, stop killing women” blared from a speaker outside Gangnam Station on Sunday afternoon, surrounded by some 150 people. Women call for tougher measures against misogynic crimes in South Korea during a rally near exit 10 of Gangnam Station in southen Seoul, Sunday. (Yonhap)The location of the protest has become symbolic of the fight against misogyny since a young woman was murdered in a public toilet in May 2016. The murderer had no connection to the victim, and chose to kill her j

Lee Jae-yong, Samsung Group’s heir apparent on trial over an alleged money-for-political favors deal with former President Park Geun-hye, said Thursday that he was scolded by Park for not offering enough support for equestrian sports during a one-on-one meeting in 2015. During his trial at a Seoul court Thursday, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee denied the bribery charges, saying he had never expected or asked for favors from the Park administration in return for donations to foundations co

Lee Jae-yong, widely perceived as the de facto chief of the Samsung Group, on Wednesday denied his part in the top conglomerate’s key decisions, in his defense against bribery charges. During his trial at a Seoul court, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee shifted responsibility for controversial decisions -- ranging from a merger of the group’s two affiliates to an alleged donations-for-favors deal with former President Park Geun-hye -- to Choi Gee-sung, former vice chairman of Samsung Group a