Headlines, December 27, 2019

Arrest Warrant Rejected for Former Justice Minister
A local court has rejected an arrest warrant for former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, who is accused of abuse of authority and obstruction of duty. The Seoul Eastern District Court turned down the prosecution's request for a writ for Cho at around 1 a.m. Friday, saying that the charges have been supported but there is no concern the suspect will flee or destroy evidence.

Prosecutors Seek Arrest Warrant for Ulsan Vice Mayor
Prosecutors have requested an arrest warrant for Ulsan Vice Mayor Song Byung-gi on charges of election law violations. According to the prosecution on Friday, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office filed for the warrant with a local court the previous day.

S. Korea's Consumer Sentiment Slightly Worsens in December
South Korea's consumer sentiment slightly worsened from a month earlier in December but remained positive for a second consecutive month. According to the Bank of Korea on Friday, the composite consumer sentiment index came to 100-point-four in the month, down from 100-point-nine in November. The index remained above 100 for a second straight month after exceeding the benchmark figure for the first time in seven months since May.

Arrest warrant for former justice minister rejected
A Seoul court on Friday rejected an arrest warrant for former Justice Minister Cho Kuk in a probe into his suspected role in ending an inspection into bribery allegations involving a former Busan vice mayor. Earlier this week, prosecutors filed for an arrest warrant for Cho, former senior presidential secretary for civil affairs, on charges of abuse of authority in connection with the bribery case of now-arrested Yoo Jae-soo.

North Korea's 'new way' can be late Christmas gift
Days ahead of the year-end deadline set by North Korea for its denuclearization negotiations with the United States, experts raised speculations Tuesday that what North Korea has described to be a "Christmas gift" for the U.S. could be a declaration of the country's "new way" of its diplomacy with the U.S. and other neighboring countries. They said it would be revealed at a plenary meeting of the central committee of the country's ruling party.

Assembly pushes to pass electoral reform bill on Friday
The National Assembly is expected to pass a fast-tracked bill on electoral reform on Friday after failing to put it to a vote due to a days-long filibuster by the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) which lasted from Monday to Wednesday. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and other minor political parties are planning to push for passing the reform bill on Friday, along with other bread-and-butter bills. The bill is designed to add the number of proportional representatives in favor of smaller parties such as the Justice Party. As the number of lawmakers of these parties meets the 148-seat quorum, the bills could be passed without the LKP's participation.

More and more young S. Koreans suffer from panic disorders every year
The number of South Koreans in their 20s who suffer from panic disorders has been substantially increasing each year, health data shows. Panic episodes are characterized by an anxiety response that overwhelms the sufferer with the powerful sense that he or she is about to die accompanied by physical symptoms including heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, and chest pain, but with no particular irregularities detectable by internal examinations.

South Korea’s social divide between universities within Seoul and universities without
In the British House of Commons, two red “sword lines” have been drawn into the floor. The lines were put there to prevent the opposing lawmakers facing each other across the floor from taking out their swords and running each other through during their arguments. It’s a symbol of the British Parliament, a setting where heated debates unfold. The reason Cho Ji-hoon, a 22-year-old university student from Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, chose political science and international relations as a major was because he wanted to pursue that same kind of heated politics in South Korea.

In trilateral summit, S. Korea, China, and Japan agree to push for denuclearization and renewed N. Korea-US dialogue
During a summit on Dec. 24, South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to “continue close communication and cooperation for denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.” The three leaders also agreed about the importance of working together to speed up negotiations for a trilateral free trade agreement (FTA).

President Moon and President Xi “We Need to Keep the Momentum Going for Talks Between N.K. and U.S.”
On December 23, President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed that “It is important to keep the momentum alive for dialogue between North Korea and the United States” in connection to heightening tensions between the two countries at a South Korea-China summit in Beijing. The two leaders also discussed the resolution to ease sanctions on North Korea, which China and Russia submitted to the United Nations (UN) Security Council.

South Korea’s First Defeat in an Investor-State Dispute Settlement: The Threat of Lawsuits by Foreign Companies Become a Reality
The threat of the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), which was cited as a typical “toxic provision” in the free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States, has become a reality. A ruling was finalized in an investor-state dispute settlement that called for the South Korean government to pay the Iranian Dayyani family 73 billion won. This was the first defeat in an ISDS, and it can work to the government’s disadvantage in other pending settlements, so voices from within the nation are calling for the need of a government-wide strategy.