April 20, 2016

The Korean daily media headlines and humor

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Your Excellency:

Here are The Korea Post notices and a roundup of important headlines from all major Korean-language dailies, TV and other news media of Korea today:

/s/

Lee Kyung-sik

Publisher-Chairman

Korea Post Media

P.S.: 1. To see the desired site, press down the Control key and click the blue URL of the media.

2. If received by a person other than the intended recipient, please kindly convey the mail to His/Her Excellency.

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Special notices:

Send your latest Embassy news releases toThe Korea Post for publication

Your Excellency:

Please transmit your latest press release(s) to edt@koreapost.com or korpost@chol.com for publication by the five media outlets of The Korea Post, including the Korean-language Internet newspaper (www.koreapost.co.kr), English website (www.koreapost.com) and the Korean-language newspaper (http://pdf.koreapost.co.kr/13/1301.pdf).

Very Respectfully Yours

/s/

Lee Kyung-sik

Publisher-Chairman of The Korea Post

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A quick roundup of major news stories from Korean media:

KBS (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/news/)

USFK Chief Nominee Backs Keeping Nuke Umbrella for S. Korea

The U.S. Forces Korea(USFK) chief nominee has dismissed Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump's controversial suggestions about withdrawing Washington's nuclear umbrella for South Korea.

US Warns of Possible Defense Measures in Case of 5th Nuke Test in N. Korea

Washington has warned that North Korea will face tougher sanctions in the event it carries out another nuclear test

S. Korea, US, Japan Warn N. Korea over Possible Provocation

South Korea, the United States and Japan have issued a strong warning to North Korea in relation to a possible missile launch or nuclear test.

S. Korea, US, Japan Warn N. Korea over Possible Provocation

South Korea, the United States and Japan have issued a strong warning to North Korea in relation to a possible missile launch or nuclear test.

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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)

Twins' Park Byung-ho homers for 2nd straight day

Minnesota Twins' South Korean slugger Park Byung-ho homered for the second straight day on Tuesday in Minneapolis.

Jang Hyun-seung to bolt from BEAST

Jang Hyun-seung, a member of the popular K-pop boy group BEAST, left the team for a solo debut, the group's management said.

No decision yet on S. Korea's hosting of World Baseball Classic games: MLB

No decision has been reached on whether South Korea will host World Baseball Classic (WBC) games next year, despite a recent statement by an American broadcaster, a senior Major League Baseball (MLB) official said Wednesday.

S. Korea to expand exports of aviation parts to $4.5 bln by 2020

South Korea's trade minister said Wednesday that the government will help the local aviation parts industry expand overseas and more than double its exports over the next four years.

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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)

BOK slashes growth outlook, freezes key rate

The Bank of Korea on Tuesday kept the key interest rate unchanged at an all-time low for a 10th consecutive month, while presenting a slower growth of 2.8 percent for the domestic economy this year.

Disabled students suffer under reluctant education system

For Doh Woo-gyung in Busan, a mother of a 14-year-old with brain lesions, it was a daring decis...

Hyundai, Cisco team up on connected cars

South Korea’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor and American tech giant Cisco Systems have agree...

Korean artist files copyright suit against designer

Artist Lee Myung-ho has sued London-based Greek fashion designer Mary Katrantzou for copying on...

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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)

Concerted pressure can make N. Korea rethink: deputy FM 

North Korea appears bent on holding on to its nuclear weapons no matter what happens, but concerted international sanctions and pressure can lead to the commu... 

Restructuring of shipping firms faces rough sailing 

Policymakers are struggling to keep debt-ridden Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) afloat to prevent it...

Film industry will boycott Busan festival 

Imagine a film festival without film industry people. A group of film-related associations has vowed to boycott this year’s Busan International Film Festival ... 

Korean photographer sues Greek designer over stealing image 

Photographer Lee Myoung-ho said Monday that he has an ongoing lawsuit in the U.S. over London-base... 

Park urged to talk with opposition leaders 

President Park Geun-hye needs to talk with the opposition leaders and listen to their opinions abo... 

Second 'Space-out' contest due May 7 

The second “space-out” competition here will be held in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on May 7.

'Lack of sleep' biggest difficulty for weary soldiers 

I want to sleep like a log just once,” said most Korean soldiers when asked about their biggest difficulty and discomfort in military life, a survey said Tue... 

High cost puts squeeze on would-be NK defectors 

The number of North Korean defectors has decreased since Kim Jong-un took power in 2011 because th...

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Dong AIlbo (http://english.donga.com)

Park Byung-ho hits large homer on ‘Park Byung-ho Day’

Minnesota Twins' Korean slugger Park Byung-ho had his third homer of the season in a home game against The Milwaukee Brewers of t…

President Obama to visit Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia was the third most military spending country in the world last year, after the U.S. and China. According to the 2015…

Sumi Jo wins the Best Song at the Donatello Awards

Simple Song#3,” the theme song of the movie “Youth” sung by Korean Soprano Sumi Jo, won the Best Original Song at Italy's 60th D…

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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)

Korea's Tallest Tower Embodies Industrial Malaise

The observation deck atop the new Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul was completed last month, and now Seoul boasts the world's fifth-tallest structure at 555 m. But the truth is that the tower was built without any Korean technology whatsoever.

Party Congress to Highlight N.Korean Isolation

A massive Workers Party Congress slated for early May, the first in 36 years, is likely to highlight above all North Korea's international isolation. No leaders from foreign countries are expected to attend the congress, while ordinary people are being squeezed by rising market prices in the wake of international sanctions. >>

More Than 850 People Homeless in Seoul

Over 850 homeless people subsist around the subway stations of the capital. The Seoul Metropolitan Government quoted research from the Korea Center for City and Environment Research that there were 855 homeless people in Seoul as of 2014.

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HankyorehShinmoon (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Hundreds of volunteers and donors chip in free meals to hungry mourners

Warm rice balls were passed around on the afternoon of Apr. 16 to people visiting a government memorial to victims of the Sewol ferry sinking on the tragedy’s second anniversary. Three thousand of th..

Time to find the truth of deaths caused by humidifier disinfectant

Prosecutors are planning to begin calling in industry officials on Apr. 19 for questioning in their investigation into deaths allegedly related to the use of humidifier disinfectant. The investigation..

After animal death, Lotteworld says it won’t acquire more beluga whales

Lotteworld Aquarium has announced that it will stop acquiring beluga whales. Since this means that the aquarium will bring a natural end to its practice of raising and displaying dolphins in captivity..

Education Ministry investigation turns up evidence of unfair law school admissions

About 40 children of jurists - including a former Supreme Court justice and former and current senior public prosecutors - have been fingered in an investigation by the Ministry of Education on charge..

In first comments since election, Pres. Park takes no responsibility for rout

President Park Geun-hye made her first official comments since the Apr. 13 general election with a call for forceful implementation of “key governance tasks” on Apr. 18. In her first message in the f..

Pres. Park wears green, gets an approval rating red alert anyway

On Apr. 18, President Park Geun-hye wore a green suit instead of the red one (the color of the ruling Saenuri Party) that she had worn so often during the general election campaign, but on the same da..

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JoongAngIlbo(conservative): (http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/)

BOK lowers its growth estimate for 2016 to 2.8%

The Korean central bank joined other international and local analysts in giving up on a 3 percent economic growth estimate for this year, citing growing uncertainties in the global economy and a disappointing performance in the first quarter…

Korean police help bust brothels in New York

Korean and U.S. police jointly cracked down on brothels in New York that hired Korean women…

Oxy probed over humidifier death disclosures

Prosecutors summoned a human resources manager at Reckitt Benckiser Korea on Tuesday to ask questions…

Chinese money pours into real estate

Earlier this month, Lotte Tour Development announced that it chose China State Construction Engineering Corporation…

Surging property sales in Jeju wreak damages

The southern island of Jeju is often known as the island of three abundances, or “Samdado,”…

ISAs draw big bucks in first month of release

As near-zero interest rates continue, more than 1 trillion won ($879 million) has flocked to the new individual savings…

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The KyunghyangShinmoon(http://english.khan.co.kr/)

President Called for People to Turn Their Back on the National Assembly, but Remains Silent after the Public Turns Away from the Government

On April 18, President Park Geun-hye referred to the results of the April 13 parliamentary elections, which ended in an utter defeat for the ruling Saenuri Part···

Filmmakers to Boycott the Busan International Film Festival, if Freedom of Expression Is Not Guaranteed

Filmmakers have decided not to attend this year's Busan International Film Festival. On April 18, the Emergency Committee of Filmmakers to Defend the Busan Int···

Not eating ‘More’ but eating ‘Well’…I’m no longer crying on count of malnutrition

Clementine (28), mother of a 3-year-old baby named Kevin, lift her son in arms with a troubled look. However, she smiled after checking graduation of a scale be···

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The Korea Economic Daily (http://english.hankyung.com/)

"Korea Must Focus More on Preempting Standard Patents"...IP Summit Conference

In order for Korea to overcome the situation of being sandwiched between Japan that has regained its price competitiveness through the weak yen and China that has fast caught up with Korea in terms of technological gap, experts in an intellectual property forum urged Korean companies must preempt st...

GE Tries to Acquire HRSG Unit of Doosan E&C

General Electric of the United States is pushing forward with a plan to acquire the heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) unit of Doosan Engineering & Construction. Morgan Stanley Private Equity has also taken part in the bidding war. Given the enthusiastic interest of GE, Doosan expected that it wil...

China Minsheng Acquires America's Reinsurer Sirius

China Minsheng Investment Corp., Ltd., China's largest private-sector investment firm, has completed on April 15 the acquisition of Sirius International Insurance Group, America's reinsurance company. The price tag for the deal was estimated at US$2.2 billion, the largest among all cases of Chinese ...

Secret behind Hot-selling Electronics Products: Collaboration

Today’s hot-selling electronics products have one thing in common: They are not manufactured by a single company. Instead, they are created through collaboration of different companies who jointly develop new functionalities and technologies or promote joint marketing. Along with the increase in th...

Baedal Minjok Attracts $50 Mil. Investment

Woowa Brothers Corp., the company behind Korea’s smash-hit mobile food delivery service "Nation of Delivery," is setting out to expand its business scope toward food logistics. The company announced on April 18 that it succeeded in receiving US$50-million investment from a consortium led by China’...

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AJU Business Daily(http://eng.ajunews.com/korea)

Blindness undermines UN sanctions against North Korea: expert

UN sanctions aimed at curbing North Korea's nuclear and missile programs have been undermined by "blindness" shown by countries like Namibia to illicit activities by the nuc…

Nuclear test possible on short notice in North Korea: 38 North

The site for North Korea's underground nuclear test is well maintained, demonstrating its ability to conduct detonations "on short notice by slow rolling preparations", 38 North…

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ETNEWS(http://english.etnews.com/)

Samsung Electronics to Supply NAND-Flash Memories to Apple

Samsung Electronics’ DS (Device Solution) Memory Business Department is planning to supply NAND-Flash memories to Apple for iPhones. It has been 4 years since it stopped dealing with Apple.

Proportional Representative of South Korean Parties Agree on Establishment of Deputy Prime Minister for ICT

Number 1 candidates of proportional representative from 3 government parties that were elected on general election (election of National Assembly), which took place ...

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MaeilBusinessNewsKorea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/ )

Korea’s Doosan Infracore beats market expectations with operating profit

South Korea’s top machinery manufacturer Doosan Infracore Co. returned to a net profit of 79.5 billion won in the first ...

BOK cuts growth outlook, keeps policy rate at record low

South Korea’s central bank Tuesday revised down the country’s growth and inflation outlook, and kept its benchmark interest ...

Time running short for corporate restructuring, a must, not a choice for Korea

Nearly two decades have passed since the country had to seek international bailout amid liquidity crisis in 1990s. Bankers ...

Hyundai Mobis recruits foreign talent for self-driving car technology

South Korea’s largest automotive supplier Hyundai Mobis Co. is recruiting talent in the U.S and Europe who can help advance its ...

Park to visit Iran accompanied by large economic mission of S. Korean

South Korean President Park Geun-hye will make a state visit to Iran accompanied by a large economic mission of business leaders ...

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The Korea Post is at your service.

The Korea Post is 31 years old this year and has 5 media units. They are all at your service.

The Korea Post, established 31 years ago in 1985, operates five news media outlets, two in the Korean language and three in English. They are all at your service. You can email all your English and Korean press releases and feedback for free publication to edt@koreapost.comor korpost@chol.com. The five media outlets are:

(1) A Korean print newspaper (http://www.koreapost.co.kr/pdf/list.php),

(2) A Korean Internet (www.koreapost.co.kr),

(3) An English Internet (www.koreapost.com),

(4) An English print monthly (http://koreapost.koreafree.co.kr/magazine/index.html), and

(5) An English e-daily (/rankup_module/rankup_notice/notice_list.html)

Send your news releases and feedback:

Send the Embassy news releases to edt@koreapost.comfor publication by all its five media units, including one Korean (www.koreapost.co.kr) and one English (www.koreapost.com) Internet dailies, which are updated real-time.(Call 010-5201-1740 for further details.)

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Special report:

Only 12.4% support the former ruling Saenuri Party of President Park

Some 77% of young people vote for opposition candidates

Which political parties do the young voters support in Korea?

In the last general elections on April 18, nearly 77% of the voters in their 20s supported the opposition parties. Only 12.4% supported the ruling Saenuri Party of President Park Geun-hye.

Specifically, 28.5% of the young voters supported the Minju Party of new leader Kim Jong-in, 26.8% the People’s Party of Ahn Cheol-soo, 21.6% the progressive Justice Party of Sim Sang-jung and the meager balance (12.4%) to the ruling Saenuri Party of President Park. This was reported by a major Korean-language daily Joong-Ang Ilbo on April 18 based on a survey a total of 153 typical young voters in the 20s.

Asked how they thought President Park Geun-hye has been running the affairs of the state, 95.4% said that she was doing it the wrong way. Asked why they thought so, 47.1% said that she was dogmatic, 15.7% her economic policies failed and 9.8% she did not honor her public promises.

The young voter turnout this year was bigger than in many previous years. According to tallies by three major broadcasting stations, KBS, MBC and SBS, in their exit surveys, 49.4% of the eligible younger voters cast their ballots. This is 7.9% higher than 41.5% recorded in the general elections of 2012.

On the cause of the ‘Youth Revolt,’ Prof. Jang Deok-jin of Seoul National University said, “The two consecutive conservative governments in the past eight years have created an economic environment and a labor market that gave the young people in Korea dissatisfaction and frustration.”

According to Office of Statistics, the young jobless rate that was 8% in 1913, which rose to 9% in 2014 and then to 9.2% in 2015. This year the youth jobless rate has already reached 12.5% (as of February).

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Replacing the ruling party with one with a very slight margin

People give the present government, political leadership a telling message

The 20th National Assembly elections on April 13, 2016 ended with the birth of a three-party political system in South Korea?changing the ruling party with a very slight margin. The new ruling party, Minjoo, has only one more winner than the former ruling party, Saenuri. Perhaps the bigger change is the fact that now Korea is in a three-party system with a powerful newcomer, the People’s Party led by Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo).

The Korean people have given the political arena a telling message, “We are fed up with you two guys endlessly fighting with each other and producing nothing!”

So the people gave birth to a powerful third party to control the ‘two big guys’ so that they would not fight with each other endlessly paying little attention to the all-important affairs of the state and issues that demand an immediate attention.

Now neither the former ruling party nor the new majority party can belittle the enormous power of the people (voters).

As soon as Minjoo won the elections over the Saenuri Party with the extremely slight margin, Chairman Kim Jong-in of Minjoo Party said, “The people power held the ruling party wholly responsible for the economic failures.”

However, the stronger reason seems to be that the people saw the ruling party as being overly arrogant, self-righteous and incompetent.

Korea is having a critical time economically. The International Monetary Fund brought the economic growth forecast of Korea to 2.7% from the 3.2% of last October. The new National Assembly where now the opposition parties are stronger than the ruling camp should try to make an all-out effort to save the sagging Korean economy aloof?and there is no time for any partisan strife.

There were so many surprises during the last parliamentary elections. The ‘political monopoly’ that the Saenuri Party had enjoyed for the past 26 years in Busan and Gyeongsangnam-do region disappeared in the recent elections. Saenuri suffered a telling defeat where it lost five seats to the Minju in Busan and three in Gyeongsangnam-do. The reason seems to be the voters’ disagreement with Saenuri’s decision of indiscriminate 100% re-nomination of the incumbent local lawmakers.

Some political observers term the results of the National Assembly elections an ‘impeachment against the incumbent President and the ruling party.’

It appears that this is the first time in the Constitutional history of Korea where the ruling party lost as many as 30 seats and the parliamentary leadership. This is all the more so because the election conditions this year were the best ever for the ruling party whereas the opposition camp was split between Minjoo and the People’s Party and furthermore there was a marked growth in the number of senior voters who are normally on the side of the party in power.

Chairman Kim Moo-sung and other leading members of Saenuri have expressed their desire to leave the leadership positions in assumption of this situation. However, there is no appropriate political leaders fit to replace the present leadership of the party.

On this situation, Saenuri Chairman Kim Moo-sung said: “This happened because we had forgotten to fear the people (voters) and we have only ourselves to blame.” It appears that Kim has correctly seen the situation. It appears that the voters have given their verdict seeing the arrogance in the ruling party and the President.

Many people say that President Park has repeatedly made mistakes in her personnel selection and management known as “Decisions made according to the President’s notebook” under which most of the important government and party posts are occupied by the people from Taegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, the favorite region of the President, and most of the important decisions are made by them.

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Humor from a former Central Asian ambassador:

Why Condoms come in packs of 3s, 6s and 12s?

A man walked into a drug store with his 8-year-old-son.

They happened to walk by the condom display, and the boy asked: What are these, Dad?

To which, the man matter-of-factly replied: Those are called condoms, son. Men use them to have safe sex.

Oh, I see, replied the boy pensively. I’ve heard of that in health class at school.

He looked over the display and picked up a package of 3 and asks: Why are there 3 in this package?

The dad replied: Those are for high school boys. ONE for Friday, ONE for Saturday and ONE for Sunday.

Cool, said the boy.

He noticed a pack of 6s and asked: Then, who are these for?

Those are for college boys, the dad answered. TWO for Friday, TWO for Saturday and TWO for Sunday.

Wow! exclaimed the boy.

Then, who uses THESE?: he asked, picking up a pack of 12s.

With a sigh and a tear in his eye, the dad replied: Those are for married men. ONE for January, ONE for February, ONE for March.

(Editor’s note: Contribute the humor of your own country or region and help your incumbent and former colleagues chuckle and remember you. Send the tradition and/or current humor of you country or region to edt@koreapost.com or korpost@chol.com to be shared with your colleagues and Korean friends.)

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Whom did the overseas Koreans support in the last NA elections?

Which party does the Korean residents overseas favor most?

The overseas Koreans chose Minju Party most (59%) followed by Saenuri (24%), Ahn Cheol-soo's People's Party (9.1%) and Democratic Justice Party (2.4%). Centrist Ahn's Party had been only two months old when it joined the elections and it is expected that the new party will gain much more with the passage of time.

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