April 21, 2016
The Korean daily media headlines and humor
Thursday, April 21, 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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Humor from a kind-hearted former Central Asian ambassador:
Who is poor?
A wealthy woman goes to a saree store and tells the boy at the counter "Bhaiya show some cheap sarees. It is my son's marriage and I have to give to my maid."
After sometime, the maid comes to the saree shop and tells the boy at the counter "Bhaiya show some expensive sarees. I want to gift my Mistress on her son's marriage."
Poverty is in the mind or in the purse?
Who is rich?
Once, a lady with her family was staying in a 3-star hotel for a picnic. She was the mother of a 6-month-old baby.
"Can I get 1 cup of milk?" asked the lady to the 3-star hotel manager.
"Yes madam," he replied.
"But it will cost 100 bucks."
"No problem," said the lady.
While driving back from hotel, the child was hungry again.
They stopped at a road side tea stall and took milk from the tea vendor
"How much?” she asked the tea vendor.
"Madam, we don't charge money for kid's milk," the old man said with a smile.
"Let me know if you need more for the journey."
The lady took one more cup and left.
She wondered, "Who’s richer? The hotel manager or the old tea vendor?
Sometimes, in the race for more money, we forget that we are all humans.
Let's help someone in need, without expecting something in return.
It will make us feel better than what money can.
Coffee never knew that it would taste so nice and sweet, before it met milk and sugar.
We are good as individuals but become better when we meet and blend with the right people...
Stay connected.
"The world is full of nice people... If you can't find one... Be one.
(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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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/)
19th National Assembly Kicks off Last Session
The 19th National Assembly will hold its last 30-day session from Thursday.
The extraordinary session comes after the floor leaders of the governing Saenuri Party, the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea(MPK) and the minor opposition People’s Partya greed on Monday to launch their last efforts to handle pending bills
US Gov't: Kerry Not to Meet Visiting N. Korean Minister
The U.S. government has denied the possibility that Secretary of State John Kerry would meet North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Su-yong during his visit to New York
Washington Free Beacon: Failed Launch of Musudan Could Have Injured N. Korean Technicians
A U.S. news outlet has reported that North Korea’s failed launch of its intermediate-range Musudan missile last Friday may have injured or killed technicians at the test site
19th National Assembly Kicks off Last Session
'N. Korea Suffering Under Strong Sanctions'
Park Says Saemaeul Movement Should Encourage Innovation
Korea Exchange to List EuroStoxx 50 Futures in June
KOSPI, KOSDAQ Inch Down
55% of Saemangeum Transformed Into Land
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Yonhap (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr)
S. Korean shares open higher on U.S. gains
South Korean stocks opened higher on Thursday, tracking overnight gains in Wall Street.
Scoreless innings streak snapped for Cardinals' Oh Seung-hwan
Oh Seung-hwan of the St. Louis Cardinals gave up his first two runs of the season Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs.
Samsung's global smartphone share expands in Q1
Samsung Electronics Co. saw its presence in the smartphone segment expand in the first quarter of 2016 compared with the previous three-month period, data showed Thursday, apparently helped by the robust sales of the Galaxy S7.
Justice minister vows to crack down on election law violations
Justice Minister Kim Hyun-woong has vowed to put the utmost efforts into investigating irregular election campaign activities during last week's general elections.
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The Korea Herald (http://www.koreaherald.com)
SK Innovation mulls EV battery plant in China
SK Innovation said Wednesday that it will finalize its plans to build a battery plant for electric vehicles in China thi...
Struggling economy faces resurging economic democratization
President Park Geun-hye and her economic aides have suggested the ruling party’s crushing defe...
New USFK chief reaffirms nuclear umbrella commitment to S. Korea
The commander-designate of U.S. Forces Korea said Tuesday that removing the “nuclear umbrella”...
Work accidents plague foreign workers
Maria, a 25-year-old dancer from a small country in West Africa, sustained leg injuries after f...
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The Korea Times (http://www.koreatimes.co.kr)
NK nuke test to bring more US military assets
The United States will consider deploying more high-profile military assets on the Korean Peninsula in the event of a fifth North Korean nuclear test, analysts said Wednesday. South Korea and the U.S. may also include Japan in t...
USFK commander confirms nuclear umbrella for Seoul
Gen. Vincent Brooks, the incoming commander of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), said Tuesday that it was very important for his country to provide “nuclear umbrella” protection, or extended deterrence, to South Korea in order to co...
Song Hye-kyo interview: 'Song Joong-ki made my heart flutter'
The impact of a single drama “Descendants of the Sun” seems to be lasting longer and stronger than...
Seoul to cut 12,000 cabs
Seoul Metropolitan Government will cut 12,000 taxis from the city’s fleet over the next 20 years t...
60 percent of N. Korean defectors classify them 'lower class'
60 percent of North Korean defectors in South Korea regard themselves as “lower class,” a survey s...
Deregulation, restructuring key to revitalizing stagnant economy
Former Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun said Wednesday that the government should carry out corpor...
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Dong AIlbo (http://english.donga.com)
Incoming USFK commander calls for continued U.S. nuclear umbrella for S. Korea
Gen. Vincent Brooks, the incoming commander of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), told a U.S. Senate hearing on Tuesday (local time) t…
'Japanese quake will have no impact on Mt. Baekdu eruption’
“Earthquakes hit Japan and Ecuador are not related each other. The Japanese earthquake will have no impact on possible volcanic e…
Kim Moo-sung and Choi Kyung-hwan's quiet moves
After the Saenuri Party's defeat in the April 13 general elections, former party leader Kim Moo-sung and Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan
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Chosun Ilbo (http://english.chosun.com)
Next USFK Chief Warns of Nuclear Arms Race Between Koreas
The U.S. military believes South Korea would develop its own nuclear weapons if Washington removes its nuclear umbrella for its Asian ally, the putative next commander of the U.S. Forces Korea said
Fruit Can Help with Constipation
Fresh fruit is far more effective than dietary fiber supplements or drugs in treating constipation brought on by excessive dieting, according to a survey. The best foods to overcome constipation are apples, bananas and grapefruit.
Singles Turn to Houseplants for Comfort
A growing number of singles have only their houseplants for company because they cost less and require less attention than cats or dogs. According to online shopping site 11st, sales of cactuses rose 17 percent in the first quarter compared to the same period of 2015. Sales of hydroponic plants grew 22 percent.
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HankyorehShinmoon (http://english.hani.co.kr)
Busan Film Fest facing possibility of an empty red carpet
With less than six months before it is supposed to kick off, this year’s Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) is at a critical junction. While South Korean filmmakers have threatened a mass boycot..
Sewol Special Commission still pushing for the truth of the tragedy
Following the Apr. 13 general elections, the discussion about revising the Special Sewol Law and appointing a special prosecutor is going into overdrive. This is why the special fact-finding commissio..
The folly of the Bank of Korea’s vacillating growth predictions
The Bank of Korea (BOK) lowered its economic growth rate forecast for this year from 3% to 2.8%. Explaining its rationale after a Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Apr. 19, it said that “improvemen..
Chicken restaurant owner sued over name “Louis Vuitongdak”
Kim, the 44-year-old proprietor of a chicken restaurant in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province, sighed during a telephone interview on Apr. 19. In his view, a global enterprise has been overreacting to a sm..
For fashion, “Korea is the happening, vibrant place of the moment”
International Vogue editor Suzy Menkes explained the reason for Seoul’s selection as host city for the second Conde Nast International Luxury Conference during a talk with reporters at Seoul’s Shilla ..
US points to Iran deal as model for N. Korean nuclear issue
South Korea, the US, and Japan sent a stern message warning of “serious additional measures” against North Korea if it carries out a fifth nuclear test or ballistic missile launch. While the message,..
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JoongAngIlbo(conservative): (http://koreajoongangdaily.joinsmsn.com/)
Yoo takes new tack to stimulate the economy
In a desperate attempt to get the economy up to 3 percent annual growth, the government has decided to shift focus, from stimulating consumer spending and reviving the real estate market, to major industrial restructuring to generate jobs…
Rating downgrades hit ’98 levels
The number of Korean businesses that suffered credit rating downgrades last year was the largest…
Oxy manufacturer offering deals to victims
Reckitt Benckiser Korea, manufacturer of the popular Oxy line of cleaning products, has been furtively striking…
China dives into Korea’s financial industry
Chinese capital is pouring into Korea’s financial industry. Over the last two years, there were seven large…
Economic analyst discusses brave new world for Korean companies
The Chinese acquisition of Korean financiers benefits both Beijing and Seoul, as it facilitates the development…
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The KyunghyangShinmoon(http://english.khan.co.kr/)
Can't the Visually Impaired Ride Roller Coasters?
Is it safe for the visually impaired to ride roller coasters in amusement parks? The court will make an unusual field inspection regarding this issue on April 2···
"Long-term Improvement of Fundamentals Rather than Short Term Stimulus"
On April 19, the Bank of Korea (BOK) lowered the growth forecast for this year to 2.8%, reflecting South Korea's economic reality currently facing overall diff···
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···
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The Korea Economic Daily (http://english.hankyung.com/)
Won and Yen Appreciate at the Same Time
The Korean won and Japanese yen are appreciating at a fast rate lately. Usually the two currencies moved in opposite directions. At 10:39 am on April 20, the won-dollar exchange rate in the Seoul foreign exchange market was traded at 1,132.25 won per dollar, down 4.05 won from the previous day. On
Koreans' Average Daily Leisure Time Remains at 4 Hours 50 Minutes
The number of hours Korean men and women spend on essential daily activities such as sleep and eating has increased for the past 15 years. Meanwhile, the number of hours assigned for leisure has remained same while that for house chores has shrunk somewhat. According to a report "Koreans' Lifestyle ...
Samsung SDI Joins Hands with KECPO for Bigger Role in Global ESS Market
Samsung SDI clasped hands with Korea Electric Power Corp. to make bigger forays into the global energy storage solution market. The Samsung Group company signed a memorandum with the state-run electric utility to jointly promote new energy deals at KEPCO’s headquarters in Naju in South Jeolla
Hyundai Motor and Cisco Form Connected Car Alliance
Hyundai Motor forged an alliance with a global IT company Cisco Systems to develop a vehicle networking technology. This move reflects Hyundai Motor’s ambition to develop by 2025 Internet-of-Things car which is often called a high-performance computer on the road. Unlike the past when Hyundai Moto...
Small Apartments Enjoy Unrivaled Demand
Apartment units with a floor space of 59 square meters are enjoying strong demand in Seoul with their prices renewing record-high levels. The number of the cases in which the per-pyeong (3.3 square meters) sales price is higher for 59-square-meter apartments than 84-square-meter ones which have long...
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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/)
SEMES to Establish R&D Center in Hwasung
SEMES, which is Samsung Group¡?s affiliate in display equipment, is building a R&D center in Hwasung. It is unusual for a South Korean equipment provider to build its R&D center and this is its attem
Lawsuit between Samsung Electronics and Dyson on Patented Vacuum Cleaner...
Lawsuit between Samsung Electronics and Dyson, which is a vacuum manufacturer in United Kingdom, ended by arbitration from court. Seoul Central
South Korean Government Selects Scientific Payloads That Will Be Load...
Pantoscopic polarizing camera, measurement device for moon¡?s magnetic field, and gamma ray spectroscope have been chosen as scientific payloads for a test orbit...
South Korea Emerges as a Test Bed for Future Vehicles
South Korea is emerging as a test bed for future vehicles. As South Korea was seen as a major test bed for global communication technologies and new Smart devices in ...
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MaeilBusinessNewsKorea (http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/ )
SPC writes history in Korean bakery business with homegrown yeast
A Korean bakery company has successfully applied its homegrown yeast to mass produce breads, not using commercial yeast ...
S. Korean gov’t to seek industrial reform on top of ongoing reforms in four
The South Korean government will seek to overhaul its industry on top of its reform efforts in labor, financial, public and ...
S. Korea’s Cheil adds U.K-based B2B marketing agency Founded in its portfolio
South Korea’s leading advertising agency Cheil Worldwide Inc., in which French advertising conglomerate Publicis Groupe is said ...
LVMH Chairman reportedly meets owners of S. Korea’s newly-launched duty free
Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), was
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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),
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Send your news releases and feedback:
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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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