Headlines, March 12, 2019

The Korean daily media headlines and humor

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Round-up of important news from major Korean dailies and from international media today

The Korea Post media (www.koreapost.com) in English, (www.koreapost.co.kr) in Korean.

S. Korea to seek talks with N. Korea to help stalled nuke negotiations move forward: ministry

South Korea will push for talks with North Korea, including summits, this year to deepen inter-Korean relations and help stalled denuclearization talks move forward between Washington and Pyongyang, the unification ministry said Tuesday. "In close coordination with the U.S., (we) will push for inter-Korean talks to help the U.S. and North Korea meet again and reach an agreement on denuclearization and corresponding measures," the ministry said in a report detailing its 2019 policy direction.

S. Korea's Moon wraps up Brunei visit, heads to Malaysia

South Korean President Moon Jae-in headed for Malaysia on Tuesday, wrapping up his three-day state visit to Brunei, where he and Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah discussed ways to boost their countries' cooperation and exchange. Moon is currently on a three-nation tour that will also take him to Cambodia. Both Malaysia and Cambodia, along with Brunei, are members of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Rev. Park bridges gaps between Korea and the outside world

Rev. Park Seung-uk, chairman and chief abbot of the Cheonman-sa Buddhist Temple in Ulsan, visited Seoul and had a meeting with Ambassador Shiferaw Shigutie Wolassa of Ethiopia at the Grand Hyatt Seoul on March 11, 2019. The meeting was also attended by the other senior members of the Embassy of Ethiopia and a number of Korean business leaders from Ulsan.

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

Police Book Singer Jung Joon-Young for Sharing Illegal Videos

Police have booked singer-songwriter Jung Joon-young as a suspect for filming and sharing illegal videos. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said on Tuesday that Jung has been charged with violating sexual violence laws. Police said the 30-year-old uploaded videos of his sexual encounters with women to a KakaoTalk chat room with seven other people, including Big Bang member Seungri.

Tensions Between Rival Parties Escalate Following LKP Floor Leader's Speech

Tensions between rival political parties are mounting after the floor leader of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party(LKP) criticized President Moon Jae-in's engagement with North Korea, calling him the chief spokesperson for regime leader Kim Jong-un. Immediately following LKP floor leader Na Kyung-won's parliamentary address on Tuesday, the ruling Democratic Party(DP) convened an emergency meeting to strongly denounce Na's comments.

Kyodo: S. Korea, Japan to Arrange Meeting to Discuss Forced Labor Compensation

South Korea and Japan have reportedly begun talks to arrange a meeting to discuss the South Korean Supreme Court's recent ruling that ordered Japanese firms to compensate victims of Japan's forced labor during its colonial rule of Korea. Citing a source within the Japanese government, Japan's Kyodo News said on Monday the director-general-level meeting of officials from the two countries' foreign ministries will likely be held in Seoul on Thursday.

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

Police probe allegation singer shared sex videos in Seungri's chat room

Police have launched a fresh probe into allegations that a former talent show contestant illegally filmed sex tapes and shared the videos with several others, including BIGBANG member Seungri, in a mobile chat room. Jung Joon-young, a singer-songwriter and TV celebrity, best known for his part in KBS' variety show "2 Days & 1 Night," is under investigation over suspicions that he uploaded his own sex videos in a KakaoTalk group chat with his fellow entertainers, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.

Exports of small firms hit record high in 2018

Exports of small and medium-sized South Korean firms hit a record high of US$108.7 billion last year, government data showed Tuesday, due to the robust global manufacturing sector. The figures represent a 2.5 percent increase from 2017, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. It was the second straight year that the export volume of small and medium-sized firms surpassed $100 billion.

S. Korean president arrives in Malaysia on state visit

South Korean President Moon Jae-in arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday to make a three-day state visit that will include a summit with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Moon's arrival here followed his three-day state visit to Brunei, where he and Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah sought ways to boost their countries' bilateral cooperation and exchange.

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

S. Korean president arrives in Malaysia on state visit

N. Korea leader not mentioned among deputies newly elected to parliament

North Korea's state media did not mention leader Kim Jong-un in announcing a list of deputies newly elected to the communist state's rubber-stamp parliament on Tuesday, raising speculation about the reason for his exclusion. Kim's exclusion from the list of 687 new deputies, if confirmed, means he didn't run because elections in North Korea are a formality as all candidates are elected with 100 percent of the vote. State media did not mention Kim's candidate registration before or after the elections.

S. Korea's Moon wraps up Brunei visit, heads to Malaysia

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

'Illusion of stability' hides truth about Rohingya camp

When the head of the mega-scale refugee camp for Rohingya people at Cox's Bazar visited Seoul late February, he wanted the Korean government and local donors to the International Organization for Migration to understand a truth undermined by many ― that people have been fooled by an "illusion of stability" when seeing the camp. Outsiders, after seeing no bodies lying around the streets and not hearing any shots, think life at the makeshift village of Bangladesh housing 925,700 Rohingyas goes on normally. But the Georgian Chief of Mission says the impression is a mirage, highlighting the fragility at the camp, which now holds sixth-largest community in Bangladesh.

Korean man wanted for attempted murder in Japan

Japanese police are searching for a Korean gunman suspected of seriously injuring two men at a members-only gambling venue in Osaka's Minami entertainment district on Monday evening. Police put Shinichi Kyo, 34, on a wanted list for attempted murder and violating the firearms control law, after he allegedly shot two men ― a venue employee, 42, and a customer, 32 ― at the casino-style online gambling hub, according to local media.

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

Korea to Suffer Labor Shortage Despite Higher Retirement Age

Korea is expected to suffer a shortage of the working-age population even if the retirement age is raised to 65. Analysis of population estimates by Statistics Korea suggests there will be 31 million people in the working-age population between 20 and 65 in 2030, fewer than the current 31.2 million between 20 to 60 before retirement age.

N.Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur Defaced with Graffiti

An anti-North Korean slogan was found sprayed on the wall of the North Korean Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia early Monday morning. It read, "Down with Kim Jong-un" and "Free North Korea... we are rising up!" On another side of the wall was the logo of "Free Joseon," a group that also goes by the name of Cheollima Civil Defense, which is believed to have rescued the son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half-brother from the North's assassination squads.

Other Celebrities Implicated in Seung-ri Scandal

Police are extending their probe into Seung-ri of boy band Big Bang on pimping charges to other celebrities who are also suspected of involvement in one way or another. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said Monday, "We have confirmed that multiple celebrities were part of a Kakao chat group in December of 2017 in which [Seung-ri] exchanged messages with staff relating to supplying prostitutes for foreign investors." A police source said some of them were summoned last week for questioning.

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HanKyoReh Shinmun (http://english.hani.co.kr)

Kim Jong-un stresses importance of economy and public livelihood in party statement

“No revolutionary tasks stand before us other than the improvement of the economy and people's daily lives.” This was the first official message from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un following his second summit with the US, which ended without yielding an agreement. It was reported on Mar. 9 by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) as having been expressed in a letter from Kim to participants in the Second National Conference of Primary Information Workers of the Party in Pyongyang on Mar. 6–7.

Chun Doo-hwan steps onto Gwangju soil for first time in 32 years

Ex-president Chun Doo-hwan, who is currently under trial for disparaging the testimonial of witnesses who saw the massacre of innocent civilians by martial law forces during the Gwangju Democratization Movement of 1980, set foot in the city of Gwangju for the first time in 32 years. Chun arrived in the city and headed for the Gwangju District Court for his trial. While walking to the court’s entrance, a reporter from the swarm of journalists surrounding him asked whether he’d given the order for the military fire upon civilians.

US and N. Korea need to stop narrowing passageway for negotiations

Following the breakdown of their summit in Hanoi, North Korea and the US have been sending each other contradictory messages – some aggressive, others gracious. Our concern is that these confusing attitudes could cause the situation to deteriorate and ultimately torpedo the negotiations. This is a time for both North Korea and the US to exercise restraint and make an effort to preserve the momentum for dialogue.

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The Dong-A Ilbo (http://english.donga.com/)

‘N. Korea produced materials for 6 nuclear warheads since Singapore summit,’ NYT reports

North Korea continued its production of nuclear materials enough to fuel a half-dozen nuclear warheads during the time between the first U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore in June and the second summit in Hanoi, according to U.S. intelligence authorities cited in the New York Times’ report Saturday (local time). “Intelligence estimates suggest that North Korea produced enough uranium and plutonium to fuel a half-dozen new nuclear warheads” during eight months between the summits, the newspaper said. Bloomberg had also reported in January that the North is believed to have secured materials for nuclear fission enough to produce at least six nuclear bombs and added more ICBMs to its arsenal.

K-pop and e-sports-related content enjoys great popularity on Instagram

The CEO of Instagram, a social network service that has more than one billion users worldwide, cited Korea’s cultural content such as K-pop and e-sports as the most representative content on Instagram. He also said he is planning to strengthen e-commerce features on Instagram this year. During a press conference held at Facebook Korea in Seoul on Monday, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri said he hopes Instagram to serve as a platform that can promote Korea to the world and that e-sports and K-pop are the most representative Korean content that are drawing users’ attention.

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The KyungHyang Shinmun (http://english.khan.co.kr/)

History Never Punished a Past Crime: Chun Doo-hwan to Stand Trial in a Gwangju Court on March 11

On March 11, former President Chun Doo-hwan (88) will stand in a Gwangju court of law for libel in connection to the May 18 pro-democracy uprising. This is the first time he will stand trial since he was sentenced to life in prison by the Supreme Court and later pardoned 22 years ago in 1997 for “murder for the purpose of rebellion” at the time of the May 18 uprising. According to the Gwangju District Court on March 10, former President Chun will appear at the trial for defamation of the dead, scheduled to be held at courtroom 201 at the Gwangju District Court at 2:30 p.m. on March 11. Chief Judge Jang Dong-hyeok (Criminal Division 8) will hear the trial alone.

Why Can't We Resume Tourism of Mount Kumgang and Operation at the Kaesong Industrial Complex?

On March 8, the Moon Jae-in government nominated Kim Yeon-chul, director of the Korea Institute for National Unification for the unification minister, and the conservatives all fired away. They argued that the government made clear its intention to go “my way” by nominating a supporter of inter-Korean economic cooperation regardless of the fact that the U.S. is against easting sanctions for such cooperation. Jun Hee-kyung, spokesperson for the Liberty Korea Party referred to Kim Yeon-chul as "a person immersed in inter-Korean economic cooperation and interested in giving everything away to North Korea." The conservative media evaluated Kim as a "sunshine policy" hardliner and even attacked him for calling the Park Geun-hye government's decision to shut down the Kaesong Industrial Complex a "self-injurious method."

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Maeil Business News Korea ( http://www.pulsenews.co.kr/)

Korea outstrips China to become No.2 importer of U.S. oil in 2018

South Korea became the second buyer of U.S. oil after Canada last year as a kind of trade-off to avoid friction with the United State as well as for diversification of fuel sourcing amid volatility in Middle East crude. According to Standard & Poor’s Global Platts, an energy and commodities information provider, Tuesday based on data from the U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA),t South Korea was registered at the second largest buyer of U.S. oil in 2018 with its daily imports averaging 236,000 barrels, following Canada with 378,000 barrels per day. China ranked third with imports of 228,000 barrels per day.

Woongjin to buy extra Coway shares from GIC to meet holding rules

South Korea’s Woongjin Group will additionally buy Coway Co. shares, worth up to 300 billion won ($265.8 million), from Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC to enhance its grip on the water and air purifier maker that is set to rejoin the group family this month. Woongjin ThinkBig, the education service unit of Woongjin Group, said in a disclosure on Monday that it will purchase Coway shares worth up to 300 billion won from GIC in phases by September.

US-based The Capital Group downs stake in Hyundai Motor

California-based world’s leading fund operator The Capital Group reduced its holding in Hyundai Motor Co. from apparent concerns about its performance from faltering sales but remained on as the third largest stockholder in the household Korean vehicle maker. The global asset management company in a disclosure Monday reported that The Capital Group Companies and its affiliates sold a 0.86 stake, or 1,848,436 shares, in the Korean automaker during the trading hours on Feb. 27.

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Lee Kyung-sik edt@koreapost.com