ROK and Inter-Korean relations
November 2016
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Closest Allies Tell Park to Go
By Hwang Dae-jin
November 29, 2016 09:53
Key allies of beleaguered President Park Geun-hye advised her Monday that all is lost and her only option is to quit.
The allies told Park to give the National Assembly carte blanche in trying to contain the political chaos resulting from a massive corruption scandal involving her close confidante Choi Soon-sil.
The pro-Park faction in the ruling Saenuri Party led by Suh Chung-won, Choi Kyung-hwan, Yoo Ki-june, Hong Moon-jong and Chung Woo-taik met Monday and agreed that the best option would be for Park to announce a schedule for her resignation and let the National Assembly set the political agenda, according to sources who were present at the meeting.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation] [Saenuri]
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Facing crisis on all fronts, what will Pres. Park do next?
Posted on : Nov.29,2016 14:34 KST
The lights are off at the Blue House press gallery on Nov. 28, the day that President Park Geun-hye’s attorney Yoo Yeong-ha announced that Park had refused a third prosecutors’ request for her to be questioned. (Blue House photo pool)
Many are urging Park to step down of her own accord, with motion for impeachment coming this week
With lawmakers in the faction of the Saenuri Party aligned with President Park Geun-hye urging Park on Nov. 28 to “resign in an orderly fashion,” many are watching to see what Park will choose to do. As the political parties move forward with Park’s impeachment proceedings, the big question is where Park will announce her political future and her plan to resign, which is the option that would allow her to maintain at least a little dignity.
On Nov. 28, the Blue House did not take an official position about the suggestion made by senior members of the pro-Park faction. Lawmakers in the pro-Park faction advised Blue House Senior Secretary of Political Affairs Hur Won-je that Park should step down, but Park’s aides in the Blue House reportedly did not engage in any official discussion of the idea. “President Park’s aides have never discussed the idea of her stepping down, and indeed this is not something that they could discuss,” said an official at the Blue House.
[Park Geun-hye]
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Pres. Park refuses to be questioned, charges to be handed off to special prosecutor
Posted on : Nov.29,2016 14:38 KST
Investigation will now try to prove quid pro quo relationship between chaebol and Choi Sun-sil’s foundations
With President Park Geun-hye’s rejection on Nov. 28 of the third request by the prosecutors’ special investigations headquarters to come in for questioning, prosecutors have effectively been frustrated in their attempts to question the president. This means that the prosecutors’ primary goal of charging Park and her confidante Choi Sun-sil with bribery will be handed over to the soon-to-be-appointed special prosecutor. The prosecutors are reportedly planning to sort through the suspicious evidence and pass it along to the special prosecutor.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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[Editorial] Abandon biased history textbooks that whitewash dictatorship
Posted on : Nov.29,2016 16:14 KST
Members of civic groups call for the revocation of state-authored middle and high school history textbooks, in front of the Central Government Complex in Seoul on Nov. 28. (by Shin So-young, staff photographer)
The Park Geun-hye administration finally pushed through the release of “examination versions” of state-authored middle and high school history textbooks on Nov. 28, despite a majority of South Koreans being opposed to it. The Ministry of Education will be collecting opinions through Dec. 23 as it considers either mixed use of state-authored and authorized textbooks or a pilot run.
As has been pointed out since the beginning, a state-authored textbook system in itself is an obviously retrograde policy - the kind of thing you only see today in a tiny few unenlightened totalitarian states. The ministry is simply making a mockery of the people by going on about “mixed use” while still clinging to textbooks that have lost any credibility with the public. Not only will the textbooks lack any continuity when they‘re being pushed by a President who has essentially been impeached by the public from which her power derives, but objections from metropolitan and provincial education superintendents, and from the teachers and students themselves, mean they will be difficult to distribute to schools. All it will do is create needless chaos, responsibility for which belongs to Park herself, Minister of Education Lee Joon-sik, and education officials
[Textbook] [Dictatorships]
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Opposition criticizes Saenuri pro-Park faction’s proposal for Park’s early departure
Posted on : Nov.29,2016 14:31 KST
Saenuri Party lawmaker Suh Chung-won leaves a meeting of the party’s pro-Park faction at the National Assembly in Seoul, Nov. 28. (provided by Focus News)
Some call the proposal an attempt to buy time and divide the opposition over discussions about Constitutional amendment
Opposition parties’ initial response to a proposal for President Park Geun-hye’s early departure on Nov. 28 by Suh Chung-won and other prominent members of the Saenuri Party‘s pro-Park faction was that the President herself “would not accept it.”
But some also continued harboring suspicions that the proposal was intended by the lawmakers as a stalling tactic to counter the current push for impeachment.
“It is significant that [the pro-Park faction] said the President needs to step down, but [the proposal] is vague and lacks specificity,” Minjoo Party of Korea leader Choo Mi-ae told reporters that day.
In a telephone interview with the Hankyoreh, People’s Party emergency committee head Park Jie-won said, “The President isn‘t going anywhere with something like this. We’re going to focus on impeachment instead of looking around at different things.”
[Park Geun-hye] [Saenuri]
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PRESIDENT SAYS 'I WILL FOLLOW ASSEMBLY'S DECISION ON RESIGNATION'
President Park Geun-hye bows before delivering a national address at the presidential office, Tuesday. / Yonhap
By Park Si-soo
President Park Geun-hye will follow the National Assembly's decision on her presidency, including her resignation, she said in a nationally televised speech from the presidential office on Tuesday.
"Once the ruling and opposition parties come up with measures to transfer power in a way that minimizes any power vacuum and chaos in governance, I will step down," Park said.
"I have laid everything down," the President said. "My only desire is for South Korea to break away from this chaotic state and return to its original state as soon as possible."
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation] [Ploy]
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Opposition calls Park's speech 'ploy to avoid impeachment'
By Park Si-soo
The main opposition Democratic Party on Tuesday rejected President Park Geun-hye's offer to step down under a plan to be devised by National Assembly, calling it a "ploy to avoid impeachment."
The party said it would go ahead with its plan to impeach Park
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Ploy]
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Scandal-maker Choi is hit-maker for TV
A scene from "Ssulzun" / Courtesy of JTBC
By Yun Suh-young
Choi Soon-sil, the close confidant of President Park Geun-hye who caused a national uproar for her deep involvement in state affairs to abuse power for personal gain, is a hit-maker in the entertainment realm.
The so-called "Choi Soon-sil gate," reminding the people of U.S. President Nixon's Watergate scandal in 1972, is boosting viewer ratings for local TV programs. By airing episodes related to Choi or TV personalities parodying Choi, local broadcasters are having a heyday, enjoying an unusual boost in viewership.
"We Want to Know About That," aired by SBS on Saturdays, dedicated its entire one-hour program to the history of the relationships of Choi and her father Choi Tae-min, who are known to have controlled President Park from behind the curtain for over 40 years. It closely examined Choi Tae-min, a shady religious leader, through testimonies of those who knew him, including Kim Jae-kyu who assassinated President Park's father, Park Chung-hee, and Park Chung-hee himself.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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Veteran Politicians Call on Park to Step Down by April
By Sun Jung-minm, Eom Bo-un
November 28, 2016 13:15
Veteran politicians led by former National Assembly Speaker Park Gwan-yong on Sunday urged President Park Geun-hye to step down by April to overcome the crisis resulting from the scandal that has engulfed her.
They also called for a new, non-partisan prime minister to be appointed and the Constitution to be revised so that some of the president's sweeping executive powers are devolved to parliament.
The elder politicians gathered in a hotel in Seoul for a four-hour meeting before offering a series of proposals that included the April deadline.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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Record Numbers March for Park's Ouster
November 28, 2016 09:34
Way over a million protesters braved sleet and icy temperatures on Saturday to call for the ouster of President Park Geun-hye over a snowballing corruption scandal.
Organizers said a record 1.5 million people converged in downtown Seoul and another 400,000 across the country.
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Thousands rally against President Park Geun-hye in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Saturday.
Once again the protests were remarkably peaceful for Korea and no one was arrested or injured.
Holding banners that read "Arrest President Park" and "Surrender Now," the protesters stopped just 200 m short of the presidential office and attempted to surround it.
Foreign media were awed by the sheer size of the candle-light protests, which the New York Times described as "almost festive." China's Xinhua News said Koreans "opened a new era of demonstrations," while Japanese broadcaster NHK said it was the "largest demonstration since the 1987 pro-democracy protests" that ousted military dictator Chun Doo-hwan.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Gov't to Increase Benefits for N.Korean Defectors
By Kim Myong-song
November 28, 2016 13:06
The government will raise the subsidy given to North Korean defectors when they first settle here now their number has exceeded 30,000 mark recently.
The Unification Ministry on Sunday said it will gradually raise both the resettlement payment and housing expenses for defectors, which currently are W7 million and W13 million per person taking wage and inflation rates into consideration (US$1=W1,177).
The government initially paid every defector W37 million to get settled between 1998 and 2004, when the Roh Moo-hyun administration reduced halved the subsidy to encourage defectors to take their lives in their own hands.
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[Refugee reception]
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As candles burn, Park faces most tumultuous week of her presidency
Posted on : Nov.28,2016 16:04 KST
photo)
Motion for impeachment could be passed on Dec. 2, and Park could be questioned by prosecutors before Nov. 29
The entire world is watching as South Korea’s candlelight protests spread like wildfire. Now is the time for the country’s politicians to embrace angry citizens’ peaceful yet determined demands for President Park Geun-hye to resign. Since not only the impeachment proceedings against Park but also the appointment of a special prosecutor and the beginning of the parliamentary investigation will be taking place in rapid succession, the first week of December is likely to go down in history as a turbulent time.
Park has disregarded the warnings of the candlelight protests, and now she is staring impeachment proceedings in the face. The opposition Minjoo Party and People’s Party will jointly prepare the motion for impeachment by Nov. 30, and on the same day the floor leaders of the three main opposition parties will meet to determine when to submit the motion. If the opposition parties have lined up enough support for impeachment from Saenuri Party lawmakers who are not aligned with Park, they could submit the motion as early as Nov. 30. In this case, the report would probably be made to a full session of the National Assembly on Dec. 1, and the motion would likely be passed on Dec. 2.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest] [Impeachment]
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“Like a party every weekend” - demonstrators pull off witty satires of Pres. Park
Posted on : Nov.28,2016 15:57 KST
At growing nationwide demonstration, participants capture the absurdity of the unpopular Blue House hanging on
“It’s not easy, but they keep pulling it off. It’s like a party every weekend,” said Park Chae-un, 42, who lives in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province. This past weekend, he drove through the snow for three hours on his way to Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul. Everywhere he went on Sejong Street was overflowing with satire and parody. The people who attended the fifth nationwide rally - 1.5 million of them, organizers estimate - called for President Park Geun-hye to step down, each in their own ways.
In front of the office of the Sewol Special Investigative Commissions, a big whale rose into the air. The whale, which was carrying on its back figurines representing the 304 people who died in the 2014 Sewol ferry sinking, was part of a parade organized by the Apr. 16 Coalition to demand a full investigation into the Sewol tragedy. The Sewol whale was made by students at the Sungmisan School in the Mapo District of Seoul to honor the memory of the victims. Drawn by illustrator Seok Jeong-hyeon and turned into a video using “augmented reality” and shared on Facebook by designer Lee Gun-seop, it was brought to life for the protest.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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For illicit ‘donations’, Pres. Park goes back to safe house near the Blue House
Posted on : Nov.28,2016 16:10 KST
Like past presidents engaging in corruption, Park sought out safe house for seclusion and privacy
The meetings took place in July 2015 in a house across from the Korean Banking Institute in the Samcheong neighborhood of Seoul. The chairmen of South Korean chaebol who had been nervously waiting nearby were ushered into the house earlier than scheduled. On July 24, the chairmen who visited the house were Chung Mong-koo, chairman of the Hyundai Motor Group; Son Kyung-shik, chairman of the CJ Group; and Kim Chang-geun, chairman of SK‘s SUPEX Council; on Saturday, July 25, they were Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics; Koo Bon-moo, chairman of LG; Kim Seung-youn, chairman of the Hanwha Group; and Cho Yang-ho, chairman of the Hanjin Group.
[Park Geun-hye] [Corruption] [Chaebol]
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Government shifts focus of defector assistance to integration and social services
Posted on : Nov.28,2016 16:07 KST
The tenth anniversary commemoration ceremony at the Settlement Support Center for North Korean Refugees, or Hanawon, in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, July 2009. (by Kim Myoung-jin, staff photographer)
New measures announced to hire more defectors in government, and help 30,000 defectors in South Korea acquire skills and build careers
The South Korean government announced plans to shift the focus of its North Korean defector support policy from protection and settlement assistance to social services and integration.
The move is intended to mark a new era with over 30,000 defectors now living in the South. The plans include increased occupational and entrepreneurial education from the early settlement stages, along with gradual increases in settlement funds and housing support. Other plans involves expanding hiring of defectors by the government and elsewhere in the public sector and strengthening linkages between defectors and their local communities.
The Ministry of Unification announced the plans on Nov. 27 as part of a finalized improvement plan for “socially integrative” settlement assistance policies for North Korean defectors. As of Nov. 21, the number of defectors living in South Korea passed 30,021, including 1,227 who arrived this year.
In concrete terms, the plans involve introducing an education system for “long-term lifestyle design” at the Settlement Support Center for North Korean Refugees, or Hanawon, which is the initial gateway for defectors arriving in the South.
“We are developing the new program so that defectors can receive expert assistance in designing a path over the course of their life - including higher education, employment, marriage, and finances - in a way that’s suited to their individual aptitude, education level, and other capabilities,” explained a ministry official.
[Refugee reception]
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[Editorial] Ahead of fateful week, Pres. Park’s only real option is to step down
Posted on : Nov.28,2016 15:59 KST
One demonstration holds an image of President Park Geun-hye under arrest, as marchers face off with police as they move to the Blue House, during the fifth consecutive weekly demonstration calling on President Park Geun-hye to resign, Nov. 26. (by Lee Jeong-woo, staff photographer)
President Park Geun-hye must have heard them clearly with her own ears: the chants of the demonstrators crowding around the Blue House on the night of Nov. 26 and calling for her resignation. With 1.9 million candles burning around the country despite the inclement weather, amid the rain and snow, the fifth round of candlelight demonstrations broke another record for the number of protestors on the streets.
The demonstrators were not content to call for Park’s resignation. In contrast with previous protests, demonstrators freely called for her arrest. The South Korean people are enraged to see Park, who is now a suspect in criminal investigation, refusing to cooperate with the prosecutors’ investigation and deriding the prosecutors’ interim findings as “a house of cards.”
The criminal charges against the “suspect-in-chief” are piling up higher with each passing day. When the special investigations headquarters at the prosecutors indicted Cha Eun-taek for abusing his authority on Nov. 27, they listed Park once again as an accomplice. Cha had enjoyed various privileges while indulging in his status as the “crown prince of the cultural world.” Not only did Park have one of Cha’s friends hired as an executive at KT and help land advertisements, but she was reportedly also implicated in an extortion scheme involving an advertising firm known as Poreka.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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Will audio files deal final blow to President?
By Lee Jin-a, Park Si-soo
With President Park Geun-hye defying pressure to step down, people's attention is on 50 audio files on two smartphones confiscated from former presidential secretary Jung Ho-sung.
Jung was arrested recently for allegedly leaking confidential presidential documents to Park's shadowy long-time friend Choi Soon-sil, the central figure in the burgeoning corruption scandal.
The files, reportedly containing sensitive dialogue between the President and Jung, or Choi and Jung, have caused a media frenzy after some prosecutors revealed their "profound sense of embarrassment and betrayal" after listening to the files.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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S.Koreans open new chapter with peaceful anti-Park rally
Xinhua, November 27, 2016
South Korean people opened a new chapter with peaceful, festival-like protest rally against President Park Geun-hye, with protesters demanding the scandal-hit president's resignation more strongly but holding demonstrations in a more exciting manner.
People attend a rally demanding President Park Geun-hye to step down in central Seoul, South Korea, Nov. 26, 2016. (Xinhua/Yao Qilin)
Every corner of the streets in central Seoul was packed with common people, ranging from couples with children to secondary school students and grey-haired people. Temperatures in the capital city fell close to zero degree, but people took to the streets dressed in winter jackets and gloves.
The first snow of this winter began to fall from noon in Seoul, but it stopped falling around the time when hundreds of thousands of people marched up to 200 meters from the presidential Blue House, where Park's office and residence are located.
Park's office was encircled by a chain of protesters in three sides along the outskirts of the Blue House to form a so-called "human chain" for about two hours. The event kicked off at 6 p.m. local time and over a million people marched again on the streets some two hours later.
Before the second march, a lights-out event lasted for a minute from 8 p.m. Hundreds of thousands of candles were put out all at once and were lit up again, giving a message that the darkness cannot beat the light.
For the minute under the darkness, a thunderous wave of shouts resonated along the road linking the Seoul Plaza in the City Hall to the Gwanhwamun Square in central Seoul, just over a kilometer away from the Blue House. They shouted in one voice for Park's resignation.
People watching the nationwide rallies on TV were supposed to turn off lights in offices or apartments to indirectly participate in the outside rally.
Organizers estimated that over 1.5 million people rallied as of 9:40 p.m. on Saturday, becoming the country's biggest-ever demonstration in Seoul. It surpassed the June 1987 rally in which about 1 million people protested against the military dictatorship. At the third Saturday rally on Nov. 12, over 1 million marched in the capital city.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest] [Resignation]
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Candles become torches as 1.9 million gather to call for Pres. Park’s resignation
Posted on : Nov.27,2016 10:27 KST
For fifth consecutive week, cities across South Korea and the world see large, peaceful cultural demonstrations
Thirty thousand candles lit up Cheonggyecheon Plaza in central Seoul on Oct. 29. A month later on Nov. 26, 2016, the candles had become torches.
It was the fifth time the candles were lit to call for President Park Geun-hye’s resignation, and this time 1.9 million people (according to the organizers’ estimates) came from Seoul, Busan, Gwangju, Daegu, and all over South Korea for the biggest demonstration in the country’s history. Candlelight rallies for Park’s resignation also took place in 20 countries and 50 regions around the world. It was not only the people in the streets, either - candles also burned in the hearts of all the people watching live from home or work as minute-long lights-out and honking demonstrations were held at 8 pm.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Seoul Mayor voices ’northern new deal’ plan for unification with North Korea
Posted on : Nov.27,2016 09:31 KST
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon (second from the right) explains his North Korea policy during a Unification Talk Show at Seoul City Hall on Nov. 24. On the far right is former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun, third from the right is Yonsei University Professor Moon Chung-in. (provided by the Korean Peninsula Peace Forum)
Park Won-soon says that expanding into north is essential to revive the South’s sluggish economy
“Let’s implement the ‘northern new deal’ by improving inter-Korean relations through the ‘P-turn plan’ and establish a lasting peace through the ‘three-horse carriage policy.’”
During a keynote speech and debate in the “unification talk show” held on the eight floor of Seoul City Hall on Nov. 24, Seoul mayor Park Won-soon summarized his policy plan for the Korean Peninsula [with the keywords] “northern new deal,” “P-turn plan,” and “three-horse carriage policy.”
[Unification] [Peace proposal]
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'We will end up victorious' [VIDEO]
Yang Hee-eun sings before anti-President protesters at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, Saturday night. / Yonhap
By Park Si-soo
The fifth mass anti-President rally in Seoul on Saturday had a guest that took the crowd by surprise: singer Yang Hee-eun.
Braving the cold wind and wet snow, yang, 64, took to the main stage dressed in a long black coat and wearing red-rimmed glasses and a red scarf. Nearly 1.6 million people jam-packed at Gwanghwamun Square greeted the unplanned appearance of the living legend of Korean music with thunderous applause and screams of joy.
She sang her three iconic protest songs -- "Morning Dew," "To the Land of Hope" and "Evergreen Tree" -- that were banned during the 1961-79 presidency of iron-fisted dictator Park Chung-hee, scandalized President Park Geun-hye's father.
Yang sang the songs standing in one spot, without any gesture or comment that might agitate protesters. Instead, she closed and healed wounds in the minds of the crowd with words that came out of her mouth one after another.
"Although our road has a long way to go and is even precipitous," she crooned the last line of Evergreen Tree. "We shall overcome and be victorious."
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Prosecutors label President Park 'incompetent'
By Park Si-soo
The prosecution has labeled President Park Geun-hye an "accomplice" and "criminal suspect" following a sweeping probe into the corruption scandal involving her long-time friend Choi Soon-sil, although her spokesman has strongly denied all allegations.
Investigators last Sunday revealed charges that could be imposed on the scandalized head of state, but they have remained tight-lipped about details.
But the strategic silence shows signs of breaking as Park's approval rating plunged to an all-time low of 4 percent, which has loosened her grip on law enforcement.
A prosecutor involved in the case recently told reporters that "only 10 seconds of an audio file would be long enough for people to storm the streets with torches, instead of candles." The prosecutor was referring to nearly 50 audio files found on a confiscated smartphone of Jung Ho-sung, Park's close aide, who was arrested recently for allegedly leaking confidential presidential documents to Choi.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Prosecution]
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[Editorial] Let us raise our millions of candles for impeachment, and to take back South Korea
Posted on : Nov.26,2016 14:51 KST
Modified on : Nov.26,2016 14:51 KST
This cartoon depicts the Blue House encircled by protesters in central Seoul in the shape of a crane’s wingspan, calling for President Park Geun-hye to resign. (by Kim Joo-dae)
On Nov. 26, the entire South Korean public will once again raise their candles. The fifth round of nationwide rallies, which is likely to be the biggest in South Korean history, is supposed to bring more than 1.5 million people to Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square alone. If the people attending candlelight rallies around the country are included, that number rises to well above two million. Farmers from the southern regions are gathering at Gwanghwamun as part of the “Jeon Bong-jun Battle Group,” just like the peasant army that Jeon led in 1894. The thousand tractors heading to Seoul represent the cry of “nameless wildflowers that have planted their tender roots deep in the earth,” as poet An Do-hyeon said in “Jeon Bong-jun Goes to Seoul.”
The candles express the earnest desires of 50 million citizens, as well as a stern command. The national narrative has been united, and the people have become one. Gallup polls tell us that Park’s approval rating has dropped to 4%. In Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province- Park’s political stronghold – it has fallen to 3%. In the hearts of the people, Park has already been dragged out and impeached. If Park and her advisors had an ounce of integrity, they would immediately resign their positions and surrender themselves to the people’s judgment.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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At candlelight protest, Blue House to be surrounded by the most people ever
Posted on : Nov.26,2016 14:59 KST
A poster for the Nov. 26 demonstration in Seoul, which is expected to draw two million people to Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul.
Human chain planned around presidential office, as well as concerts, and rallies by farmers
An operation has just been launched to surround the Blue House with the largest number of people ever.
Organizers of the fifth nationwide candlelight rally (in which as many as 2 million people are expected to participate around the country) are also planning to form a “human chain” around the Blue House from 4 to 5 pm on Nov. 26 before the main rally kicks off. Demonstrators are planning to break into four groups at the Sejong Street intersection and “encircle” the Blue House by marching to the Cheonwoon Hyoja Community Service Center, the annex of the Central Government Complex in the Changseong neighborhood, the Community Credit Cooperative at Gwanghwamun and Seum Art Space on Samcheong Street. While a court on Nov. 25 partially upheld a police ban on marches near the Blue House after 8 pm, it allowed marches during the day, making it possible for protestors to march as close as the Cheongwoon Hyoja Community Service Center, just 200 meters away from the Blue House.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Special investigative team pushing to charge Pres. Park with third-party bribery
Posted on : Nov.26,2016 14:56 KST
At issue are the nature of Lotte and SK groups contributions to K-Sports Foundation, and the opening of duty free shops
The special investigation headquarters probing allegations of government interference by her confidante Choi Sun-sil is making a concerted push to charge President Park Geun-hye with third-party bribery.
A recent warrant request made in court 27 days after the headquarters’ launch listed one of the charge[s] as “bribery.”
“The search and seizure warrant for the Lotte Group and SK Group raids yesterday was listed as being on suspicion of bribery according to the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes,” explained a source with the headquarters on Nov. 25.
“It’s the first time a court-issued warrant has listed bribery [as a charge],” the source added.
In their indictment of Choi and former Senior Secretary to the President for Policy Coordination Ahn Jong-beom on Nov. 20, prosecutors charged the two with abuse of power and coercion for pressuring the Lotte Group into giving 7 billion won (US$6 million). Prosecutors also saw Park as a co-conspirator. Their decision just four days later to characterize the Lotte Group’s 7 billion won to the K-Sports Foundation as a “bribe” appears to mean they have enough circumstantial evidence to prove a quid pro quo relationship with the request.
[Park Geun-Hye] [Prosecution]
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Ruling party imploding on impeachment
By Kim Hyo-jin
The ruling Saenuri Party is on the brink of a split over a motion to impeach the scandal-ridden President Park Geun-hye.
Most pro-Park lawmakers boycotted a party meeting on how to deal with the impeachment motion led by the opposition parties, making it a half-member gathering, Friday. Only about 60 of 128 lawmakers appeared, underscoring a widening gap between pro-Park and anti-Park members.
With the ruling bloc failing to find a breakthrough amid the corruption scandal involving the President and her confident Choi Soon-sil, Park's approval rating fell to as low 4 percent, an all-time low for elected Presidents in South Korean history. And the support rate of the Saenuri Party also stood at 12 percent, a record-low in the party's history, according to the latest Gallup poll.
The plunging approval ratings for both the President and the governing party are expected to escalate conflicts in the imploding ruling side, with the two Park factions colliding head-on over the move to impeach her.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Saenuri]
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'Choi Soon-sil linked to Lockheed Martin'
By Jun Ji-hye
An opposition lawmaker has claimed that Choi Soon-sil, the scandal-ridden confidant of President Park Geun-hye, may have illicitly helped U.S. defense company Lockheed Martin receive business favors from the Park government.
One suspicion raised by Rep. An Min-suk of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea is that Choi may have intervened in the government decision to allow the United States Forces Korea to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, made by Lockheed, here.
[Choi Sun-sil] [THAAD]
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Lawmakers to Vote on Impeaching Park in Early December
By Ryu Jung, Sun Jung-min
November 25, 2016 09:32
Political parties are inching closer to setting a date when they will vote to impeach President Park Geun-hye over a massive corruption scandal now they are confident of their majority.
The leaders of the three main political parties met Thursday and agreed to propose the bill. Minjoo Party floor leader Woo Sang-ho said, "We are planning to hold a vote on the impeachment as early as Dec. 2 or no later than Dec. 9."
Park Jie-won of the People's Party vowed to back the motion and urged other parties to speed up the process so that the Constitutional Court can deliberate on the impeachment bill.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Education Officials Vow to Resist Gov't History Textbooks
November 25, 2016 11:12
The education chiefs of 17 cities and provinces have urged the government to halt the publication of controversial state-authored history textbooks.
In a statement Thursday they urged the embattled administration of President Park Geun-hye to scrap the textbooks now Park has been named as an accomplice in the deepening crony scandal.
It added that the Education Ministry is "going against the will of the public" and vowed to do all it can to block the publication of the history texts.
The government accuses current textbooks of leftwing bias, but critics fear that Park's traditionalist administration would only substitute a rightwing bias instead.
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[Textbook]
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Two resignations could be a sign that the Blue House is crumbling from within
Posted on : Nov.24,2016 17:41 KST
Pres. Park now needs to decide whether to accept resignations of Justice Minister and Civil Affairs Secretary
The news that Justice Minister Kim Hyun-woong and Blue House Senior Secretary to the President for Civil Affairs Choi Jai-kyeong notified President Park Geun-hye of their intent to resign on Nov. 23 is leading to an even tougher road ahead for Park as she faces investigation and a parliamentary audit.
The prosecutors renewed their heavy pressure on the Blue House the same day with another demand for in-person questioning of Park. Their special investigation headquarters gave written notice that afternoon to Park’s attorney demanding that she agree to be questioned as a witness by Nov. 29. The formal written request came after the prosecutors made two verbal demands.
With Kim and Choi respectively in charge of situation management and legal assistance, their absence could prove fatal for Park in the ongoing investigation by prosecutors and politicians’ intensifying push for impeachment, a parliamentary investigation, and special prosecutor. The next question is whether Park will accept or reject their resignation notices.
[Park Geun-hye]
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[News analysis] GSOMIA, comfort women and THAAD all examples of Pres. Park pulling rank
Posted on : Nov.24,2016 17:38 KST
Minister of National Defense Han Min-koo (right) and Japanese Ambassador to South Korea Yasumasa Nagamine sign the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) on Nov. 23. The Ministry refused to allow news photographer to photograph the signing ceremony, then belatedly provided a photo after the ceremony. (provided by the Ministry of National Defense)
Signing of bilateral military info sharing agreement with Japan is the latest case of Park bewildering foreign affairs and national security officials
President Park Geun-hye pushed ahead with signing a bilateral General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) with Japan on Nov. 23, despite facing a possible impeachment crisis and vehement opposition from the three major opposition parties and a majority of the South Korean public.
The GSOMIA case was enough to leave even officials in foreign affairs and national security agencies bewildered, with less than a month having passed since the Ministry of National Defense announced plans on Oct. 27 to resume pushing for it.
In foreign policy terms, the significance of the agreement‘s signing only become clear when viewed in the context of the two sides’ agreement on the Japanese military comfort women issue on Dec. 28 of last year and the July 8 decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system with US Forces Korea. The sequence of three events shows a few commonalities. First, they show an increasing trend of the South Korea-US alliance being subordinated to the one between the US and Japan. Second, they mean that three major events with potentially huge ramifications for South Korea’s position in Northeast Asia were decided unilaterally by Park. That all three were decided at a pace and timeline dictated by Park, rather than the presiding ministry, has led to much speculation about possible reasons.
[GSOMIA] [THAAD] [Park Geun-hye] [US Dominance]
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Countdown to impeachment motion begins
40 Saenuri lawmakers expected to vote for unseating Park
By Kim Hyo-jin
Opposition parties are seeking to put a motion to impeach President Park Geun-hye to a vote as early as next week.
Floor leaders of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the second-largest opposition People's Party and the minor opposition Justice Party agreed, Thursday, to deal with it within the regular session of the National Assembly, which is scheduled to run until Dec. 9.
The move ? once seen as a tall order ? is gaining faster momentum as a growing number of lawmakers from the ruling party are apparently leaning toward unseating the scandal-ridden President.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Like father, like daughter
Park Chung-hee (left) and Park Geun-hye
By Oh Young-jin
Three things are quite likely about how the ongoing scandal involving President Park Geun-hye will go. First, Park won't step down on her own accord.
Second, the reason for that is she doesn't feel any guilt about what she has done.
And third, it is all related to her upbringing. Part of the blame for how she is acting brazenly and without regret should fall on her parents and especially on her father, the army general-turned-dictator, Park Chung-hee, who ruled the nation with an iron fist for 20 years. The senior Park tried to stay in power for life but was shot to death by his top aide.
[Park Geun-hye] [Park Chung-hee]
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Two million expected at anti-Park rallies across Korea
Candles will continue to burn at the fifth anti-Park rally on Saturday as protesters call for President Park Geun-hye to step down over a corruption scandal. The photo shows protesters at the third anti-Park rally on Nov. 12, at which over 1 million people held candles in Seoul's Gwanghwamun Square. / Joint press corps
By Lee Jin-a
About 2 million men, women and children are expected to attend Saturday's anti-government rallies across Korea, demanding President Park Geun-hye resign over her snowballing corruption scandal.
The fifth mass anti-Park rally will be held at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul and at about 50 other locations around the country. Organizers expect more than 1.5 million people will participate in Seoul and a total of 2 million nationwide.
"After 1 million citizens attended the rally in Seoul on Nov. 12, another 1 million people took to the streets across the country on Nov. 19," a rally organizer said Wednesday. "We expect more than 2 million candles will be held at the rallies on Saturday."
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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(343) Saju of Choi Soon-sil
By Janet Shin
Updated : 2016-11-24 19:48
Why and how has she influenced governmental policy and the absolute power of Korea?
The scandal of Choi Soon-sil involves the allegations of her masterminding the supreme authority of the President of Korea. Can we get more clues by peeping into her saju?
This is an absurd and horrific incident as revealed in a 2007 memo on Wikileaks: "Rumors are rife that the late pastor had complete control over Park's body and soul during her formative years." Choi Soon-sil is a daughter of the pastor, Choi Tae-min, and if it turns out to be true, the father and daughter have seized a Korean regime with their incantatory action in this postmodern society.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Shaman] [Astrology]
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As the South Korean assembly prepares to impeach the president, paralysis looms
By Anna Fifield
November 25 at 4:30 PM ?
TOKYO — South Korean lawmakers look set to impeach President Park Geun-hye as soon as next week, with 40 representatives from her own party saying Friday that they would support the proceedings, capping off an awful week for the embattled leader.
In yet another bizarre twist in this political saga, her office this week had to explain why it bought 364 Viagra pills and the generic equivalent for the president — they were apparently for altitude sickness — and her approval rating sank to a new historic low of 4 percent.
But Park is digging in against the moves to oust her, meaning South Korea now faces a power vacuum that could stretch for months.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Protesters to Clamor at the Gates of Cheong Wa Dae
By Joo Hyung-sik
November 24, 2016 11:10
Organizers expect candle-light protests in Seoul demanding the ouster of President Park Geun-hye over a massive corruption scandal to swell to 1.5 million people this Saturday.
At a press conference in central Seoul on Wednesday, organizers put the nationwide figure at 2 million after an estimated 1 million took part last Saturday.
Police are bracing for a rise in the numbers.
Even high-school students in the complacently wealthy Samseong-dong area of southern Seoul issued a statement criticizing the government and seeking the ouster of the president.
Supported by 70 percent of the student body, the statement spoke of youngsters' "despair and rage" at the alleged academic favors lavished on the daughter of Park's crony Choi Soon-sil, who is at the center of the scandal.
A group of professors from the establishment Seoul National University also plan to take part in this weekend’s demonstration.
.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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President's 'time-reversing' visage wrinkles a few brows
By Lee Jin-a
Facial wrinkles are a visible sign of aging. But President Park Geun-hye seems to be defying the rule of nature — she looks younger year after year.
Photos of her "time-reversing" visage taken between 2004 and 2016 have created a frenzy on the internet. At the same time, the photos have fueled already simmering allegations that the 64-year-old, using an alias, received pricy anti-aging treatments at a hospital unauthorized to deal with her health. Her treatment at Chaum was believed to have been arranged by Park's longtime friend Choi Soon-sil, and the hospital's holding company is suspected of having received business favors from the government.
The Korea Times analyzed the sensationalized photos and the 2004-2016 photos of her on the daily's database and reached the conclusion that Park's face is now brighter and looks younger than in 2004, when she was leader of the Grand National Party, which was renamed the Saenuri Party.
[Park Geun-hye] [Gender]
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If Park Must Be Impeached, Let It Be Swift
November 23, 2016 12:43
The Minjoo Party on Monday decided to seek the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye over a crony scandal that has sent her approval rating to record lows.
The party said impeachment proceedings are the only way to remove Park legitimately and without creating a power vacuum as the president seems determined to cling to her post and the immunity it ensures.
The People's Party also decided to try and impeach Park.
Prosecutors on Sunday named Park as an accomplice in charges of corruption and abuse of authority brought against her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil and two former presidential aides.
The sordid affair saw Cheong Wa Dae turn into a virtual delivery service for Choi's demands, but Park has dug in her heels and refused to respond to requests for questioning by prosecutors, daring her opponents to impeach her.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Choi Soon-sil Still in Denial
November 10, 2016 11:11
Prosecutors will put Choi Soon-sil on trial in mid-November on charges of extorting W77.4 billion for her dubious Mir and K-Sports foundations, they said Wednesday (US$1=W1,150).
Choi, a longtime friend of President Park Geun-hye's without any official post or clearance, is at the center of an influence peddling scandal that is threatening to bring down the president.
She returned to Korea from Germany late last month and has been questioned since.
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[Choi Sun-sil]
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Why did President Park need Viagra?
By Lee Jin-a, Park Si-soo
Why did the presidential office need pills for erectile dysfunction?
This is the latest in a series of questions raised against the presidential office and scandalized President Park Geun-hye.
The Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) confirmed that Cheong Wa Dae purchased a total of 364 pills for erectile dysfunction -- 60 pills of Viagra (made by U.S. company Pfizer) and 304 pills of PalPal Tab 50mg (the generic version of the drug from Korea's Hanmi Pharmaceutical) in December 2015.
The agency checked the medical purchase history of the presidential office at the request of Rep. Kim Sang-hee of the main opposition Democratic Party. It came amid allegations that Park, using the name of her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil, had been secretly treated with anti-aging medicine and vitamin shots prescribed at a hospital unauthorized to deal with the head of state.
The HIRA's finding has created a frenzy on the internet because of the type of medicine. It has also raised questions about why the presidential office brought erectile dysfunction pills that are normally prescribed to men.
This has spurred other speculation that Cheong Wa Dae's possession of the pills could have something to do with President Park's "seven missing hours" on April 16, 2014, when the ferry Sewol sank, killing more than 300 people, mostly high school students.
Park's whereabouts during the time are still shrouded in mystery. There are rumors she was having beauty surgery, attending a closed-door religious ritual or enjoying a romantic relationship at the time.
[Park Geun-hye] [Sewol] [Viagra]
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Pres. Park backpedaling on claim that she’d accept a responsible Prime Minister
Posted on : Nov.22,2016 16:11 KST
As Choi Sun-sil scandal intensifies, Park appears to be playing for time while reiterating that she’s still in charge
President Park Geun-hye now looks set to back out on her promise to accept a National Assembly-recommended Prime Minister. She has turned a deaf ear to the million-candle demand for her to step down, declaring that she has no intention to resign the presidency or retire from politics. It‘s yet another example of her disregarding the public will and breaking her own promises after her previous backpedaling on a promise to cooperation with prosecutors’ investigation for influence-peddling. She looks to be a President at war with her own people, ignoring the country’s chaotic state and focusing solely on how she can stay in office as long as possible.
Commenting on an agreement by opposition presidential contenders the day before to have the National Assembly spearhead election of a Prime Minister, Blue House spokesperson Jung Youn-kuk said on Nov. 21 that the opposition was “demanding something different from what the President has proposed.”
“The conditions have changed a bit, and we are just going to have to wait and see,” he added.
[Park Geun-hye]
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[Editorial] Pres. Park is the principal offender, and her impeachment is inevitable
Posted on : Nov.21,2016 12:18 KST
President Park Geun-hye was both a co-conspirator with Choi Sun-sil and the principal offender in the ongoing influence-peddling scandal. In announcing their interim findings on Nov. 20, the prosecutors’ special investigation headquarters said it had booked Park as a suspect after she emerged as a conspirator on “almost all charges” against Choi, former Blue House Senior Secretary to the President for Policy Coordination Ahn Jong-beom, and former Blue House secretary Jeong Ho-seong. If this much has been determined without all of the questioning complete on everyone’s charges and some investigation remaining into the other people involved, then it is likely there are more and bigger charges awaiting the President.
President involved in mob-style extortion
The charges against Park are more serious than had been known before. She appears to have actively gone into business arranging concessions for Choi. Choi’s Playground Communications and her acquaintance’s KD Corporation were private businesses that had nothing do with any sort of “good intentions” involving Park’s governance. Park actively mentioned the companies and requested “cooperation” in meetings with the heads of Hyundai Motor and other chaebol. The two companies ended up with 1.1 billion won (US$931,000) in supply orders from Hyundai Motor, and 6.2 billion won (US$5.2 million) in advertising orders. Park personally listed people chosen by Choi to have hired at KT, and ordered the selection of Choi’s company as an advertising agency for KT, earning it 6.8 billion won (US$5.8 million) in advertising orders. This is more than just turning a blind eye to Choi’s grasping - this is a matter of the President using her authority to pressure companies into granting Choi benefits. It’s nothing short of organized crime-style extortion.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Prosecution]
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'Did I commit anything wrong?' says President Park
Allegations have it that President Park Geun-hye recently told his aide recently, "Did I commit anything wrong?" / Korea Times file
Psychiatrist suspects Park suffers from Ripley's Syndrome
By Park Si-soo
Is President Park Geun-hye in too much shock? Or is she so naïve and simple-minded that she has not yet realized the seriousness of the situation?
According to news reports, the scandal-plagued head of state recently met one of her close aides at the presidential office. The aide reportedly told the President, "It would be wise for you to step down in phases. That would be the best way to keep your honor untarnished. If you take a back seat and vanish from the public eye, people's indignation would be eased."
President Park's was dumbfounded: "Did I commit anything wrong?"
This conversation was first made public on Monday by Rep. Min Byeong-doo of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, who said he secured the information from his intelligence source.
[Park Geun-hye] [Self-delusion]
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South Korea’s President Park must step down for democratic solutions to deepening constitutional crisis
November 14, 2016, Seoul, Korea – The Asia Democracy Network (ADN) joins the people of South Korea calling for the resignation of President Park Geun-hye to take responsibility for her abuse of constitutional power, compromising democratic values and principles.
Over one million people from all walks of life stormed Seoul’s streets peacefully on Saturday on 12 Nov., demanding her immediate resignation. It was the largest demonstration in the modern history of South Korea. Mass demonstrations are scheduled for every Saturday
From the investigations conducted thus far by the prosecutor office, it seems to be clear that President Park is politically and legally responsible for the crimes and violations of the constitution committed by her aids and personal friends in which she may have to face criminal charges according to the law.
We believe that her immediate resignation is for the best interest of the people and the country as she is the main obstacle to democratic solutions to the deepening constitutional crisis in South Korea. She has failed and cannot perform her presidency any longer as she completely lost her moral and political authority.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Park Named as Accomplice in Crony's Indictment
November 21, 2016 11:07
Prosecutors on Sunday named President Park Geun-hye as an accomplice in charges of corruption and abuse of authority brought against her long-time friend Choi Soon-sil and two former presidential aides.
Announcing the indictments of Choi, An Chong-bum and Jeong Ho-seong over the extortion of billions of won from top conglomerates and leakage of classified documents, the prosecution said Park colluded with them in the alleged crimes.
"We have named the president as a suspect because we believe she was an accomplice," Lee Young-ryeol, who heads the special investigation team, told reporters.
This is the first time an incumbent president has been named as a criminal suspect. Prosecutors vowed to continue investigating Park even though the Constitution prevents them from indicting a sitting president on charges other than insurgency and treason, with a view to charging her the moment she leaves office.
A prosecution official said, "We included only charges against the president that can be proven 99 percent."
[Park Geun-Hye] [Impeachment]
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Politicians Edge Toward Impeaching Park
By Shin Su-ji, Choi Seung-hyun
November 21, 2016 13:08
Lawmakers and presidential hopefuls are edging closer to plans for the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye after she was named as an accomplice in charges against her friend Choi Soon-sil and two aides.
Opposition parties as well as most Saenuri Party lawmakers not aligned with Park are now set on impeaching her.
The Minjoo Party on Sunday decided to both demand Park's resignation and seek to impeach her, backed by ruling-party lawmakers outside Park’s traditionalist faction.
[Park Geun-Hye] [Impeachment]
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[Editorial] Pres. Park is the principal offender, and her impeachment is inevitable
Posted on : Nov.21,2016 12:18 KST
President Park Geun-hye was both a co-conspirator with Choi Sun-sil and the principal offender in the ongoing influence-peddling scandal. In announcing their interim findings on Nov. 20, the prosecutors’ special investigation headquarters said it had booked Park as a suspect after she emerged as a conspirator on “almost all charges” against Choi, former Blue House Senior Secretary to the President for Policy Coordination Ahn Jong-beom, and former Blue House secretary Jeong Ho-seong. If this much has been determined without all of the questioning complete on everyone’s charges and some investigation remaining into the other people involved, then it is likely there are more and bigger charges awaiting the President.
President involved in mob-style extortion
The charges against Park are more serious than had been known before. She appears to have actively gone into business arranging concessions for Choi. Choi’s Playground Communications and her acquaintance’s KD Corporation were private businesses that had nothing do with any sort of “good intentions” involving Park’s governance. Park actively mentioned the companies and requested “cooperation” in meetings with the heads of Hyundai Motor and other chaebol. The two companies ended up with 1.1 billion won (US$931,000) in supply orders from Hyundai Motor, and 6.2 billion won (US$5.2 million) in advertising orders. Park personally listed people chosen by Choi to have hired at KT, and ordered the selection of Choi’s company as an advertising agency for KT, earning it 6.8 billion won (US$5.8 million) in advertising orders. This is more than just turning a blind eye to Choi’s grasping - this is a matter of the President using her authority to pressure companies into granting Choi benefits. It’s nothing short of organized crime-style extortion.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Even Pres. Park’s public apology was riddled with falsehoods
Posted on : Nov.21,2016 14:59 KST
Investigation has revealed the untruth of Park’s claim that she only showed “certain speeches and public relations documents” to Choi Sun-sil
South Korean President Park Geun-hye, who is the first South Korean president in the history of the country’s constitution to be the subject of a criminal investigation by prosecutors, had consistently denied and lied about allegations until charges were brought against her on Nov. 20.
Park’s lies began the moment that the name of Choi Sun-sil, her friend and confidante of 40 years, first began to be mentioned. When the floodgates on the Choi Sun-sil scandal were opened by an article in the Sep. 20 edition of the Hankyoreh titled “K-Sports Board Led by the Manager of Choi Sun-sil’s Favorite Massage Parlor,” Park called the article “one-sided rumor-mongering that isn’t worth mentioning.” When the Hankyoreh continued to report allegations about Choi Sun-sil, Park had her spokespeople and other associates respond in a similar manner.
Park made her first apology on Oct. 25, when evidence of Choi’s influence-peddling started coming to light. But her apology was packed with lies, most of which concerned the scope and timing of the government documents that she had leaked. During the apology, Park described Choi as “a friend who helped me in the past when I was going through some hard times” and said that her role had been “offering personal opinions about how my election campaign is being communicated to the public, mostly in the areas of speeches and public relations during the presidential election.” Park said that the classified Blue House documents that she had given Choi were limited to “certain speeches and public relations documents.”
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Top 7 companies' leaders face parliamentary probe over Park Geun-hye scandal
From left, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won
The ruling and opposition parties agreed Monday to summon the leaders of the nation's seven largest conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics Co. and Hyundai Motor Group, as witnesses for their parliamentary probe in a corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye's confidante.
The ruling Saenuri Party, the main opposition Democratic Party and the minor People's Party reached agreement over the list of witnesses for the probe into the scandal that has rocked the nation over the past several weeks.
The list includes Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and CJ Group Chairman Sohn Kyung-shik.
The special committee for the probe will hold a plenary session later in the day to confirm the list. (Yonhap)
[Park Geun-hye] [Chaebol]
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Opposition party pushes for President's overseas travel ban
By Park Si-soo
The opposition Justice Party on Monday declared President Park Geun-hye's impeachment as its top priority and is seeking the cooperation of other opposition parties to unseat the scandal-plagued head of state.
The third biggest party in the National Assembly has pressed the prosecution to impose an overseas travel ban on the President and take legal action to take her to the prosecution office for questioning.
The move came one day after the prosecution identified Park as an accomplice and a "criminal suspect" while indicting her long-time friend, Choi Soon-sil, on criminal charges including extortion and abuse of official power.
In angry reaction, the presidential office called the investigation result a "house of cards" built without concrete evidence. Park's defense lawyer said the President would not cooperate with the prosecution's request to question her, an embarrassing turnabout from her earlier cooperative attitude.
It is unclear whether the prosecution will seek an overseas travel ban on the President and other forcible measures to question her, because the prosecution is under Park's control and, above all, doing so could political risks.
But it is clear that few are supporting Park's idea of flying to Tokyo next month to attend a trilateral summit with her Chinese and Japanese counterparts.
[Park Geun-hye]
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President cited as 'criminal suspect'
Prosecution calls Park accomplice; Choi, aides indicted
By Kim Bo-eun
The prosecution called President Park Geun-hye an "accomplice" to her friend Choi Soon-sil and pledged to investigate the President as a "criminal suspect" in the unfolding influence-peddling scandal, Sunday, dealing a severe blow to Park who faces growing calls to step down.
Announcing its indictments of Choi and two of Park's key aides over the extortion of billions of won from top conglomerates, the prosecution said it specified in its indictment that Park "conspired" with them in the alleged irregularities.
It is the first time for the prosecution to name an incumbent President as a criminal suspect. Public attention is now focused on how the prosecution will proceed with its investigation of Park, especially after the President's legal representative said she will not cooperate with the prosecution's questioning.
"We have named the President as a suspect, believing she was an accomplice of (Choi and her aides in the scandal)," said Lee Young-ryeol, head of the prosecution's special investigation team, in a press conference at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul.
The announcement comes as the prosecution indicted Choi, former Senior Presidential Secretary for Policy Coordination An Chong-bum and former Presidential Secretary for Private Affairs Jeong Ho-seong.
[Park Geun-Hye] [Prosecution]
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Opposition leader says her party will review timing, ways to push for Park's impeachment
The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party said her party will immediately review the timing and ways for impeaching President Park Geun-hye, who the prosecution has listed as a suspect in a corruption scandal involving her confidante.
Rep. Choo Mi-ae also said her party will set up an apparatus to push for Park's impeachment. But she stressed that the "best way" to move the nation forward is still for the president to voluntarily step down.
"Park must step down. Under this stance, we will review Park's impeachment and the issue of forming an interim Cabinet at a proper time," Choo said during a meeting of senior party officials.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Minjoo]
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Is this the beginning of Park Geun-hye’s fall?
15 November 2016
Author: Hyung-A Kim, ANU
South Korea appears to be witnessing the tail end of President Park Geun-hye’s personalised presidential power. Over the past few weeks the nation has been transfixed by a series of revelations over the influence Park’s friend, Choi Soon-sil, has exercised over presidential decision-making, from speeches to various state affairs, despite holding no official government position. Hundreds of thousands of angry protesters have taken to the streets to demand her resignation or impeachment, but Park appears determined to stay in office until the end of her single five-year term in February 2018.
[Park Geun-Hye]
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North-South Competition for Legitimacy (3/3) – Diplomatic Recognition
Tim Beal
Nov 16, 2016
Diplomatic recognition is an acknowledgement of the legitimacy of a foreign government, and legitimacy is a key concept in political theory stretching back at least as far as Mencius in about the 4th century BCE. There is a famous passage in the Analects where he discusses the killing of King Zhou (Tchou):
King Hsuan of Ch‘i asked, “Is it true that T‘ang banished Chieh and King Wu marched against Tchou?”
“It is so recorded,” answered Mencius.
“Is regicide permissible?”
“He who mutilates benevolence is a mutilator; he who cripples rightness is a crippler; and a man who is both mutilator and a crippler is an ‘outcast’. I have indeed heard of the punishment of the ‘outcast Tchou’, but I have not heard of any regicide.” (Mencius 1B:8)
Tchou, in the opinion of Mencius, had lost legitimacy – the Mandate of Heaven- and so his killing is not ‘regicide’ but ‘punishment of an outcast’. And what is a ‘rogue state’ or a ‘pariah’, terms often applied to North Korea in imperial propaganda, but an outcast?
[NK-SK Competition] [Legitimacy] [Recognition]
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ROK prosecutors see scandal-hit president as criminal suspect
Xinhua, November 20, 2016
South Korean prosecutors said Sunday that President Park Geun-hye is suspected of having conspired with her longtime confidante and former aides, indicating the scandal-hit president will be seen as a criminal suspect in a future investigation.
President Park has a complicity "to a significant extent" with the three criminal suspects in multiple offenses, the head of a special investigative unit in the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in charge of the case told a televised press conference to announce its interim investigation results.
It indicated the prosecution office regards the incumbent president as a criminal suspect in its investigation. The special unit chief said such interim results are based on comprehensive evidence materials collected by prosecutors.
Park, however, cannot be indicted for criminal charges as the country's constitution bans a sitting president from being criminally indicted until a single, five-year term ends.
[Park Geun-Hye][Impeachment]
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Dreaming of a new world, one million candles again burn nationwide
Posted on : Nov.20,2016 11:12 KST
Despite resistance from right-wing groups, public protests go ahead in peaceful and festive atmosphere
The million candles are growing even stronger. The beacon that began burning on Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square has now spread nationwide: 600,000 in Seoul, 100,000 in Busan, 40,000 in Gwangju, 25,000 in South Gyeongsang Province, 25,000 in Daegu, 15,000 in South Jeolla Province, 12,000 in Gangwon Province. Well over a million candles were lit in 70 locations nationwide on the evening of Nov. 19 as part of the fourth citizens action to demand President Park Geun-hye’s resignation. The public’s anger burned even more intensely in response to Park’s decision to go on the counteroffensive after the million-candle display on Nov. 12. The cries of the far-right and conservative groups trying to save her were drowned out by the booming shouts of a million people.
The tens of thousands of candles pointed at the Blue House from nearby Gyeongbok Palace Metro Station were a stern rebuke to the foolish and reckless antics of a President who has already been erased in the holders’ minds.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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[Interview] South Korean churchgoers are “slaves to the tithe”
Posted on : Nov.20,2016 11:40 KST
Practice of donating 10% of income to church has been ended in other countries, but S. Korean churches still getting rich off their congregants
Among South Korean Christians, the tithe is the measure of your faith. Churchgoers are required to tithe, or in other words to donate 10% of their income to the church they attend. The names of church members who have tithed are printed in the weekly church bulletin, and some churches even print the amount of the tithe. Christians who can‘t afford to tithe are racked with guilt and sometimes even stop going to church altogether. Most churches are funded by their members’ tithes.
One pastor says that Christians shouldn’t be forced to tithe because it’s not biblical. Rev. Ahn Yong-su, 64, argues in his recent book “The Tithe Nailed to the Cross” (published by Books of Peace) that tithing is ruining the South Korean church. Ahn graduated from a South Korean seminary and did a master’s degree in biblical studies at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, where he learned how to interpret classical documents.
[Religion] [superstition industry]
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President Park booked as criminal suspect
Prosecutors said President Park Geun-hye is suspected of having played a part in the corruption and influence-peddling scheme invoving her close friend and key aides. / Yonhap
Sitting President booked as suspect for first time; Choi, two presidential aides indicted
By Kim Bo-eun
The prosecution called Sunday President Park Geun-hye an "accomplice" to her friend Choi Soon-sil and pledged to investigate the President as a "criminal suspect" in the influence-peddling scandal, dealing a severe blow to Park who faces growing calls to step down.
Announcing its indictment of Choi and Park's two key aides over the extortion of billions of dollars from top conglomerates, the prosecution said that it specified in its indictment that Park "conspired" with them in the alleged irregularities.
It is the first time for the prosecution to book an incumbent President as a criminal suspect. Public attention is now focused on how the prosecution will proceed with investigation of Park.
"We have booked the President as a suspect, believing that she had been in accomplice with (Choi and her aides in the scandal)," said Lee Young-ryeol, who led the prosecution's special investigation team, in the press conference at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Anti-Park protests flare up across the country; 600,000 people gathered in Seoul
By Park Si-soo
The fourth mass anti-president rally has kicked off in downtown Seoul on Saturday evening with an estimated 600,000 people as of 10 p.m., including students and senior citizens, carrying lighted candles and chanting slogans calling for scandal-plagued President Park Geun-hye's immediate resignation.
The crowd turned out to be smaller this time than last Saturday's one million people -- the largest protest movement in the nation in three decades. But today, mid- and small-sized rallies are being staged in nearly 100 locations across the country, including Busan, Daegu and many other cities and towns in the southeastern part of the country, long been regarded as Park's undisputed political stronghold. So the combined number of protesters throughout the nation is expected to reach over 900,000, according to rally organizers.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Pres. Park’s status changes from witness to de facto suspect
Posted on : Nov.19,2016 14:52 KST
Park is avoiding being questioned in person, as prosecutors seek to determine she committed any illegal acts
On Nov. 18, the prosecutors who are investigating allegations of influence peddling by Choi Sun-sil announced that they had processed a criminal complaint filed against South Korean President Park Geun-hye. This means that Park’s legal status has changed from that of a witness in the ongoing investigation to that of a de facto suspect. The prosecutors also said they would “determine whether Park committed any illegal acts,” indicating that they mean to decide whether she had given orders for or been complicit in criminal activity without questioning her in person.
“Until today, the view of the team of investigators was that they needed to question President Park in person, but the remarks made by her attorney indicate that it’s no longer possible to question her today. Since questioning the president before charging Choi is no longer an option, we’ll decide whether she has committed by a crime by reviewing the testimony of witnesses and suspects and the physical evidence that we have acquired in various raids thus far,” said a source with the prosecutors’ special investigation department on Nov. 18.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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For third consecutive week, Pres. Park’s approval rating at rock bottom
Posted on : Nov.19,2016 14:44 KST
On the left, the red line represents respondents who have a negative assessment of President Park Geun-hye’s performance as president (90% of the total). The blue line represents respondents who have a positive assessment (5%). The poll data was collected between the first week of September and third week of November. On the right, the lines represent support for political parties, with the ruling Saenuri Party in red (15%), main opposition Minjoo Party in blue (31%), People’s Party in green (14%), Justice Party in yellow (6%). The grey line is no party affiliation, or opinion withheld (32%).
Even Park’s support among her elderly support base is crumbling as Park fails to change trend in public opinion
South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s approval rating remained at 5% for the third week in a row. Since suggesting that the National Assembly nominate the next prime minister, Park has launched a counterattack in an attempt to regain control of the government, instructing prosecutors to thoroughly investigate charges of corruption in the LCT urban development scandal in Busan and ramming through an appointment of vice ministers. But Park’s efforts have completely failed to shift public sentiment.
In a public opinion poll about the President’s job performance for the third week of November that Gallup Korea released on Nov. 18, only 5% of respondents said that Park is doing a good job, just the same as the first and second weeks of November. This poll was conducted from Nov. 15 to 17 on 1,007 adults nationwide, with 95% reliability and a ±3.1 margin of error. The percentage who think that Park is doing a bad job was also the same as last week, at 90%. The poll shows no evidence that Park’s support base is growing because of pity for Park’s predicament or frustration with the opposition’s indecisive behavior, as the Blue House and the pro-Park faction in the ruling Saenuri Party had been hoping.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion] [Polls]
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The Future of South Korea’s Domestic Policy
Konstantin Asmolov
Besides the scandal surrounding the confidante of the President, other events have also been occurring in the political life of South Korea.
Firstly, the South Korean President, Park Geun-hye, has proposed introducing amendments to the Constitution that allow the president to be elected for a second term. Speaking in the National Assembly, she stated that this reform would be her main objective for the remainder of her term. At the moment, the presidential term is limited to 5 years without the right to re-election, which is widely criticized. Although, the concept of the one five-year term was established in 1987, prior to South Korea’s democratization as a “preventative measure against tyranny”, it now significantly denies the President the chance to carry out large-scale reforms that require a considerable period of time. As history shows, after coming to power, the President of Korea usually spends his/her first year (or year and a half) assigning people to key positions thus ensuring support in the administration. During the last year of the term he/she plays the role of “lame duck”, because the logic of factional fight in Korea dictates that each new president ignore the greater part of his/her predecessor’s achievements. Meanwhile, a long-term reform programme requires unchanged leadership and stable policy and there is nothing worse than a reform that has been started but not finished as the old structure has been destroyed while the new one has not been established yet. Finally, a limited term promotes the idea that the President’s circle should “take what you can while you can” and not worry about the future since all the problems generated by them will be solved by others. This does not destroy corruption and irresponsibility but reinforces them.
[Park Geun-hye]
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Lawmakers Back Independent Counsel to Probe Crony Scandal
By Hwang Dae-jin
November 18, 2016 10:02
The National Assembly on Thursday passed a bill mandating an independent investigation into a massive corruption scandal that has engulfed President Park Geun-hye.
Lawmakers will appoint an independent counsel to investigate the massive influence-peddling scandal centered on Park's close friend Choi Soon-sil. They also decided that a parliamentary committee will probe the scandal.
The decisions could pave the way to impeachment amid signs that Park is determined to cling to office despite mounting evidence that she enlisted her entire office in facilitating Choi's crimes.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Korea Braces for Massive Protests on Saturday
November 18, 2016 12:32
Police are bracing for another massive candle-light rally in downtown Seoul on Saturday after last week's protests drew up to 1 million people from all walks of life to the streets of downtown Seoul.
Police expect fewer people to participate in this week's rally in Seoul as separate smaller rallies are planned across the country.
But things could turn ugly this weekend as President Park Geun-hye seems to be stalling on her pledge to cooperate with investigators in the massive corruption scandal that has engulfed her.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Pres. Park refusing to be questioned by prosecutors this week
Posted on : Nov.18,2016 14:22 KST
Prosecutors considering including allegations against Park in an indictment this week of key figures in Choi Sun-sil scandal
President Park Geun-hye said on Nov. 17 that she would not be able to undergo questioning by prosecutors within the week.
Her position is a rejection of an ultimatum by prosecutors, who insisted she agree to in-person questioning by Nov. 18. Now they are considering the possibility of going ahead with including specific accusations against Park for leaking of official documents and abuse of power in a group indictment this weekend of her confidante Choi Sun-sil, 60, and other key figures in a recent scandal over government interference, regardless of whether Park is questioned or not.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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[Editorial] The importance of a political roadmap for Pres. Park’s departure
Posted on : Nov.18,2016 14:12 KST
From left to right, People’s Party leader Park Jie-won, Minjoo Party leader Choo Mi-ae and Justice Party leader Shim Sang-jung have a meeting at the National Assembly in Seoul on Nov. 17. Leaders of the three opposition parties accepted a proposal from former People’s Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo to meeting this weekend to discuss a plan to work for President Park Geun-hye’s resignation, but there are slight differences among the three parties’ positions. (by Kim Tae-hyeong, staff photographer)
Since the candlelight demonstrations began, public support has united behind a single message: President Park Geun-hye’s resignation is inevitable. But differences of opinion are being voiced on how specifically to get her to leave and how to launch a new administration. That’s all understandable - nothing like this has ever occurred in the history of South Korea’s Constitutional government. But we don’t have the time to idle and let little differences break up the battle lines. With her investigation orders and personnel appointment authorities, Park has shown she intends to hold out to the bitter end against the public. It’s of paramount importance for politicians and civil society to send a consistent message if they hope to encourage Park to leave as quickly as possible and minimize potential government chaos. In that sense, it’s a very positive sign that leading opposition presidential contenders are getting together on Nov. 20 to seek out plans for concerted action.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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[Editorial] By stubbornly remaining in office, Pres. Park is leading the country to a tragic ending
Posted on : Nov.17,2016 16:31 KST
Members of the ruling Saenuri Party and opposition Minjoo, People’s and Justice parties hold a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, to call for signatures for a petition seeking President Park Geun-hye’s orderly resignation, Nov. 16. (by Lee Jeong-woo, staff photographer)
Former South Korean Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil said that President Park Geun-hye wouldn‘t step down even if 50 million people - the entire population of the country - joined the protests. Unfortunately, Kim appears to be correct.
Rather than bowing to the public sentiment expressed through the one million candlelight rally, Park has gone on the offensive, as if the protesters are the ones in the wrong. She has brushed aside the people’s demands for her resignation by insisting that the constitutional government must not be interrupted, and she is dealing with the prosecutors’ investigation by attempting to buy time. Park’s obstinate hold on the presidency is dragging South Korea into an even deeper and darker hole.
On Nov. 16, Park called for a thorough investigation of corruption at the Haeundae LCT development in Busan and for the guilty parties to be punished severely. In the first place, it‘s ridiculous for a president who herself has effectively become the suspect in a criminal investigation to talk about a “thorough investigation” or “severe punishment” for another incident. It’s pathetic for Park to go on acting like the president when no one else recognizes her as such.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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Poll: 74% of South Koreans say Pres. Park should resign or be impeached
Posted on : Nov.18,2016 14:09 KST
Negative assessments of Park’s performance have risen sharply as Choi Sun-sul scandal has dragged on
Seven out of ten South Koreans feel President Park Geun-hye should resign or be impeached over the recent scandal surrounding government inference by her confidante Choi Sun-sil, a survey by the polling organization Real Meter showed on Nov. 17.
Opinion in favor of resignation or impeachment has risen sharply from 42.3% on Oct. 25 to 55.3% on Nov. 2, 60.4% on Nov. 9, and 73.9% in the latest poll. Park’s approval rating was also down to 9.9%, 1.6 percentage points below the previous week and the first single-digit score she has received in a Real Meter survey since she took office in February 2013.
According to the Real Meter findings, a plurality of 43.5% of respondents agreed that Park should form a transitional Cabinet and immediately resign. Another 20.2% supported holding her responsible for the Choi scandal with an impeachment, while 10.2% others said she should immediately resign and leave Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn to serve as acting President. In contrast, just 18.6% said she should finish her term, assigning only authority over Cabinet to a Prime Minister nominated by the National Assembly.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation] [Impeachment] [Public opinion]
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Protesters say if one million wasn’t enough for stubborn Pres. Park, make it two million
Posted on : Nov.17,2016 16:29 KST
Though weather is getting chilly, more citizens pledging to come out to candlelight rallies calling on President to resign
“If one million people isn’t enough, then two million people need to come out. If the weather gets colder, we can warm it up with candles.”
Lee Deuk-ho, a company employee who works in Seoul’s Eulji-ro neighborhood, said on Nov. 16 that “the US President has changed, and the external situation is transforming rapidly.”
“When the President [Park Geun-hye] keeps holding out because of her own stubbornness, she’s basically saying, ‘I don’t care if the country or the people are ruined,’” said Lee, 53.
“She needs to hurry up and step down and let the prosecutors question her,” he added.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Is South Korean President considering martial law?
Martial law forces subdue protesters in the Gwangju Uprising on May 18, 1980. / Korea Times file
By Lee Han-soo, Park Si-soo
Is President Park Geun-hye considering declaring martial law in a radical tactic to contain the worst political crisis in her administration?
Chances are low, at least for now, given an expected powerful backlash and turmoil that will only make the situation worse. But the unlikely option for the scandal-scarred President has garnered massive media attention after the main opposition party's leader, Choo Mi-ae, dropped the bombshell on Friday morning.
"There was intelligence Park planned to declare martial law," Choo said during a meeting with her party's decision-makers. "Park seems to be determined to fight with people … This shows she is a reckless President."
[Park Geun-hye] [Martial Law]
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Park faces criminal charges: prosecution
By Kim Bo-eun
As the indictment deadline approaches for Choi Soon-sil, President Park Geun-hye's confidant who is embroiled in Korea's worst corruption scandal, prosecutors seriously consider mentioning President Park as a suspect and accomplice in the indictment documents.
The deadline for Choi's indictment is on Sunday. Choi is under arrest on charges of attempted fraud and abuse of power.
In theory, the prosecution is required to question the President before drawing up Choi's documents, but the prosecutors seems confident.
"This has been the question for many of us prosecutors," said Lee Young-ryeol, head of the prosecution's special investigation team. "We've interviewed many and attempted to collect evidence. What we can say is that at this point, she can be in trouble for what she has done."
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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People Power: 1987 vs 2016
Photos
[Protest]
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Park may declare martial law: Choo
By Yi Whan-woo
Rep. Choo Mi-ae
The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), Rep. Choo Mi-ae, alleged Friday that President Park Geun-hye may declare martial law to quell public protests against her.
Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling Saenuri Party reacted angrily, saying Choo is fueling social unrest with irresponsible remarks.
Choo, citing rumors circulating in political circles, said Park may be deliberately delaying the prosecution's investigation into the corruption scandal involving her and her friend Choi Soon-sil to buy time before imposing martial law.
"Park is suspected of instigating her diehard supporters to prepare for possible head-to-head conflicts with protesters," Choo said during a party meeting.
"By instigating her fans, Park is trying to gain time to unite her supporters overall while sending signals to relevant authorities not to interfere. Some information even showed that such steps are ultimately aimed at preparing for martial law."
[Park Geun-hye] [Martial Law]
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Presidential scandal shows that ‘Korean disease’ of corruption is far from cured
By Anna Fifield
November 16 at 10:08 AM
SEOUL — When Kim Young-sam became South Korea’s first democratically elected civilian president in 1993, he vowed to cure the country of the “Korean disease,” the political corruption that had become endemic.
Kim oversaw an ambitious drive to clean up the country, even authorizing the arrest of his
two immediate predecessors on corruption-related charges, although he eventually became infected by the “disease” himself when his son was arrested on corruption and bribery charges.
Corruption, bribery, embezzlement and the abuse of power have been modulated over the past generation but remain indisputable components of official South Korea, as the scandal now engulfing President Park Geun-hye shows.
Park is set to be questioned by prosecutors as soon as Thursday about her role in an influence-peddling scandal revolving around a friend of 40 years.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption]
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Prosecutors Issue Ultimatum for Questioning Park
By Jeon Soo-yong
November 17, 2016 09:36
Prosecutors issued a virtual ultimatum for President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday by insisting that she must submit to questioning in a snowballing corruption scandal no later than Friday.
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Park's lawyers and Cheong Wa Dae officials spent the week so far frantically trying to stall, demanding more time or for the president to be questioned only in writing.
But a prosecution official said, "The president stands at the center of suspicions involving her confidante Choi Soon-sil and is facing all kinds of criticism and blame. We must question her face-to-face and not in writing."
Park's lawyer Yoo Yeong-ha on Wednesday requested a written questionnaire and said he needs "considerable time to review the case and make the necessary preparations."
Prosecutors also hinted that they could stop treating Park as just a witness if she continues to resist questioning before Choi and longtime presidential aide An Chong-bum are indicted on Saturday or Sunday.
So far Park is being treated as a witness in the influence-peddling scandal, but on Wednesday prosecutors said they cannot decide whether she is in fact a suspect until they question her.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Text Message Highlight Park's Reliance on Choi Soon-sil
By Kim A-sa
November 16, 2016 12:36
Prosecutors have discovered text messages on the mobile phone of a former presidential secretary showing the bizarre extent to which President Park Geun-hye relied on her longtime friend Choi-soon-sil's opinion in running the country.
According to prosecutors, Park repeatedly sent text messages to Jeong Ho-seong asking, "Did Mrs. Choi confirm this?" Other text messages allegedly sent by Park show the president prodding Jeong to obtain Choi's feedback more quickly.
Evidence suggests that Choi, a woman with no official post or obvious qualifications other than influence peddling, was regularly sent classified Cheong Wa Dae documents, from presidential speeches to documents relating to secret military discussions about North Korea.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Legal scholars say legal conditions met to impeach President Park
Posted on : Nov.16,2016 16:10 KST
This cartoon depicts the massive public demonstrations that have taken place calling for President Park Geun-hye’s resignation, while on the left, politicians in the National Assembly are still debating how to proceed, whether to wait for Park to resign, or move ahead with impeachment proceedings.
Three opposition parties exploring impeachment if Park won’t resign, but Constitutional Court remains a variable
After first the Justice Party and the People’s Party and then the Minjoo Party added President Park Geun-hye’s resignation to their official party platforms, the three opposition parties have started discussing impeachment proceedings in case Park refuses to step down. On Nov. 15, more than 20 lawmakers from these parties held a debate in the National Assembly about constitutional issues surrounding Park’s impeachment.
During the debate, Kim Jong-cheol, a constitutional scholar from Yonsei University, and Han Sang-hui, a law professor from Konkuk University agreed that the legal conditions for impeaching Park had been satisfied.
“The evidence that has been disclosed thus far suggests that money was taken from large corporations for the Mir and K-Sports Foundations and that pro-corporate policies were then drafted and implemented, which can be regarded as bribery in a broad sense,” Kim said.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment]
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Park Refuses to Resign
By Jung Nok-yong
November 16, 2016 10:42
President Park Geun-hye is digging in her heels amid a snowballing scandal, insisting on the threadbare dignity of her office even as the trail of criminal activity leads straight to her inner sanctum.
Cheong Wa Dae made it clear on Tuesday that the beleaguered president is not considering resigning and demanded that prosecutors postpone questioning her and do it on paper rather than face to face.
Presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk told reporters that Park is "considering all options" to deal with the massive influence-peddling scandal involving her crony Choi Soon-sil. But when asked whether she is considering stepping down, Jung said, "Not that."
Park is also reluctant to set a timeframe for her to resign eventually after forming a transitional Cabinet that will handle the next election to choose a new leader.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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South Korea's rising butt of mockery: President
By Park Si-soo, Hong Dam-young
President Park Geun-hye has seen her political leadership devastated by the Choi Soon-sil scandal. And with layers of the scandal peeling off one after another, she is facing more humiliating fallout: becoming an increasingly popular butt of mockery.
Social media is bombarded with parody images and video clips inspired by alleged misdeeds of the embattled head of state and her arrested shadowy confidant Choi.
Some are dangerously explicit -- which never fall short of those targeting villains in shockingly disturbing crimes -- reflecting people's boiling indignation at the President and other suspects.
The trend gained huge impetus after cable TV network JTBC reported on Tuesday that Park was a VIP customer at an ultra-luxury "Chaum" medical clinic in Seoul. She reportedly visited the clinic undercover between January and July 2011, when Park was a lawmaker, using the secret ID "Gil Ra-im," during which she allegedly received free health and beauty treatments worth tens of millions of won. Allegations have it that Choi was another VIP customer of the hospital and she pressed the government to offer the hospital business favors in return for Park's treatment.
[Park Geun-hye]
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Park determined to fight to hold on to power
By Kang Seung-woo
President Park Geun-hye is apparently determined to stage a long battle to hold on to power in defiance of public calls for her resignation or a power transfer.
Her stance may throw the country into deeper chaos with the opposition parties joining forces to oust Park — the prime suspect in the country's largest-ever corruption scandal.
"Taking the situation gravely, the President is seeking all means to address the current political turmoil," said presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk in a briefing.
However, the spokesman made it clear that resignation or a transition of power was not on the cards.
In political circles, an idea emerged that President Park should announce her resignation or yield power to a prime minister recommended by the national Assembly.
However, the presidential office called this unconstitutional.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation]
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North-South Competition for Legitimacy (2/3) – Race to the Stars
By Tim Beal
Nov 2, 2016
Continued from Part 1
The Race to the Stars – Dual-use Competition
The two Koreas are rather special in that they also compete in space exploration, or more specifically, the launching of satellites. Neither of the Germany’s did that, and whilst China is by now a major space power, Taiwan has not substantially competed in that particular race. Although Taiwan has satellites in orbit, it has not developed its own space launch capability.
All modern countries want to utilise satellite technology, and if they are big enough, to have their own satellites, but a launch capability is another matter. The Wikipedia page ‘Timeline of first orbital launches by country provides a handy reference of countries with their own launch capabilities. It is an interesting list of ten countries (or nine plus the European Space Agency, ESA). The Soviet Union was the first, with Sputnik in 1957, and although the Soviet Union no longer exists the two major successor countries, Russia and the Ukraine still retain launch capability, though the latter’s is probably in suspension. The UK did launch one satellite but then abandoned capability, and France no longer launches on its own but as a leading member of the ESA. The United States was the second country to launch a satellite and is of course a leader in the field. Apart from the government National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) there are also two private companies though they have had a checkered history with one of them, SpaceX, suffering a failed launch on 2 September 2016.
The rest of the list is Japan, India, Israel, Iran, and North Korea. Not South Korea. Therein lies an interesting and complicated story of sibling rivalry being enmeshed in great power patronage. That narrative is discussed in some detail in my chapter ‘Satellites, Missiles and the Geopolitics of East Asia,’ coming out in an edited collection later this year, but here I will just touch on the legitimacy aspect – which involves not merely the competition between the two Koreas but also the concomitant issue of South Korea’s subordinate relationship with the United States.
[Legitimacy] [North-South competition] [Satellites] [US dominance] [SLV]
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Former Prime Minister says Pres. Park won’t resign “no matter what happens”
Posted on : Nov.15,2016 15:53 KST
Former Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil
Kim Jong-pil says he is planning legal action, claiming a conversation was illicitly recorded and distorted
Former Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil predicted embattled President Park Geun-hye will resist demands for her to step down.
“She’s going to keep sitting there, even if all 50 million South Koreans come at her to tell her to step down or say, ‘What kind of President are you?’” Kim said.
In a Sisa Journal interview published on Nov. 14, Kim said Park “will not resign no matter what happens.”
“There is no one out there who could break her stubbornness. She inherited only the bad traits from [her parents] President Park [Chung-hee] and First Lady Yuk Young-soo,” he added.
Kim was Prime Minister from 1971-75, then again from 1998-2000. He is the husband of Park Yeong-ok, daughter of Park Chung-hee‘s older brother Park Sang-hee, and is known to be closely familiar with the story between Park Chung-hee and Choi Tae-min (Park Geun-hye’s late mentor and Choi Sun-sil’s father) in the 1970s.
“[Park Geun-hye] was very close to Choi Tae-min. He would go into her room and they would not come out,” Kim recalled. “This happened several times. I don’t know what they were talking about or doing, but they would stay in there from morning until dark.”
[Park Geun-hye] [Kim Jong-pil]
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Pres. Park faces five criminal allegations, including bribery and abuse of power
Posted on : Nov.15,2016 15:46 KST
The so-called “doorknob triumvirate,” former Senior Secretary to the President for Public Relations Ahn Bong-geun (left), former General Affairs Secretary Lee Jae-man (center) and former Blue House secretary Jeong Ho-seong former First Personal Secretary. (by Shin So-young, staff photographer, and pool photo)
In questioning, prosecutors will seek to determine Park’s role in illicit fundraising for Mir and K-Sports Foundations
Prosecutors appear set to focus on five criminal allegations in their questioning of President Park Geun-hye, which is likely to take place on Nov. 16. The charges include bribery, abuse of power, coercion, and violation of the Presidential Records Act. With bribery in particular seen as a serious enough crime to be listed among the specific grounds for impeachment, the questioning could have a significant impact on Park’s actions going ahead.
In connection with the bribery accusations, prosecutors are focusing their investigative energy on the extent of Park‘s involvement in the foundation of and coercive fund-raising for the Mir and K-Sports Foundations. Even insiders are pointing to Park as “basically the orchestrator”; the special investigation headquarters has not denied that it is considering charging her with bribery. Ahn Jong-beom, a former Blue House Senior Secretary to the President for Policy Coordination who spearheaded the fundraising effort while serving as Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs, told prosecutors during recent questioning that he had “conducted the fundraising effort at the President’s instruction.”
[Park Geun-hye] [Corruption]
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Politicians from across the aisle clamoring for Pres. Park’s resignation
Posted on : Nov.14,2016 16:51 KST
Park seems unlikely to resign, despite public consensus, as politicians explore options for impeachment or resignation
South Korea’s politicians are quaking after the public sentiment that was expressed in the “million candle protest.” Now that it is clear what the public desires, politicians from both sides of the aisle have set aside the various solutions they had been toying with and have resumed their discussions in earnest. Instead of ambiguous calls for President Park Geun-hye to play a secondary role in the government without specifying which powers she should relinquish, the pendulum is rapidly swinging toward Park stepping down or being impeached, reflecting the demands made by the protesters.
Even members of the Saenuri Party are clamoring for Park’s impeachment or resignation
Politicians who had been dragging their feet were shaken up by the “one million candle” protest in Seoul on Nov. 12, though this effect is more evident in the ruling Saenuri Party than in the opposition parties. During an emergency meeting of non-mainstream members of the Saenuri Party that was held at the National Assembly on Nov. 13, there was open discussion of Park’s impeachment or resignation (topics that key members of the party had banned), and a proposal was made to consider an “orderly disintegration” of the party. Participants in the meeting shared the sense that they ought to recognize that Park and the Saenuri Party had already been condemned in the court of public opinion.
[Park Geun-hye] [Impeachment] [Resignation]
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Defense Ministry and Lotte completing land swap for THAAD deployment
Posted on : Nov.14,2016 16:31 KST
Agreement would trade golf course in Seongju for military land in Namyangju, and would avoid National Assembly budget review
The Ministry of National Defense and Lotte have effectively agreed upon a plan in which the Lotte golf course in Seongju would be provided as a site for deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system in exchange for military-owned land in Namyangju, it was learned on Nov. 13.
The agreement means plans for deployment by 2017 are gaining momentum even amid the ongoing scandal surrounding President Park Geun-hye and confidante Choi Sun-sil.
“Discussions are in the finishing stages for a land swap plan where the Ministry of National Defense deploys THAAD at Lotte’s golf course in Seongju in exchange for providing Lotte with military-owned land in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province,” a senior government official said on Nov. 13.
“My understanding is that Lotte is awaiting approval by its board of directors,” the official added.
[THAAD] [Location] [Lotte]
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[Editorial] The public’s wish is clear: Pres. Park needs to step down
Posted on : Nov.14,2016 16:45 KST
One million people attend the largest public gathering in Seoul since the democratization movement of 1987, in the area between City Hall and Gwanghwamun Square, calling for the resignation of President Park Geun-hye, Nov. 12. (pool photo)
A million candles lit up the evening in central Seoul over the weekend. The candlelight wave that swept over the city center clearly illustrated the public’s feelings. The people want one thing: President Park Geun-hye‘s resignation. This wasn’t just some political slogan. It was a unanimous agreement that she has lost the trust and qualifications she needs to lead the Republic of Korea. It’s a proud message, and one that Park must now answer. She needs to stop ignoring things and face the future of the people and the country.
The reason a majority of South Koreans chose then-candidate Park as President in Dec. 2012 is that they trusted in her sincerity. It was this faith, the belief that she would put the people and country ahead of any personal interests, that propelled her to presidency despite having no real experience or political assets behind her father’s (former President Park Chung-hee) halo. That faith is now shattered. It is now known that Park trusted more in a select private group - as represented by confidante Choi Sun-sil - than in the people or government employees, and that she strove to ensure their interests were met. She cast the shadow of government-business collusion more deeply by coercing corporations out of their money, in a move more befitting of past dictatorships. The university admission examination, something widely believed to represent a ladder toward class mobility, was manipulated by Choi’s daughter Jung Yu-ra, raising deeply dispiriting questions about whether justice and fairness live on in South Korean society. Yet the President has ignored these points and criticisms, dismissing them as “baseless libel.” Instead, she has tried to escape her crisis by seizing the prosecutors’ authority. The candles that embroidered the landscape clearly show the public has withdrawn its trust in the President. She cannot evade the people‘s calls. She needs to relinquish her place as President, while finding some way to make sure the governance vacuum ends quickly. It’s the last avenue available for Park to show her patriotism.
[Park Geun-hye] [Resignation] [Protest]
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Beleaguered President's Options Narrow
By Sun Jung-min
November 14, 2016 13:32
President Park Geun-hye's grip on the job is looking increasingly tenuous as prosecutors prepare to question her after 1 million people marched on Cheong Wa Dae on Saturday to demand her resignations.
Park's close friend Choi Soon-sil, the focus of an influence peddling scandal that leads straight to Park's inner sanctum, is expected to be indicted this week, which is likely to scuttle any remaining deniability in the bizarre affair.
Meanwhile the opposition parties have switched from signaling willingness to let Park limp to the end her term with many of her powers devolved, to joining calls for her resignation.
Park apparently wants to address the public for a third time this week, a course of action in which she has notoriously little practice, after two earlier apologies failed to rein in the ire.
The Chosun Ilbo asked pundits what her remaining options are.
[Park Geun-hye] [Options]
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South Korea’s Historic “One Million People Protest” to Oust Washington’s Puppet President Park Geun-hye
By Hyun Lee
Global Research, November 14, 2016
Global Research Editor’s Note
Compare this event in Korea to the ongoing “few thousand” anti-Trump protesters in the USA. Whereas the latter has made the tabloids and CNN coverage ad nauseam, the million people protest movement against America’s puppet regime in Seoul is not news worthy, it has barely been covered by US network TV.
Read the incisive and carefully documented article of Hyun Lee.
Look at the images below: compare them to the anti-Trump protests.
This is a historic event. The message of the Korean people is loud and clear. M. Ch. GR Editor
As the United States ushers in a new right wing president into office, South Korea is about to give theirs the boot. One million people gathered in Seoul on November 12 to demand Park Geun-hye’s resignation. This is the largest protest South Korea has seen since the democratic uprising of June 1987.
Train and bus tickets to Seoul were sold out in major cities across the country as people headed to the capital for the historic demonstration. Youth in school uniforms were a noticeably large contingent. Rainbow flags flew next to trade union banners, and mothers with children were among the crowd. 150,000 workers made up the largest contingent at the demonstration- 35,000 public sector and transport workers, 20,000 government employees, 15,000 metal workers, 15,000 service workers, 10,000 teachers, and 5000 health and medical workers.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Protest]
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Seoul protest targets South Korean President Park Geun-hye
12 November 2016
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have gathered in the South Korean capital, Seoul, to demand the resignation of President Park Geun-hye.
Large numbers of police officers are being deployed to prevent demonstrators reaching the presidential palace.
Ms Park is accused of allowing her friend, Choi Soon-sil, to access government documents without clearance.
The president, whose approval ratings have plummeted over the scandal, has said she is "heartbroken".
Organisers said one million had turned out to protest on Saturday, while police put the number at 260,000.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Protest]
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S. Koreans stage rallies to demand Park's resignation
Xinhua, November 12, 2016
People attend a rally in downtown Seoul, capital of South Korea, Nov. 12, 2016. [Xinhua]
Over 1 million South Koreans staged peaceful rallies across central Seoul on Saturday night to demand President Park Geun-hye step down over a scandal involving her longtime confidante and former aides.
Organizers estimated that the number of participants in the Saturday rally, the third since the scandal came into focus last month, topped 1 million in Seoul alone, according to local media reports. Last Saturday, some 200,000 people turned out in the capital city.
It would be the country's largest mass rally at least since June 1987 when about 1 million demonstrators gathered to ouster the military dictatorship. In 2008, some 700,000 protested against then-President Lee Myung-bak who resumed U.S. beef imports during the outbreak of mad cow disease.
Police said around 260,000 people turned out in Seoul, beating its earlier expectation of up to 170,000. Police estimates are usually far lower than figures released by organizers as it does not include people coming back home after early participation.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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One million candles in central Seoul call for Pres. Park’s resignation
Posted on : Nov.13,2016 13:01 KST
The South Korean people demonstrated their power with the biggest public assembly since 1987
During a massive rally held in Seoul on the afternoon of Nov. 12, protesters fill the streets from Gwanghwamun Square to Seoul Plaza in front of City Hall, lighting candles and calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down.
One million people – it was the most people to congregate in downtown Seoul since the democratization movement in June 1987. The four streets that converge at the Gwanghwamun intersection twinkled with the glow of candles and cell phones held aloft by demonstrators. On the evening of Nov. 12, “the politics of the public square” was truly at work in downtown Seoul.
At the Blue House on Nov. 12, all officials with the rank of senior secretary and higher were on emergency duty and were periodically holding internal meetings. The people inside the Blue House must have heard the roar of the crowds, too. While President Park Geun-hye refuses to even step back into a secondary role in the government, a million candles made clear that the majority of the public call for her resignation.
Protesters holding candles marching toward the Blue House, located near Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul, are blocked by a barricade of police buses, Nov. 12. The protesters were participating in the third candlelit rally demanding the truth about the Choi Sun-sil scandal and the resignation of South Korean President Park Geun-hye.
According to the organizers, more than one million people took part in the protest (the police place the figure at 260,000). This far exceeds the candlelit vigils for mad cow disease in Seoul in 2008, which maxed out at 700,000 people. Indeed, it is the biggest demonstration in 29 years, since a million people attended the funeral of Lee Han-yeol, a student at Yonsei University who was killed by a police tear gas canister, on June 9, 1987. The organizers of the protest said that 60,000 people also gathered in 10 other cities around the country, including 35,000 in Busan, 5,000 in Jeju, 10,000 in Gwangju and 4,000 in Daegu.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Prosecutors seek two-year prison sentence for organizer of Sewol march of silence
Posted on : Nov.13,2016 11:59 KST
25-year-old Yong Hye-in speaks at a citizens’ filibuster in front of the National Assembly in Seoul’s Yeouido neighborhood on Feb. 25, opposing anti-terror legislation. (by Kim Myoung-jin, staff photographer)
Organizer says her life was changed by the Sewol sinking, and she hopes her case will show the country “that it’s not a crime to fight injustice”
On Nov. 2 South Korean prosecutors asked a court to give a two-year prison sentence to Yong Hye-in, who organized a much-discussed march of silence called “Stay Where You Are” after the sinking of the Sewol ferry.
Yong is charged with having allowed protests that she had organized to exceed the scope approved by the authorities (obstruction of traffic) and with having organized a march without first receiving permission from the authorities (violating the Assembly and Demonstration Act). Yong was behind the march of silence for the Sewol, protest demonstrations during a hunger strike by the Sewol victims’ families and several other commemorative demonstrations in 2014.
[Repression] [Sewol]
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ONE MILLION protesters storm Seoul's streets, demanding Park's resignation
Massive crowds in front of the Seoul City Hall demand President Park Geun-hye's resignation over the growing influence-peddling scandal involving her close confidante Choi Soon-sil on Saturday afternoon. / Yonhap
By Choi Ha-young, Kim Bo-eun
It was a never-ending stream of people. As of 7:30 p.m., Saturday, around 1 million people gathered at Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, calling for President Park Geun-hye to step down, according to the rally's organizers.
People from all walks of life chanted, "Park should step down," in a huge demonstration against the President who is under pressure over the influence-meddling scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil. The police estimated 220,000 citizens were there.
It was the largest rally of the nation in 30 years, bigger than the 2008 protest rally against former President Lee Myung-bak's position to import American beef in spite of the mad cow scare.
The mega-scale demonstration continued throughout the day's evening, with candle-lit protesters packing the Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul. / Yonhap
From 2 p.m. Seoul Plaza was already full with citizens including union workers, students, farmers among others. After the demonstration began there, beginning at 4 p.m., people spread to other areas in central Seoul including Jongno, Euljiro, Myeong-dong, Seodaemun and Sungnyemun. Around 7 p.m. people walked along various routes heading toward the same destination: Cheong Wa Dae, the presidential office.
As in the two previous peaceful rallies, people came with their families, in couples and with groups of their friends. As motorized traffic around City Hall became paralyzed from all the people gathered there, many walked from Euljiro and Gyeongbokgung stations. Medical booths were set up for any possible accidents, thanks to doctors and nurses who volunteered to staff them.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Number of N. Korean defectors in South reaches 30,000
The cumulative number of North Korean defectors in South Korea has topped 30,000, the Ministry of Unification said Sunday.
The ministry said seven North Korean people arrived in South Korea via a third country Friday, raising the total of North Koreans defecting to the South to 30,005.
[Defector]
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Train operator's pep talk to protesters
By Park Si-soo
A subway train operator's pep talk to passengers heading toward central Seoul Saturday evening to join a massive anti-president rally is going viral.
According to stories on social media, an operator of subway line 5's train spoke on the microphone as his train approached Gwanghwamun Station, the closest to the protest site.
"We are approaching Gwanghwamun, which is covered with candlelights," he said, referring to a candlelit vigil-style rally there. "I wish good luck to those who will leave at this station. And I hope you will play a role for the Republic of Korea."
Many who heard the words wrote that they were "deeply touched."
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Prosecutors Probe Chaebol Over Bribing Park
By Kim Ki-hong, Ryu Jung
November 11, 2016 13:28
Prosecutors are looking into mounting evidence that President Park Geun-hye met last year with the heads of conglomerates to solicit donations for her friend Choi Soon-sil's dubious non-profit foundations and promised them favors in return.
Sources said on Thursday that executives from Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK and four other top conglomerates prepared their own "wish lists" for the meeting with Park in July last year.
They allegedly wrote down how they intended to contribute to Cheong Wa Dae's economic and cultural pet projects and what type of assistance they wanted in return.
The wish lists were then allegedly passed to and from between the office of the chief presidential secretary for economic affairs and conglomerate staff.
Some conglomerates apparently wrote euphemistically worded requests for cooperation involving either the tax-free transfer of management control from the owners to their children or for pardons of owners who were serving prison terms.
[Park Geun-hye] [Corruption] [Chaebol] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Gwanghwamun rally to become watershed for Park
With public anger reaching its peak, at least 500,000 citizens are expected to take to the streets for a rally in downtown Seoul, Saturday, calling for President Park Geun-hye's resignation over the influence-peddling scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil. / Korea Times photo by Kim Joo-sung
By Choi Ha-young
At least 500,000 people are expected to join a rally at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul Saturday, calling for President Park Geun-hye to step down, according to the rally organizer Friday.
The largest-ever rally in recent decades will become a watershed for Park who is under pressure over the influence-meddling scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil.
The rally organizer, an association of 1,500 civic and labor groups, expects up to 1 million to take to the streets to demand Park's resignation. The number is expected to be larger than that in the 2008 rally against former President Lee Myung-bak's decision to allow American beef imports when 700,000 people were estimated to have participated. People from the provinces plan to come to Seoul for the protests.
The protestors will gather at Seoul Plaza in front of City Hall at 4 p.m. and start to march across downtown Seoul through areas including Jongno, Euljiro, Myeong-dong, Seodaemun and Sungnyemun at around 5 p.m. The route will be akin to surrounding Cheong Wa Dae.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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'Park on duty during ferry disaster'
By Rachel Lee
Updated : 2016-11-11 19:23
Presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk speaks during a briefing at Cheong Wa Dae, Friday.
/ Joint press corps
Cheong Wa Dae denied rumors, Friday, that President Park Geun-hye was having plastic surgery during the 2014 ferry disaster, stressing that she was in her office being debriefed.
[Sewol] [Park Geun-hye]
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Park fights for survival after violation of ‘divine right’
BY Hyung-A Kim
Engulfed by scandal, South Korea’s Park Geun-hye is banking on a change of political style to save her presidency, writes Hyung-A-Kim.
More than two weeks after revelations of South Korean president Park Geun-hye’s mismanagement of her presidential power by allowing her friend Choi Soon-sil to exert her influence on Park’s decision-making, the entire Korean nation seems to be witnessing the tail-end of Park’s personalised presidential power.
Tens of thousands of angry protesters are demanding Park’s resignation or impeachment through public rallies, candlelight vigils and other forms of public denunciations, including student protests and a massive rally in central Seoul on 5 November. Park, however, appears determined to stay in office for the remaining 14 months of her single five-year term, which expires in February 2018.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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Testimony Implicates Park More Deeply in Scandal
November 11, 2016 10:53
An Chong-bum, the former presidential secretary for policy coordination, has implicated President Park Geun-hye more deeply in a crony scandal that has led to massive calls for her resignation.
An has been arrested on charges of extorting some W77.4 billion from big businesses for the dubious Mir and K-Sports foundations run by Park's longtime friend Choi Soon-sil (US$1=W1,150).
According to prosecutors on Thursday, An claimed he coerced the donations from businesses at Park's orders without knowing Choi was behind the scam.
"If I had known Choi was involved, I would not have done what I did," prosecutors quoted him as saying. "I can't be responsible for Choi's mistakes."
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[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption]
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Park Plows Ahead with Foreign Policy Business
By Jung Nok-yong
November 11, 2016 09:38
President Park Geun-hye seems to have been emboldened by the election of tarnished outsider Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency to show she is still at the helm despite a massive corruption scandal.
Cheong Wa Dae officials and pro-Park lawmakers in the ruling Saenuri Party, who had been keeping a low profile since the scandal came to light, are starting to fight back against growing calls for Park’s resignation over the scandal.
Park has resumed her foreign affairs and security duties, scheduling an urgent call to Trump just a day after his shock election win.
She moved faster than her predecessors, who took two or three days to congratulate new U.S. presidents on their victories.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Trump]
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[Editorial] Bring to light Park’s and Woo’s roles in Choi Sun-sil’s interference in government
Posted on : Nov.9,2016 18:49 KST
It is becoming ever clearer that President Park Geun-hye played a leading role in Choi Sun-sil’s manipulation of the government. There is also increasing evidence that former Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Woo Byung-woo was involved as well.
It now appears that Park will be unable to avoid accusations of having been guilty of bribery by proxy. Other companies will need to be investigated as well, but the evidence is clear just from what has come to light in the investigation into Lotte. Park held closed-door private meetings with the heads of large corporations not only on July 24 and 25 of last year but also on Feb. 18 of this year, after the establishment of the Mir and K-Sports Foundations. After raising the initial funds for establishing the foundations, Park appears to have been raising additional funds.
After meeting Lotte Group Vice Chairman Lee In-won on Feb. 18, Park apparently met separately with Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin in late February and early March. At the time, Lotte was being investigated by the prosecutors (Lee committed suicide on Aug. 26, one day before he was to be summoned by prosecutors). In mid-March, after Park’s meeting with Shin (who was the subject of this investigation), Park apparently was briefed on the status of the additional fundraising by former Blue House Senior Secretary for Policy Coordination Ahn Jong-beom and gave him instructions as well. In May, Lotte donated 7 billion won (US$6.2 million) to the K-Sports Foundation.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Park Geun-hye] [Lotte] [Chaebol]
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POSCO chief to be questioned over 'Choi Soon-sil gate'
POSCO Chairman Kwon Oh-joon
The chief of POSCO, Korea's No. 1 steelmaker, will be grilled by prosecutors Friday over its former affiliate related to an influence-peddling scandal surrounding a close friend of President Park Geun-hye.
The prosecution said it summoned Kwon Oh-joon, 66, to appear before the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office at 7 p.m. to undergo questioning over allegations that an associate of Choi Soon-sil, Park's longtime friend, attempted to forcibly take over the shares of the steelmaker's former advertisement subsidiary last year.
He became the first head of a Korean big business group to be questioned by prosecutors looking into the snowballing political scandal.
Choi's close associate Cha Eun-taek, who is now in custody, is suspected to have used his ties with Choi and other senior government officials to put pressure on a small ad agency, which acquired Poreka from POSCO, to hand over 80 percent of its shares. The attempt, however, ended in failure as the ad agency declined to hand over the shares.
A number of officials, including former senior presidential secretary An Chong-bum, have been put under custody for alleged involvement in the process.
Prosecutors are expected to see if Cha, Choi or other presidential officials intervened in the process of the steelmaker's decision to sell its advertisement arm, and any decisions made afterward. (Yonhap)
[Choi Sun-sil] [POSCO] [Chaebol]
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Safety minister nominee bows out for shamanism scandal
The nominee for minister of public safety and security on Wednesday declined the nomination amid rising criticisms over his participation in controversial shamanistic rituals, in another setback for the Park Geun-hye government hit by a massive corruption scandal.
In a press conference held late Wednesday night, Park Seung-joo, nominated a week ago to head the Ministry of Public Safety and Security, said, "I will lay down the minister nominee position and return to continue personality education activities for young people."
Park, who served as vice minister of the Ministry of Gender Equality & Family under the 2003-07 Roh Moo-hyun administration, was appointed public safety minister last Wednesday.
The nomination was part of a cabinet reshuffle by the Park government which is struggling to placate mounting public anger over a massive influence-peddling scandal involving the president's longtime personal confidante Choi Soon-sil.
But the appointment immediately faced the criticism that Park was not qualified for the position due to his inappropriate behavior.
In the press conference, he acknowledged and made an apology for the inappropriate acts, saying he "unknowingly" participated in a shamanistic event in May and "unwittingly" plagiarized his doctorate dissertation.
A day earlier, President Park had no other option but to discard her choice for prime minister, Kim Byong-joon, as opposition parties strongly denounced the president's personal reshuffles as a tactic to divert attention away from her scandal.
In the influence-peddling scandal, Choi allegedly wielded unhealthy influence over Park and pushed businesses to make donations to two foundations that she controlled. Last week, she was arrested on charges of fraud and abuse of power. (Yonhap)
[Shaman] [Plagiarism]
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Massive rally to be held in Seoul over Park's scandal
Xinhua, November 10, 2016
Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans are expected to rally in South Korea during an upcoming weekend to demand President Park Geun-hye's resignation over scandal involving her longtime confidante and former aides.
A private association aiming to let President Park step down, which is composed of about 1,500 civic groups, announced a plan to hold a massive rally in a city hall square in central Seoul this Saturday.
It would be the third weekend protest since the scandal over the president's decades-long friend, Choi Soon-sil, came into focus last month. Choi, who has been placed under custody, is charged with meddling in state affairs behind the scenes and peddling undue influence for personal gains.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest] [Choi Sun-sil] [SK Japan]
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Recorded Phone Calls Show Park Ordering Security Breach
November 10, 2016 12:10
Prosecutors have found a recording of a phone call in which President Park Geun-hye orders a presidential secretary to show copies of a speech and other confidential Cheong Wa Dae documents to her friend Choi Soon-sil.
The audio file found on Jeong Ho-seong's mobile phone has Park telling him to pass the documents to Choi and find out what she thinks, prosecutors said Wednesday.
In another audio file Jeong tells Park that he "sent" the documents to Choi. When presented with the audio files, Jeong admitted the charges.
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Former presidential secretary Jeong Ho-seong arrives at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office for questioning on Wednesday.
Jeong, a Park aide for nearly two decades, initially claimed that he did not know Choi and denied handing over documents to her. He apparently used the auto-record function on his phone to capture phone conversations with the president and Choi.
Prosecutors believe Jeong relied on the recordings because he often got calls late at night when he was half asleep and had to replay them to remember what had been said.
His job at Cheong Wa Dae was to screen all documents being sent to and from Park. A prosecution official said, "Jeong had so much work that he constantly suffered from a lack of sleep and developed a habit of recording phone calls from the president so that he wouldn't miss anything."
That meticulous habit ended up providing prosecutors with key evidence in linking both Jeong and the president to serious offenses.
Meanwhile, prosecutors on Wednesday raided the homes of two other Park's aides who have been working with her for nearly two decades.
Ahn Bong-geun and Lee Jae-man served as presidential secretaries for public relations and administrative affairs, and prosecutors plan to investigate them over similar allegations.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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[News analysis] Could PM appointment be used by Pres. Park to buy time?
Posted on : Nov.9,2016 18:39 KST
Amid ongoing crisis, Park has withdrawn her nomination of Kim Byong-joon, but is still clinging to power
On Nov. 8, Park finally withdrew her nomination of Kim Byong-joon as prime minister, five days after she had made it. Park’s abrupt nomination of Kim on Nov. 2 without discussing the idea with the opposition parties plunged South Korean politics into chaos, and after facing a stiff backlash from the opposition parties and civic groups, she has backed down. During the two weeks since the Choi Sun-sil influence peddling scandal came to light -- from Oct. 25 until Nov. 7 -- Park has made two public apologies and has replaced her aides at the Blue House, but she is under fire for attempting to sound out public opinion and for making calculated concessions to political pressure.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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[Analysis] What is the real dubious relationship between Samsung and Choi Sun-sil?
Posted on : Nov.9,2016 18:43 KST
Prosecutors have raided Samsung over ties to Choi, and turmoil could complicate transfer of group control to Lee Jae-yong
Members of Banollim, a semiconductor industry watchdog group, call for Samsung to be investigated, on the day prosecutors carried out a search and seizure operation, holding placards that read, “Choi Sun-sil got 20 billion won [US$17.6 million] as a bribe, while workers who contracted leukemia only got five million[US$4,400]?”, Nov. 8. (by Shin So-young, staff photographer
With prosecutors launching their investigation into Samsung, attention is turning to the scope of the dubious relationship between Samsung and Choi Sun-sil, President Park Geun-hye’s confidante and unofficial advisor, and between Samsung and the Park administration. This raid is the first Samsung has faced since a special prosecutor’s team searched Samsung’s Restructuring Office (today known as the Future Strategy Office) in 2008. It’s also the first time that Samsung’s headquarters in Seocho has been raided.
Sources at Samsung are troubled by the fact that the group’s Future Strategy Office -- which serves not only as the group’s control tower but also as the secretariat for Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong – was included in the raid. Prosecutors not only seized documents from the office of Park Sang-jin, chief of external affairs at Samsung Electronics, on the 27th floor of Samsung HQ, but also from the Future Strategy Office on the 40th floor of the same building. Prosecutors reportedly targeted the offices of the planning team and of key executives at the Future Strategy Office. They believe that Samsung as a group has been “handling” Choi Sun-sil and her daughter Jung Yu-ra.
[Choi Sun-Sil] [Samsung] [Chaebol]
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Prosecutors raid Samsung as a “supporter” of Choi Sun-sil
Posted on : Nov.9,2016 18:42 KST
Reporters cover Samsung during a search and seizure operation by a prosecutors special investigative team, as a “closed” sign hangs in the window at Samsung Electronics Headquarters in Seoul’s Seocho district, Nov. 8. (Yonhap News)
Investigation trying to get to the bottom of 2.8 million Euros Samsung sent to German corporation under Choi’s ownership
Prosecutors carried out a large-scale search and seizure of Samsung on Nov. 8, indicating that the most active corporate “supporter” of Choi Sun-sil is now the focus of a full-scale investigation.
The prosecutors’ special investigation headquarters, headed by Lee Yeong-ryeol, carried out surprise raids on nine companies and institutions on Nov. 8, including the Samsung Group’s Future Strategy Office, the Samsung Electronics external cooperation office, and the Korea Equestrian Federation (KEF). Their aim was to investigate allegations that the group gave 2.8 million Euros (US$3.1 million) in special support between September and October 2015 to Core Sports (now Widec Sports), a German corporation under the effective ownership of Choi and her daughter Jung Yu-ra. Targets include the office and home of KEF chairperson and Samsung Electronics president Park Sang-jin, as well as the Future Strategy Office, which serves as a secretariat for group vice chairperson Lee Jae-yong.
[Choi Sun-Sil] [Samsung] [Chaebol]
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South Korean President 'dead' diplomatically: foreign envoys
President Park Geun-hye bows in apology for a corruption scandal involving her and her close confidant Choi Soon-sil while delivering a nationally televised address at Cheong Wa Dae, Nov. 4. Offering her second apology in 10 days for the scandal, Park said she will accept investigation by the prosecution and a separate independent counsel investigation, if necessary. / Yonhap
By Park Si-soo, Rachel Lee
South Korean President Park Geun-hye is "dead" diplomatically, foreign and Korean diplomats said, in the latest fallout from an explosive political scandal involving her shadowy longtime confidant Choi Soon-sil that has already crippled her domestic leadership.
They said the scandal-rocked head of state would find it difficult to have normal negotiations with foreign counterparts during her remaining time in office because of doubts about her ability to implement decisions agreed during talks. This has made foreign envoys here reluctant to arrange summits with serious agendas that require a consistent and undisrupted commitment from both sides.
Mindful of this, Park has decided to skip this year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Summit, which will be held in Lima, Peru, from Nov. 19 to 20.
What is worrisome is a wave of unprecedented diplomatic challenges that will hit South Korea following Donald Trump's inauguration as U.S. President early next year. From trade to military, the business-minded President-elect has said he will implement a set of disruptive changes to the existing rules between Seoul and Washington to help make the U.S. "great again."
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Diplomacy on North Korea
By Rahul Raj
Updated : 2016-11-10 16:45
Since the latest nuclear and missile tests by North Korea, the South Korean response has been to seriously recalculate its defense strategy by considering a number of bold proposals ranging from developing nuclear weapons to launching preemptive strikes against its northern nemesis. As voices demanding this kind of action become louder, such proposals are worth pondering, as there would be serious ramifications from acquiescing to these demands and any miscalculation could be catastrophic for South Korea as well as for the region. Despite blatant and repeated provocations, South Korea must realize that it cannot blithely join North Korea in the game of trading barbs and issuing proclamations of total destruction.
[SK NK policy]
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Civil servants “in a black hole” as Choi Sun-sil interference scandal grinds on
Posted on : Nov.8,2016 17:18 KST
Participants in the the second “Get Together! Get Angry! #Resign_ParkGeunhye Citizens’ Candlelight Assembly” at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, chant slogans as they stand at a police line, attempting to march to the Blue House, Nov. 5. (by Kang Chang-kwang, staff photographer)
Many have lost faith in President Park, and are concerned with holdups in passing legislation and the budget
A civil servant surnamed Kim, who has worked in a social services ministry for over four years, attended a candlelight demonstration at Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square on Nov. 5.
“I went to Gwanghwamun with my friends out of frustration. I wanted to send a clear message about what the public is feeling,” Kim said. “Looking around while we were marching on Jongno Street, I could see students in their school uniforms, married couples with strollers, even elderly people.”
“I had a lump in my throat seeing them calling unanimously for the President to resign,” Kim added. According to Kim, the first order of business is bringing the
fact to light. “The only way there’ll be any measures to prevent this sort
[Choi Sun-sil]
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Pediatric psychiatrist says Pres. Park might have Ripley’s Syndrome
Posted on : Nov.8,2016 17:16 KST
President Park Geun-hye bows her head as she makes her second public apology for the Choi Sun-sil scandal, at the Blue House press gallery, Nov. 4. (Blue House photo pool)
In Facebook post, psychiatrist identifies characteristics that led Park to rely on small number of people she trusts, including Choi Sun-sil
Seo Cheon-seok, a pediatric psychiatrist, said that South Korean President Park Geun-hye appears to have Ripley’s Syndrome, a condition that involves confusing a false self for one’s actual self and trying to maintain peace of mind. Seo posted his psychological analysis of Park’s upbringing on his Facebook page on Nov. 6, referring to Park as “she” without mentioning her by name.
“Given that she won’t even see her own family, she won’t be seeing me, either, which means that we’ll never know what kind of person she is. But that doesn’t mean we don’t know anything about her. There are several clear facts that have come to light thus far through the media and most importantly through the story of her life,” Seo said.
[Park Geun-hye]
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President Park denies rumors about shamanist exorcisms in the Blue House
Posted on : Nov.8,2016 17:20 KST
President Park Geun-hye shakes hands with Far East Broadcasting Chairman Rev. Billy Kim Jang-hwan at the Blue House on Nov. 7. In the center is Myungsung Presbyterian Church Pastor Kim Sam-hwan, who in 2014 made controversial comments about the Sewol ferry sinking. (provided by the Blue House)
Meeting with conservative religious figures draws criticism as not being a genuine effort to listen to the public
President Park Geun-hye stressed in a meeting with senior religious leaders on Nov. 7 that rumors “about shamanist exorcisms in the Blue House and other cultlike things that might be misunderstood by the faithful” were not true.
The meeting with invited leaders, a number of them right-wing Christian figures, had many critics blasting Park’s actions as a far cry from listening to the public.
The Blue House announced on Nov. 7 that Park had invited Cardinal Andrew Yeom Soo-jung in the morning and two senior Protestant figures - Far East Broadcasting Chairman Rev. Billy Kim Jang-hwan and Myungsung Presbyterian Church Pastor Kim Sam-hwan - in the afternoon to the Blue House to hear their view on governance concerns. During the meetings, the senior religious leaders voiced concerns to Park about the current situation and hopes that it would stabilize soon, the Blue House reported.
[Park Geun-hye] [Shaman] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Choi Soon-sil asked gangster to scare off daughter's boyfriend
By Lee Han-soo
Choi Soon-sil, the woman behind the influence-peddling scandal and accused of having illegitimately meddled in Korean state affairs, allegedly asked a syndicate boss to "take care of" her daughter's boyfriend.
Choi Soon-sil and her older sister, Choi Soon-deuk, allegedly met the gangster, whose identity has not been revealed, in July 2015, according to local daily Chosun Ilbo.
"An acquaintance requested that I meet up with them," the man said. "I didn't know who they were. I just heard that they had a lot of money."
Choi said her daughter, Chung Yoo-ra, was living with her boyfriend near Sinrim-dong and spent more than 20 million won ($17,531) a month.
"We have tried everything to break them up and failed miserably," Choi allegedly said. "Help us get rid of him."
But the gangster refused Choi's request, saying he was not a concierge and he did not want to meddle in a family affair
[Choi Sun-sil]
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Park 'Told Aide to Give Classified Speeches to Choi Soon-sil'
November 08, 2016 11:56
A disgraced former presidential secretary has told prosecutors that President Park Geun-hye instructed him to deliver speeches to her friend Choi Soon-sil, who is at the heart of a scandal that has effectively shut down government.
According to prosecutors on Monday, Jeong Ho-seong claims that Park felt it was necessary for several people to take a look at the rough drafts of her speeches and told him to deliver them to Choi and listen to her opinions.
But Jeong claimed Choi only looked at them and offered comments but did not revise them.
Park in a partial apology on Oct. 25 admitted letting Choi look at her speeches, "but after the secretarial staff at Cheong Wa Dae was fully established, I stopped," she claimed.
Jeong's story seems to conflict with the timeframe but also downplays the extent of Choi's involvement.
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Former presidential secretary Jeong Ho-seong arrives at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office for questioning on Monday.
But prosecutors confiscated two mobile phones used by Jeong, which contained audio recordings of conversations with Park and Choi.
Jeong initially claimed he did not know Choi.
Asked why he recorded the phone calls, Jeong said he "did not want to miss any of the president's instructions."
Mobile phone records are proving explosive in the ongoing investigation.
A special investigative team said they are looking into conversations that took place between Park and the heads of several big conglomerates following a July 24 luncheon with executives of 17 companies, whom she apparently prodded to donate money to Choi's dubious Mir and K-Sports foundations.
Prosecutors hit on the events by analyzing the phones of An Chong-bum, a close associate of Park's and former presidential secretary for policy coordination, as well as a diary he kept.
They have also belatedly slapped a travel ban on former presidential secretary Woo Byung-woo, who was in charge of auditing other Cheong Wa Dae officials.
Earlier, prosecutors seemed minded to let Woo off the hook for a number of shady dealings he allegedly committed while in office, and pictures published in the Chosun Ilbo suggested his questioning was a cozy affair. But now prosecutors say they are investigating him on charges of abusing his power in relation to the Choi scandal.
Park is suspected of giving Choi, a friend of 40 years with no official post, unheard-of access to government business and easing her friend's path to fabulous wealth by enlisting her entire office to drum up funds for her ventures.
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[Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption]
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Diplomacy in Disarray Amid Crony Scandal
By Lim Min-hyuk
November 08, 2016 12:36
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit is two weeks away, but the government is in such disarray over a crony scandal that it has yet to decide whom to send.
President Park Geun-hye would be an embarrassment, and the post of prime minister is held temporarily by Hwang Kyo-ahn, who already resigned to take the fall in the early stages of the scandal.
No replacement is in sight as Park tries to foist a candidate from across the aisle, Kim Byong-joon, on the nation without consulting lawmakers, who are almost certain to block him.
The APEC summit in Lima, Peru from Nov. 19-20 is the biggest international diplomatic gathering at the end of the year and will be attended by U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Many will also meet face-to-face on the sidelines to discuss burning issues, wheel and deal. But the government has yet to inform APEC officials whether it will send a representative at all, bringing home the stark reality of the power vacuum caused by the scandal.
A Korean president has attended every APEC Summit since the inaugural meeting in Seattle, Washington in 1993 but probably not this one. A government source said, "Staff are looking into hotel rooms to reserve, but it remains to be seen if Korea is able to attend."
The scandal is having considerable effects on other diplomatic business. The annual trilateral summit between Korea, China and Japan is being postponed. Presidential secretary Kim Kyu-hyun has said Park will attend if a date is set, but Japan's Asahi Shimbun said there are serious doubts over Park's attendance due to the scandal.
Park does plan to meet with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, a widely shunned kleptocrat who visits Korea on Thursday and is perhaps likely to feel embarrassed.
[Park Geun-hye] [APEC]
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With Pres. Park’s leadership in crisis, other options are emerging
Posted on : Nov.7,2016 15:46 KST
Participants at the second “Get Together! Get Angry! #Resign_ParkGeunhye Citizens’ Candlelight Assembly” expressed their views in various ways, with signs calling on President Park to step down, and spelling the Korean work for that out in candles. (by Park Soo-jin, staff reporter and Kang Chang-kwang, staff photographer)
Park is unlikely to accept a symbolic role as head of state, so next year’s presidential election could be held earlier
With the South Korean public still incensed even after President Park Geun-hye’s second public apology, politicians are considering a number of scenarios that would effectively exclude Park from running the government.
The most moderate of these scenarios is for Park to adopt a secondary role and for a neutral cabinet to be established. Under this scenario, Park would only serve a symbolic role as the head of the state - attending formal diplomatic functions, for example - while handing over all real power to the cabinet for the remainder of her time in office. This is the position currently held by the opposition Minjoo Party. The Minjoo Party demands that Park retract her nomination of Kim Byong-joon as prime minister and to nominate someone with the approval of the ruling and opposition parties who can set up a neutral cabinet.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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The youth of Hell Joseon crying out for changes to corrupt, unjust system
Posted on : Nov.7,2016 15:57 KST
Around 1,000 members of a university students group participated in a protest in central Seoul, calling on President Park Geun-hye to resign, Nov. 5. The placard reads, “We are the owners.” (by Park Soo-jin, staff reporter)
Ongoing Choi Sun-sil scandal drawing attention from young people struggling to get by in increasingly polarized South Korea
Stacks of bundled newspapers were delivered at 5 am to a convenience store in Seoul’s Gwanak district. Eom, a 25-year-old part-time employee, quickly went to work. The newspapers are placed on cradles so their titles show clearly. Eom had never really paid much attention to the articles before. He started to really read them around two or three months ago, when the number of customers looking for them began to rise.
“The newspapers were selling a lot more than usual because of the Choi Sun-sil-Park Geun-hye scandal. I wondered what it was all about, and I ended up reading one of the front-page articles,” Eom recalled.
Eom, who works at the store from midnight to 8 am on weekdays, had been too busy with job seeking preparations to spare much interest for political or social issues. But his reaction to the articles he found on Park and Choi, the key figures in the recent government meddling scandal, left him more than just shocked - he felt despondent.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Hell Joseon]
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Don't call Choi a shaman, it's disgrace to shamans
By Choi Ha-young
The nation's shamans are up in arms against Choi Soon-sil being called a shaman, saying it spreads negative perceptions about shamanism, one of Korea's oldest folk traditions.
Choi, a shady advisor for President Park Geun-hye, is often dubbed a shaman in media reports for her religious family background. Choi's father Choi Tae-min (1912-1994) founded his own church in the 1970s, borrowing from the beliefs and practices of older religions.
The shaman community denounces the media for calling her a shaman.
"Calling Choi Soon-sil a shaman is a disgrace to shamans," said Lee Won-bok, head of Shaman Korea, an alliance of professional shamans here.
Yang Jong-seung, head of the Shamanism Museum in northwestern Seoul, said, "To be a shaman, that person should undergo trainings from a spiritual godmother and godfather. Neither Choi Soon-sil nor her father has gone through these steps. They just imitated some aspects of shamanism."
Observers have claimed that Choi is a shaman, or "mudang" in Korean, based on colorful pockets she designed for Park's inauguration ceremony.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Shaman]
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Scandal coins new verb: I'm 'sunsiled'
A citizen was photographed holding a self-made placard that reads "I.Sunsil.U," a parody of Seoul City's promotional slogan "I.Seoul.U," with an explanation about how "sunsil" was used as a verb, with "I" being a noun and "U" an object." / Captured from the Internet
By Lee Han-soo, Park Si-soo
"I am sunsiled!" Can you guess what this mean?
The explosive political scandal sparked by President Park Geun-hye's shadowy confidant Choi Soon-sil (or Sun-sil) has given birth to a new English verb that criticizes the two figures in a humorous way.
A citizen was photographed holding a self-made placard that reads "I.Sunsil.U," a parody of Seoul City's promotional slogan "I.Seoul.U," with an explanation about how "sunsil" was used as a verb, with "I" being a noun and "U" an object."
"(V) Sunsil: (1) influence (2) extort. Eg: Be careful, you might be sunsiled."
This photo has gone viral, creating various meanings of "sunsil" as a verb.
With an investigation of the scandal widening, Choi is believed to have influenced President Park's decisions for many years and allegedly extorted money from dozens of Korean companies by taking advantage of her close ties to Park.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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South Korea launches eighth 1,800-ton submarine
South Korea launched its eighth 1,800-ton submarine on Tuesday in an effort to reinforce its maritime combat capability in the face of North Korea's growing threat including its submarine-launched missiles.
The Lee Beom-seok submarine, named after a renowned independence fighter, was unveiled in the shipyard of its manufacturer Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) in Geojedo, 333 kilometers (207 miles) south of Seoul.
It is scheduled to be deployed in late 2018 after a test and review process, the Navy said.
South Korea is striving to catch up with the North in terms of submarine capability. Seoul currently has 15 submarines, nine 1,200-ton and six 1,800-ton vessels, far less than Pyongyang's 70, according to the defense ministry.
The Navy plans to increase the number to 18 by 2019 and add nine 3,000-ton submarines in the 2020s.
In 2000, South Korea began the new submarine project, dubbed KSS-II, and selected the German shipbuilder Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft's 214-type subs as its next-generation submarines.
The KSS-II submarine, 65 meters (213-foot) long and 6.3 meters wide, has a crew of 40 and a maximum underwater speed of 20 knots (37 km/hour), according to the Navy.
It is capable of striking aircraft and submarines, planting mines in enemy-controlled waters. It also carries long-range cruise missiles that could hit the enemy's core facilities.
It is the eighth of nine same-class submarines whose orders placed by the Navy to Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Daewoo Shipbuilding in early 2000s, DSME spokesman Yoon Yo-han said.
Hyundai Heavy has built five out of six vessels under the contract and Daewoo Shipbuilding has delivered all of three ships, he said.
The new submarine's name came from Gen. Lee Beom-seok, who fought for the country's independence from Japan's colonial rule (1910-45) and served as prime minister and defense minister after liberation. The Navy makes it a rule to name new submarines after patriotic heroes. (Yonhap)
[Military balance] [Submarines]
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Park Apology Fails to Appease Protesters
By Joo Hyung-sik
November 07, 2016 09:31
A massive candle-light protest in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Saturday drew an estimated 45,000 citizens calling for President Park Geun-hye to step down over a crony scandal.
The protest followed a second, more fulsome apology by Park for giving a long-time friend unprecedented access to the presidential office and easing her path to fabulous wealth, which signally failed to appease protesters.
Saturday's turnout was anything between four and 10 times as high as the previous weekend's.
Protesters included many families, from fathers carrying their kids on their shoulders to elderly people holding the hands of grandchildren.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Park mulls follow-up measures to salvage presidency
By Kim Hyo-jin
Embattled President Park Geun-hye is considering follow-up measures to salvage her presidency amid a deepening leadership crisis caused by the influence-peddling and corruption scandal involving her confidant, according to presidential sources Sunday.
Despite the partial presidential office and Cabinet reshuffle, plus her second apology over the scandal surrounding her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil, public sentiment is worsening.
Hundreds of thousands of people ? 200,000 according to organizers ? assembled for a candlelit rally in central Seoul, Saturday, calling for the President's resignation. Another mass rally is scheduled for this Saturday.
The opposition bloc raised an offensive against Park, urging her to withdraw her unilateral nomination of Kim Byong-joon as prime minister. It is also pushing for an independent counsel for a thorough investigation of the scandal and step down from managing state affairs.
Choo Mi-ae, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), has refused to hold a meeting with Park unless those requirements are met first.
[Park Geun-hye]
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Investigations into Choi scandal speeding up
By Kim Bo-eun
Investigations into the swirling scandal centering on President Park Geun-hye's confidant Choi Soon-sil are picking up speed, following the arrest of two ex-presidential aides on charges of granting Choi personal benefits and access to classified documents.
The arrest and questioning of An Chong-bum, former senior presidential secretary for policy coordination, and Jeong Ho-seong, former secretary for private presidential affairs, is expected to serve as a stepping stone toward uncovering any role of President Park in the scandal.
While many believe Choi's "unimaginable privilege" would not have been possible without the President's direct involvement, Park said in her second nationally televised apology Friday that she is willing to undergo investigation.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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S. Korea mulling blacklisting N. Korea leader's sister
South Korea said Monday it is "carefully" reviewing whether to add Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of North Korea's leader, to a list of its fresh unilateral sanctions against North Korea.
Seoul is working on new punitive measures against North Korea for its fifth nuclear test in September at a time when the United Nations Security Council is discussing new sanctions over the provocation.
South Korea's unification ministry said that the government is in the stage of reviewing all options, including whether to blacklist her.
"Whether to add her to the sanctions list is one of the options that are carefully being reviewed," Jeong Joon-hee, a ministry spokesman, told a regular press briefing. "But it is not the time to reveal specifics."
In March, the South unveiled its own sanctions, including a ban on the entry of vessels into South Korea in response to Pyongyang's nuclear and missile tests early this year.
It also blacklisted scores of key North Korean officials and organizations suspected of being involved in the development of nuclear and missile programs. But the North's leader Kim Jong-un and his sister were not included on the list.
[SK NK policy] [Sanctions] [Kim Yo Jong] [Personalisation
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Park approval among 20-30s drops to 1%
President Park's approval rating hit a record low of 1 percent among citizens in their 20s and 30s. / The Korea Times File
By Lee Han-soo
President Park Geun-hye's approval rating is at a record low of 5 percent, according to a Gallup Korea survey on Friday. But her approval rating among those in their 20s and 30s is even lower ? 1 percent.
Experts said it was hard to consider if such a low statistic was actually a rating.
The negative rating against Park was highest among those in their 20s, with 95 percent followed by those in their 30s with 93 percent.
Park's approval rating has never been high among the younger generation. But it has never been so low.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion]
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'UN chief may not seek Saenuri Party ticket'
By Kim Hyo-jin
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon may not run in next year's presidential election on the ticket of the ruling Saenuri Party amid the ever-widening scandal involving President Park Geun-hye's confidant, according to its party floor leader.
Ban, whose U.N. term ends at the end of this year, has been rumored to be backed by Park as the ruling party candidate, with expectations that the former foreign minister will join the Saenuri in January to run for president.
"The Saenuri Party is losing public confidence enormously. I highly doubt that Ban would join the beleaguered party," Saenuri floor leader Chung Jin-suk said during the party's general meeting on Friday, according to party officials, Saturday.
[Ban Ki-moon] [Park Geun-hye] [Saenuri Party]
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[Interview] Park Geun-hye believed in Choi Tae-min after he predicted her father’s death
Posted on : Nov.6,2016 07:19 KST
Minister who was close to Pres. Park’s spiritual mentor explains the origins of her relationship with Choi Sun-sil’s father
Former President Park Chung-hee visits a free hospital of Korean medicine for the elderly, established by the National Salvation Army of the Cross in 1976, talking with honorary President Park Geun-hye and Choi Tae-min. (Yonhap News)
“On the day of [former President] Park Chung-hee’s death [on Oct. 26, 1979], Choi Tae-min wrote to Miss Park Geun-hye that she should ‘make a lunch appointment with the president today and send off all the people around him.’ At around 12:50 pm that day, Miss Park Geun-hye apparently called Choi Tae-min and said, ‘I asked my father, and he said he can’t do it today, but in three days he’ll send everyone off.’ Choi Tae-min had predicted Park Chung-hee’s death. That’s why Miss Park Geun-hye came to believe in him. All of this was told to me by Choi Tae-min.”
[Park Geun-Hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Choi Tae-min] [Shaman]
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[Correspondent’s column] Strange memories of a President’s late and ambiguous decisions
Posted on : Nov.4,2016 17:22 KST
Apparently under Choi Sun-sil’s control, President Park has failed to follow through in many cases
As I sift through old memories, I recall so many strange occurrences. I don’t mean to say that all of them can be attributed to Choi Sun-sil. That said, a lot of things start to make sense if you use Choi to connect the dots between questions and accusations. While I’m aware of the danger of relying on a convenient explanatory framework, it’s hard not to feel embarrassed that we were fighting with phantoms.
While I was covering South Korea’s Unification Ministry and Foreign Ministry before being assigned as the Hankyoreh’s Washington correspondent, there were several times that I found myself shaking my head in perplexity. Since these ministries had also been my beat during the administrations of former presidents Roh Moo-hyun (2003-2008) and Lee Myung-bak (2008-2013), I often noticed the backward way that decisions were made under the administration of current South Korean president Park Geun-hye.
Even after I was assigned to the United States, I was asked by American experts on the Korean Peninsula on several occasions about who in the world was giving advice to Park. These experts did not understand why Park was so committed to the idea of North Korean regime collapse, in defiance of what she promised at the time of her inauguration, or why she made abrupt decisions such as completely shutting down the Kaesong Industrial Complex this past February. I will feel pretty sheepish when I see them now.
By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [SK NK policy] [Collapse] [Kaesong]
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South Korea issues arrest warrants for two ex-presidential aides
South Korean President Park Geun-hye delivers her speech on the 2017 budget bill during a plenary session at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, October 24, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
A South Korean court said on Sunday it had issued arrest warrants for two former presidential aides under investigation in an influence peddling scandal that has sent President Park Geun-hye's approval rating to a record low.
Tens of thousands of South Koreans demonstrated at a rally on Saturday evening in central Seoul demanding that Park resign over the scandal involving an old friend, Choi Soon-sil, who is alleged to have used her closeness to the president to meddle in state affairs.
Park's approval rating has fallen to just 5 percent, the lowest since such polling began in 1988, according to a Gallup Korea survey released on Friday.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption] [Scapegoat]
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Choi Soon-sil - Shaman or con artist?
By Oh Young-jin
If Choi Soon-sil is a shaman as indicated by some media outlets, she is one who is different from what we know as "mudang," a Korean exorcist.
When she slinked her way into Incheon International Airport, the 60-year-old confidant of President Park Geun-hye was captured on a security camera carrying a Tods handbag, the same brand sported by Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, although Tods denied Choi's bag was its merchandise.
Choi also wore what appeared to be a Moncler padding coat.
In a melee of journalists and NGO representatives at the prosecutors' office, one of Choi's Prada shoes slipped off in a Cinderella moment. Not a prince but a security guard picked it up and returned it to her. So far, she could be as much a devil as Ms. Priestly in "The Devil wears Prada."
Conventional wisdom is that mudang usually wear traditional Korean white attire ? that is also often associated with garb worn by a widow whose husband has just died ? and change to colorful costumes when performing a "gut" act of exorcism.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Shaman]
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Public anger shows no signs of subsiding
About 200,000 protesters gathered at Gwanghwamun Square on Saturday to demonstrate against President Park Geun-hye, echoing her resignation. / Yonhap
200,000 protestors call for Park's resignation
By Choi Ha-young
Citizens again proved their anger against President Park Geun-hye with more concentrated voice at the rally, Saturday, echoing "resignation" slogan all around central Seoul.
Around 200,000 protestors didn't forgive the President who allowed her longtime confidante Choi Soon-sil to meddle in state affairs, despite her apology one day before. The rally was larger and protestors were more diverse than another demonstration a week ago with 30,000 participants.
The number of protestors mounted up as the rally was merged with the funeral ceremony for late farmer activist Baek Nam-ki earlier in the day.
As predicted, people of all walks of life, many with families and friends, came to the rally.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion]
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Prosecutors Circle Closer to Park
November 04, 2016 12:19
Prosecutors are about to enter uncharted territory as they seek to take the unprecedented step of investigating an incumbent president.
President Park Geun-hye is suspected of giving Choi Soon-sil, a friend of 40 years with no official post, unheard-of access to government business, and easing her friend's path to fabulous wealth although Choi has no obvious talents other than influence peddling.
Prosecutors had initially hoped to avoid taking what in Korea's hierarchical society is a terrifying step for subordinates. Lee Young-ryul, who leads the special investigation team, said only last week that Park "is not a subject of investigation."
But as the probe engulfed An Chong-bum, a close associate of Park's and former presidential secretary for policy coordination, politicians and the prosecution began to realize that they cannot put it off much longer.
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[Park Geun-hye]
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[Editorial] Another empty apology won’t allow Pres. Park to escape Choi Sun-sil scandal
Posted on : Nov.5,2016 12:14 KST
President Park Geun-hye offered her second apology on Nov. 4 for the Choi Sun-sil scandal. Compared to her first address, which lasted a minute and 40 seconds and lacked anything resembling candor, this one did at least see her lowering her head a few times. But that’s not going to be enough to soothe the anger and despair the public is feeling. Park portrayed the whole thing as being about Choi’s own misdeeds, while giving no answer to demands that she herself step down as president. There was no sign of any resolution to take the responsibility onto her own shoulders. Park still seems utterly complacent in her expectation that this will be enough to settle the crisis.
Park also said she would “comply fully with questioning by prosecutors if necessary,” and would “even accept an investigation by a special prosecutor.” This is something she should have said a long time ago. Yet she hasn’t changed at all in presenting the scandal as a matter of one person’s corruption. She seems to believe that the Mir and K-Sports Foundations were established in the hopes of helping the national economy and the public’s lives, and that one individual exploited that process for her own interests and committed illegal acts. In other words, the President did everything with the best of intentions, and Choi Sun-sil secretly committed improprieties. Seeing the way the President is assigning all the blame to Choi is enough to make the public’s collective heart sink once again. At this point, there isn’t one South Korean who would be willing to take this explanation at face value.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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[Reporter’s notebook] What happens if Pres. Park is not changed
Posted on : Nov.5,2016 12:12 KST
Amid Choi Sun-sil scandal, Park obviously wishes to cling to power, and there are limited options for ousting her
There’s nothing more dispiriting than hearing someone talking about “next week” in a zero-visibility situation where it’s tough to see even an hour into the future. The news is bringing so many details about abuse of power that it’s difficult to digest it all - yet the president only feeds the anger with her apologies and feeds suspicions with her explanations. Seeing day after day of this is enough to leave the South Korean people with “abnormal spirits,” as Park herself put it. Park and the Choi Sun-sil faction started the fire, and now citizens across all walks of life are wracking their brains trying to fix things. But the universe doesn’t seem to be offering its full support just yet.
How are we to normalize the abnormal situation of Park holding onto the legal position of president when she’s already been impeached in the minds of her public? There are basically two scenarios here: either Park fills out the remaining year and four months of her term, or she leaves the Blue House before her term ends.
The first scenario involves keeping Park in office on the grounds that whatever is happening, a vacuum in constitutional government must be avoided. An example of this is a plan politicians are discussing in which Park would step back from the front lines and form a neutral national Cabinet. This is seen as an opportunity to gauge whether the National Assembly is capable of steering the ship of state and maintaining constitutional order with the president effectively absent - and perhaps to stage a trial run for a decentralized presidential system.
[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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South Korea may see its first-ever prosecutors investigation of a sitting president
Posted on : Nov.4,2016 17:15 KST
Pres. Park may be planning another apology and to submit to investigation as Choi Sun-sil scandal drags on
The first-ever investigation of a sitting president by prosecutors in South Korean Constitutional history is beginning to materialize. In addition to demands for the investigation by the public at large, a growing number within the administration and ruling Saenuri Party are starting to see the investigation as necessary. On the morning of Nov. 4, Park made another statement saying she will cooperate with the investigation as best she can, and if needed she will accept a special prosecutor.
To begin with, even Prime Minister nominee Kim Byong-joon - whom Park offered as a “relief pitcher” - has indicated he perceives an investigation of the President as inevitable. Speaking with reporters at the Financial Supervisory Service training center in Seoul’s Jongno district on Nov. 3, Kim stated his position on the investigation issue by saying, “There are conflicting interpretations of the Constitutional provisions, but my position is that an investigation and questioning are possible.”
[Park Geun-hye]
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Chaebol support to Choi Sun-sil came insurance, logrolling and collusion
Posted on : Nov.4,2016 17:26 KST
Many asking what kind of cooperation Samsung may have had in donating additional funds without going through a foundation
The nature of chaebol support to President Park Geun-hye’s confidante and influence-peddler Choi Sun-sil is becoming the focus of attention as prosecutors’ investigation of the Choi scandal expands to the companies that gave her money.
While most of the chaebol that funded the establishments of the Mir and K-Sports Foundations are now crying foul about their “victimization,” tensions are mounting over the possibility that some could face punishment on bribery charges depending on the nature and form of support given.
Business observers are classing transactions between Choi and the chaebol into three main categories. The first is “insurance,” unavoidable payouts made even when the companies saw the support request as improper. A number of the 18 groups that contributed to the two foundations could be seen as falling in this category.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption] [Chaebol]
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South Korean life expectancy 11 years longer than North Korean
Posted on : Nov.4,2016 17:06 KST
Life expectancies in South and North have diverged in recent years, with South Koreans expected to live longer
South and North Koreans differ in average life expectancy by over 11 years, a recent study shows.
A report on the “Status and Prospects for Chief South and North Korean Health Indicators in Light of the German Reunification Example” by researcher Cho Kyung-sook of the OECD Korea Policy Centre was published on Nov. 3 in by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA). In it, the average life expectancy for South Koreans as of 2015 was given as 84.6 years for women and 78 years for men. The numbers were respectively 11.3 and 11.7 years higher than the North Korean life expectancies of 73.3 and 66.3 years.
Average life expectancies between South and North Koreans first began differing sharply in the 1990s. As of 1965, the average South Korean woman’s life expectancy was 57.6 years, or three years longer than the 54.6 average for North Korean women. The gap subsequently narrowed before opening again to 3.3 years in 1990. Recently, it has risen to 11.3 years. For men, the South Korean average for 1965 was 52.3 years, or 3.9 years higher than the 48.4 for North Korean men. That gap continued to grow in later years, reaching 11.8 years in 2000 and 11.7 last year.
[Sanctions effect] [NK-SK comparison] [Agency]
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Park Says Scandal 'All My Fault'
November 04, 2016 13:33
President Park Geun-hye in a televised address Friday said a crony scandal that has engulfed her administration was "all my fault and mistake."
"I once again apologize from the bottom of my heart for the indescribably great disappointment and worries the case related to Choi Soon-sil has caused," Park said, her voice shaking with emotion.
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[Park Geun-hye] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Is arrested Choi Soon-sil 'bogus'?
By Lee Han-soo, Park Si-soo
Is the arrested Choi Soon-sil a "fake"? Rumors abound on the internet that the woman who was summoned to the prosecution early this week and taken into custody Thursday night was not Cho but her double.
Netizens said Choi's look differed from when she appeared at the prosecutors' office on Monday to when she was sent to Seoul Correction on Tuesday.
"Choi Soon-sil has severe hair loss on the right side of her head and her double eyelid has a lot of wrinkles," wrote a netizen, who suspected Choi was using a double. "However, the picture that was taken Tuesday shows the female officer pressing Choi's head to make it look like she has hair loss. Her double eyelid also is clearer and her wrinkles seem to have disappeared."
Others questioned the reason for concealing her face with a mask and glasses when the country knows what Choi looks like.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Canard]
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Park's approval rating crashes to record-low 5%
President Park Geun-hye saw her approval rating crash to 5 percent, the lowest for sitting South Korean presidents, as an influence-peddling scandal involving her longtime friend rattled her presidency, data showed Friday,
According to a Gallup Korea survey conducted this week, Park's approval rating plunged 12 percentage points from a week earlier, marking a seventh consecutive week of decline from early September when the figure stood at 33 percent.
The portion of respondents disapproving of her performance came to 89 percent, up 15 percentage points on-week, while 6 percent remained undecided.
The previous lowest record was held by former President Kim Young-sam who ruled the country between 1993-1998 and saw an approval rating of 6 percent in his last year in office. Kim also held the highest approval rating of 83 percent in his first year, the pollster added.
Park's approval was 2 percent in Seoul and 0 percent in the liberal-leaning South Jeolla Province, with the figures in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, largely supportive of the conservative bloc, standing at 10 percent.
The rating among people in their 20s and 30s recorded 1 percent, while 13 percent of those aged 60 and above approved of her performance.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion]
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People Demand Resignation of President Park Geun-hye
[From Zoom in Korea] On October 29, South Korean people took to the streets to demand “Park Geun-hye Step Down!” and show their outrage over Park Geun-hye’s involvement in the recent government corruption scandal. Over 30,000 people participated in the demonstration, which was three times the expected participation.
[Park Geun-hye] [Protest]
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Park Nominates New PM Amid Growing Calls to Step Down
By Jung Nok-yong
November 03, 2016 09:48
President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday nominated a new prime minister from across the political divide in a bid to shore up the ruins of her government.
Kim Byong-joon (62) was a senior presidential secretary during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, but it remains to be seen whether he will pass his confirmation hearing in the National Assembly.
Opposition lawmakers said Park still seems unaware of how precarious her situation is amid growing calls for her resignation over a crony scandal, and should have consulted the parliamentary parties.
Presidential spokesperson Jung Youn-kuk said, "Considering his value, knowledge and experience, Kim is deemed able to overcome the current challenges and securely steer the Cabinet for the sake of the nation's future."
Park hopes Kim's track record can unify the country and restore some public confidence in response to calls for a decentralization of presidential authority.
The prime minister's role is largely administrative, but one Cheong Wa Dae official said Kim would have expanded powers and lead the Cabinet, being "effectively in charge of domestic policy" while Park "withdraws from the leadership."
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But a group of prominent figures including former prime minister Chung Un-chan on Wednesday demanded Park appoint a prime minister in consultation with ruling and opposition lawmakers that the public can accept.
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[Park Geun-hye]
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Choi Soon-sil's Shady Business Dealings Revealed
November 03, 2016 10:55
Choi Soon-sil, the presidential confidante at the center of a massive influence peddling scandal, appears to have launched a series of paper companies in Germany since the 1990s that eventually allowed her to launder vast slush funds and dodge taxes.
Choi's increasingly brazen dealings allegedly culminated in a 2.8 million euro payment from Samsung for a sports consultancy that appears to have served no purpose except to launder the bribe.
She started small. According to German corporate information websites Compaly and Moneyhaus, Choi and her former husband Chung Yoon-hoi invested 50,000 Deutsche marks in 1992 to establish a trading company in Germany.
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[Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption]
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Choi Soon-sil 'Worth W200 Billion or More'
By Choi Kyung-woon
November 02, 2016 12:55
Choi Soon-sil
The National Tax Service is investigating how Choi Soon-sil, the presidential confidante whose alleged interference in state affairs and influence peddling threatens to bring down President Park Geun-hye, amassed her wealth and whether she evaded taxes.
Choi declared real estate assets worth W36.5 billion during her divorce from then-presidential secretary Chung Yun-hoi (61) in 2014 (US$1=W1,143). They include two buildings in Sinsa-dong worth W20 billion and W8.5 billion each, W3 billion worth of real estate in Yeoksam-dong, as well as a W4 billion worth of property in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province and land in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province worth between W700 million and W1 billion.
In early September, when the scandal started unfolding, Choi hotfooted it to Germany and bought a hotel in the town of Schmitten near Frankfurt for 550,000 euros and a home nearby.
The horse her daughter Chung Yoo-ra rides in competition apparently cost around W1 billion and was bought with money from Samsung, and it costs tens of millions of won a month just to maintain the animal.
These transactions suggest that Choi has stashed away much more money than has been revealed so far.
[Choi Sun-sil] [Corruption]
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Park's Approval Ratings Hit the Floor
November 02, 2016 12:24
President Park Geun-hye's approval rating is dwindling to a single digit as a massive crony scandal engulfs her administration.
In a poll by the Naeil Daily on Tuesday, Park's approval rating fell to 9.2 percent, down 25 points compared to a month ago. Some 67.3 percent of respondents said Park should resign or at least halt all political activities.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion]
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With surprise PM appointment, Park may be trying to take the heat off
Posted on : Nov.3,2016 16:05 KST
Appointment is a signal that President does not plan to back down or cede power amid Choi Sun-sil scandal
President Park Geun-hye’s surprise announcement of Kookmin University professor and Roh Moo-hyun administration figure Kim Byong-joon as her nominee for Prime Minister on Nov. 2 signals her commitment to overcome her current troubles with a scandal surrounding Choi Sun-sil’s interference in state affairs by implementing a “responsible prime minister.”
Park’s decision is a rejection of demands from opposition parties that she delegate her authority and all selection of a Prime Minister by bipartisan consensus after her identification as being responsible for the Choi scandal. And with more and more evidence surfacing of Park’s personal involvement in the raising of funds for the Mir and K-Sports Foundations, it could be that her surprise Cabinet reshuffle is an attempt to draw attention away.
[Park Geun-hye]
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[Editorial] Park’s abrupt PM appointment shows how clueless and complacent she is
Posted on : Nov.3,2016 16:03 KST
On Nov. 2, South Korean President Park Geun-hye abruptly named Kim Byong-joon, a professor at Kookmin University, to be the country’s new prime minister. This was Park’s second unilateral personnel reshuffle, following her sudden sacking of senior secretaries at the Blue House on Oct. 30.
In a word, this is unbelievable. It is disheartening and infuriating to see Park’s failure to recognize the gravity of the situation and the petty schemes she concocts to survive the crisis. The only conclusion that can be drawn is that Park is bringing the widespread public opposition on herself.
Park’s appointment of Kim Byong-joon as Prime Minister shows the full extent of her complacent and self-centered understanding of the current situation. She seems to have thought that she could head off pushback from the opposition parties by appointing Kim (who served as policy chief at the Blue House under former president Roh Moo-hyun, in office 2003-2008) and by promising him wide-ranging powers. She seems to have thought that, with the prosecutors speeding up their investigation into Choi Sun-sil, the public wrath could be assuaged by having Choi and a handful of officials arrested.
[Park Geun-hye]
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Choi Soon-sil suspected of forging academic background
By Lee Han-soo
Choi Soon-sil, who is in custody over the alleged influence-peddling scandal, is suspected of forging her academic background, according to an interview by the CBS news show, a Korean radio program.
The allegation rose during an interview with Hong Byung-sik, the program administrator of Pacific State University, from which Choi allegedly graduated.
Choi's profile states that she earned her bachelor's, master's and doctor's degrees in child education from the university.
"There were no classes or degrees related to child education offered by the university when Choi supposedly attended our school," Hong said.
CBS checked for graduates from the university named Choi Soon-sil or her previous name but found none.
Choi is known to have worked as vice principal of a Daegu kindergarten for five years from 1988 with the degrees she obtained.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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Did Choi Soon-sil kill Hanjin Shipping?
By Park Si-soo
Did scandal-mired Choi Soon-sil play a role in sinking Hanjin Shipping?
Rumors are rife that the shadowy confidant of President Park Geun-hye was an "invisible hand" blocking creditors' financial aid to the troubled shipping company.
Pressed by snowballing debts, the nation's No.1 shipper filed for court receivership in August, triggering chaos in the global maritime cargo transportation network. The company has since been forced to sell its core assets, including vessels that operate on its lucrative Asia-U.S. route, in a desperate effort to stay afloat.
There are allegations that decision-makers in the government and Hanjin's key creditor, the state-backed Korea Development Bank, were positive about extending a lifeline to Hanjin with a cash injection or other measures until March. But an "invisible hand" cut in and abruptly stopped the process, according to the Joongang Ilbo daily.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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The scandal around Park Geun-hye and Choi Soon-sil – pre-election exacerbation?
Konstantin Asmolov
As it has already been pointed out, the scandal in the Republic of Korea around the figure of Park Geun-hye has moved past the point of a purely corruption case connected with the illegal fund-raising for Mir and K-Sports Foundations, and now accusations against Ms. Choi and her friend, the President, have taken a new turn. The scandal is being inflated both by the opposition, and by the formally mainstream media of the Republic of Korea. The problem has received wide coverage in the English-language newspapers leading to a whole range of materials that state that the President’s rating in the Republic of Korea has never fallen so much and the impeachment of Park Geun-hye is not just on the horizon, but just round the corner.
Who is Choi Soon-sil? She is a close friend of the President and is 4 years younger than Park Geun-hye. She is perhaps her closest friend and almost like a relative to her as Park’s relations with her own brother and sister are strained. They have known each other for about 40 years, and Choi has even chosen outfits for Park.
http://journal-neo.org/2016/11/03/the-scandal-around-park-geun-hye-and-choi-soon-sil-pre-election-exacerbation/
[Choi Sun-sil]
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The Unification Cases of Germany and Korea: A Dangerous Comparison (Part 1 of 2)
By Ruediger Frank
03 November 2016
twokoreas_istock_25898184_xlargeGermany’s unification in 1990 has remained a popular model for future Korean unification, with its precedents on issues like the transfer of legal systems and technical standards, requirements for infrastructure investment, unification costs and social aspects.
A closer look, however, reveals that the differences between Germany and Korea far outweigh any similarities. This issue is not just an academic question; wrong assumptions can lead to wrong conclusions and to wrong policies. In the best case, such missteps would only waste money. In the worst case, however, they could lead to mismanagement of the unification process, with potentially disastrous consequences in the social, economic and security spheres.
[German reunification] [False analogy]
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N.Korean Restaurants in China Relent on 'No S.Koreans' Policy
By Lee Kil-seong
November 02, 2016 11:01
North Korean restaurants in China have quietly lifted a ban on South Korean customers put in place after the entire staff of one restaurant defected in April, Radio Free Asia reported on Tuesday.
Newly opened restaurants have no official restrictions on customer access, while established ones still nominally ban South Korean tour groups but admit South Koreans who come in Chinese company, sources in Dalian and Dandong told RFA.
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[Overseas labour] [NK SK policy] [Abductees]
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Woman at center of South Korean presidential crisis is detained
By Anna Fifield
November 1
TOKYO — The woman accused of acting as South Korea’s “shadow president” has been jailed under emergency detention laws, as prosecutors question her about what role she played for the real president, Park Geun-hye.
Park is facing the worst crisis of her tumultuous four-year presidency after allegations that Choi Soon-sil, her close friend of four decades, has had undue influence on state affairs.
The case has incensed the country so much that a 45-year-old man on Tuesday drove an excavator from a town about 150 miles south of Seoul, the capital, and into the prosecutors’ office where Choi is being held, destroying the door. He later told police he wanted to “help Choi Soon-sil die as she said she committed a sin that deserves death,” the Yonhap news agency reported.
[Choi Sun-sil]
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As Choi Sun-sil scandal drags on, Pres. Park’s approval rating crumbles
Posted on : Nov.2,2016 16:19 KST
Modified on : Nov.2,2016 16:19 KST
Even in Park’s usual support bases, her approval is tumbling, and could get worse as investigation moves ahead
President Park’s handling of state affairs
Despite President Park Geun-hye’s hasty replacement of her core advising staff, including the so-called “doorknob triumvirate”, and her efforts to show herself meeting with civic leaders to hear their opinions, public sentiment has cooled to a point beyond recovery, as shown by public opinion results by the Munhwa Ilbo and the Naeil Shinmun newspapers made public on Nov. 1.
According to a telephone opinion poll conducted among 1,000 adults nationwide by the Munhwa Ilbo and Embrain, 48.2% believe the president should either resign (36.1%) or be impeached (12.1%). 26.1% of poll respondents stated that the president should accept a national non-party cabinet’s handing over of wide-scale authority to the prime minister, a total of 74.3% of the populace agrees that Park should retreat to the second line of leadership in one form or another. 22.5% of respondents felt that after the Blue House personnel and cabinet are replaced, the government needs to be stabilized, starting with Park.
“As the situation is to the point where President Park could have to resign, she has become a lame duck president,” said political commentator Yu Chang-seon. “If President Park continues to control the government, the anti-Park faction of the ruling party and the opposing party may even come together to put forth a bill for impeachment,” Yoo continued.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion] [Choi Sun-sil]
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[Editorial] For Park Geun-hye’s government, the collapse has already begun
Posted on : Oct.31,2016 16:39 KST
Candlelight protests calling for the resignation of South Korean Park Geun-hye captivated the country on Saturday and Sunday night. The voices of angry citizens filled plazas in major cities around the countries - not only Gwanghwamun in Seoul but also Busan Station in Busan, Taehwagang Station in Ulsan, Save Zone in Jeonju and Haengbok Street in Uijeongbu. In Jeonju, the drivers of city buses honked their horns to take part in the protests.
Watching these demonstrations felt like witnessing a reoccurrence of the democratization movement that swept the entire country in 1987 and brought down the dictatorship. In the sense that the protestors spanned a wide spectrum of people - men and women, young and old, parents and children - there are similarities to the candlelight vigils held to protest imports of American beef at the beginning of the Lee Myung-bak presidency in 2008.
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion] [Choi Sun-sil]
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Park fights back
Kim Byong-joon, a former close aide to the late President Roh Moo-hyun, speaks at an institute of the Financial Supervisory Service in Seoul, Wednesday, after being nominated by President Park Geun-hye as prime minister.
/ Yonhap
President picks ex-aide to Roh as prime minister
By Kang Seung-woo
President Park Geun-hye unexpectedly replaced the prime minister and two other Cabinet ministers, Wednesday, without consulting the opposition parties, showing her resolution to overcome the leadership crisis in her own way.
Park nominated Kim Byong-joon, a former close aide to the late President Roh Moo-hyun, as prime minister to replace Hwang Kyo-ahn, according to presidential spokesman Jung Youn-kuk. Kim, 62, is a professor at Kookmin University in Seoul.
Park also appointed Financial Services Commission Chairman Yim Jong-yong as the new finance minister _ a post that doubles as the deputy prime minister for economic affairs _ and Park Seung-joo, another former Roh aide, to head the Ministry of Public Safety and Security.
The partial reshuffle came as the administration is reeling from a myriad of allegations that Park's longtime confidant Choi Soon-sil has had a significant influence on her during her presidency. Choi is now being questioned by the prosecution.
The controversy has triggered public calls for Park to step down as her approval rating plunged to a single-digit number, Tuesday.
[Park Geun-hye] [Roh Moo-hyun]
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Suspicions re-emerge over '7 missing hours'
Bereaved family members of the Sewol ferry disaster victims and members of civic groups demand President Park Geun-hye reveal the truth about the sinking, including where she was during the first seven hours after the accident, as well as for her to take responsibility for the scandal involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil, during a press conference at Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
By Kim Bo-eun
The unraveling influence-peddling scandal involving President Park Geun-hye's confidant Choi Soon-sil is again raising questions about the President's "seven missing hours" in the aftermath of the Sewol ferry disaster on April 16, 2014.
Suspicions and rumors link Choi with the unknown whereabouts of Park, with some even saying the accident was related to a sacrificial ritual.
The President was absent during the crucial first seven hours of the ferry's sinking, which killed more than 300 passengers on board, mostly high school students on a school excursion.
Cheong Wa Dae has never given a clear explanation about what the President was doing during those hours, just repeating she was in her office working. This prompted public outrage and demands for the truth behind the accident.
[Sewol] [Park Geun-hye]
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Park seems determined to stay in office despite public outcry
By Park Si-soo
President Park Geun-hye seems determined to ignore mounting calls for her resignation.
Her surprise nomination of a new Prime Minister, Finance Minister and Public Safety and Security Minister on Wednesday morning reflects her "firm determination" to hold on to her position as head of state despite the growing Choi Soon-sil scandal that has pushed her leadership to the brink of collapse, according to experts.
Park's approval rating plunged to a single digit in a recent poll, which experts said indicates that her leadership is in a state of "death."
[Park Geun-hye] [Public opinion]
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