North Korea's Kim 'alive and well': Seoul

SEOUL - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is "alive and well", a top security adviser to the South's President Moon Jae-in said, downplaying rumors over Kim's health following his absence from a key anniversary.

"Our government position is firm," said Moon's special adviser on national security Moon Chung-in, in an interview with CNN on Sunday. "Kim Jong Un is alive and well."

The adviser said that Kim had been staying in Wonsan -- a resort town in the country's east -- since April 13, adding: "No suspicious movements have so far been detected."

Conjecture about Kim's health has grown since his conspicuous absence from the April 15 celebrations for the birthday of his grandfather Kim Il Sung, the North's founder -- the most important day in the country's political calendar.

Kim has not made a public appearance since presiding over a Workers' Party politburo meeting on April 11, and the following day state media reported him inspecting fighter jets at an air defense unit.

His absence has unleashed a series of unconfirmed media reports over his condition, which officials in Seoul previously poured cold water on.

"We have nothing to confirm and no special movement has been detected inside North Korea as of now," the South's presidential office said in a statement last week.

Daily NK, an online media outlet run mostly by North Korean defectors, has reported Kim was recovering after undergoing a cardiovascular procedure earlier this month.

Citing an unidentified source inside the country, it said Kim, who is in his mid-30s, had needed urgent treatment due to heavy smoking, obesity and fatigue.

Soon afterwards, CNN reported that Washington was "monitoring intelligence" that Kim was in "grave danger" after undergoing surgery, quoting what it said was an anonymous US official.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday rejected reports that Kim was ailing but declined to state when he was last in touch with him.

On Monday, the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported that Kim had sent a message of thanks to workers on the giant Wonsan Kalma coastal tourism project.

It was the latest in a series of reports in recent days of statements issued or actions taken in Kim's name, although none has carried any pictures of him.

Satellite images reviewed by 38North, a US-based think tank, showed a train probably belonging to Kim at a station in Wonsan last week.

It cautioned that the train's presence did not "indicate anything about his health" but did "lend weight" to reports he was staying on the country's eastern coast.

Reporting from inside the isolated North is notoriously difficult, especially on anything to do with its leadership, which is among its most closely guarded secrets.

Previous absences from the public eye on Kim's part have prompted speculation about his health.

In 2014 he dropped out of sight for nearly six weeks before reappearing with a cane. Days later, the South's spy agency said he had undergone surgery to remove a cyst from his ankle.

Agence France-Presse

2 South Koreans recover from coronavirus after plasma therapy

SEOUL - Two elderly South Korean coronavirus patients recovered from severe pneumonia after being treated with plasma from survivors, researchers said Tuesday, offering hope in the face of the global pandemic.

Scientists have pointed to the potential benefits of plasma -- a blood fluid -- from recovered individuals who have developed antibodies to the virus enabling the body's defenses to attack it.

Since emerging in China in December, the coronavirus has killed almost 75,000 people as drugmakers worldwide race to develop a vaccine and treatments for the disease.

Plasma therapy could become "an alternative treatment for patients in critical condition who do not respond to antiviral drugs," said Choi Jun-yong, a doctor and researcher at Severance Hospital in Seoul, where both patients were treated.

But large-scale clinical trials were needed to prove its effectiveness, he added.

One of the 2 patients was a 71-year-old man with no underlying conditions who only improved when treated with plasma from a recovered patient in his 20s, along with steroids.

He was initially given malaria drugs and a respirator for severe pneumonia.

The other patient, a 67-year-old female, also did not respond to initial treatments including malaria, HIV drugs, and oxygen therapy. She began to recover after receiving plasma therapy and steroids at the same time, researchers said.

Their findings were published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Korean Medicine.

Kwon Jun-wook, an official at Seoul's Central Disease Control Headquarters, said plasma therapy was "important" when there was "currently no vaccine or treatment available" for the virus. 

He called on experts to examine the 2 cases urgently.

Research on plasma and other therapies "will proceed quickly," Kwon added.

Small studies on plasma have demonstrated its effectiveness in treating infectious diseases, including Ebola and SARS.

Trials started in France on Tuesday involving 60 patients in Paris hospitals, half of whom will receive plasma from recovered patients.

The US Food and Drug Administration authorized physicians to experiment with the strategy to fight the coronavirus, and tests are also being carried out in China.

South Korea endured one of the worst early outbreaks of the virus, but appears to have brought it under control thanks to its extensive "trace, test and treat" program.

Agence France-Presse

Dreaming with lights in Seoul

A visitor walks near lanterns during the Seoul Lantern Festival along Cheonggyecheon stream in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday. Now on its 11th anniversary, the 2019 Seoul Lantern Festival will be held on November 1-17 with the theme “Your Seoul, Dream with Lights.”

source: news.abs-cbn.com

9 killed as typhoon lashes South Korea

BUSAN, South Korea - At least 9 people were killed and several others missing after Typhoon Mitag lashed South Korea with heavy rains and strong winds, authorities said Thursday.

The storm hit southern parts of the country on Wednesday night, prompting flood warnings and triggering landslides in affected areas.

The death toll recorded from across the country have been confirmed dead as of Thursday afternoon, the Ministry of Interior and Safety said, but the toll was expected to rise with several people missing.

A woman in her 60s was found dead after her home was buried in a landslide in the southern port city of Busan and around 600 rescue workers were trying to locate three others believed to be trapped beneath the rubble.

Park Young-hak was inside his tool shed -- later buried in the landslide -- and said he escaped after hearing a loud "roar."

"When I ran out to see what it was the house next to me had already disappeared," Park told AFP.

More than 1,000 homes were damaged and over 1,500 people evacuated their houses in advance, the ministry said.

Mitag is the 18th typhoon this year and seventh to hit the Korean peninsula.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

US says Japan, South Korea 'soul searching' needed over damaging row

WASHINGTON - A senior US official said on Wednesday Japan and Korea needed to do some "soul searching" about political decisions that have damaged relations between the two US allies in recent months and called for calm words from their leaders.

Marc Knapper, deputy assistant secretary of state responsible for Japan and Korea, told a Washington think tank it was critical to ensure "productive and constructive relationships" between the allies in the face of shared challenges posed by North Korea, Russia and China.

He cited a joint patrol last month by Russian and Chinese aircraft near a group of islets claimed by both South Korea and Japan, calling it "a direct challenge to our three countries; an attempt to take advantage of the current frictions in Japan-South Korea relations."

"We must not let challenges in the region drive a further wedge between and among our three countries," Knapper said in address at the Heritage Foundation in Washington.

"Japan and Korea each suffer consequences when their bilateral ties worsen and we believe that each bears responsibility for improvement for their relations.

"We believe that some soul searching is in order about political decisions that have damaged bilateral trust in recent months and by the same token, we believe that prudence is required to prevent tensions contaminating the economic and security aspects of Japan-South Korea ties.

"Calm confident words from national leaders, we believe, will generate a similar response for their nations."

The unusually frank comments underlined the depth of concern in Washington about the dispute between the two long-term allies which has brought the relationship between Seoul and Tokyo to arguably its lowest ebb in more than half a century.

Diplomatic tensions intensified after a South Korean court last year ordered Japanese companies to compensate Koreans who were forced to work for Japanese occupiers during World War Two, a matter Tokyo says was settled by a 1965 treaty normalizing bilateral ties.

On July 4, in apparent retaliation, Japan restricted exports of high-tech materials to South Korea, sparking a boycott by South Korean consumers of Japanese products and services.

This month, South Korean President Moon Jae-in vowed that South Korea would not be "defeated again" by its neighbor and promised counter-measures after Japan's cabinet approved the removal of South Korea's fast-track export status from Aug. 28.

Seoul has also said it will review whether to maintain a military information sharing pact with Tokyo, which has been important in ensuring a coordinated approach to dealing with the crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons. (Reporting by David Brunnstrom; editing by Grant McCool) 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Park Bo Gum denies involvement in Song-Song couple divorce

Korean actor Park Bo Gum on Thursday denied rumors linking him to the divorce of Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo.

After Joong Ki's camp announced early Thursday that he has filed for divorce, speculation floated, suggesting that Park may be involved in the split as he recently starred in the drama "Encounter" with Hye Kyo.

"Park Bo-gum, who recently starred in the drama with Song Hye-kyo, is unexpectedly mentioned in the rumor. It is offensive that Park’s name is mentioned in the divorce," said an official from Park's agency, Blossom Entertainment, as reported by the Korea Herald.

"Rumors about Park Bo-gum and Song Hye-kyo are absolutely not true," the official said.

The official added that Blossom Entertainment would take legal action against the rumors linking Park to the divorce.

Joong Ki's lawyer Park Jae Hyun bared that the actor filed for divorce at the Seoul Family Court on Wednesday.

Hye Kyo's agency, United Artists Agency, also released early Thursday a statement, which cited "differences in personality" as the reason for the split.

"The two were unable to overcome their differences, they were forced to come to this decision," Hye Kyo's agency said.

Joong Ki and Hye Kyo worked together in the 2016 drama "Descendants of the Sun," which became a big hit not only in its native South Korea but also across Asia.

The couple — one of the biggest celebrity couples in South Korea — went on to tie the knot in October 2017.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Mystery hacker steals data on 1,000 North Korean defectors in South

SEOUL - The personal information of nearly 1,000 North Koreans who defected to South Korea has been leaked after unknown hackers got access to a resettlement agency’s database, the South Korean Unification Ministry said on Friday.

The ministry said it discovered last week that the names, birth dates and addresses of 997 defectors had been stolen through a computer infected with malicious software at an agency called the Hana center, in the southern city of Gumi.

“The malware was planted through emails sent by an internal address,” a ministry official told reporters on condition of anonymity, due to the sensitivity of the issue, referring to a Hana center email account.

The Hana center is among 25 institutes the ministry runs around the country to help some 32,000 defectors adjust to life in the richer, democratic South by providing jobs, medical and legal support.

Defectors, most of whom risked their lives to flee poverty and political oppression, are a source of shame for North Korea. Its state media often denounces them as “human scum” and accuses South Korean spies of kidnapping some of them.

The ministry official declined to say if North Korea was believed to have been behind the hack, or what the motive might have been, saying a police investigation was under way to determine who did it.

North Korean hackers have in the past been accused of cyberattacks on South Korean state agencies and businesses.

North Korea stole classified documents from the South’s defense ministry and a shipbuilder last year, while a cryptocurrency exchange filed for bankruptcy following a cyberattack linked to the North.

North Korean state media has denied those cyberattacks.

The latest data breach comes at a delicate time for the two Koreas which have been rapidly improving their relations after years of confrontation.

The Unification Ministry said it was notifying the affected defectors and there were no reports of any negative impact of the data breach.

“We’re sorry this has happened and will make efforts to prevent it from recurring,” the ministry official said.

Several defectors, including one who became a South Korean television celebrity, have disappeared in recent years only to turn up later in North Korean state media, criticizing South Korea and the fate of defectors.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Korean stars Lee Dong Wook, Suzy break up

Korean stars Lee Dong Wook and Suzy have ended their relationship just months after it was confirmed that they are dating.

JYP Entertainment confirmed that the two broke up in a report published by Soompi on Sunday.

 “It’s true that [Suzy] has broken up with Lee Dong Wook. Because they both had busy schedules, it was difficult for them to meet, and they naturally ended up going their separate ways," the statement said.

Lee Dong Wook’s agency King Kong by Starship also confirmed the issue.

“It’s true that Lee Dong Wook and Suzy have broken up. They naturally grew apart as they became busier.”

Lee was part of the hit Korean series “Goblin.” His other shows include “My Girl,” “Scent of a Woman,” “Hotel King,” and “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God.”

Suzy, on the other hand, started her career as part of the girl group Miss A and has released her solo album.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Olympics: Fans flock to cheer joint Korean ice hockey team

INCHEON, South Korea -- South Korean fans chanting "We are one" and wearing shirts with the unification flag emblazoned on the front packed into a freezing ice hockey arena on Sunday to cheer on the joint Korean women's team in a tune-up for this month's Winter Olympics.

North and South Korea agreed last month to field a combined women's ice hockey team and march together under one flag in Pyeongchang after a new round of talks amid a thaw in cross-border relations.

With some 3,000 fans packed into Seonhak International Ice Rink in Incheon, the Koreans, who have only practiced together for a week, lost 3-1 to Sweden.

While the result was a disappointment, hopes are high that the unified team could help improve ties.

"I am excited," said Park Cheol-hyun, who came to watch the game with his wife and son.

"Even though the nuclear issue may not be resolved immediately, it will be good for the longer term if the two Koreas get closer. Otherwise, there is no way to resolve it."

While the reaction to the North's decision to participate in the Winter Games was met warmly in the South, the decision to form a combined women’s ice hockey team sparked a public backlash.

Critics said adding North Korean players to the South's roster at the last minute would mean missed opportunities for home players and could hurt team chemistry.

The International Olympic Committee said 12 North Korea players would join the South's 23-player squad. The game day roster will continue to be 22 and the team has to include at least three North Koreans.

The North will also send athletes to take part in figure skating, short track speed skating, cross-country and Alpine skiing at the February 9-25 Games.

The controversy has hit the popularity of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who hoped that the upcoming Olympics would pave the way for a breakthrough in resolving North Korea's nuclear issue.

“I think young people have hostility about the North because they only heard bad things about North Korea for the past nine years," said 19-year-old Chae Hyun-min, who was waiting in line to enter the stadium in freezing cold weather.

"This is the first step, and will bring the two Koreas one step closer to peace. The perceptions of young people will change gradually," he said.

Ahead of the game, conservative groups held protests and tore up a North Korean flag. They called for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to step down.

“The unified team is politically contaminated," 58-year-old Cho Young-hwan said, calling Moon "the puppet” of the North Korean leader.

"The Olympics offered an opportunity for the North to publicise its propaganda and create a conflict within South Korea.

"In this situation, how can the two Koreas be unified?" asked Cho, who is from Gangwon Province where the Winter Games will be staged. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Figure skating: North Korean pair in battle for spot in South Korea Olympics

BERSTDORF, Germany — North Korean Figure skating pair Ryom Tae-Ok and Kim Ju-Sik are bidding to become their nation's first representatives at the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea after finishing third on Thursday in the short programme at the Nebelhorn trophy.

The pair, seen as the likeliest North Korean contenders for a spot in February's Pyeongchang Games, produced a solid yet largely risk-free performance, scoring 60.19 points, to land on fifth place and will now wait for Friday's free skating competition in Oberstdorf, Germany.


They looked visibly satisfied at the end of their performance to music by The Beatles for a second year running but were nervous as they waited for the scoring. They need to finish in the top four to qualify for Pyeongchang.

Russians Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov are leading on 77.52 points.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in July the North will be given until the last minute to decide whether it will take part in the Olympics. None of its athletes have yet met the qualification standards but there are some hopes for speed skaters.

The International Olympic Committee is supporting North Korean athletes in their bid to qualify with accommodation, travel and any equipment needed.

Tension on the Korean peninsula has risen in recent weeks as North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump exchanged war-like threats and insults over the North's nuclear and missile development program.

The North has accused Trump of declaring war after he warned Kim's regime would not last if he persisted in threatening the United States and its allies, having earlier warned North Korea would be totally destroyed in such an event. (Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Christian Radnedge)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

N. Korea flood death toll rises to 133 with 395 missing: UN

Severe flooding in a North Korean border region has killed at least 133 people with hundreds more missing, according to the UN, which said the scale of the disaster was "beyond anything experienced" by local officials.

Some 107,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in the area along the Tumen River, the world body said in a statement received Monday which cited Pyongyang government figures.

The North's official media has described the downpour which led to the floods near the northeastern border with China and Russia as the worst for decades, and said it brought severe hardship to residents.

It says a nationwide mass-mobilisation 200-day labour campaign intended to bolster the economy has been redirected to assist the flood victims.

"The scale of this disaster is beyond anything experienced by local officials," said UNICEF deputy representative in North Korea Murat Sahin, who visited the flood-stricken region last week.

"Although the early warning system was triggered, the scale of the damage was unexpectedly high."

Sahin said food and shelter was the immediate priority for families, and that a lot of humanitarian work still needed to be done before the winter sets in and temperatures drop below zero.

"Families here lost everything. We met the household doctor for the community in the rubble of her clinic. She told us that 11 out of 15 pregnant women in the community had miscarriages since the floods."

The impoverished nation is vulnerable to natural disasters, especially floods, due partly to deforestation and poor infrastructure.

At least 169 people were killed by a massive rainstorm in the summer of 2012.

Major state resources are swallowed up by a missile and nuclear weapons programme which Pyongyang says is essential to deter US aggression.

More than 35,500 houses have been hit by the latest floods, with 69 percent of them completely destroyed, and 8,700 public buildings have been damaged, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement dated Sunday.

Around 16,000 hectares (39,540 acres) of farmland have been inundated and at least 140,000 people urgently need help, it said, adding that aid agencies have released material from stockpiles in the North such as food and shelter.

UNICEF said a truck carrying emergency supplies including oral rehydration salts, medical kits, vitamin supplements and water purification tablets left Pyongyang on September 5 headed to the affected areas. It said further supplies were on the way.

The North's government was working urgently to reopen roads and was distributing relief goods and building materials. The priority was to rebuild 20,000 homes by early October before the bitter Korean winter hits.

From floods to 'fairyland'

The North has trumpeted the role of its ruling Workers' Party in responding to the disaster in North Hamgyong province.

The aim is "to turn the area into the fairyland in the era of the Workers' Party within this year by dint of army-people great unity, harmonious whole", said party newspaper Rodong Sinmun on Monday.

"The party regards the work for taking care of the people's life in a responsible way as the most important affair and duty and has steadily created legendary stories about love for the people," it added.

Much of North Korea is hilly or mountainous but slopes have long been stripped bare for fuel or turned into terraced ricefields. This allows rainwater to flow downhill unchecked.

A series of floods and droughts was partially responsible for a famine that killed hundreds of thousands between 1994-98, with economic mismanagement and the loss of Soviet support exacerbating the situation.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization said in April that North Korea's chronic food shortages were expected to worsen, given the tight food supplies last year and this year when "most households were already estimated to have poor or borderline food consumption levels".

The United Nations Security Council is planning fresh sanctions on the nation after it staged its fifth nuclear weapons test Friday.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

South Koreans beat the heat in Water Gun Festival

South Koreans took out their water guns over the weekend to beat the summer heat.

Thousands gathered in downtown Seoul equipped with their weapons for the Water Gun Festival.

The festival aims to make summertime more bearable amid the Korea Meteorological Administration's heatwave advisories hoisted all over the country.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

What Pinoys can expect from Korea's 'Nanta' show

MANILA – Korea’s award-winning show, “Cookin’ Nanta,” will be staged in the Philippines for a limited time this month.

The show, which has been running since 1997, is marketed as the most popular show in Korea. The Manila leg will be held from November 10 to 15 at The Theatre at Solaire.

Last September, ABS-CBNnews.com and selected media and bloggers had the chance to watch “Nanta” at Myeongdong in Seoul.

Here are five things that Filipinos can expect from “Nanta”:

1. It’s a show for everyone.

You don’t have to speak or understand Korean to appreciate the show. A non-verbal performance, “Nanta” transcends language barriers and age restrictions, relying on slapstick comedy and good choreography.

2. It features mad knife skills.

“Nanta” is often compared to “Stomp,” another popular show that uses everyday objects as percussion instruments. But unlike “Stomp,” this Korean show focuses on showcasing kitchen stunts, from tossing plates to chopping food.

Yes, the actors here are trained to use real knives, chopsticks, plates, pots, pans and ingredients to create music, so the stage can get messy at times.

 3. There is real fire.

The actors of “Nanta” play with fire – literally. Expect to see real flames as they take on the role of chefs, preparing various dishes to satisfy their boss and their audience.

4. You might be brought on stage.

There is a lot of audience participation involved in “Nanta,” so prepare to be asked to help out in the kitchen, from making dumplings to tasting soup.

5. It’s pure fun.

Just sit back, relax and get ready to laugh throughout the show. “Nanta” is a show that is meant to be enjoyed instead of being overanalyzed.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

US warns North Korea against nuclear 'provocation'

WASHINGTON - The United States warned Wednesday that North Korea will face ''severe consequences'' if it continues with what Washington sees as its provocative decision to restart a nuclear reactor.

Pyongyang has said it has restarted the long-mothballed Yongbyon reactor, which is capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium, and has threatened to launch a rocket which US officials see as a test-bed for ballistic missile technology.

Challenged as to whether Washington could respond credibly to the North Korean moves after earlier striking a deal to allow Iran's nuclear program to continue under international supervision, Secretary of State John Kerry insisted it could.

"There will be severe consequences as we go forward if North Korea does not refrain from its irresponsible provocations that aggravate regional concerns, make the region less safe, and if it refuses to live up to its international obligations," he said.

"Our position is clear: We will not accept a DPRK -- North Korea -- as a nuclear weapons state, just as we said that about Iran."

Asked what the United States could do if North Korea continues to flout international agreements not to expand its nuclear and missile programs, Kerry said Kim Jong-Un's regime was already experiencing growing diplomatic isolation.

"China, for instance, has taken serious steps in the last year, year-and-a-half, since we engaged China on this subject specifically to encourage them to do more, and they have," he told reporters at the State Department.

Kerry said he had also spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov about North Korean defiance.

"So there's a lot happening. And I can assure you that all of these countries remain fixated on the need for North Korea to denuclearize with respect to its weapons program and to live up to its international obligations," he said.

North Korea mothballed the Yongbyon reactor in 2007 under a six-nation aid-for-disarmament accord but began renovating it after its latest nuclear test in 2013.

When fully operational the reactor is capable of producing around six kilograms (13 pounds) of plutonium a year -- enough for one nuclear bomb, experts say.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

North Korea says it has 'cure' for MERS, Ebola, AIDS

SEOUL - North Korea says it has developed a vaccine that is "very effective" in treating MERS, Ebola and AIDS, the state mouthpiece KCNA reported, as well as a range of other diseases that modern medicine is yet to find a cure for.

The drug, known as Kumdang-2, is reportedly able to treat everything from AIDS to tuberculosis and cancer, as well as "harm from the use of computers" and morning sickness, according to the drug's website.

The isolated country's news agency KCNA is notorious for making hyperbolic claims about North Korea's achievements -- from scientific breakthroughs to the sporting prowess of its leaders -- and has previously trumpeted the efficacy of the drug.

Developed by North Korea's Pugang Pharmaceutic Company -- and promoted under the tag line "Everyone has the right to be healthy" -- the vaccine is made of extracts from ginseng with the injection of rare earth elements, KCNA said.

"The Kumdang-2 injection, a strong immune activator, which is produced in DPRK (North Korea), is very effective in curing diseases caused by malignant viruses such as SARS, Ebola and MERS," said the report.

The impoverished communist state, known to have a weak health infrastructure, claims to have been testing this cure-all drug since 1989.

South Korea is currently battling with an outbreak of MERS, which has killed 24 people while 166 cases have been confirmed -- the largest outbreak of the disease outside Saudi Arabia.

North Korea has taken drastic measures in the past to guard against viral diseases, and it has recently intensified screening and vowed "watertight" measures at airports and border crossings to ward off the MERS virus.

Last year it imposed a four-month ban on foreign tourists, purportedly due to concern over the spread of the Ebola virus.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

South Korean shopping, baseball, movies and art hit by MERS

SEOUL - South Korean high street spending fell dramatically in the first week of June as fears over an outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) kept shoppers at home, but online purchases rose, government estimates showed on Wednesday.

President Park Geun-hye postponed a US visit to supervise the handling of the outbreak, as two more people died and 13 new cases were reported, lifting the total number of patients to 108.

Department store sales in the period fell 25 percent from an average of the first two weeks of May, the data showed. Sales at discount stores fell 7.2 percent, but online purchases rose 3.2 percent.

Cinema ticket sales dropped 54.9 percent in the first week of June from the year-earlier period. Visitors to amusement parks plummeted 60.4 percent and to baseball games, 38.7 percent.

Museums and art galleries suffered the same fate, with drops of 81.5 percent and 48.3 percent, respectively.

Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan asked South Koreans in a briefing on Wednesday not to be excessively worried and urged consumers to continue spending money.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Google's first Asian 'campus' opens in Seoul

SEOUL - Google formally opened its first Asian start-up "campus" in Seoul on Friday -- a marquee-name nod to South Korea's aspirations as a regional hub for a new generation of tech entrepreneurs.

Opened by President Park Geun-Hye who has touted establishing a "creative economy" as a key policy for her administration, Campus Seoul is housed in the capital's upscale Gangnam district which has become a focal point for the Korean start-up community.

As well as providing a space for people to work and network, it offers mentoring and training by Google teams and experienced entrepreneurs, as well as access to other start-up communities in Asia and beyond.

"We feel we're at a tipping point where Korean start-ups will begin going global," said Jeffrey Lim, who heads the Seoul Campus operations.

It's a point that has been touted as tipping for some time, nudged by a highly educated, hard-working community in a country with some of the world's fastest broadband speeds and highest smartphone penetration rates.

But despite the domestic success of some start-ups, Korean firms have struggled to take their products to the global market.

There are a variety of reasons, including a lack of funding and know-how, well-intentioned but overly regulated government involvement, and the absence of any real role models.

Fear of risk and failure

There are also challenges that are particular to South Korea because of its recent history.

The Asian financial crisis that rocked the country in the late 1990s and the bursting of an initial dotcom boom in 2001 served to reinforce the widely held view that taking risks and running your own business was to invite volatility, insecurity and potential bankruptcy.

"When bright, young Korean graduates want to create their own start-ups, the biggest challenge they face is often their parents," said Lim.

"They still push them towards the security of jobs with the big conglomerates like Samsung and LG. They still feel that's the gold standard for how they raised their kids," he added.

But for those with the courage to take the plunge, there are encouraging signs that things are changing.

"And the good thing about Korea, is that when we change, we have shown we can change very fast," said April Kim, co-founder and CEO of ChattingCat - a start-up providing an instant English-language correction service for non-native speakers.

The 33-year-old, who has already moved her tiny team into Campus Seoul, believes a major corner has already been turned, with overseas venture capital firms setting up shop in South Korea and Korean entrepreneurs starting to create start-up incubators and accelerators.

State support

The government has also stepped up, with Park's administration in 2013 unveiling a 3.3 trillion won ($3.0 billion) fund to nurture start-ups over the next three years.

In the past two years, Kim has received more than $60,000 in government funding, a sum she was extremely grateful for when she was struggling to get her company up and running.

But the money came with a substantial cost in time and effort.

"There was so much paperwork! For my first 20K I had to write an 80-page report. And every quarter, they want an accounting of how the money is being spent," Kim said.

"There's a lot of frustration and wasted energy," she said.

It's a point echoed by another early Campus Seoul member, Park Sangwon, whose software development start-up is promoting a real-time camera filter application that already boasts 160 million downloads.

"The problem is that the side providing the funding is not really looking at making the business more successful," the 34-year-old said.

"There's a lot of distrust and wanting to make sure the money is being spent in the 'proper way'," he added.

Seeking role models

The Google campuses are not-for-profit projects that the US tech giant says carry the over-arching benefit of widening the Internet eco-sphere. The Seoul outpost is modelled after similar facilities in London and Tel Aviv, and soon to be Warsaw and Sao Paulo.

Basic membership is free and space is provided at very low rates. Google has no financial stake in the start-ups that use the Seoul campus, although it clearly doesn't hurt to have a close eye on what might become the next Twitter or Uber.

For both Kim and Park, it's a welcome resource where they can meet other small teams like their own, share experiences, pursue possible collaborations and, hopefully, identify and open doors to venture capital funding.

But in terms of growing, they still lack the models for how to move beyond the Korean market.

"I'm at a stage where I need mentors and connections, but they are hard to find," Kim said.

"I hope there will be at least one Korean start-up that makes it on a global scale in the next few years. It would give a lot of people hope and help others to learn and follow."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Adultery no longer a crime in South Korea

SEOUL - South Korea's Constitutional Court on Thursday struck down a controversial adultery law which for more than 60 years had criminalized extra-marital sex and jailed violators for up to two years.

The nine-member bench ruled by seven to two that the 1953 statute aimed at protecting traditional family values was unconstitutional.

"Even if adultery should be condemned as immoral, state power should not intervene in individuals' private lives," said presiding justice Park Han-Chul.

The decision saw shares in the South Korean firm Unidus Corp., one of the world's largest condom manufacturers, soar by the daily limit of 15 percent on the local stock exchange.

It was the fifth time the apex court had considered the constitutional legality of the legislation which had made South Korea one of the few non-Muslim countries to regard marital infidelity as a criminal act.

In the past six years, close to 5,500 people have been formerly arraigned on adultery charges -- including nearly 900 in 2014.

But the numbers had been falling, with cases that ended in prison terms increasingly rare.

Whereas 216 people were jailed under the law in 2004, that figure had dropped to 42 by 2008, and since then only 22 have found themselves behind bars, according to figures from the state prosecution office.

The downward trend was partly a reflection of changing societal trends in a country where rapid modernisation has frequently clashed with traditionally conservative norms.

Public views 'have changed'

"Public conceptions of individuals' rights in their sexual lives have undergone changes," Park said, as he delivered the court's decision.

Reading the dissenting opinion, Justice Ahn Chang-Ho insisted the 1953 statute was a key protector of family morals, and warned that its abolition would "spark a surge in debauchery."

Under the law, adultery could only be prosecuted on complaint from an injured party, and any case was closed immediately if the plaintiff dropped the charge -- a common occurrence that often involved a financial settlement.

The debate over its future had simmered away for years, bubbling over from time to time especially if a public figure fell foul of the statute.

Such was the case in 2008 when one of the country's best-known actresses, Ok So-Ri, was given an eight-month suspended sentence for having an adulterous affair.

At that time, Ok unsuccessfully petitioned the Constitutional Court, arguing that the law amounted to a violation of her human rights in the name of revenge.

The court had previously deliberated the issue in 1990, 1993 and 2001, but those moves to strike down the law had failed to gain the support of the six judges required.

Ok's 2008 petition had come close with five judges deeming the statute unconstitutional.

Improving gender equality

The law was originally designed to protect the rights of women at a time when marriage afforded them few legal rights, with most having no independent income and divorce carrying enormous social stigma.

But even socially conservative civic groups who had supported the legislation in the past acknowledged that times had changed.

"Adultery must be censured morally and socially, but such a law is inappropriate in a modern society," said Ko Seon-Ju, an activist with the Seoul-based civic group Healthy Families.

"It used to be an effective legal tool to protect female rights, but equal rights legislation has improved," Ko said.

"Adultery is an issue that should be dealt with through dialogue between the partners, not by law," she added.

While the adultery law may have been ruled out of existence, social disapproval of marital infidelity remains potent.

In April last year, South Korea blocked the newly launched Korean version of the global adultery hook-up site Ashley Madison, saying it threatened family values.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

UberX ride-sharing service is now free in Seoul

SEOUL - U.S. taxi service provider Uber Technologies Inc on Wednesday said it will make its low-cost uberX ride-sharing service available free of charge in Seoul, in its second bid this month to operate legally in South Korea.

Uber started charging a fee last year for the taxi-like service, which matches passengers via a smartphone app with private drivers who do not hold commercial transport licenses.

Prosecutors subsequently indicted Uber's chief executive, Travis Kalanick, as well as its South Korean unit for violating a law prohibiting individuals or firms without proper commercial licenses from providing or facilitating transportation services.

"We want to actively work towards a consensus, and the first step to that process is switching off the fare," Uber's head of north Asia Allen Penn said in a statement.

Uber proposed a new registration system for its drivers in South Korea earlier this month in a bid to operate legally. But the transport ministry rejected the proposal and said it would stop the company offering its services.

Uber has been the subject of similar regulatory ire in countries around the world, even as it expanded into more than 290 cities.

In January, the city of Seoul declared Uber's services illegal and started offering rewards of up to 1 million won ($911) for people who reported private drivers providing transport through the company.

Yang Wan-soon, director of the Seoul city government's taxi and logistics division, told Reuters it is up to the courts to decide whether Uber can operate legally.

"The city also needs to consider whether the free taxi service would disrupt existing market order," Yang said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Why some Korean students don't want to leave school

SEOUL - It's been a year since Seoul media and communications student Lee Woong-hee finished his studies, but the 26-year-old plans to skip his class graduation ceremony in February because he thinks retaining his student status will help him finally land a job.

He's not alone. Youth unemployment hit a 14-year high in South Korea in 2014, and with hiring sluggish amid a weak economy, especially for "good" jobs with permanent status, thousands of students due to graduate in early 2015 are expected to instead remain on campus.

"Job hunting gets harder every year. It was difficult this year and I fear it will get worse next year," said Lee, who should have graduated last February.

In South Korea, many universities allow students to remain enrolled and use college facilities, even if they aren't taking any classes. At others, students deliberately remain one or two credits short of a degree until they find a job.

"I heard from others that employers do not like graduates. They ask at interviews what you did after graduation," Lee said.

Two-thirds of South Koreans aged 25-34 have a college degree, the highest proportion in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a developed nations' club among whom the average is just below 40 percent.

Government efforts in recent years to encourage young people to pursue careers that don't necessarily require a university degree have had limited success in a country obsessed with education. The high rate of graduates means many ambitious young people feel overqualified for the jobs that are available to them, and figure it's better to have no job than one below their expectations.

LABOR MARKET DIVIDE

South Korea's labor market is divided between permanent jobs with a high degree of security and temporary positions that end after two years, a split that makes it harder for young people to get on a career track.

In 2012, 24 percent of workers in South Korea were temporary, double the OECD average.

In November, Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan suggested measures to make the labor market more flexible by easing rules on lay-offs and pay. While employers supported the proposals, labor groups and many students did not.

A hand-written letter to Choi by a group calling itself "the Misfits" took issue with his ideas and went viral on social networks after it was posted on walls at Korea University and Yonsei University, two of the country's top colleges.

"We are not angry because the regular workers are overly protected. We are angry because temporary workers are not ensured the benefits regular workers receive," it said.

Kim Jong-jin, a research fellow at the Korea Labor and Society Institute, said many young people in highly educated South Korea were unwilling to take temporary jobs.

"People in their mid-20s are supposed to be active in the labour market, but the market cannot exploit them as they keep on studying and preparing themselves for more stable jobs."

A government survey of 33 universities last year found the number of students delaying graduation more than doubled in three years, to more than 15,000.

SHORTER CAREERS

Corporate Korea, which makes two big rounds of hiring each year - the next is in March - has just endured its toughest year since the global financial crisis.

"As conditions are difficult for expanding investment, it won't be easy for firms to hire new people," said Lee Cheol-heng, head of the employment and labour policy team at the Federation of Korean Industries.

The unemployment rate for people aged 15-29 hit 10.9 percent in February 2014, just short of the all-time high of 11 percent recorded in January 2000, before easing to 8.0 percent in October. The figure excludes students. The unemployment rate for new graduates in March last year tied 2013's record of 32.2 percent, according to Korea Labor Institute data.

Later entry into the job market accelerates the greying of the workforce in the world's fastest-ageing country.

Last year, the number of South Korean workers in their 50s outnumbered those in their 20s for the first time, which will add pressure to the country's underfunded pension system when those older workers retire.

With young South Korean men required to serve two years in the military, more time on campus means even fewer working years in a country where the retirement age is 60. A later career start often means starting families later, exacerbating a low birth rate.

"With a retirement age, if the youth enter the labour market later, it decreases their entire economic output whereas the education investment increases," said Kim Gwang-suk of the Hyundai Research Center. "It is a serious problem."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com