The Korea Herald

Suspended bank made illegal loans to room salons

Sept 30, 2011

A local savings bank, now suspended for liquidity shortage, turned out to have provided more than 150 billion won in illegal loans to hostess bars and other adult entertainment clubs in southern Seoul, a police investigation found Friday. According to sources, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has booked eight executives and employees of Jeil Savings Bank without detention on illegal lending ...
Seoul bus fares to go up

Sept 30, 2011

Bus and subway fares in Seoul will be raised by 200 won by early next year, the capital said Friday. The Seoul municipal government is currently in talks with public transportation operators and is likely to allow the fares to rise by 100 won in November and by another 100 won early next year, city officials said. At present, the basic fee for adults is 900 won for buses and subways. The fees w...
Lee calls for aides to exercise greater ethical control

Sept 30, 2011

President Lee Myung-bak urged aides Friday to exercise greater ethical self-control, saying he wants to make his administration the cleanest in South Korean history, although a series of top secretaries have been implicated in corruption scandals. “We have to keep in mind that our administration was born without taking any money,” Lee said during an unscheduled attendance at a meeting of preside...
Korea tops Abilympics medal tally

Sept 30, 2011

Korea finished top in an international skills contest for disabled persons in Seoul, its organizing committee said Friday. It clinched 17 gold, 17 silver and seven bronze medals at the International Abilympics, which wrapped up its six-day contest with a closing ceremony Friday. It was the fifth consecutive time the country topped the medal tally. Taiwan took second place with three gold, three...
First international private school opens in Jeju

Sept 30, 2011

North London Collegiate School Jeju, the first international private school in Jeju Global Education City, opened Friday. “NLCS Jeju is the country’s first case where the 161-year-old prestigious private school in the U.K. will maintain its reputation and realize its time-honored educational philosophy and the knowhow in school systems in Jeju,” Byon Jong-il, president of Jeju Development Center...
Man who pushed wife off cliff gets 10 years in jail

Sept 30, 2011

A lower court on Friday sentenced a man to 10 years in prison for the attempted murder of his wife in Goseong, Gangwon Province. The 56-year-old man was arrested in July after stabbing his wife repeatedly and pushing her off a 100-meter cliff. . Despite her injuries the 44-year-old woman survived the attacks. She regained consciousness the following day, climbed back up the cliff and was rescue...
Film rekindles rage over Inhwa School case

Sept 29, 2011

Public uproar over sexual assault against disabled leads police to reopen 2005 case A local box office hit about the true story of sexual abuse of disabled students by teachers in a special school has reignited public outrage over lenient court rulings. It has prompted police to reopen the case, lawmakers to devise measures for the vulnerable, with some demanding the shutdown of the school, and...
Environment group chief convicted of bribery charge

Sept 29, 2011

The president of Korea Green Foundation was slapped with a fine and prison sentence for taking bribes in an appeal but was not put under court custody. In the ruling by the Seoul High Court, Choi Yul was found guilty for receiving 130 million won ($110,560) in bribes for helping a real estate firm with a redevelopment project. Choi received a harsher sentence than the first ruling and received ...
Hallyu and shopping has tourists spending in Seoul

Sept 29, 2011

A survey showed that the average tourist spends roughly $2,000 in Seoul over five days, with hallyu quickly becoming the No. 1 reason to visit, capital officials said Thursday. According Seoul Metropolitan Government, 90 percent of the tourists surveyed chose to visit Seoul during their stay, with 83.9 percent doing so for leisure. More tourists are choosing Korea because of hallyu, hoping to v...
Gangnam to hold fashion festival

Sept 29, 2011

Pop singer Rain to top 9-day event with finale performance Gangnam will turn into a fashion mecca for nine days from Oct. 1. The fifth fashion festival will take place in three of the affluent district’s chicest areas ― Samseong-dong COEX Mall, Apgujeong-dong and Cheongdam-dong. Started in 2007 as a little-known fashion show, the festival has developed into a showcase of Korean art and hallyu c...
Wife obsessed with education slapped with fine in divorce

Sept 28, 2011

Son left psychological disorder after abuse A wife obsessed with education was slapped with a fine during a divorce suit after physically abusing her son because of his poor grades, court officials said on Wednesday. According to the Seoul Family Court, the wife was ordered to pay 10 million won ($8,750) after the husband was granted divorce. The names of the family members were withheld from t...
Asbestos scare spreads to schools

Sept 28, 2011

Ministry inspects school playgrounds for cancer-causing agent Fear of asbestos is spreading fast among the public after an environmental group claimed to have found high levels of the cancer-causing agent in many school playgrounds and baseball fields where professional games are held. The Education Ministry said on Tuesday it is inspecting playgrounds of all the schools where asbestos has alle...
Meet the cat with two faces

Sept 28, 2011

We all know cats have nine lives. But this very special and much loved cat was born with two faces. Frankenlouie, who lives with his owner in Milbury, Massachusetts, has a genetic birth deformity which caused him to grow the extra facial features. The extraordinary feline's two faces were caused by a condition called Janus, which normally causes cats to live for only a few days. (Daily Mail ) ...
Four dead in another apparent suicide pact

Sept 28, 2011

Three men and one woman were found dead in a studio apartment in Incheon on Tuesday in what police believe was a group suicide. The men and 19-year-old woman were found in a one-room on the third floor of an apartment in Yeonsu-gu by a resident of the complex. “It was odd that the air-conditioner was on for several days straight so we called a locksmith and went in to discover the bodies lying ...
President’s relative investigated for fraud

Sept 28, 2011

A relative of President Lee Myung-bak is being investigated on charges of fraud and investment in illegal gaming operations with vast sums of money, police officials said Wednesday. The latest scandal comes amid numerous investigations into Lee’s aides, prompting him to call for unsparing investigations of his associates in the eleventh-hour. According to Wonju Police Station in Gangwon Provinc...