Biggest protests in 20 years push Lee Myung-bak's presidency to the brink
New York Times Jun 11, 08 9:29 AM CDT
(Newser)
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South Korea's president is battling for his political life as swelling protests continue to rock the country, the New York Times reports. At least 100,000 people joined a massive anti-government rally in Seoul yesterday as Lee Myung-bak—himself a former participant in a pro-democracy student movement—pledged "a new beginning," just 4 months after taking office. He has asked his main political rival to become prime minister, reports Reuters.
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Cabinet offers resignation as 1m prepare to march
Bloomberg Jun 10, 08 6:08 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The entire South Korean government has offered to resign in the face of a popular protest triggered by the lifting of import restrictions on US beef. The Korean government withdrew a ban introduced to prevent mad cow disease, setting off demonstrations expected to bring a million people onto the streets today. The original agricultural dispute has expanded into a wider movement against Lee Myung-bak, the former construction executive elected president 4 months ago.
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Smaller rival AMD has long accused it of unfair practices
Wall Street Journal Jun 6, 08 2:47 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The FTC has opened a formal investigation of Intel over allegations of monopolistic business practices, the Wall Street Journal reports. The world's biggest semiconductor company, which denies any wrongdoing, received a subpoena this week. Intel also learned that it faces a $25.4 million antitrust fine from South Korea, even as it prepares to fight competitor AMD’s private antitrust lawsuit in Delaware’s District Court.
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Anti- and pro-China factions face off
Reuters Apr 27, 08 10:30 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The Olympic torch again met with a clash of protesters today as it arrived in South Korea, Reuters reports. Some South Koreans are angered by Beijing’s human rights record, but the majority are pro-Chinese, wearing their country’s flag and chanting, “No politics, only Olympics.” Despite 8,000 police officers, the rallies turned briefly violent when Chinese students kicked a South Korean protester and threw stones at anti-China demonstrators.
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Lee steps down amid tax evasion scandal
Wall Street Journal Apr 22, 08 7:00 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The chairman of Samsung, Korea's leading exporter, has resigned after being indicted on multiple counts of tax fraud and breach of duty. Lee Kun-hee, whose resignation speech was carried live on all of South Korea's TV networks, has controlled the Samsung consortium since 1987. Lee, his wife, his son, and nearly a dozen other execs have been implicated in the scandal.
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Prez disputes rumor that Washington
will compromise
Associated Press Apr 19, 08 6:25 PM CDT
(Newser)
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President Bush challenged rumors today that Washington will go easy on North Korea's nuclear program, the AP reports. Pyongyang must "provide a full declaration of its nuclear programs" and disable its reactor, Bush said at US talks with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. "Some people are precluding, you know, jumping ahead of the game," Bush said.
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Nation on alert as troops sent in to slaughter poultry
Reuters Apr 17, 08 8:35 AM CDT
(Newser)
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South Korea has sent in soldiers to kill and bury birds as bird flu spreads rapidly throughout the country, Reuters reports. More than 3 million farm birds have been culled so far, but fresh cases continue to be reported and the disease is heading for the capital. The entire country has been put on its second-highest alert level, although no human infections have yet been reported.
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Electronics giant vows reform as chairman faces trial
Bloomberg Apr 17, 08 6:43 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The chairman of electronic giant Samsung will stand trial for tax evasion and breach of duty after special prosecutors alleged corruption in South Korea's largest industrial corporation. Lee Kun-hee was indicted in Seoul today for evading $114 million in taxes and for incurring losses at Samsung while installing his son in leadership positions, Bloomberg reports. Nine other execs at Samsung were also charged with crimes.
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Nation paid $25M to shoot her to the space station
Space.com Apr 10, 08 6:38 PM CDT
(Newser)
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South Korea’s first astronaut arrived at the International Space Station today, and her country must be relieved—having paid $25 million to get her there, Space.com reports. The South Korean president called So-yeon Yi’s mission a “stepping stone” in that country’s fledgling space program; lacking ships of their own, they paid the Russians to take her on an 11-day spin.
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Abu Dhabi, Shanghai also among locations planning impressive amusements
Los Angeles Times Apr 3, 08 3:56 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The big US amusement companies—Six Flags, Universal, SeaWorld, Warner Bros., MGM—have all seen the future, and it's in Dubai. That's where the world's largest playland—a sprawling $64-billion collection of theme parks, golf courses, museums and hotels—is going up, but it's only the most dramatic of projects in the works all over the Middle and Far East, the Los Angeles Times reports.
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Pyongyang flexes military muscle as Seoul grows testy
Bloomberg Mar 28, 08 3:50 AM CDT
(Newser)
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North Korea test-fired a number of short-range missiles into the waters off its west coast, according to South Korean officials, in an apparent show of anger at Washington and the new government in Seoul, Reuters reports. "We are monitoring the situation," said a South Korean presidential spokesman. The development comes at a key moment in the effort to rid North Korea of nuclear weapons, writes Bloomberg.
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Relations sour as South demands an end to nuclear program
New York Times Mar 27, 08 1:48 PM CDT
(Newser)
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South Korean officials left North Korea this morning, after receiving their eviction notice from Pyongyang. Relations have soured between the Koreas since the South demanded the North cease its nuclear activities, but the South said it was “undaunted” by the expulsion of its men. “We will deal with this issue in a pragmatic way,” said a government spokesman, without elaborating.
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Seoul shifts gears to join in criticism of
human rights record
Associated Press Mar 26, 08 9:57 AM CDT
(Newser)
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South Korea is set to vote in favor of a United Nations resolution that criticizes the "systematic, widespread, and grave violations" of human rights in North Korea, the AP reports. The South's new president, Lee Myung-bak, is changing a decade of precedent: earlier administrations have either abstained or been absent when the UN considers issues relating to the North.
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