South Korea’s ruling People Power Party got to work on the second half of the 21st National Assembly on Thursday, dedicating much of its first publicly delivered speech to blaming the previous Moon Jae-in administration for ongoing socioeconomic troubles. Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader and acting chairman of the People Power Party, said in a speech Thursday morning that the party will spearhead recovering the country’s economic standing and resolve ongoing debacles by launching

Politics July 21, 2022

The National Assembly’s official proceedings kicked off Wednesday, with the familiar sound of the two main parties accusing each other of failing the people. South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party of Korea heavily criticized the Yoon Suk-yeol administration for its controversial personnel decisions while denouncing the government for abusing its power for political purposes. Rep. Park Hong-keun, floor leader of the Democratic Party, said Wednesday that the Yoon administrat

Politics July 20, 2022

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Tuesday demanded strong response from law enforcement and government agencies to collective action by unionists at shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering. Yoon said in a Cabinet meeting Tuesday that his administration would sternly respond “illegal and threatening” action by subcontracted workers at DSME, as its impact on the shipbuilding industry and greater economy is “tremendous.” Striking subcontractors have

Politics July 19, 2022

South Korea’s rival parties vowed to finalize negotiations on naming new committee chairs of the National Assembly by coming Thursday as they are keen to have the legislative branch fully return to work after being deadlocked for more than a month. Floor leaders of the ruling People Power Party and main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Monday morning agreed to extend the timeline for negotiations for four more days after the two failed to reach a deal by Sunday as promised before.

Politics July 18, 2022

The South Korean government and the ruling party are to push for tax reforms in a bid to stave off economic stagnation from hyperinflation. Leaders of the ruling People Power Party and Deputy Prime Minister Choo Kyung-ho said in a meeting held Monday that the two sides reached a consensus that tax relief on earnings and properties is a viable means of revitalizing the economy and stabilizing people’s livelihoods. The meeting was joined by other key figures within the ruling bloc and key

Politics July 18, 2022

South Korea’s rival parties remain in deadlock over naming new committee chairs of the National Assembly, having the country celebrate this year’s Constitution Day without fully assembled legislative leadership. National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo asked the parties to promptly work towards negotiating on forming the new legislative leadership then discuss possible legislative fixes to ensure the legislative branch is always at work to respond to the people’s troubles at any

Politics July 17, 2022

South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on Sunday started receiving applications for the party chairmanship post, ahead of next month’s national convention, in a bid to elect a new leader that can put an end to the party’s continuing election defeats. The party on Sunday opened a two-day registration period for the national convention to be held in Seoul on Aug. 28 in Seoul. The official campaign period for preliminary rounds will start on Aug. 6 where candidat

Politics July 17, 2022

South Korea’s rival parties on Thursday drew a partial compromise on forming new committee leadership for the legislative branch, raising hopes for the National Assembly to fully return to work in the coming days. Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, told reporters he has reached a deal with his counterpart Rep. Park Hong-keun of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea on participating in the proposed special committee for prosecution reform. Kweon

Politics July 14, 2022

South Korean political circles are again reviewing whether to pardon political and business figures en masse ahead of Liberation Day next month. While the presidential office has made no official comment on the matter, calls are rising to grant pardons for former President Lee Myung-bak and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Aug. 15. Granting them pardons would be beneficial to the economy, some have argued. Lee Myung-bak, who was president from 2008 to 2013, was sentenced to 17

Politics July 14, 2022

South Korea’s rival parties remain deadlocked over which party will hold chair positions for which legislative committees in the latter half of the 21st National Assembly, with the legislative branch effectively stalled since late May. The ruling People Power Party and main opposition Democratic Party of Korea drew a preliminary compromise on July 4 to elect Rep. Kim Jin-pyo as the new National Assembly speaker, but they only agreed to hold talks in naming chairs for the committees. Addi

Politics July 14, 2022

The lineup of contenders for the chair of South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party of Korea is almost finished, with the rivalry between rising stars and a major heavyweight at the forefront. So far, three members of the so-called “97 Generation” have joined the competition in a bid to bring a generational shift and help overcome an ongoing series of election defeats. Reps. Kang Byung-won, Park Yong-jin, Park Ju-min and Kang Hoon-sik have officially announced their bids.

Politics July 13, 2022

British American Tobacco has selected 10 teams of college students for an idea contest focused on sustainability. BAT Rothmans, the South Korean business arm of the international tobacco group, said Monday it has started a five month-long ESG campaign by holding an orientation for the 10 college teams, who will compete to win prizes based on their suggestions on eco-friendly business ideas. The selected teams are from Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Korea University, Konkuk Unive

Social Affairs July 12, 2022

People Power Party Chairman Lee Jun-seok broke his silence Monday evening to encourage people to register as new party members, in an apparent bid to grow his influence and build a foundation to stage a comeback to fight the suspension ruling handed to him by the party’s ethics panel last week. “It is a good Monday to register as new party members,” the chairman wrote in a Facebook post at around 7:30 p.m. Monday. The message came hours after the ruling People Power Party deci

Politics July 12, 2022

South Korea’s ruling People Power Party started the week without Chairman Lee Jun-seok, apologizing for President Yoon Suk-yeol’s low ratings and making clear it will respect the decision the internal ethics panel issued Thursday. Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the ruling party, oversaw his first senior party officials’ meeting as acting party chairman on Monday, apologizing for the party’s internal turmoil and dimming support for the Yoon administration. In a R

Politics July 11, 2022

The internal ethics panel of South Korea’s ruling People Power Party on Friday morning suspend party Chairman Lee Jun-seok‘s party membership for six months. It was a landmark decision – the first ever to suspend a party chair – likely to spark intense strife within the ruling bloc for at least the next several weeks. Disputes have already been raised on how bylaws should be interpreted for the ruling to be processed, and the penalization is stirring debates on conseque

Politics July 8, 2022