South Korea’s former President Park Geun-hye has been sentenced to 24 years in jail after she was found guilty of abuse of power and coercion. The verdict was broadcast live and represents the culmination of a scandal which rocked the country, fuelling rage against political and business elites. Park, who was also fined 18bn won … Read more
A top aide close to South Korea’s disgraced former president was sentenced to three years Thursday for blacklisting nearly 10,000 artists seen as critical of Park Geun-Hye’s government. The ruling is seen as a blow to ex-leader Park, who has been separately standing trial after being impeached in March and indicted on 18 charges including … Read more
South Korea’s Supreme Court on Tuesday lifted a ban on the filming of trials, opening the possibility of live TV coverage of the sentencing of disgraced president Park Geun-Hye and Samsung heir Lee Jae-Yong. At a rare meeting of justices presided over by Chief Justice Yang Sung-Tae, the court adopted new regulations on filming of … Read more
South Korea’s disgraced former president Park Geun-Hye on Wednesday again refused to testify in the corruption trial of the heir to the Samsung business empire, citing poor health. For the second time in a fortnight Park rejected a court order to give evidence in the case of Lee Jae-Yong, the vice-chairman of Samsung Electronics. Lee … Read more
Kim Jong-un has threatened South Korea’s president with a ‘miserable dog’s death’ over an alleged plot to assassinate the tyrant. Pyongyang vowed to ‘impose the death penalty’ on Park Geun-Hye claiming she ‘pushed forward’ a supposed plan by Seoul’s intelligence servicesto eliminate the North Korean dictator. South Korea’s spy agency has described the threats today … Read more
North Korea threatened on Wednesday to “impose the death penalty” on the South’s former president Park Geun-Hye over an alleged plot to assassinate its leader Kim Jong-Un. Park had “pushed forward” a supposed plan by Seoul’s intelligence services to eliminate the North’s leadership, Pyongyang’s security ministry and prosecutors said in a statement carried by its … Read more
President Donald Trump will host his new South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-In at the White House late this month for talks on containing North Korea’s nuclear program, described by Washington as a “clear and present danger.” “President Trump and President Moon will discuss ways to further strengthen the ironclad US-ROK (Republic of Korea) alliance” during … Read more
The equestrian daughter of South Korea’s ‘Rasputin’, whose lavish lifestyle in Europe was allegedly funded by millions of dollars in bribes, returned home today to face questioning. Chung Yoo-Ra is the daughter of Choi Soon-Sil, the close confidante of impeached ex-president Park Geun-Hye and the woman at the heart of the scandal which toppled Park. … Read more
The equestrian daughter of South Korea’s “Rasputin”, whose lavish lifestyle in Europe was allegedly funded by millions of dollars in bribes, returned home Wednesday to face questioning by prosecutors. Chung Yoo-Ra, 20, is the daughter of Choi Soon-Sil, the close confidante of impeached ex-president Park Geun-Hye. Choi — dubbed “Rasputin” for her strong influence over … Read more
The daughter of the woman at the centre of a corruption scandal that led to the ousting of South Korea’s president was arrested by prosecutors on a plane bound for Seoul, reports said Wednesday. Chung Yoo-Ra, 20, was arrested immediately after boarding a Korean Air flight from Amsterdam to Incheon early Wednesday morning after being … Read more
The daughter of the woman at the centre of a corruption scandal that led to the ousting of South Korea’s president will return home Wednesday from Denmark, officials said. Chung Yoo-Ra, 20, will be “immediately put into custody” when she arrives at Incheon airport after being extradited from Denmark, a justice ministry spokesman said. The … Read more
The corridors of power were home to South Korea’s Park Geun-Hye as a child, de facto first lady, and president. Now she resides at a detention centre, and is addressed as “the accused”. Park went on trial Tuesday over the corruption scandal that made her the country’s first head of state to be removed by … Read more
South Korea’s ousted president Park Geun-Hye went on trial Tuesday over the massive corruption scandal that led to her downfall. A grim-faced Park, wearing a blue trouser suit, a badge with her prisoner number, and no make-up, walked into the courtroom at Seoul Central District Court, avoiding meeting the glance of her longtime secret confidante … Read more
South Korea’s ousted president Park Geun-Hye was due in court Tuesday to face trial over the massive corruption scandal that led to her stunning downfall. The fallen head of state will be taken from the detention centre where she is being held to Seoul Central District Court, for the opening of the final act in … Read more
South Korean President Moon Jae-In on Sunday announced his picks for finance and foreign ministers while appointing a former diplomat as his top security advisor for his new government. Moon announced during a televised press briefing that he appointed former vice finance minister Kim Dong-Yeon as deputy prime minister and finance minister, while a UN … Read more
Ousted South Korean leader Park Geun-Hye is due to go on trial Tuesday over the spectacular corruption scandal that brought her down, the country’s third former president to appear in the dock. The fallen head of state will be taken from the detention centre where she is being held to Seoul Central District Court, setting … Read more
South Korea’s new President Moon Jae-In vowed Thursday to reopen a probe into a 1980 massacre of pro-democracy activists that remains a traumatic landmark in the fight to end decades of military rule. The president wiped away a tear at a ceremony to mark the anniversary of the crackdown in Gwangju, which left more than … Read more
A North Korean diplomat said Monday the election victory by left-leaning South Korean President Moon Jae-In reflected the people’s “longing” for change. The comments by ambassador to Beijing Ji Jae-Ryong were the first official response by the North to Moon’s triumph last week, except for a four-paragraph dispatch by the official Korean Central News Agency … Read more
North Korean state media reported the election of the South’s new left-leaning president Moon Jae-In after a two-day delay, but at unusual length. The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) put out a four-sentence report late Thursday on the victory of Moon, who calls for dialogue, along with sanctions and pressure, to curb the North’s … Read more
South Korea’s new president is a former pro-democracy activist and special forces soldier whose electoral victory caps a turbulent political career — he was jailed by his predecessor’s father. Moon Jae-In of the centre-left Democratic party won Tuesday’s presidential election in a landslide, taking 41.1 percent of the vote, far ahead of his nearest rival. … Read more