TheNewsGuru

Tag: South Korea

  • Coronavirus: Buhari sympathizes with Italy, Iran, South Korea

    Coronavirus: Buhari sympathizes with Italy, Iran, South Korea

    Nigeria’s President President Muhammadu Buhari Sunday sent messages to Presidents Hassan Rouhani and Moon Jae-in of Iran and South Korea respectively, and the Prime Minister of Italy, Guiseppo Conte, expressing “deep sympathies” following increasing incidents of the deadly Coronavirus in their countries.

    In the messages, President Buhari said the Nigerian government would continue to diligently carry out its duty to the international community by ensuring that the spread of the disease is curtailed.

    The President also encouraged Nigerians to continue to show support to citizens of all the countries who are resident in Nigeria.

    According to him, “There is no cause for panic. Italy, South Korea and Iran remain Nigeria’s allies in good and bad times.”

    Buhari, in a statement issued by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, while commending the three countries on their efforts to contain the virus, expressed confidence that, “with the support of the World Health Organisation and other global agencies all working together to contain the virus, it will only be a matter of time before the world sees an end to this disease.”

    The Nigerian leader noted that, “So far, there have been no known cases of the disease on Nigerian soil, but for the penetration of a lone foreign national found to be a carrier of the virus.”

    He also commended the diligent efforts of federal, state health officials as well as ports and border personnel in keeping Nigeria safe from the epidemic.

    In fulfillment of the President’s promise to give the health authorities all that they need to keep Nigeria clear of the virus, the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning confirmed making the second approved payment in the sum N620 million last Friday, bringing the total payments made so far to N984 million.

  • [BREAKING] Women’s World Cup: Super Falcons defeat South Korea 2-0

    [BREAKING] Women’s World Cup: Super Falcons defeat South Korea 2-0

    The Super Falcons on Wednesday boosted Nigeria’s chances of qualifying for the next round in the ongoing FIFA Women World Cup in France with a 2-0 victory over South Korea.

    The first goal arrived in the first half when South Korean defender Kim Doyeon kicked the ball into her own neat following strong pressing by Falcons striker Desire Oparanozie.

    Barcelona’s striker Asishat Oshoala scored a beautifully taken solo goal in the second half after a counter attack by the team.

    A draw against hosts France in the next game will see Nigeria proceed to the next round.

    Details to follow…..

  • South Korea to launch its biggest investigation of sex abuse in sports

    South Korea to launch its biggest investigation of sex abuse in sports

    South Korea will hold its largest ever investigation into sexual abuse in sports, its human rights watchdog said on Tuesday.

    The move has come after an Olympic speed skating star accused her former coach of abuse to trigger a wave of similar accounts from athletes.

    The inquiry will aim to address “systematic, sustained” abuse in sports.

    This had been hushed up for generations by victims afraid of being banished from their sport, said Choi Young-ae, chairwoman of the National Human Rights Commission.

    “We will conduct a fact-finding inquiry that will be the largest in scale ever,” Choi told a news conference.

    A commission official said up to about 30,000 people — athletes from all sports, coaches, officials and others — are likely to be interviewed over the course of the year-long investigation.

    The #MeToo movement has taken off belatedly in male-dominated South Korea where discussion of sexual misconduct has long been taboo.

    But the issue exploded in the world of sports after 21-year-old Shim Suk-hee accused her former coach, Cho Jae-beom, of sexual assault.

    Cho, a former national short track speed skating coach, had already been convicted of assaulting the two-time Olympic champion, especially for punching and kicking her during training.

    He was jailed for 10 months in September.

    In December, Shim made accusations of sexual abuse against him.

    Cho denied the accusation of sexual abuse, the media cited his lawyer as saying.

    Since then, more athletes from various sports, including judo and archery, have come forward with accounts of assault and sexual abuse, the media has also reported.

    Choi said for too long victims had not spoken out because of a “results-centred culture focussed on medals”.

    An “independent, constant, national surveillance system” would be established to gather data, conducts inquiries, and educate officials on human rights, she said.

    Investigators would look into cases without the requirement of an initial accusation, and would take measures including protection for victims.

    They would then refer cases quickly to police and prosecutors, a spokeswoman for the commission said.

    President Moon Jae-in said last week the spate of accounts of abuse was a shameful tarnish on South Korea’s “bright image as a sports powerhouse”`.

    Moon called for a thorough investigation and strict punishments.

    The commission, noting that it had carried out an investigation into abuse of student athletes in 2008, said it would work to end a “nothing changes” culture.

    Reuters

  • Release of U.S. prisoners ‘positive’ for upcoming Trump-Kim summit – S.Korea

    South Korea’s presidential Blue House welcomed the release of American prisoners from North Korea on Wednesday, saying the move would have a “positive effect” for upcoming talks between North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump.

    Blue House spokesperson Yoon Young-chan also called on Pyongyang to release six South Korean detainees.

    “In order to reinforce reconciliation between South Korea and North Korea and to spread peace on the Korean peninsula, we wish for a swift repatriation of South Korean detainees,” Yoon said in a statement.

    The three U.S. detainees being held are Korean-American missionary Kim Dong-chul; Kim Sang-duk, also known as Tony Kim, who spent a month teaching at the foreign-funded Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) before he was arrested in 2017; and Kim Hak-song, who also taught at PUST.

    Until now, the only American released by North Korea during Trump’s presidency has been Otto Warmbier, a 22—year-old university student who returned to the U.S. in a coma last summer after 17 months of captivity and died days later.

    Warmbier’s death escalated U.S.-North Korea tension, already running high at the time over Pyongyang’s stepped-up missile tests.

    North Korea reminded the United States on Wednesday there was still tension between them, warning it against “making words and acts that may destroy the hard-won atmosphere of dialogue”, the North’s state media said.

    “The U.S. is persistently clinging to the hostile policy toward the DPRK, misleading the public opinion.

    “Such behaviour may result in endangering the security of its own country,” it added, referring to the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

    Pompeo’s visit comes a day after Kim Jong Un made his second trip to China in less than two months, meeting President Xi Jinping and discussing the international talks over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes.

    During the visit, announced only after it was over, Kim told Xi he hoped relevant parties would take “phased” and “synchronized” measures to realise denuclearisation and lasting peace on the peninsula, according to Chinese state media.

    Separately, Trump and Xi discussed developments on the Korean peninsula and Kim’s visit to China during a phone call on Tuesday morning, the White House said.

    Reuters

  • BREAKING: Kim Jong Un becomes first North Korean leader to enter South Korea

    (more…)

  • South Korean president endorses North Korea’s demand for signing peace treaty

    South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Thursday expressed his support for the North’s long-time demand to sign a full-fledged peace treaty instead of the Korean Armistice Agreement concluded in 1953 after the end of the Korean war.

    “We should put an end to the armistice that has lasted for 65 years and move toward signing a peace treaty trough the declaration of the end of war,’’ Moon told newsmen.

    The president noted that the upcoming inter-Korean summit was a “dramatic change.”

    “Through the inter-Korean summit, we must create a milestone in the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, establish permanent peace and develop sustainable inter-Korean relations.

    “It should also prompt the success of the North Korea-U.S. summit,’’ Moon said.

    On March 5 and March 6, South Korea’s high-ranking delegation visited North Korea.

    Upon the delegation’s return, the South Korean presidential office announced that Seoul and Pyongyang had reached a historic agreement on holding the third ever summit of the countries’ leaders.

    The meeting between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is scheduled for April 27, and it will be followed by U.S. Donald Trump’s meeting with Kim, expected to take place at the end of May.

    South and North Korea remain legally at war, as no peace treaty was signed after the Korean War of 1950 to 1953.

    The 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement provided for a suspension of open hostilities and a fixed demarcation line with a buffer zone.

    North Korea has repeatedly announced that it would no longer abide by the armistice and called for replacing it with a peace treaty, stressing that the 1953 agreement was meant to be a transitional measure.

    However, tensions on the peninsula, as well as the North’s hesitation to take steps toward denuclearisation have curbed the talks on the issue.

  • Former South Korean President Park Geun-Hye, sentenced to 24 years in prison

    A South Korean court has found former President Park Geun-hye guilty on multiple counts of abuse of power, bribery and coercion and sentenced her to 24 years in prison.

    ImageFile: Corruption: Ousted Korea’s President to face prosecutors
    Former South Korean President, Park Geun-hye.

    Park’s conviction brings to close a corruption scandal which gripped South Korea, upending the country’s politics and implicating some of the country’s most powerful figures.
    “The President abused the power which was given to her by the citizens,” the judge said, adding a tough sentence was needed to send a firm message to the country’s future leaders. Prosecutors had asked for Park to receive a 30 year sentence.

    Supporters of South Korea’s former president Park Geun-hye gather during a rally demanding her release outside the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul on April 6, 2018.

    Park, 66, was found guilty of 16 of the 18 charges she faced, related to a massive influence-peddling case that removed her from office last year. As well as the prison sentence she was also fined $17 million.

    The former president was not in the Seoul Central District Court to hear the verdict. Park and her lawyers refused to participate after the court decided to live broadcast the judgment, the first time this has happened in South Korea, after a law was passed last year to enable it.
    Park lawyer’s are expected to appeal her sentence.

    Outside the court, hundreds of supporters of Park had gathered to watch the verdict on a large screen, waving Korean and US flags and calling for the former president’s release. Older, conservative South Koreans, who remembered the dictatorship of Park’s father fondly as a period of strength for the country, were her electoral base and a common sight throughout the impeachment process.

    South Korea’s first female president, and the daughter of former dictator Park Chung-hee, Park Geun-hye was arrested in March 2017 shortly after she was stripped of her office by the country’s Constitutional Court, which upheld a parliamentary vote to impeach her.

    That vote came after millions of South Koreans took to the streets over a period of several months to demand Park’s ouster, after revelations of the alleged massive influence wielded by her adviser and confidant, Choi Soon-sil.

    Choi, the daughter of a cult leader once accused of having “complete control over Park’s body and soul during her formative years,” held no political office but is accused of using her influence over the President to funnel money to organizations she controlled and get her daughter a place at an elite university.

    Source: CNN

  • Why South Korea court suspends jail term for Samsung Group heir, Jay Y. Lee

    Why South Korea court suspends jail term for Samsung Group heir, Jay Y. Lee

    South Korean appeals court on Monday suspended a jail sentence handed down to Samsung Group heir, Jay Y. Lee, setting him free after a year’s detention, amid a corruption scandal that brought down the former president.

    Seoul High Court jailed Lee for two and a half years, reducing the original term by half.

    The court suspended the sentence for charges, including bribery and embezzlement for four years, meaning he does not have to serve time as long as he behaves.

    Lee, 49, heir to one of the world’s biggest corporate empires, had been detained since last February.

    Emerging from Seoul Detention Centre, Lee said his time in jail had been useful.

    “Again, I feel sorry to everyone for not showing my best side. And it has been a really precious time for a year reflecting on myself,” Lee told reporters.

    He added that he needed to visit his ailing father, Samsung Group patriarch Lee Kun-hee, who suffered a heart attack in 2014.

    “It’s a positive thing that the owner is returning,” said Greg Roh, a stock analyst at HMC Investment & Securities.

    “…it could be good that the owner returns to set standards in such a rapidly changing time.”

    Shares in the flagship Samsung Electronics, where Lee is Vice-Chairman reversed earlier losses and closed up 0.5 per cent, compared to a 1.3 per cent fall in the wider market.

    President Park Geun-hye was dismissed in March after being impeached in a case that brought scrutiny to the cozy ties between South Korea’s Chaebols-big-family-owned corporate groups – and its political leaders.

    Park, who denies wrongdoing, is standing trial accused of bribery, abuse of power and coercion.

    A lower court in August convicted Lee of bribing Park, by supporting the equestrian career of the daughter of a friend of Park in return for help in strengthening his control of Samsung Electronics.

    It is considered to be the crown jewel of the country’s largest conglomerate and one of the world’s biggest technology companies. He was also convicted of embezzlement and other charges.

    But the appeals court said Lee did not solicit any such help. It also said just 3.6 billion won (3.31 million dollars) was paid as a bribe, not 7.2 billion as the lower court had said.

    Presiding Senior Judge Cheong Hyung-sik also called the nature of Lee’s involvement in Samsung’s support for Park’s friend “passive compliance to political power.

    “Park threatened Samsung Electronics executives,” the judge said.

    “The defendant provided a bribe, knowing it was bribery to support (the friend’s daughter), but was unable to refuse.”

    Prosecutors did not have an immediate comment. Lee’s lawyer, Lee In-jae, said the defence would appeal to the Supreme Court to try to overturn the convictions.

    Lee, wearing a dark suit and white shirt and looking noticeably worn, did not show any emotion when the ruling was announced.

    Prosecutors had sought a 12-year jail term for Lee.

    Chung Sun-sup, CEO of research firm Chaebul.com, said he was disappointed with the ruling.

    “It’s repeating the same old history, being lenient to the Chaebol owners,” he said.

    “I think Lee has to show that he reassures to the public he can change the corporate culture.”

    With the end of his year-long detention, which according to local media he adjusted to with physical-workouts and reading books, Lee could continue with his existing roles, including as director of Samsung Electronics.

     

  • Nigeria to host investment forum in South Korea

    Nigeria to host investment forum in South Korea

    Plans for Nigeria to host an investment forum at the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) conference that will hold later in the year in South Korea are in the offing.

    This was made known by a spokesman of Nigeria’s telecoms regulatory commission in a statement today, saying broadband Nigeria will be the focus of discussions at the investment forum.

    “Nigeria will host an investment forum at ITU Telecom World 2017 and Broadband Nigeria will be at the focus of discussions.

    “The participation of Nigeria at the yearly International Telecommunications Union (ITU) conference will focus on deepening the growing broadband segment of the market in the country,” the spokesman said.

    The ITU Telecom World 2017 is a global platform for major industry players, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Countries and Organisations to network and share ideas about new developments and technologies that would lead to better connected societies.

    It is an event for International visibility of innovative Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Products/Services and solutions from around the World.

    In general terms, it involves high level debates on the core issues affecting ICT industry, sharing knowledge and working for sustainable development.

    The event is due to hold in Busan, South Korea, from September 25 – 28, 2017.

    According to the statement signed by Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Director of Public Affairs, Tony Ojobo, Nigeria’s high level delegation to the ITU conference will be led by the Minister of Communications, Barrister Abdulraheem Adebayo Shittu.

    Nigeria’s Chief Telecoms Regulator and Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, industry stakeholders and operators will be on the delegation.

    Although Nigeria has had a very robust telecommunications sector with active connected subscribers in the region of 150 million and about 110 percent teledensity, the NCC believes that more efforts should be deployed to deepen broadband penetration in the country.

    By the National Broadband Plan (NBP), the country is expected to attain 30% broadband penetration by 2018, which currently stands at 21%.

    Given that 2018 is around the corner, with the conference, the Ministry of Communications, and its driving force, the NCC, hope to bring back investment to Nigeria that will steer the achievement of the 30% broadband penetration in the country.

     

  • South Korea leader to probe US over THAAD missile launchers

    South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Tuesday ordered a probe into the introduction of four Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) missile launchers in addition to the two deployed by the U.S. military before its election.

    Presidential spokesman Yoon Young-chan told a media briefing that Moon was “shocked” to hear that the four additional THAAD launchers deployed to counter the North Korean missile threat were brought in without being reported to the new government or to the public.

    The deployment of the THAAD system by the U.S. military agreed by the government of Moon’s predecessor was a controversial issue in the May 10 presidential election and has infuriated China, North Korea’s lone major ally.

    TheNewsGuru reports that on May 2, China called for an immediate stop to the deployment of the THAAD anti-missile system to South Korea and that it is ready to protect its interests.

    Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang voiced the government’s position against the move during a briefing.

    “We oppose the deployment of the US missile system to South Korea and call on all parties to immediately stop this process.

    “We are ready to take necessary measures to protect our interests,” he said, adding that “China’s position on the THAAD issue has not changed.”

    The spokesperson didn’t specify what protective measures China had in mind. However, responding to the THAAD installation, China announced that it will stage live-fire exercises and test new weapons to protect its security.

    Beijing has previously voiced concerns over the THAAD system and joint US-South Korean drills near the Korean Peninsula, consistently urging all the parties involved to find a peaceful solution to the volatile situation in the region.

    Backed by Russia, it also proposed a halt to military drills in exchange for an end to Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear tests during a UN Security Council session held in New York.

    Moscow considers the stationing of the THAAD system to be an “additional destabilising factor for the region” amid alarmingly increasing tensions.

    It has called on Washington and Seoul to reconsider the decision.

    Recently installed in South Korea, the THAAD system is aimed at detecting and shooting down missiles.