Category: Korea-General Topics

Thousands of people showed up for a memorial for a President that really did not accomplish anything while in office other than advance anti-US sentiment and is most well known for committing suicide because of corruption surrounding his family:

Kwon Yang-sook (C, front row), the widow of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun, former President Moon Jae-in (2nd from R, second row), Prime Minster Han Duck-soo (2nd from R, third row) and other government and political leaders pay tribute to Roh during a memorial service marking the 14th year since his death at Bongha Village in the southeastern city of Gimhae on May 23, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

Thousands of people, including a large number of lawmakers from rival parties and key political figures, attended a memorial service for late former President Roh Moo-hyun on Tuesday.

The ceremony, marking the 14th year since Roh’s death, was held in the southeastern rural village of Bongha, Roh’s hometown, to commemorate the liberal icon who took his own life in 2009 amid a sprawling corruption probe.

Also in attendance were former President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, both of whom worked with Roh during his presidency from 2003 to 2008.

“I remember the president who dedicated his life to opening the future for the Republic of Korea as I served as the prime minister under the Roh administration,” Han said in a memorial address.

A wreath of flowers sent by President Yoon Suk Yeol also was placed at Roh’s graveyard.

On May 23, 2009, Roh jumped to his death from a cliff behind his retirement home amid a corruption probe by the prosecution into his family and aides.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but even the People Party Power showed for this memorial which is surprising because the Korean left blamed the conservative President Lee Myung-bak for investigating Roh after he left office for corruption which led to his suicide. That is why Roh protege former President Moon Jae-in immediately launched investigations against Lee after he took office and put him in jail.

I don’t think the KCTU is going to win any public sympathy by keeping people up all night with their protests:

A Cabinet meeting led by President Yoon Suk Yeol is held at the presidential office in Seoul on May 23, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

President Yoon Suk Yeol slammed a major labor group Tuesday for its overnight street rally last week, saying its actions infringed on people’s freedoms, disturbed the public order and will not be tolerated by the people.

Yoon made the remark during a Cabinet meeting, referring to a rally staged by the Korean Construction Workers’ Union in protest of the government’s labor policies from Tuesday to Wednesday.

An estimated 25,000 union members took part in the rally in downtown Seoul, causing massive traffic congestion and leading to some 80 noise complaints being filed with the police.

The union falls under the umbrella Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU).

“Our Constitution guarantees the freedom of assembly and demonstration, and as president, I, too, have respected this,” Yoon said.

“However, guaranteeing the freedom of assembly and demonstration does not mean infringements on another person’s freedoms and basic rights, or acts disturbing the public order, are justified.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This is like something out of a Korean drama:

Bank of Korea (Herald DB)

Twin brothers are under investigation, with one twin allegedly taking an employment exam for a public financial institution on behalf of the other in 2022.

The Bank of Korea and Financial Supervisory Service on Wednesday reported the twin brothers to the police for cheating on their entrance exams, which took place simultaneously on Sept. 24, 2022.

While the younger of the twins took the exam for the BOK, the elder twin took the exam for the FSS, which was taking place in another part of Seoul at the same time pretending to be his younger twin.

The two institutes hold the first step of their recruitment exam on the same day every year to prevent possible confusion from overlapped applications. The BOK and the FSS announced the shared test schedule in advance last year.

With high income and job stability, they were regarded as some of the most preferred destinations for job seekers, for which the day of their simultaneous test was called an “A-match” among would-be employers of financial companies.

Both brothers passed the exams, enabling the younger one to move on in both organizations’ recruitment process until he was finally admitted to the BOK, the suspects stated in a BOK internal inspection report.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Good on this firefighter for saving the life of this woman who really wanted to die. Hopefully she gets the treatment she clearly needs:

Kim Chan-soo with the Gimhae Seobu Fire Station pulled the woman to safety from Samrangjin Bridge as she was trying to jump after taking sleeping pills.

Kim was driving over the bridge to go to work in another city and came across the woman sitting at the side of the bridge. She was taking pills and bleeding from her arms and legs.

Kim approached the woman and found she was taking sleeping pills.

Kim removed the pills from her mouth and tried to calm her, then calling the 119 emergency service.

But when Kim went to move his car, which had been blocking traffic on the bridge, the woman climbed over the handrail. She was caught by Kim narrowly before falling from the bridge and was pulled up.

The woman reportedly was found to have consumed 20 pills and three bottles of soju, and was receiving treatment at a hospital.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

This is good politics by President Yoon to try and take the Gwangju issue away from the Korean left:

President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a ceremony in the southwestern city of Gwangju on May 18, 2023, to mark the 43rd anniversary of a pro-democracy uprising. The Gwangju May 18 National Cemetery honors hundreds of people who were killed in the city during protests against the military junta of Chun Doo-hwan in May 1980. (Yonhap)

President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed Thursday to courageously stand against any challenges to freedom and democracy by upholding the spirit of a 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju.

Yoon made the remark during a ceremony marking the 43rd anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement, in Gwangju, some 267 kilometers southeast of Seoul, which was attended by a large number of lawmakers from the rival parties and families of the victims.

“If we do not forget and inherit the May spirit, we must boldly fight against all of the forces and challenges threatening freedom and democracy and have such practical courage,” Yoon said during the ceremony held at the May 18th National Cemetery.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but this time of the year is when I recommend people read the book by Linda Lewis, Laying Claim to the Memory of May that discusses her experiences being in Gwangju when the uprising happened.

This is apparently going to be a major topic during President Yoon’s upcoming summit with Prime Minister Trudeau:

The KSS-III Shin Chae-ho / Courtesy of Republic of Korea Navy

A planned summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is prompting speculation over a potential submarine deal between Korea and Canada as Ottawa plans to replace its aging submarines.

Yoon and Trudeau will sit down with each other Wednesday in Seoul to commemorate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries. Trudeau is the first Canadian prime minister to visit Korea in nine years. 

During their summit, the leaders are expected to discuss the two countries’ cooperation in national defense, including Canada’s submarine replacement program. 

Multiple Canadian news outlets have reported that the Royal Canadian Navy is urging the government to purchase up to 12 new conventionally-powered attack submarines to replace its aging Victoria-class diesel submarines.

Military analysts note that Korea’s KSS-III submarines, Japan’s Taigei-class submarines and Spain’s S-80 Plus class submarines are the perfect fit for the replacement program.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Another win for South Korea’s defense industry:

This photo, provided by Hanwha Systems Co. on May 12, 2023, shows a Jose Rizal-class frigate of the Philippine Navy. 

Hanwha Systems Co., the defense and ICT unit of South Korea’s Hanwha Group, said Friday it has won a US$34.5 million contract to supply its combat management system (CMS) to the Philippine Navy. 

Hanwha’s indigenous combat system will be installed in six 2,400-ton offshore patrol vessels, in a deal valued at $29.5 million, the Seoul-based company said in a release. 

The contract also includes the export of the standard digital communications system, known as the tactical data link, worth $5 million. 

A CMS works as the brain of a vessel and is designed to integrate all equipment, like sensors, weapons and communications systems, into one single system to help counter threats more efficiently during combat.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I feel horrible for the rental car employee that discovered this seen:

A photo of the Gyeonggi Gwangju Police Station provided by the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency

Four people have been found dead inside a car in an apparent group suicide in the southern outskirts of Seoul, police said Tuesday.

The four — three men in their 30s and a woman in her 20s — were discovered by a car-rental company employee inside the car parked under an overpass in Gwangju, 32 kilometers south of Seoul, at 5:20 p.m. on Monday.

Inside the car, traces suggesting suicides were found, police said, adding there were no signs of intrusion or foul play. Four wrecked mobile phones presumably belonging to the deceased were also found on the scene.

The car was reportedly leased last Friday but was not returned on time, prompting the employee to track its location.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.