I wonder if the crackdown on illegal taxi practices will include the high fares that some of these taxi drivers try and charge US military servicemembers instead of running the meter?:
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday it would clamp down on illegal business practices of taxi drivers for the rest of the month.
Working with Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, the city government deployed 120 officials, 277 police officers and four patrol cars equipped with surveillance cameras to prevent taxi drivers from turning down certain passengers in violation of regulations.
Taxis are required to accept customers regardless of their destination, but the practice of taxi drivers handpicking passengers or speeding away from them for various reasons is rampant in Seoul and elsewhere.
Seoul City officials will patrol the 24 busiest districts in Seoul including Jongno-gu, Guro-gu and Gangnam-gu until Dec. 31.
Officials will impose a fine of 200,000 won ($180) on taxi drivers who refuse passengers. The city also plans to clamp down weekly on taxis from other areas such as Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, which are barred from transporting customers within Seoul. [Korea Herald]
I guess a billionaire has to find ways to spend his money:
The Sultan of Brunei rented out half of a luxury hotel in Busan for the two days of the ASEAN-Korea Commemorative Summit, according to an industry source.
The source said Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, accompanied by 12 princes and princesses, booked 119 rooms. The sultan stayed in a presidential suite measuring 654 square meters, with a spectacular ocean view, which costs 10 million won per day. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but the Sultan is worth $40 billion from his kingdom’s oil and gas riches.
I wonder if the juicy bar owners are the ones pushing the mayor to make these complaints because they are the ones currently losing big money due to USFK’s decision to ban servicemembers from giving money to juicy girls:
The mayor of a city near the North Korean border is seeking $2.7 billion from the South Korean government, claiming the delayed relocation of American troops from Dongducheon is hurting the local economy and redevelopment plans.
City officials say Mayor Oh Se-chang told Defense Minister Han Min-koo that if Dongducheon — home to camps Casey and Hovey — doesn’t see some show of support from the government by the end of the year, the city will consider holding a large demonstration and a nonbinding referendum on whether U.S. troops should remain there.
Approximately 5,900 soldiers are assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division in Area I, which extends from just north and east of Seoul up to the Demilitarized Zone.
“If U.S. troops want to stay in Dongducheon, they should be of help to the local economy or all of them should go away,” a city official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity. He said troops should be spending more money at off-post Korean-owned businesses instead of shopping solely at post exchanges or other on-base facilities. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but basically the mayor just wants to get paid off by the national government to keep quiet. Also of interest in the article is that a spokesman said that Camp Casey is now scheduled to be handed back over to the local government in the 2020 timeframe. I will believe that when I see it.
This was bound to happen considering how many complaints servicemembers have had about this contractor:
The U.S. Department of Defense Inspector General has opened an investigation of the nearly $1 billion contract to ship servicemembers’ cars overseas.
Investigators will target the Globally Privately Owned Vehicle Contract, or GPC III, under whose auspices International Auto Logistics was chosen by the U.S. Transportation Command, which is based at Illinois’ Scott Air Force Base.
The investigation began when Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Thad Cochran, R-Miss., contacted the Defense Contract Management Agency in October to request an audit of the shipping program.
The senators’ request for the audit came after a swelling tide of complaints over the summer from International Auto Logistics customers in Illinois and the rest of the nation. The customers were upset about vehicles shipped home after military tours overseas that were either missing, arriving months later than promised or mysteriously damaged. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but what is most concerning about this contract are the Unification Church and North Korean connections to IAL:
The Rev. Hyung-jin Moon, left, son of the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon, and Park Sang-kwon, the president of Pyeonghwa Motors, take questions from the press after returning from North Korea near the truce village of Panmunjom, in the demilitarized zone that separates the two Koreas, in 2012. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Formed in August 2012 with the sole purpose of pursuing this contract, IAL submitted a bid two months later. IAL’s parent company is International Auto Processing, also in Brunswick, whose chairman is Park Sang-Kwon. Anything but a native Georgian, Park is a global financial figure who was chairman of Pyeonghwa Motors, a joint venture between North and South Korea — a rarity indeed. Billed as “The Bridge between South and North Korea,” the partnership was formed in 1999 between Pyonghwa Motors of South Korea, owned by the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church, and Ryonbong General Corp. of North Korea.
Though the company’s headquarters was in Seoul, Park enjoyed a close relationship with the North Korean regime. At a time when travel between the Koreas is difficult, Park has visited North Korea 200 times. In late 2012, he was even awarded an honorary citizenship in North Korea, only the second person ever to receive such a commendation. “This means that North Korea has acknowledged the trust they had put in me,” Park told Agence France Presse at the time. “They were also encouraging me to start new projects in the North, more freely and aggressively.”
Throughout its history, Pyeonghwa Motors struggled. In 2012, the joint venture ended when Park and the Unification Church relinquished their interest in the failing enterprise to the North Koreans. One report suggested the company was given to the North Korean regime for the right to conduct future business in the country. At the same time, Park submitted an application to the Ministry of Unification in South Korea to undertake new businesses in the North. It was now — as Park was dealing with this business failure — that his International Auto Processing formed IAL, which ended up with a $300-million defense contract. [The Hill]
So it is pretty clear that Park set up IAL just to win the Pentagon contract after his failed business venture in North Korea. So who did Park call on to help him win the contract? I am sure most ROK Heads could have guessed this:
According to court papers, IAL lists Boyle Transportation, of Billerica, Mass., as a major subcontractor. Boyle’s board of advisers includes three retired generals: Gen. William Tuttle Jr., the former commander of theU.S. ArmyMateriel Command, which overseas SDDC; Maj. Gen. Charlie Fletcher, Transcom’s former director of operations and plans, and Maj. Gen. Dan Mongeon, former director of operations for the Defense Logistics Agency.
SDDC is an Army command that’s part of the U.S. Transportation Command, also based at Scott. SDDC supervises the movement of military property. It directly oversees the IAL contract. [Military.com]
Here is the latest US military unit that will be rotating into South Korea:
The U.S. Army has approved the rotational deployment of the 2nd Squadron of the 6th Cavalry Regiment from Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, to Korea’s Camp Humphreys in January 2015, the 8th Army said Friday.
“This regiment will deploy and conduct operations in support of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and 8th Army, enhancing the capabilities of USFK in support of the ROK-U.S. Alliance,” the statement said.
The 2-6th Cavalry Regiment is replacing the 6th Squadron of the 17th Cavalry Regiment, which is returning to Fort Wainwright, Alaska. [Korea Times]
There is just so much wrong with this whole incident:
Police said on Sunday a teenager has been arrested on charges of detonating a homemade acid bomb at a recent public talk, whose two co-hosts face questioning for apparently making pro-North Korean comments.
Authorities here in Iksan, North Jeolla Province, about 250 kilometers south of Seoul, said they’ve arrested an 18-year-old high school senior named Oh for possession and detonation of an illegal explosive device and property damage, among other counts.
Iksan police said Oh attended a talk hosted last Wednesday by Shin Eun-mi, a Korean-American who’s written books on North Korea, and Hwang Sun, the former deputy spokeswoman of the now-defunct Democratic Labor Party. They alleged that the teenager snuck in his sulfuric acid bomb with the intent to disrupt the talk, which was held at Shindong Cathedral in Iksan, and also destroyed windows and flooring of the venue.
According to police, Oh has been a member of a popular, right-leaning online community called “Ilbe” since last summer, and purchased his chemicals for the homemade bomb online in July.
Separately, Shin and Hwang are under investigation for allegedly making pro-North Korean remarks during their talks. Local conservative civic groups filed a complaint against the two with the police. Seoul’s National Security Law prohibits any “anti-state” activities attempting to praise, encourage or propagandize North Korean political ideals. [Yonhap]
First of all this teenager should be prosecuted for whatever crimes can be linked to this homemade explosive device. Shin may be a North Korean apologist, but that doesn’t mean she deserves to have an explosive device detonated by her. Secondly why is an American in South Korea taking part in political activity, especially sensitive political activity that involves North Korea? The Korean government does not allow foreign visa holders to conduct political activity in South Korea:
Scope of activities and employment for foreigners staying in Korea
Foreigners are granted rights to any activities granted by their visa, and may stay as long as their given period of stay. They are not, however, allowed to participate in any political activities except when specifically allowed by law.
So did Shin have approval from the Korean government to conduct political activity with her visa? I doubt it. Instead of bringing up the controversial National Security Law, the Korean authorities should instead prosecute her for violating her visa status.
