Tag: South Korea

Kim Jong-un should have invited Dennis Rodman to attend this:

South and North Korean men’s and women’s basket ball teams will play goodwill matches today and Thursday in Pyongyang, possibly with the North’s leader Kim Jong-un attending.

The “Unification Basketball Competition” is the fourth of its kind and is being held for the first time in 15 years since the last games were played in 2003. The Koreas agreed to schedule the event at a meeting on sports cooperation last month.

A 101 member delegation departed for Pyongyang Tuesday, led by Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon. The delegation includes 50 basketball players, government officials, reporters and a broadcasting team.

“The PyeongChang Winter Olympics became the foundation of peace on the Korean Peninsula, so I hope that the Pyongyang unification basketball competition serves as an occasion to further develop peace on the peninsula,” Cho told reporters before departure.

The delegation headed to Pyongyang Sunan International Airport from Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, via an air force transport aircraft, given international sanctions on North Korea.

This is the first time for the unification minister to visit Pyongyang in 11 years. His last visit was in 2007 as a presidential secretary.  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but I wonder what the cost of the “hotel bills” are that South Korea will have to pay to North Korea to play these games?

Activists stage a protest in central Seoul on June 30, 2018, demanding the government ban the consumption of dog meat in South Korea. (Yonhap)

Everyone be safe out there as Typhoon Prapiroon moves towards Korea:

A nationwide downpour hit Korea on Sunday and Monday as Typhoon Prapiroon approached.

One person was killed and two were injured after up to 300 millimeters of rain fell across the country. A woman, 53, originally from Thailand, died in hospital after being struck by lightning at Yeonggwang, South Jeolla Province.

Two others ― a woman, 73, at Boseong and a man, 73, at Gwangju ― were injured.

The downpour swamped more 3,700 hectares of farmland and caused some railroads to suspend operations. Many cars have been submerged, slowing traffic. Houses and rice paddies were flooded, railway services temporarily stopped and flights were delayed.  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

I find it interesting that at a smaller level South Korea is going through the same refugee issue that the United States is:

Two rallies with clashing views on refugees were held over the weekend, in the latest development in the ongoing controversy concerning Yemeni asylum seekers, an increasing number of whom came to Jeju Island over the past few months to escape the ongoing civil war that began in 2015.

Hundreds of protesters varying in age from teenagers to over 50 gathered at Gwanghwamun in central Seoul, demanding the government abolish a visa waiver program under which foreigners can stay for up to 30 days being given a visa on entry. Nationals from all but 11 countries suspected of being sponsors of terrorism are eligible for the program implemented in 2002 to promote the economy and attract foreign spending on the resort island.

Protesters chanted slogans including “Korean people’s safety first,” “We want safety,” “Abolish no-visa policy” and “Who is this country for?”

The seemingly harsh sentiment was met by a more compassionate group nearby, where about same number of rally participants demanded Korea be more embracing towards the displaced. “Protests organized by anti-asylum seekers claim they want safety all the while fanning hatred and bigotry,” the group said. “If they really want safety, they should remain open to foreigners, rather than forcing them to take 3D jobs ― labor-intensive work characterized as dirty, difficult and dangerous ― helping them achieve goals and encouraging them to contribute to Korean society.”  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but what makes this issue different than from the US is that there is not a political party in South Korea that gains potential voters by allowing in people claiming to be refugees.  The political implications is why this issue is burning so hot right now in the US before the mid-term elections.

It looks like this is turning into yet another event where the North Koreans milk money out of the South Koreans:

North Korean facilities to host the planned August reunions of separated families during the 1950-1953 Korean War are in need of major repairs, a South Korean inspection team said upon returning home on Friday after a three-day visit there.

The 20-strong inspection team involving South Korean government officials and civilian workers crossed the eastern border on Wednesday afternoon to visit Mount Kumgang on the North’s east coast, the venue for the reunions slated for Aug. 20-26.

“South and North technicians did the inspection together, which went smoothly with active support from North Korean officials,” said team leader Kim Byung-dae, a senior official in charge of humanitarian cooperation at the Unification Ministry.

“It’s been quite a while since the last reunion happened in October 2015 there. So there are many places that need fixing,” Kim said, adding the government will do its best to make sure the reunion runs smoothly and to minimize any inconvenience for senior family members.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but I wonder what the bill for these “major repairs” is going to be?

The Office of Korean Affairs welcomes Ambassador Harry Harris as the newly sworn in Ambassador to the Republic of #Korea! pic.twitter.com/Nvdib1gvmA

— EAP Bureau (@USAsiaPacific) June 29, 2018

As Congress passes the North Korea Human Rights Reauthorization Act, @HouseForeign Chmn Ed Royce writes, "Seoul’s recent efforts to silence North Korean human rights advocates are counterproductive and deeply disturbing.” https://t.co/TrMBfyd1ES via @houseforeign

— Joshua Stanton (@freekorea_us) June 28, 2018

It will be interesting to see if alternative service fixes this currently problem of jailing people for not doing their mandatory service for largely religious reasons:

The Constitutional Court on Thursday ordered the revision of the conscription law to allow for alternative service for conscientious objectors by the end of next year, while upholding the criminalization of those who refuse to serve in the military, largely for religious reasons.

The nine-member panel ruled a clause in the Military Service Act, which stipulates that such objectors face up to three years in prison, to be constitutional. The court did so in all its three previous rulings, most recently in 2011.

The decision was made by four votes to four, with one refusing to judge for procedural reasons. It required at least six votes to overturn the past rulings.

“The punishment clause is meant to strike a balance between securing military service resources and the burden of military service. Its legislative purpose is just, and enforcing the military service obligation with criminal punishment is a suitable means to achieve the legislative purpose,” the court said.

The court, however, ruled that another clause in the same law that does not recognize alternative service for conscription is unconformable to the highest law. It ordered the National Assembly to amend the law by the end of 2019. Otherwise, the clause will be scrapped on Jan. 1, 2020.

The decision was made by six to three.

The punishment of objectors without the provision of alternative options is an infringement of freedom of conscience and the principle banning excessive punishment, the court said.  [Yonhap]

This is an example of why the South Koreans need the US to agree to drop sanctions before they can begin any projects with North Korea:

After the two Koreas agreed on Tuesday to connect their railroads and work together on modernizing the North’s infrastructure, one question looms: Is the project even possible?

If South Korea were to provide North Korea with vehicles, machinery and other equipment for track construction, it would violate United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397, which prohibits the export of industrial equipment to the North. The sanctions, passed unanimously on Dec. 22, 2017, came after the North tested an intercontinental ballistic missile on Nov. 29 of last year.

During the meeting between officials from the two Koreas on Tuesday, both sides agreed to boost cooperation in modernizing North Korea’s rails, stating the end goal was “balanced development of the national economy and co-prosperity.”

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has espoused a grand vision of creating a single market with the two Koreas to lay the foundation for unification, job creation and economic growth in both countries.  [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read much more at the link, but I expect that the Kim regime will continue to play nice in order to convince President Trump to drop sanctions for little to nothing in return.  I would not be surprised if the Kim regime decides to continue to play nice until after the mid-term elections in the US.  This will give them an assessment of the landscape in the US moving forward in 2019.

"People here think they should have gone as refugees to other Muslim countries."

South Koreans drink like fish and relish pork, and their women strut through the streets in miniskirts and hot pants.

How dare this hater presume Muslims won't fit right in?https://t.co/xZpMg78QgQ

— King Baeksu (@KingBaeksu) June 28, 2018