Asian budget carriers set for price war Asian budget carriers set for price war

Peach Aviation, AirAsia Japan, Jetstar Japan and Spring Airlines tapping Korean market


Competition between Asia’s low-cost airlines is poised to heat up this year as carriers from Japan and China are lining up to launch new routes to Seoul, seeking to gain an upper hand in one of the world’s fastest growing aviation markets.

That will bring fresh challenges to Korea’s two full-service airlines, which are already being pummeled by volatile fuel prices, lower cargo demand and a weaker local currency. Though they own or hold stakes in budget carriers, Korean Air and Asiana Airlines will inevitably see their slices shrivel in the aviation market, experts say.

More and more budget-conscious tourists are willing to surrender some comfort in return for lower fares. The number of Koreans using low-cost airlines topped 10 million for the first time last year, up a staggering 32.5 percent from 2010, according to the Transport Ministry.

The combined market share of the country’s five low-cost airlines ― Jeju Air, Air Busan, Jin Air, Eastar Jet and T’way Air ― rose to 16.5 percent last year, up 3.3 percentage points. The five together control more than 41 percent of domestic traffic.

The no-frills carriers operate 25 international itineraries. More than 1.8 million Koreans flew overseas with them last year, doubling their collective market share to 4.3 percent.

Yet that portion could reach 20 percent in the coming years, forecasts analyst Joo Ik-chan at Eugene Investment & Securities.

“It doesn’t have much impact on big players at this point because they fully dominate lucrative North American and European routes. But in the long term, budget carriers will bite into their stakes,” he says.


Newcomers
Tapping the Korean market are AirAsia Japan, Jetstar Japan and Peach Aviation from Japan as well as Spring Airlines of China. They are expected to offer cheaper tickets and more choices of destination than their Korean peers, officials say.

Peach, which is set up last year by All Nippon Airways, is set to launch daily flights between Incheon and Osaka in May. Its price-focused strategy surprised the Japanese aviation industry by setting the rates for domestic flights at a third of what its parent ANA charges.

Japan’s Peach Aviation

China’s Spring Airlines

“Although everything else is charged for, we guarantee that fares won’t disappoint you,” Kim Woo-geol, chief of Peach’s Seoul office, recently told a local travel magazine. The company is planning to introduce a promotional round-trip fare of 10,000 won ($8.90) to mark the inauguration of its latest route.

AirAsia Japan, a joint venture between ANA and AirAsia, is gearing up to fly from Tokyo to Incheon and Busan starting October. AirAsia X, the long-haul affiliate of Asia’s largest low-fare airline, began services between Kuala Lumpur and Seoul in August 2010.

Jetstar Japan, which is owned by Japan Airlines, Mitsubishi Corp. and Qantas Airways, aims to begin operations out of Tokyo in the second half, while Shanghai-based Spring Airlines is reportedly preparing to enter the Korean market by the end of this year.

“The recent inroads by foreign carriers, coupled with the robust performances of local ones, prove that there is clearly a market for budget travel,” says Martin Song, an analyst with Woori Investment & Securities.

“Despite persistently high jet fuel costs, air travel demand is improving, underpinning their business. Competition is unavoidable in such an up-and-coming market ― the thing is how to sustain growth.”


Attack and defense
To cope with stiff competition and ensure a larger source of revenue, Korea’s five low-cost airlines are also reinforcing their international networks.

Jeju Air, the country’s largest budget carrier, has two new Japanese routes slated for March ― to Nagoya and Fukuoka ― and one to Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam for April. That will raise the number of its international destinations to 14 from 11, also including Hong Kong, Bangkok and Osaka.

The company currently runs eight units of Boeing 737 aircraft and will add four to its fleet this year. It targets 360 billion won in sales, up 40 percent from last year.

“We anticipate fierce competition in the aviation markets surrounding Korea and Japan this year with the launch of Peach here,” a Jeju Air official says. “We’ll make utmost efforts to firm up our position as a leading LCC in Northeast Asia.”

Air Busan, whose largest stakeholder is Asiana Airlines, is planning to initiate a flight next month to Qingdao in China. It and Jin Air, which is set up in 2008 by Korean Air, each have six international destinations including Shanghai and Tokyo. Eastar flies to Tokyo, Sapporo and Kota Kinabalu, while T’way launched its maiden flight to Bangkok in October.

Korean Air and Asiana, meanwhile, will stay focused on long-haul flights and freight operations.

Korean Air, the world’s second-largest cargo carrier, unveiled its new Boeing 747 and 777 freighters on Tuesday, which it says consume less fuel, make less noise and cut emissions by up to 17 percent compared with the existing ones. Freight accounts for about 30 percent of the company’s sales.

The flag carrier also saw a 41 percent increase in the number of business-class passengers on long-haul routes in the last quarter of 2011.

Asiana’s upcoming new planes will enable daily services of its all North American routes this year. Although its cargo volume remained flat, its passenger revenues rose almost 14 percent in that quarter, driving a 45.4 percent surge in operating profit to 54.9 billion won.


Lingering concerns
Some skeptics worry that overheated competition could erode the profitability. Rumors are swirling that two of the five budget carriers are looking to put themselves up for sale due to mushrooming losses.

“Japanese and Chinese airlines will likely focus on routes to metropolises such as Osaka and Shanghai as Korean carriers do currently. That will saturate the market and all of them in turn might end up eating away each other rather than making profits,” an industry official says, declining to be named.

Rep. Chung Hee-soo of the ruling Saenuri Party also points out that budget carriers are more prone to accidents, flight cancellations and delays owing to their hectic schedules.

“LCCs have small fleets so they keep on running the same planes over and over again,” he says. “That may cause a lack of proper maintenance and eventually a major accident.”

The number of trips by a single jet averages at 6.5 per day for Korean budget airlines, versus Korean Air’s 3.6 and Asiana’s 4.6, according to the Transport Ministry. Air Busan had the highest figure of 8.1.

Prosecutors to investigate Ahn’s stock trade Prosecutors to investigate Ahn’s stock trade

(Yonhap News)

Prosecutors said Friday they will look into allegations that potential presidential hopeful Ahn Cheol-soo made tens of millions of dollars in illicit profits by converting bonds of his anti-virus software firm into shares at a below-market price.

Rep. Kang Yong-seok, an independent, filed the allegations with the Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office, claiming that Ahn is believed to have garnered a total of up to 70 billion won ($62 million) in ill-gotten profits.

Kang claimed that Ahn converted 1.86 million bonds with warrants of his software firm Ahnlab in October 2000 at one-25th of the market price, and the transaction constitutes a violation of tax and other laws.

Prosecution officials said that the case has been assigned to an investigation department in accordance with a customary procedure for such cases, and investigators will look into and try to verify the claims.

Ahnlab officials denied the allegations, saying the transaction followed the state financial regulator’s guidelines and was approved by shareholders in a general meeting. They also said the lawmaker is confused about details of the transaction.

The lawyer-turned-lawmaker has often raised suits against high-profile politicians and presidential hopefuls in the liberal camp over a variety of matters ranging from mandatory military service to financial transactions.

Ahn, who currently teaches at the prestigious Seoul National University, has been considered a surging presidential hopeful for the December presidential race, in part for his upright and clean image.

N. Korea rejects South's call for Red Cross talks

N. Korea rejects South's call for Red Cross talks

North Korea on Saturday rejected South Korea's offer to hold Red Cross talks on reunions of separated families, saying Seoul should first respond to its demand for an apology for not paying official respect over the death of former leader Kim Jong-il and for a promise to carry out previous summit agreements. South Korea's Red Cross proposed Tuesday that the two sides hold working-level talks on Feb. 20 to discuss reinstating reunions of family members separated since the 1950-53 Korean War and other humanitarian issues. On Saturday, the North's Minju Joson newspaper carried a commentary accusing Seoul of talking about family reunions and exchanges while seeking sanctions on the communist nation behind the scenes in what it calls an attempt to evade responsibility for devastating inter-Korean ties. If the South is truly interested in family reunions and cooperation and exchanges, the newspaper said, it should respond to a "questionnaire" that Pyongyang's National Defense Commission made for the South early this month. In the questionnaire, the North demanded that the South repent for halting inter-Korean dialogue, apologize for the disrespect showed in response to the death of former leader Kim and pledge to uphold the June 15 joint declaration signed by progressive South Korean President Kim Dae-jung in 2000. Seoul has said the questions raised by the North did not even merit a response. (Yonhap)

Outgoing S. Korean ambassador meets Clinton

Outgoing S. Korean ambassador meets Clinton

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- Outgoing South Korean Ambassador to Washington Han Duck-soo paid a visit to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday as he prepared to end a three-year stint in the job that he said put him under constant pressure over a free trade deal and North Korea. The farewell meeting with Clinton was set up as the top American diplomat asked for it, sources said. Clinton told Han during the meeting that the envoy did a great job in further strengthening the traditional alliance between the two countries, they said. Considering it is not common for a South Korean ambassador to meet one-on-one with the secretary of state, Han's meeting with Clinton in her office was seen as exceptional treatment for the top envoy from an ally, an official at the South Korean Embassy said. Han made a surprise offer to step down earlier this week during a visit to Seoul. A veteran bureaucrat who is credited with helping the landmark free trade agreement pass through Congress in October, Han was named the head of the Korea International Trade Association on Friday. The envoy came back to Washington on Thursday and has since been exchanging farewell greetings with key U.S. officials and foreign diplomats. He talked by phone with National Security Council Asia director Daniel Russel and Michael Froman, deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs. After the meeting with Clinton, Han also met with Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman. A meeting with Deputy Secretary of State William Burns did not happen as Burns was away on an overseas trip. A meeting with Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell is set for Sunday. Han also attended a farewell ceremony at the embassy. "I have never got away from enormous pressure since assuming this ambassador post in March 2009," Han said during a farewell meeting with South Korean correspondents, speaking of the heavy responsibilities as ambassador to Seoul's most important ally. Han also talked about emergency meetings he held with top U.S. officials to discuss strategies in the wake of North Korea's sinking of a South Korean warship in March 2010, and its artillery attack on a South Korean border island in November that year. On the free trade pact, Han said that an announcement is imminent of when the pact is going to take effect. The deal, first signed in 2007 and modified in 2010, won legislative approval from both nations last year. The two countries have made final preparations to implement it. "The Korea-U.S. alliance is not something for granted," Han said. "We should not take the Korea-U.S. relations, which form a big pillar in our national security and economic development, for granted."

'Eisenhower had three secret meetings with aliens'

'Eisenhower had three secret meetings with aliens'

A former U.S. government consultant has claimed that former American President Dwight D. Eisenhower had three secret meetings with aliens, Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper reported Wednesday. The 34th President of the United States met the extra terrestrials at a remote air base in New Mexico in 1954, according to lecturer and author Timothy Good. Eisenhower and other FBI officials are said to have organized the showdown with the space creatures by sending out “telepathic messages,” the report said. The two parties finally met up on three separate occasions at the Holloman Air Force base and there were “many witnesses,” it said. Conspiracy theorists have circulated increased rumors in recent months that the meeting between the Commander-in-Chief and people from another planet took place. But the claims from Good, a former U.S. Congress and Pentagon consultant, are the first to be made publicly by a prominent academic, the newspaper said. Speaking on Frank Skinner's BBC2 current affairs show Opinionated, he said that governments around the world have been in regular contact with aliens for many decades. “Aliens have made both formal and informal contact with thousands of people throughout the world from all walks of life,” he added. Asked why the aliens don't go to somebody “important” like Barack Obama, he said: “Well, certainly I can tell you that in 1954, President Eisenhower had three encounters, set up meetings with aliens, which took place at certain Air Force bases including Holloman Air Force base in New Mexico.” Eisenhower, who was president from 1953 to 1961, is known to have had a strong belief in life on other planets.

Samsung Group hit by dispute over inheritance

Lee Kun-hee (Yonhap News)

The Samsung Group family has been embroiled in a dispute over the inheritance of its founder.

Lee Maeng-hee, the eldest son of the late founder Lee Byung-chull, filed a suit with a Seoul court demanding Lee Kun-hee, chairman and the third son, return what he says is his portion of the founder’s estate.

He claimed that his father had entrusted shares of group companies under a third party’s name but Lee Kun-hee ended the arrangement and  moved them to his possession without the consent of the other heirs.

He demanded the Samsung chairman transfer 8.24 million shares of Samsung Life Insurance, 20 shares of Samsung Electronics and 100 million won.

He also demanded that Samsung Everland give back 100 shares of the insurance firm and 100 million won.

오비이락(烏飛梨落)’이라더니 요즘은 ‘엠비폭락(M飛爆落)’이다.

일요시사=서형숙 기자] 옛말에 ‘오비이락(烏飛梨落)’이라더니 요즘은 ‘엠비폭락(M飛爆落)’이다. '까마귀 날자 배 떨어진다'는 사자성어를 빗대 만든 말로 ‘MB(이명박 대통령)가 날자 폭탄 떨어진다’는 뜻이다. 이명박 대통령이 국내에서 사건만 터지면 해외로 꽁무니를 뺀 것을 두고 쏟아지는 비아냥이기도 하다. 소나기는 일단 피하고 보자는 심산이었을까? 권력을 둘러싼 일련의 사건이 터지면 해외순방으로 국민들의 시선을 돌려 여론 환기를 노린 이른바 ‘나꼼수’가 아니었겠느냐는 지적이다.

‘다이아 게이트’ 돌파하려 자원외교 보따리 새로 꾸렸나?
‘내곡동 사저’ ‘디도스 파문’ 확산 때도 해외로 발길 돌렸다
임기 말 이명박 대통령의 ‘외치(外治)’가 더욱 활발해지는 모양새다. 이 대통령은 지금껏 약 43회에 걸친 해외순방으로 전·현직 대통령 중 최다 순방을 기록하고 있다. 그간 가장 많이 해외를 다녔다던 고 노무현 전 대통령의 27회 해외순방과 비교하면 거의 두 배에 육박하는 횟수이다.


더욱이 임기 말 대형 악재 등이 줄줄이 터진 미묘한 시점에 잦아지는 이 대통령의 바깥나들이에 의혹의 눈초리가 따가운 실정이다.


자원외교 재시동으로막판 스퍼트 올리나?  


‘카메룬 다이아 스캔들’이 정국을 휘감는 가운데 이 대통령은 얼마전 중동행 특별전용기에 몸을 실었다. 지난 4일부터 일주일간 터키와 사우디아라비아·카타르·아랍에미리트(UAE)를 차례로 방문한 것. 자원외교에 재시동을 건 이 대통령은 중동 순방을 통해 ‘빅딜’을 성사시키는 알찬 순방보따리로 언론의 집중조명을 받았다.


이 대통령은 지난 5일(현지시간) 이스탄불 아딜레 술탄 궁전에서 ‘실권자’ 레제프 타이이프 에르도안 터키 총리와의 단독회동을 가졌다. 양국 정상은 2년여 동안 중단됐던 200억달러(약 22조원) 규모의 원전건설사업 협상을 재개하기로 의견을 모았다.


또 한국과 터키 양국 간 FTA(자유무역협정)도 올 상반기 내에 타결 짓기로 노력한다는 데 합의했다. 특히 터키가 원전재개 및 FTA를 강력 요청하고 있다는 점에서 실무협상에서 우리가 주도권을 쥘 가능성도 높아지고 있다.


이 대통령은 이어 사우디·카타르·UAE 방문을 통해 에너지·국방·건설·보건 분야 협력 강화 방안을 논의했다. 세 나라는 우리가 필요한 원유의 50% 이상을 공급하는 대표적인 중동 산유국이다.

특히 사우디는 우리나라에서 필요한 원유의 3분의 1을 공급한다. 알-나이미 사우디 석유광물부 장관은 한국의 비상 위기상황 시 안정적 원유공급을 적극 검토하겠다는 긍정적 입장이다. 때문에 이번 순방은 미국의 대(對)이란 제재에 대비해 원유수입선을 다변화하는 전략적 성격을 띠고 있다.

 

이처럼 이 대통령의 중동행 보따리에는 자원외교 등 성과물이 두둑해 보인다. 하지만 세간의 시선은 아직 따갑기만 하다. 다이아 스캔들로 정국이 초토화된 가운데 사태해결에는 수수방관하고 이 대통령이 다시 자원외교를 빙자해 해외순방에 나서며 여론 환기를 노렸다는 의심 때문이다.


두둑한 중동보따리는
MB의 여론 환기 꼼수? 


그간 정부는 자원외교에 역점을 두며 카메룬 다이아몬드 사업을 대대적으로 홍보해왔다. 하지만 이는 각종 의혹과 비리로 얼룩지며 비판이 들끓고 있다. CNK그룹이 다이아몬드 개발권 획득과정에서 정권실세의 개입 의혹과 다이아몬드 매장량 뻥튀기·주가조작 등의 혐의가 드러나며 권력형 게이트로 번지고 있기 때문이다.


더욱이 사건의 배후로 이 대통령의 측근·친인척 인사들의 이름이 오르내리는 실정이다. 때문에 여론은 이 대통령의 두둑한(?) 자원외교 보따리를 반색하지만은 않는 분위기다.
게다가 그간 요란하게 홍보했던 정부의 자원외교의 헛발질도 한두 번이 아니다. KMDC가 개발권을 따낸 미얀마 해상광구는 탐사 시추 결과 ‘빈 광구’로 드러나 현재 사업이 중단된 상태다.


앞서 이 대통령이 직접 아랍에미리트까지 달려가서 추진했던 원전수주 역시 ‘제2의 중동 붐’을 가져올 것이라는 전망과는 달리 이면계약 내용이 뒤늦게 공개되며 비난여론이 빗발쳤다. 총 공사비의 절반가량인 100억달러를 한국수출입은행이 비싼 이자로 해외에서 빌려 싼 이자로 UAE에 대출한다는 내용 때문이다.


뿐만 아니라 스캔들이 터진 미묘한 시점에 이 대통령의 해외행은 이번만이 아니라는 사실이다. 특히 ‘내곡동 사저’와 ‘디도스 파문’으로 정국이 들끓었던 지난해 말경 이 대통령은 거의 해외에서 체류하다시피 했다.


지난해 10·26 재보궐 선거를 앞두고 이 대통령이 퇴임 후 입주할 계획이던 내곡동 사저가 ‘의혹백화점’으로 급부상하면서 거센 파문이 일었다. 먼저 이 대통령의 아들 시형씨 명의로 거래가 이루어진 부분에서 ‘부동산실명제법 위반’과 ‘편법증여’ 논란이 제기됐다.
여기에 시형씨는 토지를 공시지가보다 낮은 반값에, 국가예산이 투입되는 대통령실은 공시지가보다 높은 가격에 매입하며 결과적으로 사저 부지 매입에 혈세투입 의혹을 받으며 강하게 공격받았다. 때문에 이 대통령 스스로의 도덕성에 치명타를 입으며 파장이 일파만파 퍼졌다. 


비슷한 시기 연이어 ‘디도스 파문’이 터지며 다시 한 번 정국을 뒤흔들었다. 헌정사상 최초의 사이버 부정선거라는 중대한 사태에 여권 및 청와대의 핵심인사들의 이름이 줄줄이 거론되며 폭발력이 커졌다. 그야말로 2011년 4/4분기는 MB정부에 대형 악재들이 겹치며 만신창이로 추락한 시기였다.

한미FTA 국회통과 시 MB 자리 비워 ‘윗선지령’ 의심 키워
MB측근들 거론된 돈 봉투 살포 폭로 있던 뒷날도 중국행
여러 가지 덫에 한꺼번에 걸려들며 숨을 헐떡거리던 지난해 11월 이 대통령의 해외순방은 두드러졌다. 11월1일 러시아 정상회담과 프랑스 칸 G20 정상회의 참석차 해외 순방길에 올랐고, 이어 11일에는 APEC 참석차 하와이로 떠나 청와대를 비워뒀다. 17일에는 인도네시아 정상회담 및 아세안 정상회의를 이유로 전용기에 몸을 실었다. 무려 한달의 절반 이상을 해외에서 체류했던 셈이다.


한미FTA 비준 동의안이 한나라당의 단독처리로 국회를 통과한 민감한 시기에도 이 대통령은 아예 청와대를 비워둔 상태였다. 지난해 11월22일 이 대통령이 필리핀 방문을 마치고 귀국하던 시점과 딱 맞아떨어진 날치기를 두고 당시 ‘청와대 지령’이란 의혹에 무게가 실렸다.
한 언론사를 중심으로 세간에는 저자세의 한미FTA는 이 대통령의 아킬레스건인 BBK사건과 연관 있다는 ‘빅딜설’이 파다했다. 미국 검찰의 BBK 수사 발표가 무기한 연기되었지만 내년 선거정국을 앞두고 다시 거론될 경우 그 파급력은 상상을 초월한다는 전망이 우세했다.
때문에 다급한 청와대가 여당에 밀명을 내렸다는 것. 이러한 상황에서 이 대통령이 자리를 비우며 의심을 더욱 키웠다.


이른바 ‘고승덕 폭로’로 공공연히 떠돌던 ‘전당대회 돈거래설’의 실체가 밝혀지며 정국이 떠들썩했던 상황에도 역시 이 대통령은 해외행을 택했다. 올해 초 고승덕 새누리당 의원의 폭로로 그간 쉬쉬하며 닫아두었던 금권정치의 판도라 상자가 열리며 그 실체가 백일하에 드러났다.


이어 고 의원은 1월8일 검찰에 출두해 지난 2008년 한나라당 7·3 전대 당시 돈 봉투 살포 용의자로 박희태 전 국회의장을 전격 지목했다.


금권정치의 판도라 상자
열린 다음 날도 해외행  

19 foreign-invested firms to invest $2.3b by 2015

Nineteen foreign-invested companies plan to increase investment in Korea by $2.3 billion and hire 2,300 new people by 2015.

The Korean government requested that foreign-invested enterprises expand investment and employment, and pledged stronger support.

During a meeting with Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo on Monday, chief executives of major foreign-invested companies called on the government for more incentives such as tax cuts and cash support. They also asked for government assistance in securing high-skilled human resources and simplified procedures for investment in industrial parks.

Knowledge Economy Minister Hong Suk-woo (third from right) and chief executives of foreign-invested firms pose for a photo before a discussion on ways to support the companies’ investment Monday at a Seoul hotel. (Yonhap News)

Mentioning that Korea’s free trade agreements with ASEAN, the European Union and the United States have expanded business opportunities for foreign-invested firms, Hong replied that his ministry would seek to act on their suggestions.

He also said the government would offer preferential treatment in determining locations or incentives to companies that create more jobs. The ministry will hold job fairs and bolster ombudsmanship to resolve their predicaments, Hong said.

Of the 21 companies that attended Monday’s meeting, the 19 that have finalized their investment plans said they plan to invest a combined $2.27 billion and create 2,300 new jobs over the next four years.

Exports by the foreign-invested companies in Korea more than tripled in the 10 years after 2000 ($17.26 billion) to $62.62 billion in 2010.

Hong discussed ways to work out the barriers to greater investment with the representative of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in Korea and the Seoul Japan Club and the chief executives of foreign-invested firms.

A newly established council headed by the minister will continue monitoring the problems until they are resolved, Hong said.

Korea checking Google’s new privacy policy

South Korea’s communications regulator said Saturday it is checking to see if Google’s new privacy policy of combining all user information into a single trove violates local laws.

A source at the Korea and Communications Commission said an investigation is underway to see if the measures being planned by the global search engine conflict with domestic private information protection and open use of Internet rules. Google’s changes are expected to go into effect on March 1.

The comments come after the KCC received communication from Google Korea that the parent company’s intent to combine nearly all its information on users, so it can offer individually-tailored services, is a worldwide endeavor. The company added that South Korea cannot be left out of the global change and users who do not agree with the policy can opt out of using Google services, which include e-mail and Internet searches.

In the past, Google, which controls more than 80 percent of the world’s search engine market, kept information on users of different services separately.

The KCC hinted that if Google is found to have violated local laws, it could take appropriate action. Several European regulators have already called on Google to hold off on making the change so they can look into possible repercussions.

iPad sales surpass 1 million in Korea

Apple is estimated to have sold more than 1 million iPad tablet computers in the Korean market, outpacing its local rival Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Tab by a wide margin.

Apple’s iPad debuted here on Nov. 30, 2010 and its sequel iPad 2 was introduced on April 29 last year. About 700,000 units were sold last year alone, dominating the nascent tablet computer market here.

Given that many early adopters bought iPad even before the product was formally available on the local market, the actual number of iPads could be far more than 1 million, the local press projected, citing industry sources.

Two in three iPads sold in Korea are Wi-Fi only models, suggesting that users prefer the version that is not attached to the obligatory mobile carrier’s data plans.

The share of the iPad series on the Korean market is seen to hover at 70-80 percent, underscoring its resounding popularity against Samsung’s Galaxy Tab.

Yale loses legal fight in fake degree lawsuit

HARTFORD, Connecticut (AP) -- A U.S. judge has rejected a second bid by Yale University to throw out all the allegations in a lawsuit filed by a South Korean university that claims it lost tens of millions of dollars after Yale damaged its reputation.

Dongguk University claims in the 2008 lawsuit that it hired an art history professor after Yale wrongly confirmed the professor earned a doctorate at the New Haven school. Court papers say the professor, Shin Jeong-ah, later had a scandalous love affair with an aide to South Korea's president.

Dongguk, a Buddhist-affiliated university in Seoul, is suing Yale for more than $50 million, saying it lost that amount in government grants, alumni donations and costs of building a law school the government later refused to approve because of the scandal.

U.S. District Judge Tucker Melancon on Friday rejected most of Yale's motion for summary judgment. While the judge granted Yale's request to dismiss a civil charge of reckless and wanton conduct, he let stand allegations of defamation and negligence.

A trial is set for June. Yale previously lost a bid to get the lawsuit dismissed.

``We were very pleased with the decision,'' said Robert Weiner, a New York City lawyer for Dongguk. ``We believe we have lots of damages we can establish at trial.''

Weiner said Dongguk is the most prestigious Buddhist university in the world and it suffered a huge blow to its reputation with the Shin scandal.

Lawyers for Yale didn't return messages Monday. University officials have said the lawsuit is without merit and they would defend against it.

Shin was sentenced to 18 months in a South Korean jail in March 2008 for using fake Yale credentials to get the professor's job at Dongguk and for embezzling museum funds. Officials said she also faked two degrees from the University of Kansas in getting the job in 2005.

The former presidential aide, Byeon Yang-kyoon, was accused of using his influence to get Shin hired by Dongguk. He was forced to step down as an aide to then-President Roh Moo-hyun because of the scandal.

Byeon was sentenced to a suspended one-year jail term and 160 hours of community service in 2008 for exercising his influence to provide state tax benefits to a Buddhist temple founded by a former Dongguk official who helped hire Shin as a professor, South Korean officials said.

Yale told Dongguk in June 2007 that Shin didn't receive a doctorate there, saying a letter confirming the degree that Shin presented to Dongguk was bogus and forged. Yale also told Korean media that it never received a registered letter in 2005 from Dongguk asking whether Shin had received a doctorate, even though it did receive the letter, the lawsuit said.

Yale later apologized to Dongguk in late 2007 for what it called an administrative error. But Dongguk officials said by that time the damage to its reputation had been done. South Korean media reported in the summer and fall of 2007 that Shin's academic degrees were a fraud, that Dongguk failed to verify Shin's degrees, that Shin had an affair with Byeon and that Byeon had recommended to Dongguk officials that they hire Shin, court records say.

Lee‘s former aide gets suspended jail terms for bribery, illegal fund raising

A Seoul court sentenced a former aide to President Lee Myung-bak to a total of 18 months imprisonment, suspended for two years, on Monday for receiving bribes and illegal political funds.

Kim Hae-soo, now president of state-run Korea Construction Management, was convicted of having received 20 million won ($17,798) from a Busan Savings Bank lobbyist in 2010 in return for using his influence to help the now-suspended bank secure a construction project. He was sentenced to eight months behind bars, suspended for two years, on influence-peddling charges.

The 54-year-old Kim served as a political affairs secretary to Lee from 2008 to 2010.

Kim was sentenced to a further 10 months in jail, suspended for two years, for taking illegal political funds from the same lobbyist in 2008 when he unsuccessfully ran for a parliamentary seat for Incheon, west of Seoul, and from an environment-related company between 2005 and 2008.

The court ordered him to forfeit a total of 225 million won he received in bribes and political funds.

“Kim’s acceptance of money is recognized based on testimony from those involved and evidence, although he denies most of the charges against him except his acceptance of illegal political funds,” Kim Woo-jin, presiding judge of the Seoul Central District Court, said.

Despite the bank‘s far-reaching lobbying efforts that involved many other public officials, politicians and another key presidential aide, Busan Savings Bank had its business suspended in February, last year due to its insufficient capital base and illegitimate business practices. 　

Kim Du-woo, a former chief press secretary to President Lee, was also indicted for taking bribes from the suspended bank and is awaiting a ruling scheduled for Feb. 22.

New centrist party hopes to challenge mainstream parties

A new centrist party aiming to go beyond partisan rivalry and become a constructive alternative to largely distrusted politics will be launched on Monday, posing a fresh challenge to the existing parties ahead of April 11 general elections.

Under the leadership of Park Se-il, a former lawmaker of the ruling Saenuri Party, and president of the non-profit think tank Hansun Foundation, the People’s Thought Party will hold a convention to mark the launch of its Seoul and central chapters in the capital.

The party seeking to include “reform-minded conservatives and reasonable liberals” is poised to field its candidates in more than 200 constituencies out of the total 245. Including the proportional representation seats, it hopes to gain at least 30 parliamentary seats in the elections.

In more than half of the regional electoral districts, the party plans to field professional politicians to boost its chances of success in the elections, which would reshape the political landscape ahead of the presidential vote in December.

The new party’s founding members are now busy attracting high-profile, competent figures to have them run in the elections under its banner.

“Regardless of their ideological orientation, we have contacted a variety of heavyweights. As the other parties have begun their candidate nomination process, our lineup will take shape as it progresses,” a party official told media, declining to be named.

Experts say the party may be able to absorb centrist votes as the ruling and opposition parties alike are “moving leftward” with a set of legislation proposals such as more restrictions on conglomerate investments.

“The new party may be able to appeal to the centrist voters as there seems to be no centrist political groups with the ruling and opposition parties moving leftward. So now, it is crucial for it to absorb them,” said Shin Yul, a professor of political science at Seoul’s Myongji University.

Shin added that the fate of the new party will be largely affected by “outside influence” ― whether the Pro-Lee Myung-bak faction in the ruling Saenuri Party will bolt from it and join the centrist party; and whether it could merge with the minority conservative Liberty Forward Party.

“One of the party’s weaknesses is that it has no lawmaker. If it merges with the LFP, it will have parliamentary seats and at the same time, could court voters in the Seoul metropolitan area and the Chungcheong region, the LFP’s stronghold,” Shin said.

Political analysts have raised the possibility that the current lawmakers and those who fail to gain the ruling party’s nomination for the general elections could leave their party and join the new party.

Some skeptics, however, raised a possibility that the new party could follow in the footsteps of the Democratic People’s Party, which was established in 2000, but broke up in 2004 after failing to gain any seat at the National Assembly in 2004.

US, EU clear Google's $12.5B Motorola Mobility bid

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google's $12.5 billion bid to buy cellphone maker Motorola Mobility has won approvals from U.S. and European antitrust regulators, moving Google a major step closer to completing the biggest deal in its 13-year history.

Monday's blessings mean Google Inc. just needs to clear regulatory hurdles in China, Taiwan and Israel before it can take control of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. and expand into manufacturing phones, tablet computers and other consumer devices for the first time.

Getting government approval in China looms as the biggest stumbling block remaining. Google's relationship with China's ruling party has been on shaky ground since the company blamed hackers in that country for breaking into its computers two years ago. The breach prompted Google to move its Internet search engine from mainland China in protest of laws requiring some results to be censored.

Google prizes Motorola Mobility's more than 17,000 patents _ a crucial weapon in an intellectual arms race with Apple, Microsoft and other rivals maneuvering to gain more control over smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices. Google announced the deal six months ago.

The deal will ``enhance competition and offer consumers faster innovation, greater choice and wonderful user experiences,'' Don Harrison, Google's deputy general counsel wrote in a blog post.

Besides signing off on the Motorola Mobility deal, the Justice Department also approved two other moves in the mobile patent battles. The approvals cover the $4.5 billion purchase of Nortel Networks patents by a group including Apple, Microsoft and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. and a separate Apple acquisition of Novell Inc. patents.

The Justice Department ended its investigations after concluding the new patent owners won't try to drive up the prices of competing mobile devices by demanding exorbitant licensing fees. The agency said it was particularly concerned about key patents held by Motorola Mobility and Nortel.

Apple Inc. and Microsoft promised to license the Nortel patents on reasonable terms while Google's commitments on the Motorola Mobility patents were ``more ambiguous,'' according to a statement from the Justice Department's antitrust division.

Nevertheless, the Justice Department didn't find any evidence that Google's ownership of Motorola Mobility would lessen competition in a mobile device market that is becoming increasingly important as more people connect to the Internet on smartphones and tablet computers instead of desktop and laptop computers.

In granting its approval, the European Union also raised concerns about Motorola's aggressive enforcement of its patents. EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said regulators will ``keep a close eye on the behavior of all market players in the sector, particularly the increasingly strategic use of patents.''

In its statement, the Justice Department also vowed to crack down on any sign that mobile patents are being used to throttle competition. Microsoft said it was encouraged by the regulatory commitments.

Other key concerns centered on Google's Android operating system, free software that now powers more than 250 million mobile devices made by a variety of manufacturers, including Motorola Mobility. Competition could be hurt if Google gives Motorola Mobility the most advanced versions of Android or withholds the mobile software from other cellphone makers.

Google, though, has pledged to make Android available to all its mobile partners. Even if Google were to discriminate, cellphone makers still could rely on mobile software from Microsoft Corp., Research in Motion and Hewlett-Packard Co., among others.

The European regulators see no danger that Google will prevent other device makers from using its popular Android operating system after the takeover.

``Android helps to drive the spread of Google's other services,'' the Commission said. ``Given that Google's core business model is to push its online and mobile services and software to the widest possible audience, it is unlikely that Google would restrict the use of Android solely to Motorola,'' which only has a small market share in Europe.

The government reviews in U.S. and Europe have come as regulators also have been conducting a broader inquiry into whether Google has been abusing its dominance in Internet search to hobble its rivals. Those investigations are still ongoing.

Assuming Google eventually takes over Motorola Mobility, the union will open new opportunities and pose potentially troublesome challenges for a management team that so far has concentrated on Internet search, ad sales and other software-driven online services.

Motorola Mobility's expertise in mobile devices and set-top boxes for cable TV will allow Google to play an even more influential role in shaping the future of hand-held computing and home entertainment. Even as it navigates the regulatory gauntlet, Google has begun testing a device for connecting electronic components within homes, according to a filing with the Federal Communications Commission.

Absorbing Motorola Mobility also threatens to crimp Google's earnings growth and drag down its stock price. That's because Motorola Mobility has been struggling on its own as Apple's iPhone and other smartphones made by rivals such as Samsung Electronics undercut sales of its products.

Google is making a huge bet that Motorola Mobility can do better. The $12.5 billion price is more than the combined amount that Google has paid for the 185 other acquisitions that it has completed since going public in 2004.

Google's stock rose $6.29, or 1 percent, to close Monday at $612.20. Motorola Mobility's gained 18 cents to $39.63, just below the proposed sale price of $40 per share. Google is based in Mountain View, California, while Motorola Mobility has its headquarters in Libertyville, Illinois. (AP)

Siemens, Samsung may vie for $21 billion Russian rail link

Siemens AG and Samsung C&T Corp. are among the European and Asian companies that may vie to build and operate a $21 billion rail link between Moscow and St. Petersburg before the 2018 World Cup soccer tournament.

Alstom SA, Bouygues SA of France, Italy’s Finmeccanica SpA and UniCredit SpA and a unit of South Korea’s Hyundai have also expressed interest in the high-speed link, said Yelena Shebunina, deputy head of OAO High-Speed Rail Lines, in an interview in Moscow. A Portuguese group led by Brazil’s Grupo Andrade Gutierrez SA expressed interest last week, she said.

High-Speed Rail Lines, a unit of state monopoly OAO Russian Railways, plans to name a shortlist of bidders in September or October, followed by more detailed negotiations on the technological, financial and legal aspects of the project before picking a winner, Shebunina said.

“Russia has never built a high-speed link, even though the rest of the world has been building them for the last 60, 70 years,”Shebunina said. “The potential candidates have amassed significant experience and this will be considered when the winner is picked.”

Russia in its winning World Cup bid pledged to build new links between cities that will host games by the end of 2017. The winner of the Moscow-St. Petersburg contract will own the right to operate the service for 30 years, Shebunina said. That track will span about 660 kilometers (410 miles).

Siemens has already submitted documents to take part in the contest together with local partners, the Moscow-based press service for Europe’s largest engineering company said in an e- mailed reply to questions, without elaborating.

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. said in an e-mailed statement that it’s “looking at the high-speed rail project in Russia with much interest,” while Samsung said it has not decided on entering the bidding process. Finmeccanica also confirmed its interest in the project. Officials for UniCredit and Andrade Gutierrez did not immediately comment.

High-Speed Rail Lines is still looking at ways to cut the estimated cost of the project from 626 billion rubles ($21 billion) to as little as 512 billion rubles, half of which will be paid for by the government and the other half by the concessionaire, Shebunina said.

“We are holding consultations on how project costs may be optimized,” Shebunina said. “The project is to be carried out in the midst of a crisis, so it is important to see how costs can be lowered.”

High-Speed Rail Lines is also in talks with domestic banks including VTB Capital, OAO Gazprombank and VEB about helping to fund the link either through loans or by buying bonds linked to the project, Shebunina said.

(Bloomberg) 

Park breaks his own 1,500m mark

Park Tae-hwan

Olympic swimming champion Park Tae-hwan of South Korea broke his own record in the men’s 1,500-meter event at a warmup competition before the upcoming London Olympics.

The 22-year-old finished the 1,500m race in 14 minutes, 47.38 seconds at the New South Wales State Open Championships in Sydney, breaking his previous record from 2006 by 7.65 seconds. It is also the national record for South Korea.

The Olympic gold medalist in the men’s 400m event participated in the Australian event to check his condition before starting his quest to win a gold medal for the second consecutive time at the London Games slated for July.

He also won the 200m and 400m races, and finished third in the shortest 50m event at the Sydney competition, showing that he is in good form after a months-long training program with his Australian coach Michael Bohl.

Park won the 1,500m gold medal at the 2006 Asian Games but did not compete in the long-distance race at the world championships held last year as he focused more on shorter races such as the 200m and 400m

Lee’s key policies falling apart or face uncertainties

A series of President Lee Myung-bak’s achievements and pet projects have been marred as his political foes intensify their offensive against the conservative leader, who is already faltering under corruption scandals involving his close associates.

His key project to refurbish the country’s four major rivers and so-called “resource diplomacy” have lost some of their legitimacy as a local court has ruled against part of the rivers project and a stock-rigging scandal undermined the diplomatic initiatives.

As the president plunges deeper into his lame-duck status and the ruling Saenuri Party strives to shake off its corrupt image, the liberal opposition parties have highlighted what they call the ruling bloc’s ethical lapses ahead of the April 11 general elections.

Last Friday, a Busan court ruled that the project to dredge and construct weirs in the southern Nakdong River is illegitimate, as it proceeded without going through the required preliminary procedures, such as a feasibility study.

The ruling reignited the debate over the legitimacy of the entire 22 trillion won ($19.5 billion) project, which critics argue would seriously damage the rivers’ ecosystem. The government said that the project would help enhance water supply, flood management and ecological vitality.

Lee’s drive for resource diplomacy has been also been tarnished after allegations broke out last year that a Foreign Ministry official in charge of the project was involved in a 2010 stock manipulation scandal.

(Yonhap News)

Prosecutors have been investigating him and other public servants, believing that they and their relatives illicitly used insider information to gain profits from purchasing stocks from a local firm, which got exclusive rights to develop a diamond mine in Cameroon in 2010.

Senior officials at the Prime Minister’s Office and other public corporations including former Vice Minister of Knowledge Economy Park Young-joon are purported to have been involved in the scandal. The public has become disenchanted, prompting calls for stricter discipline in officialdom.

The Lee administration’s efforts to effectuate the Korea-U.S. free trade pact also face challenges as the liberal parties led by the main opposition Democratic Unified Party vow to scrap it should disputed clauses not be renegotiated.

The Seoul government has promoted the agreement, saying it would create jobs, boost exports and further improve the long-standing ties with Washington.

However, the opposition argues that without revisions, the pact could encroach upon Korea’s economic sovereignty, while stressing that the ruling bloc railroaded its ratification through parliament last November.

Last Wednesday, the opposition parties sent a letter to the U.S. government in Seoul, in which they threatened to repeal the pact should the U.S. reject their demand for renegotiations.

The pact is expected to take effect later this month or early next month.

Amid all these developments, the president feels abashed over corruption scandals involving his close associates.

Last Friday, senior presidential secretary for political affairs Kim Hyo-jae offered to resign over allegations that he was involved in the ruling party’s high-profile vote-buying scandal.

Former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae offered last week to resign amid ongoing investigations into the allegations that his aides offered money to fellow party members before the leadership contest in 2008. He still denies his involvement into it.

Also, former Korea Communications Commission Chairman Choi See-joong, dubbed Lee’s political mentor, resigned last month amid corruption allegations involving his former aide at the commission.

Expensive cosmetics, worth it?

Anti-ageing products and other high-end cosmetics are selling extremely well. Regardless of the efficacy of such luxury brands, a growing number of consumers are attracted to the products, apparently tempted by glossy TV and magazine commercials.

With the growing popularity of pricey items, the cost to become more beautiful is rising amid consumer hopes that cosmetics goods will deliver magical results.

A 29-year-old hotel worker, Kim, has used high-priced products for basic skincare, such as toner and lotion, for about 10 years since her college days.

She used to buy Estee Lauder products but recently changed to the ones by fresh. She bought a bottle of fresh lotion at about 90,000 won ($80) at a duty free shop during a recent overseas trip. With taxes, it may sell in Korea at far over 100,000 won.

“I thought it was expensive. But I had tried a sample before and found it good, so I bought it,” she said.

Kim doesn’t remember how she started to use luxury brands, but she has kept using them. For the last decade, a dozen lower-priced cosmetic brands have appeared. Kim buys sheet masks of those firms but hasn’t tried their skincare products.

“Sheet masks are for one-time use, so it is easy to try them. For skincare, people say the quality of the low-priced items is fine but I just feel like I may have skin trouble if I use them,” she said.

Like Kim, many women prefer high-end cosmetics, mostly imported ones that usually cost tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of won, even if their income is not enough to afford them.

As to the reasons for the preference, many cite trust in the brands. A 34-year-old office worker, Choi Hye-won, who uses an eye cream from Lancome, said, “It seems expensive but cosmetics products use high-quality ingredients. They have been sold for decades across the world and it may mean that many people have recognized their quality.”

But opinions are divided over whether costly products live up to their price. While Kim and Choi think they do, those disagreeing point out the bubble included in the prices.

According to the cosmetics industry, prices are the sum of the ingredients, containers, advertising and taxes, among others. For luxury brands sold at department stores, a commission fee for department stores is added, which accounts for up to 40 percent of the total price.

Partly because of this commission, the price of imported luxury cosmetics goods is three to six times the costs. According to the Korea Food and Drug Administration’s 2009 report, a 50-milliliter bottle of Sisley’s Supremya is sold for 850,000 won while it was imported for 179,000 won. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence (215 milliliters) was 179,000 won after being imported for 41,000 won.

Those involved in the industry say the quality isn’t always in proportion to price but there are reasons that such high prices are set.

“As wine has various grades according to quality, cosmetics ingredients have various grades. Also, as a bean has a different potency according to whether it is made into bean paste or tofu, the quality of cosmetics ingredients differ according to how they are mixed. Each company has its own production knowhow and skill, so I think prices partly reflect the quality,” a director of the Korea Cosmetics Association said

Sanctioned judge draws backing from colleagues

Sanctioned judge draws backing from colleagues

By Yun Suh-young Some judges are protesting a court’s decision not to reinstate Seo Gi-ho as a judge after he was let go Friday for a ‘poor performance’ evaluation. They are posting critical comments on the court’s intranet bulletin, saying that Seo’s dismissal was not because of his poor performance but because he made critical comments against the Lee Myung-bak government. They insist he was unfairly let go. In December, Seo posted critical remarks about the government on Twitter, insinuating that the monitoring of his social networking account was a restriction on the freedom of expression. One judge wrote that the decision was influenced by Seo making “inappropriate comments about President Lee” and “for speaking up against the Supreme Court justice during the candlelit protests in 2009.” “It’s his inexorable comments and past action against the courts’ authority that caused the court’s personnel management screening committee to give him a low review. If he has become a judge with faults it is because of that. How can we say that judges are independent of influence from above?” said Kim Young-hoon, a judge at the Jeonju District Court. Speak up and low reviews “I used to be part of the majority who remained silent on controversial issues within the court, but now I will speak up when I feel that the court is going in the wrong direction. That’s showing my respect for the court.” Another judge, Lee Chang-hyun from the Suwon District Court, also said, “I don’t understand why Seo was not reappointed. Of course there will be judges who receive low reviews from the personnel committee but that shouldn’t be a reason to let a judge go.” Judges say those who speak up against their superiors receive low reviews. “Those who say whatever they want to say to their superiors since they were associate judges, receive low reviews from them,” another judge was quoted as saying to a reporter. In the controversial Twitter postings, Seo urged SNS users not to be “intimidated” by the government’s crackdown, or President Lee may hurt them with a bigger “insult.” “Don’t be intimidated, my fellow SNS friends. Or Gakha (his highness) will give you a bigger yeot (taffy),” Seo wrote, with “give you a bigger yeot” meaning that President Lee will cause people greater problems. He had also called for the resignation of Supreme Court Justice Shin Young-chul in 2009 when he was apparently found to have meddled in the decisions of junior judges during the trials of anti-U.S. beef protesters. Since then Seo has received poor reviews for three consecutive years.

Hard time for judges: Would humbling gestures help?

Hard time for judges: Would humbling gestures help?

It was meant to be a memorable occasion, the country's judiciary humbling itself and reflecting on its past with laymen's advice in an open forum for the first time in its history. No one really expected it to veer into an embarrassing commotion charged with cries, tears and invectives. "Thugs, robbers!" a middle-aged woman in the audience shouted as a judge announced the opening of the forum titled "Interaction 2012, Into the People" at the Seoul Central District Court last week. Half the crowd applauded and stood up with exclamations of rage. An elderly man holding the picture of his dead son cried, "Criminals!" as guards stopped his rush toward the panelists. "We expected this forum would not proceed in a smooth manner," Lee Jin-seong, head of the Seoul Central District Court that hosted the forum, said to the angry audience. "It seems all these things that have built up inside you are coming out today." The Feb. 6 forum was a rare humbling move by the courts grappling with escalating anti-judicial sentiment. The public furor has been rising to record heights recently after a series of films topping the nation's box office with stories of judicial corruption. Surveys indicate serious public disenchantment with the courts. What is behind this sudden outburst of anger toward the judiciary, and can the courts do anything to restore public confidence? The unchallenged authority of the courts has been a perennial target of public scorn in modern Korea, but it was a recent budget film that threw fuel on the simmering anti-judicial sentiment. "Unbowed," directed by realist director Chung Ji-young and based on a real story of a university professor accused of shooting a crossbow at a judge, triggered heated calls in social networking sites demanding a new trial. Since its release in January, the movie has been the top box office performer. In 1995, then an assistant professor at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, Kim Myeong-ho divulged an error in the school's admission test and insisted the university admit to the mistake. But Kim was fired, accused of damaging the reputation of the university and his colleagues. Kim counted on the court to bring him justice, but his case that eventually went all the way up to the Supreme Court ended in favor of the university as judges dismissed his claim that his discharge was retaliatory. Frustrated and exhausted, he moved to the U.S. with his family but returned to Seoul in 2005 hoping to resume his legal battle. But the court again rejected the evidence he presented and delivered the same ruling. Then he shifted his target. On a winter evening in 2007, Kim took a crossbow and sneaked into the apartment building of a senior judge who had ruled on his case. The film spares no details from the case then dubbed the "Crossbow Terror Incident." Even the names are included. The director claims "95 percent of the movie was based on facts." Amplifying the mystery surrounding the case, the film reignited the long-held public suspicion that the crossbow trial might have been biased and faulty. The victim, then Seoul High Court senior judge Park Hong-woo, failed to submit to the court the crossbow that he said struck his chest. Kim is demanding a test to see if Park's blood matches the blood stains on his clothing. Kim claims the arrow was fired accidentally during a scuffle and that the arrow missed Park. After serving four years in jail, Kim was released in January 2011. Appearing on a cable channel interview, Kim didn't mince his words about what he thinks of the country's judiciary. "Judges are gangsters who ignore and violate the law," he said on the tvN talk show on Feb. 1. "To them, laymen have no power to resist and are only objects to be crushed. (With the crossbow), I wanted to give them a warning: If you continue to behave this way, you can be crushed, too." Kim has a way of irritating authority with his peculiar stubbornness, but his struggle has been an epiphany to many others frustrated with the courts, observers said. "What he had to go through was a lonely battle against the judiciary," Seo Hyeong, author of the 2009 book that closely followed Kim's case, "The Broken Arrow," said in the book. "The courts demand our highest respect on the grounds that they have the power to handle the law." According to a recent survey of about 1,100 people by The Good Law, a civic watchdog on legal professionals, 77 percent of respondents believed the courts are unfair. More than 80 percent called for the creation of a government agency to investigate corrupt judges and prosecutors. Eighty percent also thought the commercial success of the film "Unbowed," which attracted 2.6 million viewers in just three weeks, comes from the public distrust of the judiciary. But the judiciary has its own burdens. According to official data that compared the Korean judicial system with Japan's, Korean judges are overworked and strained under meager financial support. A judge in Korea was assigned 564 cases on average in 2010, compared to 248 cases in Japan. The judiciary's budget accounts for only 0.36 percent of the state budget this year, or 1.1 trillion won ($1 billion) out of 325.4 trillion won, according to the data. "Judges work long hours and carry heavy workloads, so efficiency and speed are essential to their work," Cho Kuk, a professor of the Seoul National University Law School, said at the court forum. "But I believe the process leading up to a ruling is as important as the ruling itself. If the process is unfair, it would be hard for anyone to accept the result, however just it is," he said. "Like we see in the movie 'Unbowed,' the judges have this haughty image in the eye of the public -- 'I'm an elite and the only one who knows the truth.'" Rulings on business leaders have often fueled distrust of the judiciary, Cho noted. The Seoul appeals court in 2007 suspended a prison sentence on the chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, Chung Mong-koo, for his embezzlement of more than 90 billion won, citing his big role in the nation's economy. The ruling empowered the popular notion that the courts side with the wealthy and the powerful. At the forum, the judicial authorities promised to hold similar forums regularly. But Park Jeong-gye, 64, who recently watched "Unbowed," was skeptical. She fumed over her compensation case she waged last year against a veterinary hospital for her dead dog, which was swiftly dismissed for lack of evidence. "How can there be absolute powers in a democratic society?" she asked. "But judges and prosecutors think there are." (Yonhap)

Obama negligent in embracing Korea's opposition: expert

Obama negligent in embracing Korea's opposition: expert

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- President Barack Obama should step up efforts to reach out to South Korea's opposition forces, especially amid the possibility of a power shift there in the year of parliamentary and presidential elections, an American expert said Sunday. David Straub, associate director of the Korean Studies Program at Stanford University's Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center, said Obama has been "negligent" in trying to broaden support from Korea's opposition for his policy on the Korean Peninsula. "President Obama, who is very popular among the young people of South Korea, should himself have taken a few hours during his visits to Seoul to appeal to them," he said in a report on Obama's policy on Korea. Other senior U.S. officials should have made greater efforts to meet opposition leaders, establish personal relationships, and explain American thoughts about the situation on the peninsula, he added. "The failure to do so may hurt U.S. interests, especially if the Korean opposition wins the legislative and presidential elections this year, said Straub, who was in charge of Korea affairs at the State Department in the early 2000s. He retired from the department in 2006 as a Senior Foreign Service Officer after a 30-year career focused on Northeast Asian affairs. He backed Obama's overall approach toward North Korea, with a few realistic options available. Obama has also been viewed as closely coordinating with the South Korea's conservative government on the North Korean and other global matters. For the Obama administration, Straub said, the Iran issue has become more urgent than North Korea, since Israel is threatening military attacks on its nuclear facilities. Teheran is also narrowing Washington's options on Pyongyang, he pointed out. "Any concessions that the United States might make to a North Korea that already has nuclear weapons will be regarded by many in the United States and the international community as a whole as encouraging Iran in its defiance of the international community," he said. "This factor also further complicates the domestic political situation in the United States for considering concessions to North Korea." The main variables on the Korean Peninsula in the coming year will be the presidential elections in the U.S. and South Korea and what happens with regards to Iran, Straub said.