Those that tarnish Africa’s image
Africa is seen as an impoverish continent the world over. It is seen as a war-torn continent inhabited by corrupt, barbaric and savage-like people. This prejudice is constantly reinforced by the attitude of some Africans at home and abroad. There is this disheartening trend that I have noticed recently. It is phishing ― this is […]
Recent NK-Japan contacts may thaw their frozen relationship
In late August official talks between North Korean and Japanese diplomats were held in Beijing – the first such talks for four years. Initially it was expected that talks would take two days, but at the last moment, it was decided that the consultations would be extended for another day, so the last meeting took […]
Dokdo: distraction and diversion
The North Koreans have got to love this one. The ruckus over Dokdo/Takeshima gets so much play in Korea and Japan that Koreans and Japanese tend to forget they’ve got a real enemy lurking somewhere over the 38th parallel. That would be North Korea, whose strategists may not know how to run their economy but […]
India and ASEAN
ASEAN is facing the most serious crisis of its existence since its foundation some 45 years ago. Recently, for the first time since its inception, it failed to issue a joint statement on the concluding day of a summit meeting. As a result its plans to become one sprawling economic zone encompassing Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, […]
Senior Korean mountaineer hits Nepalese host on the head at reception
An unbelievable happening took place at an international gathering to mark the opeing of the ‘Nepal House’ on 23th August. Lee In-jung, 67, president of the Korean Alpine Federation, hit K.P. Sitoula on the back of his head, throwing dirt at him. Sitoula, 44, is the president of the Nepalese Association in Korea and hosted the event. It happend […]
Rating upgrade and Japan
Maintaining fiscal soundness should be prioritized Moody’s Investors Service has raised its sovereign rating on Korea by one notch from A1 to Aa3. As reasons for its rating upgrade, the global credit appraiser cited the country’s strong fiscal fundamentals, resilience to external economic shocks and the continued status quo of geopolitical risks from North Korea. […]
Noda & Lee, Apple & Samsung
A foreign correspondent I once knew observed at the end of his Korean stint, “Korea is a heaven for journalists.” Few in our line of work would disagree because this country offers an unlimited supply of news both on domestic front and from overseas. Noda Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda upped the ante with more […]
Rationing system in N. Korea
It was reported recently, that ― obviously, following a reformist drive, the North Korean leaders decided to scale down the rationing system. In order to understand the significance of this change, we must keep in mind that for a few decades North Korea was a society where rationing was taken to a logical extreme. From […]
Faithfulness, affection and reasonableness
Recently, one of my college alumni explained how a Chinese scholar categorically observed the traits and characters of the people of three Northeast Asian nations. According to the Chinese scholar, with regard to interpersonal relationships the Chinese value “faithfulness,’’ while the Koreans tend to emphasize “affection,’’ and the Japanese respect “reasonableness’’ in handling matters. Another […]
Are we about face deflation?
Korea’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter grew only 2.4 percent on a year-on-year basis, hitting a record low since the third quarter of 2009. Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of GDP, has grown only 1.2 percent over the same period. Investment measured by total fixed capital formation is even […]
![[Novel] The Road to Shamawes ⑯](http://www.theasian.asia/wp-content/themes/city-desk/timthumb.php?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theasian.asia%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F08%2FAshraf-2novel-news_9601.jpg&q=90&w=300&h=0&zc=1 "[Novel] The Road to Shamawes ⑯")
