-
East Asia
Moon Jae-in and the Politics of Reform in South Korea
One year and five months have passed since South Korean President Moon Jae-in took office. During this period, Moon’s democratic leadership style and spirit of service have lifted public morale and salved past wounds. In his inaugural address, he voiced his desire to become a president who communicates with the…
Read More » -
Politics
Nostalgia and Romanticism: Populism and the Rise of Identity Politics
Politically, the world is more dangerous and unpredictable than it was just a couple of years ago. Seemingly overnight, following Britain’s unexpected vote on June 23, 2016, to withdraw from the European Union and the election of Donald Trump as US president in November of the same year, confidence in…
Read More » -
Culture
World Poets in the International Costa Rica Poetry Festival
For the past sixteen years, the International Costa Rica Poetry Festival has enhanced the presence of poetry in the country’s capital; San Jose, and other cities of the country, leading up to the ocean tortoise city of Tortuguero. Audience has interacted with the event in its main cultural sectors…
Read More » -
East Asia
North Korea Ready to Expand Internet Access
North Korea is a country where residents do not have free access to the internet, but the country’s science-priority policies are leading to an expansion in the number of new users. On Aug. 31, the Korean Society for Internet Information (KSII), a South Korean institute focusing on information technology, published a…
Read More » -
East Asia
Seoul taxis to implement QR code payment systems
The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) announced Tuesday it will launch a platform which people can use to pay their taxi fares via QR codes. According to the city government, it will establish a standard for the “taxi QR code simple payment” system and implement it in all 71,845 Seoul taxis starting…
Read More » -
East Asia
Moon ratifies Pyongyang Declaration
President Moon Jae-in ratified an agreement signed between him and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at their third summit in Pyongyang last month. “Moon ratified the Pyongyang Joint Declaration. An official announcement will soon follow,” a Cheong Wa Dae official said. As a procedural step for the ratification, the Cabinet earlier…
Read More » -
East Asia
Why are Naver blogs and online cafes blocked in China?
Internet users in China have not been able to access Naver’s blogs and online cafes over the past week, raising speculation that the Chinese government may have intentionally blocked access as it had done previously to foreign online services. Access to Naver’s blogs has been blocked in China since Oct.…
Read More » -
East Asia
Korea’s economic cul-de-sac
Korea is likely to be among the most vulnerable economies in Asia if the Sino-American trade war escalates. While Korea’s economic strength rests on exports, this also proves to be its biggest weakness when global trade slows. Although the country recently signed a revised free trade agreement with the U.S.,…
Read More » -
East Asia
How will Turkey end up if the situation continues?
On August 13, ‘Turkish Lira’ and ‘Turkey’ were ranked as number one and two respectively in the real-time query of the leading portal in Korea, Naver. Two questions are to be asked in this situation. The first one is why did the Turkish Lira suddenly collapse? The other question is…
Read More » -
World
An Overview about OBEY
OBEY is a street brand in the U.S founded by a world-renowned street artist Shepard Fairey in 2001. Fairey created OBEY clothing because he thought fashion was the most effective way in which people identify themselves. OBEY is famous for its simple but dynamic images. The brand also well represents…
Read More »