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Changes in NK already underway, expected speeded up
It is not widely understood how much North Korea has changed over the last two decades. North Korea of Kim Il Sung’s era could be seen as the world’s most perfect example of a Stalinist state. It was a society of a personality cult gone mad, of omnipresent social and…
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Column
[Indonesian Report] Indonesians celebrate 67th anniversary of Independence Day
Since early this month, Indonesian red and white flags have been waving in every corner of the country. Each houses, schools, offices has raised the flags since then until this awaiting moment of August 17, The Independence Day of Indonesia. This is an annual ritual that Indonesians do to celebrate their independence…
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Column
Smartphone addiction: disease or obsession?
Many foreigners marvel at the Koreans’ engrossment in smartphones. For instance, in a subway car, one would often find more than half of the passengers, especially young ones, are so absorbed in their mobile devices that they sometimes miss their stops. Smartphone addiction, often called communication addiction disorder, is a…
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Column
UN Secretary General speaks about women’s rights
Today the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon spoke about women’s rights at Duksung Women’s University. Women need international co-operation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion. The landmark Declaration, adopted by the U.N. General…
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Ban Ki Moon: We need a world of equal opportunities
The United Nations Secretary-General, Ban ki Moon stated on Monday, that it is his heart desire to see a world of equal opportunities for both men and women. He stated this in a keynote speech at the Young Women’s Congress for Global Partnership hosted by the Duksung Women’s University in…
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Wrong person suffers five years in jail because of namesake with real culprit
DHAKA — A man, who was illegally imprisoned in a murder case as the accused was his namesake, was freed on Tuesday (14 August) on a court’s order after spending five years in jail. The jail authorities released him from the Bangladesh High Court premises in Dhaka immediately after the…
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President and foreign policy
Korea needs leader with historical, diplomatic sense Contrary to popular expectations and previous instances, President Lee Myung-bak made only cursory remarks about Japan and other regional problems in his Liberation Day speech Wednesday. Instead, he mostly focused on the economy, especially on how Korea has joined the ranks of leading…
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Column
Fate of Africa
Good news from Africa: after two decades of bloody anarchy, Somalia is finally on the mend. There is something resembling a government coming into being in Mogadishu, with much help from African Union troops ― although the country’s most popular comedian, Abdi Jeylani Marshale, famous for his parodies of Islamic…
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Significance of starting something new
I started to learn Korean out of mere curiosity. Honestly, at that time – more than 10 years ago – I hardly knew anything about Korea except that it was located in Asia and divided in two, just like my home country Germany used to be. I learned the first…
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Column
IOC, Dokdo, PSY
A la Lex Column on the back page of The Financial Times, I tackle multiple subjects in today’s column. IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC) barred Korean midfielder Park Jong-woo from the closing ceremony of the London Olympics for displaying a banner saying, “Dokdo is our territory.” The IOC cited…
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