SEOUL, June 27 (Korea Bizwire) – The South Korean government is introducing new legislation in its fight against corruption, including regulations that will require pharmaceutical companies to divulge payments made to doctors and pharmacists starting next year. Under the new health care reform, pharmaceutical companies that offer financial compensation to medical staff are required to keep [...]
SEOUL, March 30 (Korea Bizwire) – A Seoul court held a hearing Thursday to decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for former President Park Geun-hye over a string of corruption allegations that removed her from office. The former president appeared at the Seoul Central District Court at around 10:20 a.m. to attend the review [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 23 (Korea Bizwire) – This, perhaps, best explains the South Korean corruption scandal. A recent study by the Center for Free Enterprise revealed that Korea’s “rent-seeking index” ranks 30th amongst 35 OECD member countries, indicating that the practice of disobeying the law in pursuit of special privileges is rampant in South Korean society. [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 30 (Korea Bizwire) – James Kim, president and CEO of GM Korea Co., apparently sought to eradicate what is believed to be widespread corruption among many employees and labor union leaders selling job openings, urging them to come clean without facing any consequences, company officials said Friday. In a recent e-mail addressed to [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 10 (Korea Bizwire) – Winter is rapidly approaching, but donations of yeontan, coal briquettes that are used in low-income households for cooking and heating, are not as abundant as they were last year. Officials point to a combination of factors for the change, including the introduction of the new anti-corruption law, President Park’s [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 25 (Korea Bizwire) – President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday apologized to the nation over a leak of dozens of presidential speeches to an acqaintance who has been at the center of an escalating corruption scandal that has roiled politics over the past month. “Regardless of the reasons involved, I am sorry that (the [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Korea Bizwire) – It has been a week since a controversial anti-graft law took effect in Korea, quickly reshaping Korea’s gifting and dining culture. But the law is also breeding paparazzi, individuals who secretly monitor and hunt for activities that violate the law’s provisions. These paparazzi are called “Ran-Parazzi”, after the legislation [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Korea Bizwire) – Amid controversy and doubt, Korea’s new anti-graft law finally went into effect on Wednesday. The law makes it illegal for public officials, journalists, and private school faculty members (and their spouses) to accept meals priced higher than 30,000 won (US$27), gifts exceeding 50,000 won, and congratulatory and condolence money [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Korea Bizwire) – A much-debated anti-graft law came into force in South Korea on Wednesday, calling for workers in certain sectors who should maintain higher ethical standards and refrain from receiving any gift priced beyond a legal ceiling. Under the Kim Young-ran Law, people working for the government, media outlets and schools [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 26 (Korea Bizwire) – A warrant is being sought to formally arrest the chief of the embattled South Korean retail giant Lotte, prosecutors said Monday, as the high-profile corruption probe into the country’s fifth-largest conglomerate nears its conclusion. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office submitted the request to a local court to detain [...]