North and South Korea
South Korean union agrees to implement mass layoffs at Daewoo
By Terry Cook, December 2, 2000
In a complete about face, South Korea's Daewoo Motor Company labour union dropped its campaign against job cuts and agreed on November 27 to accept the mass layoffs demanded by management, the governm...
Daewoo collapse to have global consequences
By Joe Lopez, November 18, 2000
The collapse of Daewoo Motor, South Korea's largest ever corporate failure, was the catalyst for a rally in the capital Seoul last week, involving 20,000 workers, protesting the impending mass layoffs...
Corruption scandal points to South Korea's continuing economic instability
By Luciano Fernandez, November 9, 2000
The administration of South Korean President Kim Dae Jung is currently embroiled in a corruption scandal that is symptomatic both of the country's fragile economy and of divisions in the ruling elite ...
The Nobel Peace Prize and Korea's Kim Dae-jung
By James Conachy, November 3, 2000
Behind the rhetoric surrounding last month's award of the Nobel Peace Prize to 75-year-old South Korean President Kim Dae-jung is an elementary truth: The prize is consistently given to figures who ha...
The Korean summit: no recipe for peace and prosperity
By James Conachy, July 27, 2000
The inter-Korea summit held in Pyongyang on June 14-15 marked a key shift in the Cold War relations that have dominated the divided peninsula for more than 50 years. Leaders of North and South Korea&m...
US magazine seeks to undermine accounts of Korean War massacre
By Shannon Jones, May 30, 2000
An article published in the May 22 edition of US News & World Report attempts to cast doubt on assertions, backed by substantial evidence, that US soldiers killed hundreds of civilians trapped under a...
South Korean poll dominated by a disgruntled and alienated electorate
By Luciano Fernandez and Peter Symonds, April 13, 2000
South Koreans go to the polls today to decide on the composition of the next parliament. The short campaign was notable only for the lack of fundamental differences between the major parties and for t...
Citizen group campaign throws South Korean elections into chaos
By Luciano Fernandez, February 23, 2000
An alliance of nearly 500 citizens groups has thrown national elections in South Korea into turmoil after publishing last month for the first time a “black list” of 164 politicians. These ...
Diplomatic scramble by Japan, US to open up North Korea
By James Conachy, December 31, 1999
Over the last four months, there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at lifting trade embargoes and opening up the isolated and economically crippled state of North Korea to foreign investm...
Signs of political instability as South Korean government prepares for next year's election
By Peter Symonds, December 18, 1999
Recent defeats in two local by-elections, a confrontation with the trade unions, an ongoing corruption scandal and continuing uncertainty in the financial and banking sector have left the South Korean...
Survivors of Korean War massacre by US soldiers seek investigation
By Esther Galen, November 17, 1999
Four survivors of a US Army massacre during the Korean War are visiting the United States to press their demands for a full investigation into killing of hundreds of refugees, mostly women, children a...
Daewoo collapse threatens further financial crisis in South Korea
By Luciano Fernandez and Peter Symonds, October 8, 1999
Fearing a major financial crisis, the South Korean government of President Kim Dae Jung announced a package on Monday aimed at stabilising the country's investment trust industry, which has been throw...
