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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Chinese weather woman in “Fucking” T-shirt




A weather woman in China broadcast while wearing a T-shirt with a swear word, stirring criticism among the public. The weather caster is said to work at WZTV, one of the national channels in Zhejiang Province.

A screen capture from the popular Chinese website tt.mop.com shows the weather caster in a T-shirt that reads, “Fucking.”

There was a similar controversy last year in Korea, when an online shopping mall, run by Korean girl group Kara, sold T-shirts bearing an off-color slang word.

Internet commenters have responded with, “How was she not aware of the word’s meaning?” “She may have done it intentionally,” and “She looks cute, so I will overlook her mistake.”

Blog Media World: Gadhafi's girl executioner admits shooting 11 rebel prisoners

Blog Media World: Gadhafi's girl executioner admits shooting 11 rebel prisoners

Gadhafi's girl executioner admits shooting 11 rebel prisoners

Korea could lower growth outlook for this year: minister



South Korea could revise downward its growth outlook for this year, the nation's top economic policymaker hinted Monday, citing lingering uncertainties at home and abroad.

"Overall, there are downside risks (on growth)," Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan told a forum held in central Seoul. "We stick to our growth outlook at this moment but I think we should make an accurate forecast again later."

His remarks come after the government revised down its growth projection for this year from 5 percent to 4.5 percent in June. The revision was announced along with its economic management plan for the second half of this year, which puts more focus on taming inflation.

"Our economy is expected to remain on a robust recovery track but it is true that downside risks increased," Bahk said.

"In particular, if the global economic recovery slows down and the instability in the financial market prolongs, it could also have a negative impact on our economy," he added.

Bahk, however, expressed optimism over inflation, saying that it seems possible to achieve the nation's annual inflation target of 4 percent for this year.

South Korea's consumer prices, a major gauge of inflation, jumped 4.7 percent in July from a year earlier, quickening from the previous month's 4.4 percent gain.

The government earlier worried that consumer prices could hit a yearly high in August mainly due to spiking prices of agricultural products. The minister last week said that the August inflation could be "higher than expected."

Bahk noted that the government can still achieve the 4-percent target if inflation stabilizes at the 3-percent range in September and stay at that level for the remainder of this year. (Yonhap News)

Korean inventor claims Miller's beer bottle design infringes on his patent



A South Korean inventor claimed Thursday that the bottle design of U.S.-based Miller Brewing Company's Miller Lite beer infringes on his patent registered here, and said he would take legal action against the global alcoholic beverage firm.

The inventor, who asked to be identified only by his surname Jung, said he acquired a patent on a bottle design, titled "A Bottle," from South Korean authorities in August 2009. Jung said that he has also applied for a patent in the United States and the process is under way.

His design has a spiral pattern engraved on the bottle neck to help slow down beer flow to avoid a sudden gush of beer.

Jung argues that his design is very similar to Miller Lite's so-called "Vortex Bottle", a design with grooves on the neck of the bottle that the company says create a vortex when the beer is poured.

Miller Brewing Korea, a South Korean unit of the U.S. beverage company, introduced the popular Miller Lite beer in the South Korean market around August last year, a year after Jung won the patent, according to industry sources.

Jung said that he contacted Miller and Owens Illinois Bottling Company, a U.S. container manufacturer that holds the patent on the Vortex Bottle.

"I've contacted lawyers of Miller and Owens to sell my patent rights as I thought the Vortex Bottle is similar to my invention.

But the connection was cut off after some talks," Jung said.

"Selling Miller Lite in South Korea definitely violates my patent. If they don't return to the table, I will file a lawsuit against Miller Korea, its headquarters and Owens."

Miller Korea said a patent dispute is totally up to its headquarters and Miller and Owens refused to comment further on the issue, citing the "pending legal dispute."

Miller Brewing Company is an American beer brewing company owned by the Britain-based SABMiller. SABMiller established MillerCoors in 2008, a joint venture to consolidate the production and distribution of its products in the U.S. (Yonhap News)

LG Chem targets 25% global market share


EO Kim says company is developing ‘second generation’ electric car batteries

LG Chem CEO Kim Bahn-suk had much to say regarding the future of the car battery market and how the company plans to carve out a leading share of global markets. He also talked about LG Chem’s vision for its people, and how that vision helped turn the company around since he came to office in 2006, a time when LG Chem was struggling to come through a rough patch. The following are exerpts from an interview he had with The Korea Herald.

KH: U.S. President Barack Obama and Korean President Lee Myung-bak attended inauguration ceremonies for LG Chem’s car battery plants, reflecting the peaking interest in electric car batteries. Tell us about the significance of the recently completed plant and future business goals.

Kim: The inauguration ceremony in April was significant in that it was a chance to proclaim that LG Chem, with its battery technology, has opened a new global chapter of electric cars.

Executives from major global carmakers such as GM, Hyundai Motor, Renault Samsung and Ford also were present, which was unprecedented. It was due evidence that LG Chem is leading the global electric car and battery market.

Orders have been piling up faster than we expected, as seen in the pre-orders from Chevrolet’s Volt, pushing LG Chem to grow at a speed overwhelming its competitors at both home and abroad, and a pace capable of leading global markets.

We now plan to invest 2 trillion won ($1.85 billion) by 2013, which is double the 1 trillion won we originally envisioned. We also are aiming to complete our second plant in Ochang by 2012 and are simultaneously building the plant in Michigan in the U.S., and will add a third plant.

LG Chem is ultimately aiming for a 25 percent global market share by 2015 and sales of 40 trillion won.

KH: Do you agree with views that the electric car era will be late coming due to niggles such as prolonged recharging time, expensive battery prices and a lack of recharging facilities and infrastructure?

Kim: It will eventually take less time to recharge the batteries, and prices also will go down on lower production costs and procedural upgrades. But the improvements can come only based on consistent development of materials.

LG Chem is currently developing a second generation of electric car batteries under the name “Generation 2,” which are basically batteries that allow three times more distance, but cut production costs down to one-third of the current expenses. Cars using these batteries are expected to start being rolled out by 2014-2015.

The infrastructure related to battery recharging will require more support from the government. Charging stations are more than just a gas station, so they must be considered in line with high-tech systems such as the Smart Grid system.
LG Chem CEO Kim Bahn-suk (left) attends the ground-breaking ceremony to build a battery factory for electric cars in Ochang Techno Park, North Chungcheong Province last month. President Lee Myung-bak (third from left) and LG Group chairman Koo Bon-moo (second from left) were also present in the event.  (LG Chem)


KH: How big will the car battery market become after 10 years? Also, how much will the battery business contribute to in profit?

Kim: The projections for the car battery market vary, but ultimately, they all point up.

I expect the car battery market to grow to 16 trillion won by 2015, then further to 50 trillion won by 2020. The figures may go up further when and if the electric car era arrives in earnest.

As we are targeting a 25 percent share of the global battery market, the car battery business will no doubt become a significant pillar for profit at LG Chem.

KH: There is some concern about excessive competition and consequent oversupply. How will you overcome such challenges?

Kim: The car battery market is based on pre-orders and sales expectations, so there is little room for supply overdrive. However, competition will undoubtedly intensify as the electric car market picks up, meaning a downturn in profitability.

But this is actually a natural step that will help the electric car industry take off and allow the lithium battery market to further grow.

What’s important is how to differentiate oneself amid the competition.

LG Chem will continue recording high profitability based on its expertise as one of the first-comers in the market and its investment in R&D and production capacities.

KH: You have mentioned seeing investment opportunities in the U.S. and China. When will be the right timing?

Kim: One thing that is clear is that we will make an investment whenever we feel is the right time.

KH: What are your plans for procuring raw materials such as lithium?

Kim: We have reached the conclusion that there is sufficient supply of lithium, so there won’t be any problems here for some time.

However, securing lithium is still a very important part of our business, and it was good to see the government trying to play its part, such as with the MOU it signed with Bolivia for lithium supplies.

With other suppliers of materials that decide the quality of batteries, we will have to establish strategic ties for mid and long-term supplies.

KH: LG Chem had a good first quarter performance, but there are challenges, such as falling exchange rates. How will LG Chem continue on its upward path under such circumstances?

Kim: Our operating profit has grown more than 500 billion won each year since 2006.

And once our other new businesses such as electric car batteries and the glass plates for LCD panels are reflected in our business portfolio, our profit will further benefit. So for LG Chem, this is actually only the beginning.

KH: How do you envision LG Chem’s global status to be in the next 5-10 yeas, and how will you achieve that status?

Kim: Our ultimate objective is to become a global top tier chemical firm, and also becoming a materials firm possessing globally renowned technology.

To achieve these goals, we will promote our three “Speed Management” principles, which are “Aiming for No.1 in core business,” “Customer value creation,” and “Strengthening global organizational capability.”

To upgrade our core areas of business, we will be focusing on strengthening cost leadership, product leadership and market leadership.

To create top-of-the-line customer values, we will offer differentiated solutions so that our clients can become No.1 in their own areas. To do this, we will continue to strengthen R&D.

Our organization also will be promoted to a globally competitive one based on our philosophy of “one company, one vision.”

In terms of business portfolios, we plan to increase the portion of batteries and information materials to half of our business. Currently, petrochemicals account for 70 percent of our portfolio.

KH: As a rule, you attend every recruitment event in the U.S. and Japan. Is there a special reason?

Kim: LG Group has a strong tendency to value its people above all else.

This is why I believe it is a part of a chief executive’s job to go out and try to get the right people.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the success of our new businesses hinge on how quickly we secure the right human resources to assign them to where they are needed.

This is why I place significant priority on the recruitment events, and why since I became CEO in 2006 I have never missed an opportunity.

KH: Training is also an important part of managing human resource operations. How does LG Chem train its employees?

Kim: LG Chem’s human resources system was rewarded for five times a row since 2006 by the Korea Management Association. Our system is that much recognized, and our training programs, in particular, are being benchmarked by many other companies.

LG Chem picks out employees seen as “High Potential Individuals” and offers them education and training opportunities alongside of their daily duties.

Some of these individuals are chosen to be fostered as global business leaders and even go on to be selected as candidates for future CEOs.

KH: LG Chem has definitely come a long way and is now one of the best performing companies in Korea. But when you first came to office in 2006, the company was facing overwhelming challenges. How did you overcome them?

Kim: To put it briefly, our business was turned around because our people changed. In 2006, LG Chem’s sales were growing, but its profitability was deteriorating.

So the management and I decided on a “speed management” strategy that basically called for increasing the pace of our business and the changes in our people by two-fold to bring about performance up four-fold.

To achieve this goal, we engaged in ‘earlier’ preparation, ‘faster’ results and ‘more frequent’ checks than our competitors.

The new strategy helped employees voluntarily push themselves to accomplish bigger objectives, and overcome their own limits.

The people power was also what helped us pursue and promote new businesses, such as car batteries.

KH: You have emphasized that employees must be able to recharge their batteries. Tell us more about this philosophy.

Kim: Our employees need to be able to recharge in time to be able to come to work the next day, bright and early, to focus on their duties. They also need to stay physically healthy.

My idea was to cut down on meetings and briefing sessions and let people decide when they should get home once the official work hours are over.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldm.com)

CEO PROFILE

• Education: Graduated in Chemical Engineering from Seoul National University in 1976

• Business Career

1997-: Executive Vice President of Polyethylene Division

2000-: Senior Executive Vice President of ABS•PS Division

2001-: President & CEO, LG Petrochemical Co., Ltd.

2005-: President & CEO, LG Daesan Petrochemical, Ltd.

2006-: President & CEO, LG Chem, Ltd.

2008-: Vice Chairman & CEO, LG Chem, Ltd.

• Motto: “Everything will be resolved if you make all-out efforts”

• Awards:
Korea Financial Management Awards, 2004

The Best CEO, Korea Management Awards, 2006

Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit, 2007

6th Global CEO Awards, 2008 CEO of the Year by Fortune Korea, 2010

CEO of the Year by KMA, 2011

• Hobbies: meditation, reading

Steve Job’s biological father yearning to meet his son


Steve Jobs’ biological father has expressed his desire to meet his son before he dies, the Daily Mail has reported.

A Syrian immigrant, Abdulfattah John Jandali said that he did not realize until a few years ago that former CEO of Apple was the son he gave up 50 years ago.

Jandali and his ex-wife Joanne Simpson had to give up their baby because Simpson’s father did not approve her of marrying a Syrian, the New York Post reported.

Jandali emailed Jobs a few times, but has been hesitant to call him.

“Steve will have to do that, as the Syrian pride in me does not want him every to think I am after his fortune,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

He said he hoped his son would call him someday so the two could simply go for a cup of coffee.

“I’d be lying if I said it doesn’t sadden me to have not been part of my son’s incredible journey. What father wouldn’t think of that? And I would think that even if he was not the head of a hugely successful company,” he added.

Jobs was adopted to a working-class couple Paul and Clara Jobs. They raised him in Mountainview California after signing adoption papers saying that they would send him to university, Daily Mail reported.

For decades, the former CEO did not want to talk about his private life, cutting off interviews and publications that tried to reveal his life as an adopted kid.

Daegu a heartbreaker for many athletes


DAEGU -- They sat together at the doping control room when the surprising news came.

Dayron Robles, the world record holder and Olympic champion, thought he had won the Worlds title after crossing the line first in men’s 110-meter hurdles final on Monday, until his friend and rival Liu Xiang came to him and said: “You’re disqualified.”

“He didn’t believe, so I said ‘Yes, it’s on TV,’” said the Chinese hurdler at the news conference held at midnight following a protest and counter-protest of the final result on Monday.

Cuban hurdler Robles, who had been the first to cross the line in 13.14, was stripped of gold and glory at the world athletics championships on Monday night, handing victory to Jason Richardson, who came second in 13.16. Liu, third across the line in 13.27, was elevated to the silver medal and Andrew Turner took the bronze in 13.44.

“I felt like someone touched my arm and I lost my balance for a while,” Liu said through an interpreter.

The two were running alongside in lanes ahead of others until the final hurdle when the Cuban hit the Chinese athlete’s arm. And Liu, who later said he believed he could have won the race, lost his balance, finishing third behind Robles and Richardson.

“It happens all the time in the competitions, so I am okay with everything that happened tonight,” Liu said.

“I wish it had been a drama-free race. It’s a bittersweet experience. It’s never good when someone as talented as Dayron gets disqualified,” said the new world champion Richardson.

It is one of several surprises to have taken place at this year’s World Championships.

The biggest shock came on the second day of competition when Usain Bolt, reigning Olympic and world champion, was disqualified in men’s 100m final after a false start.

Earlier that day, another dramatic result came in men’s 10,000 meters as Kenenisa Bekele, who tallied a record total of 22 World Championships golds and had never lost a 10,000 race, suffered his first defeat after limping off the track during the competition.

On Monday in the women’s 400m final, Amantle Montsho also surprised the crowd and her country by winning Botswana’s first ever gold medal at the World Athletics Championships, overcoming a stellar field that included three-time 200m world champion Allyson Felix as well as the reigning champion Sanya Richards to win the title in a new national record of 49.56 seconds.

By Oh Kyu-wook (596story@haraldm.com)

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Policymakers dismiss double-dip concern

Blog Media World: Billboard opens K-pop chart

Blog Media World: Billboard opens K-pop chart

Blog Media World: Billboard opens K-pop chart

Blog Media World: Billboard opens K-pop chart

Billboard opens K-pop chart

Foreigners jettison Hyundai shares

Blog Media World: Road toward the future

Blog Media World: Road toward the future

Road toward the future




Controversy over distorted Korean videos by China media




One Chinese portal website has claimed that Korean celebrities who committed suicide appear on sex film and this has stirred public anger in Korea.

Maopu, the most popular website in China, has posted a video titled “Sexual favors by Korean celebrities.” In the video, the dead celebrities are next to erotic movie actresses and compared to them. Korean actress Choi Jin-sil, Lee Eun-ju, Jeon Da-bin, Jang Ja-yeon, news caster Song Ji-sun and top model Lee Yu-ri appeared on the video.

The video was reported as “Korean celebrities for sexual favor” to Chinese media on Aug. 15. It contains the scenes that Korean women sell sex e for money. The Chinese media distorted it, saying that “Korean celebrities who killed themselves have hidden erotic videos.”

This video clip has got a lot of hits and spread to other websites, so the situation will not be eased for a short time. In addition, the situation will be worse because Korean netizens are outraged by the news and react furiously. Among the comments of netizens are “We will make strong protest against the website” and “They killed the dead twice. I will not overlook this incident.”

US agency to offer tours to Mt. Geumgang


By Kim Young-jin

A Chicago-based travel agency that arranges tours to North Korea has said it will offer trips to the Mt. Geumgang resort in the communist state, the site of an inter-Korean tourism project that remains in limbo.

Asia Pacific Travel LTD (APTL) said in a press release announcing its 2012 schedule that its stop at the resort would be the first by tour groups since 2008.

“Kumgang has been closed to tourists from the North since 1998 and to all tourists since 2008. APTL is able to take tourists to this area of Kumgang using the historic Kumgangsan Hotel in the resort development complex,” it said in the release dated Thursday, using another spelling for the mountain.

A representative at the Ministry of Unification that oversees inter-Korean projects had not heard about the development.

The announcement came days after Pyongyang expelled the last remaining South Korean workers at the resort after vowing to dispose of South Korean assets there, the latest in a rancorous spat over the site.

Tours operated by the South’s Hyundai Asan were halted in 2008 over the shooting death of a female tourist who allegedly breached the resort’s boundaries.

Seoul wants an apology for the shooting and a safety guarantee before the project resumes, steps Pyongyang says it has already addressed.

The North has vowed to lease or sell the assets under a new plan to open the resort to foreign investors including those from the South, apparently frustrated with Seoul’s stance.

“If confirmed, this would show that North Korea is beginning to use the resort for its own purposes, as it announced it would,” Yoo Ho-yeol, an analyst at Korea University, said. “It is trying to show its determination.”

Seoul has called the moves “regrettable” and vows to use legal and diplomatic means to protect the property said to be worth some 484 billion won ($447 million).

The North froze the assets last year and passed a law opening the site up of foreign investment in June. Seoul is willing to take the matter before international arbitration.

Yoo said the North could be playing a game of brinksmanship to compel Seoul to change its position, but that it is testing the waters for foreign tourism in a bid to attract currency.

Some 2 million South Koreans visited the resort after the project emerged during a period of détente. The operations were seen as a needed source of hard cash for the isolated North.

An estimated 2,000 Westerners visit the North each year. APTL has been arranging upscale tours to the isolated regime since 1995.
yjk@koreatimes.co.kr

Samsung, LG scramble to adjust to Cook era



By Kim Yoo-chul

The departure of long-time Apple head man Steve Jobs has been mourned by the media and tech geeks around the world.

But for Korean technology giants Samsung and LG, which saw their relationship with their American rival becoming complicated, the start of the Tim Cook era at Apple allows hope for a restart.

Samsung, which has dual strength in parts and finished products, is a close partner with Apple in components like chips and liquid-crystal displays (LCDs), but a bitter rival in mobile devices like smartphones and portable computers.

Apple has been pushing legal action against Samsung, accusing the Korean electronics maker for ``slavishly’’ copying the look and feel of its immensely popular iPhones and iPads in its own handsets and touch-screen tablets.

But with Jobs gone from day-to-day business operations at Apple, Samsung officials hope that Cook will be more willing to ink cross-licensing deals to quiet the dispute over design-related patents.

LG Display, which competes with Samsung as the world’s largest LCD provider, sees the leadership change at Apple as a chance to strengthen their business partnership.

``A `goodwill’ gesture from Apple is expected soon, although that doesn’t necessarily mean that an imminent cross-licensing deal with Apple will materialize,’’ said a Samsung official, who didn’t want to be named.

Samsung officials say Cook isn’t as charismatic as Jobs. He is more of a quiet, no-nonsense leader who is credited for building the structure of Apple’s current supply-chain management system.

Cook is also known as the chief architect behind Apple’s global distribution and manufacturing network that allowed it to be a well-oiled machine that continued to pump out iPhones, iPads and Macs across borders.

``Because Cook is open-minded, well-mannered and centered more around strategic thinking, there is reason to believe that he will be willing to build a stronger and more mutually-beneficial relationship with Samsung,’’ said the Samsung source.

Cook, formerly Apple’s chief operating officer (COO), met with Samsung’s top brass during his visit to the company in June last year. Samsung officials who have dealt with Cook in the past were impressed with his down-to-earth and practical management style, the Samsung source said.

And although Cook may never become the pitchman Jobs was, he has a desire to captivate, industry people say.

``Because Tim Cook was known to have deep interests in `wow’ technologies, chances are likely that Apple may have appetites to look into Samsung’s advanced organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays,’’ said Kim Dong-won, an analyst at Hyundai Securities.

Samsung supplies a massive amount of memory chips, displays and lithium-ion batteries to Apple every year.

LG glad to see Cook at helm

LG Display officials claim they have built ``very good’’ personal relationships with Cook over the years. Cook was treated like royalty when he visited LG’s LCD complex in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, last year.

``I meet Cook at least three times in a year. The most powerful trait that Cook has is that he fully listens and is willing to understand every issue from top to bottom,’’ said LG Display CEO Kwon Young-soo.

LG Display has been the most critical partner for Apple in supplying the high-definition ``Retina Displays’’ used on its iGadgets.

Retina Displays are expected to continue being used in Apple’s future smartphones and tablets. Apple also buys camera modules from another LG firm, LG Innotek.

LG Display has been increasing its shipments of components to make the iPad 2 upon further requests from Apple amid quality problems at Samsung Electronics, according to high-level LG officials.

KT, the Korean mobile-phone carrier and the country’s biggest supplier of iPhones, boasts a good relationship with Cook.

Cook had backed plans to provide KT handsets that run on WiBro, the Korean equivalent to mobile WiMAX, although Jobs later shot down the idea, KT officials claim.

``KT has proven WiBro technologies. Because Apple is shifting its eyes on external growth in Asia that includes China, Japan and even Korea, it is likely that talks will restart over WiBro-available handsets,’’ said a KT executive, asking not to be identified.

It remains to be seen if such rosy estimations prove true as it’s unlikely that Apple will see a big change in terms of management.

Korean suppliers who have dealt with Cook’s team say he is an aggressive negotiator, and his team haggles down the price of parts to half a penny.

``He was totally specific in terms of his expectations and I think Cook is polite but strongly-persistent and unyielding in his own asking. But the one clear thing is that Cook understands pending issues in the shortest time,’’ said one executive from one of Apple’s local suppliers.

Nam Dae-jong, an analyst at Hi Investment, said Apple will be more favorable to suppliers who sell their components more cheaply and just maintain the ``technical relationship’’ that Apple demands.

``Yes, Apple will have more bargaining power to its key suppliers under the reign of Tim Cook as he knows how to perfectly handle Apple’s SCM systems,’’ said the executive, expecting Cook will be more demanding about on-time delivery and quality.

Japan’s history distortion hampers bilateral ties



This is the first in a five-part series exploring how best to realize an East Asian community of reconciliation and communication in the 21st century. ― ED

By Lee Tae-hoon

Tokyo’s reluctance to acknowledge the invalidity of the Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty in 1910 remains a major stumbling block for the co-prosperity of the two neighboring countries and more largely, for the East Asian community, according to a researcher at the Northeast Asian History Foundation.

Next Sunday marks the centennial of Japan's forced annexation of Korea, but the perception of the bitter historical event remains greatly divided between Koreans and Japanese.

Japan has repeatedly apologized for colonizing Korea and the suffering inflicted upon Koreans, but it stills maintains that the treaty was legitimate.

“The world is fast moving toward becoming an integrated community, but why do Seoul and Tokyo remain poles apart even on a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA)?” Doh See-hwan, a research fellow at the state-run think tank in Seoul, asked in an interview with The Korea Times last week.

He noted that vestiges of Japan’s imperialism and aggression continue to erode the foundation of the bilateral FTA and other regional cooperative frameworks.

Doh said the two countries need to work together to contribute to peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia through mutual understanding and cooperation in the 21st century and for this, they should first overcome the painful legacy of the 20th century.

A joint survey by Korea’s JoongAng Ilbo daily and Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun on July 30 and Aug. 1 found that the majority of people in both countries believe Seoul and Tokyo should forge a FTA, but they starkly differ on their views of the annexation.

It shows 66 percent of Koreans and 65 percent of Japanese support the FTA.

As to the annexation, 78.9 percent of Koreans answered it was unjust, while only 20 percent of Japanese replied it was wrong.

Japan’s insincerity

He noted that the Korean government was caught off guard in 2005, when it was determined to renew the bilateral ties for marking the 60th anniversary of its liberation from 35 years of Japanese colonial rule.

The government expressed its desire to build fresh momentum in bilateral relations in 2005 as it also marked the 40th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties with Japan.

“The government believed the time was ripe in 2005 for Korea to be lenient on historical issues over Japan after successfully co-hosting of the 2002 World Cup,” Doh said.

“However, in return for such friendly gestures, Japan declared that Dokdo, an inseparable part of Korean territory and life, as their own, designating Feb. 22nd as Takeshima Day.”

Japan calls Dokdo “Takeshima,” which can be translated into “bamboo island,” in claiming sovereignty over the islets in the East Sea.

No single bamboo tree, however, exists on Dokdo.

“Many Japanese insist that it is time to leave history behind and turn to the future, while overlooking Korea’s deep-rooted distrust on Japan,” Doh said.

Doh said the incident gave a lesson to Koreans.

“It struck us hard,” he said. “We came to the realization that Japan’s distortion of history will eventually lead to a violation of Korea’s territorial sovereignty.”



Root of conflict

Doh argues that Japan's coerced annexation of Korea in 1910 is the root cause of the conflict over history, as Japan insists that the treaty was legal and adhered to the due process required by international law.

He said such a denial provides a good excuse for Tokyo to dodge blame for the atrocities it caused, including forcibly sending Young Korean males to battlefields and making teenage girls work as sex slaves.

“Tokyo’s refusal to admit the legal invalidity of the annexation reflects on Japan's attitude toward international human rights conventions,” Doh said.

However, a growing number of scholars are raising their voices against Japan’s claims.

Early this month, Lee Tae-jin, professor emeritus at Seoul National University, unveiled documents that show the century-old annexation pact was void because Korea’s proclamation of the treaty lacked the nation’s state seal.

The documents revealed that the original copy of the Korean proclamation contained only King Sunjong’s private seal, which was used solely for administrative approval.

The Korean edict lacked his signature and the required state seal. In contrast, the Japanese edict of the treaty had Japan’s state seal and the signature of Emperor Meiji, who signed it with his personal name Mutsuhito.

The discrepancies in the format of the two royal documents counter Japan’s assertion that the annexation took effect legally with the approval of King Sunjong.

“Treaties without the delegation of full authority or ratification were considered null and void a century ago,” Doh said.

Calls to rectify history

On May 10, 109 Korean and 105 Japanese intellectuals held press conferences in Seoul and Tokyo, respectively, to pronounce the invalidity of the annexation treaty.

"Japan's annexation of Korea was an imperialistic and illicit act using military power to overcome protests from Koreans," they wrote in a joint statement.

"The preamble and body of the treaty are all lies and there are serious flaws in its process and form. As the process of amalgamation is unjust, the annexation treaty is wrong."

On July 28, 1,118 intellectuals _ 587 Koreans and 531 Japanese _ issued a joint statement, demanding Tokyo's admission that the Japan-Korea annexation treaty was void because it was flawed and illegal.

Doh said Japan should recognize that its denial of disgraced history is tantamount to a negation of justice and a refusal of peace.

“The Tokyo government ought to resolve the history conflict by respecting the universal values of justice and conscience,” he said.

“Only after that can Japan truly become a peace-loving member of the international community.”

Remaining challenges

Doh said Japan must overcome the legacies of its imperialism and territorial disputes with its neighboring countries in order to help the region unite and work as partners.

“Despite similarities in culture and geographical proximity, numerous Asia countries still hold bad feelings against Japan because of its past wrongdoings such as the mobilization of some 200,000 females throughout Asia, including Dutch women who had lived in Indonesia, as comfort women,” Doh said.

He also noted that Japan is also currently having disputes about islands with China and Russia.

Japan claims the Senkaku Islands, known in Chinese as the Diaoyu Islands, as its territory, saying that they were protected under the Japan-U.S. security treaty.

Japan is also in dispute with Russia over sovereignty over the South Kuril Islands.

The Northeast Asian History Foundation of Korea will host an international symposium under the theme of “Japan's Forced Annexation of Korea in 1910, Its History and Tasks,” from Tuesday through Thursday in Seoul.
leeth@koreatimes.co.kr

Global cooperation on corruption urged


By Lee Tae-hoon

Anti-corruption advocates and experts from around the world have gathered in Seoul to call for stronger global cooperation at the Symposium on Strengthening Global Leadership and Cooperation against Corruption.

On Tuesday, the first leg of the two-day conference, they discussed ways to ensure the effective implementation of anti-corruption policies around the world and raise awareness on the importance of strong anti-corruption measures being included in the G20 Seoul Statement.

Korea will host the G20 Summit on Nov. 11 and 12.

U.N. Convention against Corruption

During the forum, Giovanni Gallo, an expert at the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime, said the very existence of an U.N. anti-corruption convention is proof that corruption is no longer a domestic crime.

“It is a crime that does not respect borders. There is a strong need for international cooperation on extradition and mutual legal assistance, law enforcement cooperation and joint investigations,” he said.

He claimed that borders and safe havens should not obstruct investigations in bringing guilty parties to justice.

The convention, which was adopted in 2003 and took effect in December 2005, aims at creating an effective global network of anti-corruption agencies. It has accelerated the pace of the global anti-corruption agenda.

Gallo noted that international cooperation is especially important when stolen assets need to be identified and recovered.

“It is possible to obtain the stolen billions back if innovative tools for asset recovery are put in place,” he said.

Gallo added that success depends on the removal of banking secrecy and a greater willingness by politicians and anti-corruption authorities of receiving states to cooperate for the return of stole resources.

He also expressed optimism that Korea and other member countries of the G20 Summit will play a big role in combating corruption.

At the previous summit in Toronto in June this year, G20 leaders called upon the world to ratify and implement the U.N. Convention against Corruption as a means to redouble international efforts to combat corruption.

They also agreed to establish a working group to draw up comprehensive recommendations for consideration by “leaders in Korea on how the G20 could continue to make practical and valuable contributions to international efforts to combat corruption.”

Transnational anti-corruption regime

Kevin Davis, professor at the New York University School of Law, addressed the limits of existing anti-corruption rounds and shed light on the role that foreign institutions play in combating corruption in developing countries.

He underscored the idea that foreign legal institutions can step in and be of assistance when their domestic counterparts are found wanting, which some people call a form of legal globalization.

“The international investment regime is typically justified by reference to the idea that investor-state arbitration can usefully compensate for the shortcomings of national courts in capital-importing countries,” Davis said.

“The idea of calling on foreign legal institutions to buttress domestic institutions is particularly appealing when what is at stake is the very integrity of the state.”

He also noted that globalization of the causes of corruption may demand globalization of the institutional responses.

Davis said transnational anti-corruption law began in the United States when investigations into “dirty tricks” by the Richard Nixon administration uncovered evidence that U.S. multinational corporations were routinely making illicit payments to foreign public officials out of secret slush funds.

Davis claimed that the anti-corruption movement began to bear fruit in the late 1990s, saying the first and most notable success was the conclusion of the OECD Convention in 1997.

He said developing countries also came under considerable pressure from international financial institutions and other actors to adopt international norms concerning government procurement during the period.

Davis stressed the role that foreign institutions can play in fighting corruption, saying they can press the government to adopt measures designed to minimize opportunities for corruption and impose criminal liability for paying bribes to local public officials.

He added that foreign institutions may extradite suspected bribe-payers, provide mutual legal assistance in the course of corruption and impose criminal liability for soliciting or accepting a bribe.

“It is also important to understand that foreign institutions may provide not only additional resources, but resources that local institutions cannot obtain at any price,” Davis said.

He pointed out that foreign legal institutions may have access to superior information and - with the advent of globalization - information about corporate misconduct can just as easily be located outside the jurisdiction of the bribe-recipient as inside.

Cons of transnational regime

Davis also addressed potential disadvantages of involving foreign legal institutions, including indifference and incompatibility.

He argued that self-interested foreign institutions will not dedicate their resources to combating corruption in developing countries because they, and their societies to which they belong, receive no material benefit from doing so.

He said a second set of arguments against relying on foreign institutions’ anti-corruption efforts is that those efforts may not be compatible with local needs or desires.

“Foreigners’ anti-corruption efforts may also be incompatible with the material interests, as opposed to the moral values, of local actors. The problem stems from the fact that many aspects of the transnational anti-corruption regime, including those which punish firms for paying bribes to foreign public officials, tend to discourage firms from doing business in countries with corrupt officials,” Davis said.

He argued that cutting off those countries’ access to trade and investment threatens to undermine their development prospects.

Also during the symposium, Moch Jasin, vice chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission in Indonesia, introduced his country’s achievements and challenges of implementing anti-corruption policy.

Other panelists included Yu Xiancheng, director general on Corruption Prevention at the Ministry of Supervision in China, and Paul Lachal Roberts, adviser to the director-general at European Anti-Fraud Office, who shed light on the role of leading countries in anti-corruption efforts.

The second day will focus on issues concerning anti-corruption cooperation mechanisms between central and local governments.

The conference took place at the Sheraton Walkerhill in northeastern Seoul on the first day and will continue at the Alpensia Resort in PyeongChang, Gangwon Province on Wednesday.
leeth@koreatimes.co.kr

Sunshine Policy should remain intact to secure peace: Rep. Choo Mi-ae


By Lee Tae-hoon

The previous two liberal administrations’ engagement policy toward Pyongyang, known as the “Sunshine Policy” has come under criticism again as tensions on Korean Peninsula escalate to a new high, following North Korea’s artillery bombardment of Yeonpyeong Island on Nov. 23.

The hard-line Lee Myung-bak administration and governing Grand National Party (GNP) were quick to pass the buck to the preceding governments, claiming that Seoul’s economic assistance to Pyongyang and the latter’s alleged reluctance to dismantle its nuclear programs led to the tragic consequence.

However, Rep. Choo Mi-ae, a three-term lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party and a former special envoy to the U.S. on the North Korean nuclear issues in early 2003, begs to differ.

“The GNP and the incumbent administration have no right to talk about the failure of the Sunshine Policy,” Choo told The Korea Times in a recent interview at the National Assembly.

The judge-turned politician attributes the North plutonium program and its latest armed provocation, the first military strike on South Korean soil since the end of 1950-53 Korean War, to the Lee administration’s derailing of the engagement policy.

Only about 10 days prior to the surprise attack on Yeonpyeong Island, which killed two South Korean marines and two civilians, the world’s most clandestine regime revealed to Stanford University professor Siegfried Hecker a covert uranium enrichment plant equipped with more than 1,000 centrifuges.

“The previous governments pursued the Sunshine Policy to prevent such devastating consequences, but the Lee administration stopped and derailed it upon taking office in Feb. 2008,” Choo said.

She likened the Sunshine Policy to a train with the final destination, named “Unification.”

“It was wrong for the new administration to derail a train on the track for unification,” the lawmaker added.

The Sunshine Policy was devised by the late President Kim Dae-jung from the Aesop fable “The North Wind and the Sun.” In the fable, when the wind blows strongly, the man clutches his coat tightly about him, but when the sun shines warmly, he voluntarily takes off his coat.

Choo said she believes more sanctions and hard-line policies against the North will only make the Stalinist regime resort more to the use of military force and its nuclear program.

Value of trust and consistency

She noted that rebuilding trust and maintaining consistency of North Korean policy are two of the most essential factors that could lead to denuclearization of the reclusive North and the establishment of a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, which remains one of the most heavily armed places in the world.

“Korea should take a lesson from West Germany’s engagement policy, which was firmly backed by both liberal and conservative administrations for more than two decades until the realization of reunification with East Germany,” Choo said.

The lawmaker pointed out the broken trust between the Koreas may be restored by confirming agreements already reached by the two, including the June 15, 2000 Joint Declaration that the leaders of the two Koreas signed during the first inter-Korean summit.

In the document, Kim Dae-jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, agreed to seek unification independently by the concerted efforts of the Korean people and make efforts to replace the Armistice which ended the Korean War with a permanent peace treaty.

She noted that the 2000 declaration was in line with the Inter-Korean Basic Agreement signed by the conservative Roh Tae-woo administration in December 1991.

The Basic Agreement calls for reconciliation and nonaggression between the two Koreas.

“If the Lee administration upheld the spirit of the past inter-Korean agreements, such a serious national security threat as the attack on Yeonpyeong Island would not have taken place,” Choo said.

Security guarantee to the North

She said a security guarantee to Pyongyang should be considered as promised in the six-party talks in order to induce the reclusive regime to abandon its nuclear ambitions.

Choo stressed that if the South and U.S. continue to insist on their stance that economic aid and security guarantee will be provided only after the communist North gives up its nuclear program first, the North will continue to develop nuclear weapons.

“If the North promises to irreversibly de-nuclearize, Seoul and Washington need to promise the corresponding security guarantee,” she said. “Unless the North is 100 percent assured, it will continue to make nuclear bombs.”

She noted that Pyongyang showed sincere efforts to dismantle its nuclear program until early 2008, when the South pursued the Sunshine Policy that reassured the communist regime’s security guarantee.

As part of a disarmament agreement of the six party talks, the North handed over to the U.S. State Department 18,000 pages of operating records from the Yongbyon nuclear reactor in May 2008.

Legal base for unification

She said the government should prepare the international legal basis for guaranteeing unification of the two Koreans and must not overlook the vacuum of this basis to seek reunification in the event of the collapse of North Korea.

“The division was not of the Korean people’s volition,” she said.

She pointed out that, even if North Koreans wanted reunion desperately, it would not be easy for them to make a self-determined decision and exercise their political destiny.

She said, if the communist regime falls apart, the separated Koreas could miss an opportunity for reunion, as this will inevitably lead to a political vacuum.

“Its geopolitical importance may induce intervention by neighboring countries such as China,” Choo said.

She urged the establishment of a legal basis that “guarantees unification via the Korean people’s own decision without any intervention and obstruction from outsiders in the event of an emergency.”

Currently, the Constitution of South Korea stipulates that North Korea is part of the former’s territory to prevent another country, such as China or Russia, from taking over the isolated country if the impoverished regime falls apart.

She underlined that the Sunshine Policy clearly set its goal as the reunification of the divided Koreas through an incremental approach.

Choo said when reform and opening expand, the North Korean people will be freed from the illusion of the military-first policy and regain the traditional value of Korean humanism, and homogeneity will be restored, paving a path to reunification.


Who is Choo Mi-ae?

Choo Mi-ae, 52, is a judge-turned politician. The three-term lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) served as a judge at the District Courts of Chuncheon, Incheon and Jeonju, and Gwangju High Court between 1985 and 1995.

She was first elected as a lawmaker to represent the district of Gwangjin-gu, Seoul in 1996, and maintained her seat in the following general election in 2000 with the majority of the vote.

She was appointed as special envoy to the United States on the North Korean nuclear issue in 2003.

Choo spearheaded her party’s general election campaign in 2004 when it was engulfed in a crisis in the wake of the parliamentary impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun in March 2004.

During the political turmoil, she earned the nickname, “Choo D’arc” for her strong leadership and determination to rescue her troubled party.

Following the election, she left the country to study at Columbia University in New York from Sept. 2004 through June 2006.

She became an invited professor at Hanyang Graduate School of International Studies in September 2006.

She successfully ran for her third-term as a legislator in 2008 and served as chairwoman of the National Assembly’s Environment and Labor Committee between August 2008 and May 2010.
leeth@koreatimes.co.kr

Iconic Marilyn Monroe dress sells for $4.6 million


In this June 10, 2011 photo, entertainer Debbie Reynolds poses between dresses worn by actress Marilyn Monroe in the films "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," left, and "River of No Return," right, at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills, Calif. Pieces in Reynolds' extensive collection of Hollywood memorabilia will be put up for auction at the Paley Center. AP-Yonhap News


LOS ANGELES (AFP) – The legendary white dress seen billowing under Marilyn Monroe in an iconic image of 1950s Hollywood has sold at auction for $4.6 million, shattering estimates.

The dress, worn by the star in the 1955 film "The Seven Year Itch," had been expected to fetch between one and two million dollars.

But the sale Saturday, part of a collection of Hollywood memorabilia held by actress Debbie Reynolds, saw Monroe's "subway" dress -- now cream colored from age -- sold for $4.6 million (or $5,520,000, with added fees).

The entire sale, which included other Monroe garbs, was valued at $22.8 million, Nancy Seltzer, a spokeswoman for auction house Profiles in History, told AFP in an email.

Signed by the American designer William Travilla, the pleated ivory dress contributed in part to Monroe's enduring image as a 20th Century sex symbol.

It was the highest value feature of the auction that also some 700 pieces go under the hammer.

Among them were dresses Monroe wore in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1953) and "The River of No Return" (1954), as well as costumes from other classic Hollywood staples "Gone With the Wind," "The Sound of Music," "Cleopatra," "Ben-Hur," "The Wizard of Oz," and "My Fair Lady."

Reynolds, a singer, dancer and actress whose greatest role came in "Singin' in the Rain," began collecting Hollywood memorabilia in the 1970s when MGM Studios liquidated its assets. Her immense collection includes over 3,500 costumes, 20,000 photographs and hundreds of props and other decorations.

A second sale from the Reynolds collection is planned for December.

Fed chairman's speech to have limited impact on Korea: gov't



 The chief of the Federal Reserve refrained from laying out further steps to boost the fragile U.S. economy, but it is likely to have a limited impact on South Korea's financial markets, officials said Saturday.

   Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday stopped short of hinting at the third round of quantitative easing, known as QE3 in markets, to support the weakening economy at a conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. But the chairman said the central bank still has policy tools to stimulate the economy and will extend its September policy meeting into two days to mull its options.

   Korean government officials said as his remarks have been widely expected, they would have little impact on the local financial markets.

   "As many have already expected that Bernanke would not signal QE3, its impact will be limited on the local markets," a senior official at the finance ministry said.

   "But the government will closely monitor the market as the local financial markets have undergone volatility following the U.S. credit downgrade."

   The outlook for the global economy is growing dimmer as the first-ever U.S. credit rating downgrade and the eurozone sovereign strain have been raising concerns that the global economy may slide into a recession.

   A slowing U.S. economy could throw cold water onto the Korean economy as its economic output heavily depends on exports. The South Korean financial markets have been also sensitive to foreign capital flows as the country has repeatedly experienced massive capital outflows whenever big external shocks crop up.

   The Korean government said it is closely monitoring the local financial markets by running an emergency task force around the clock and is ready to take market stabilizing measures if necessary.

   The Jackson Hole meeting has been under spotlight as market players had awaited whether Bernanke would lay out powerful but controversial stimulus measures as he did at last year's meeting.

   Last year, Bernanke said the central bank will conduct a second round of asset-buying programs worth $600 billion to boost its economy. But emerging countries like China have voiced criticism about the QE2 that cheap money has been flowing into those countries, raising risks of inflation and asset bubbles. Even some Fed policymakers raised questions on the effectiveness of the asset-buying scheme with the U.S. still struggling with high unemployment rates.

   At present, there is growing expectation in the market that instead of QE3, the Fed is likely to opt to buy more long-term debt and sell short-term bonds in a bid to push down long-term interest rates without further bloating its balance sheet. (Yonhap)

Host mines laughs from Web death threat

http://www.koreaherald.com/entertainment/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20110823000499
 
NEW YORK (AP) ― Even a fatwa is grist for comedy when you’re David Letterman.

Back from two weeks’ vacation and making his first TV appearance since a threat against his life was posted on a jihadist website, the “Late Show” host played it for laughs during Monday’s monologue.
U.S. President Barack Obama (left) jokes with David Letterman during a taping of the Late Show with David Letterman in September 2009 in New York City. (AFP-Yonhap News)

Letterman began by thanking his studio audience for being there.

“Tonight,” he said, “you people are more, to me, honestly, than an audience ― you’re more like a human shield.”

Then he apologized for having been tardy coming out onstage.

“Backstage, I was talking to the guy from CBS,” he explained. “We were going through the CBS life insurance policy to see if I was covered for jihad.”

Until Letterman delivered his jokes, his situation seemed no laughing matter.

Last week, a frequent contributor to a jihadist website posted the threat against Letterman. He urged Muslim followers to “cut the tongue” of the late-night host because of a joke and gesture the comic had made about al-Qaida leaders on his CBS show earlier this summer.

“A guy, a radical extremist threatened to cut my tongue out,” Letterman marveled during Monday’s monologue. Then, referring to his disastrous turn hosting the 1995 Oscarcast, he added, “I wish I had a nickel for every time a guy has threatened (that). I think the first time was during the Academy Awards.”

“And so now,” he continued, “State Department authorities are looking into this.” But they could save themselves some time: “Everybody knows it’s (Jay) Leno.”

Along with his monologue, Letterman mined the situation for his Top Ten List: “Top Ten Thoughts That Went Through My Mind After Hearing about the Threat.”

One joke that may have helped spark the fatwa was one of several lampooning al-Qaida in Letterman’s June 8 monologue. This was just days after the death of al-Qaida leader Ilyas Kashmiri, who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan. Though Kashmiri was rumored to be a long-shot choice to succeed Osama bin Laden, he wouldn’t have worked out even had he lived, Letterman cracked, pointing to Kashmiri’s “rocky start” as a front-runner: “He botched up the story of Paul Revere.”

The real butt of that joke: Sarah Palin, potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate, who in early June on her “One Nation” bus tour had claimed that Paul Revere’s famous ride was intended to warn British soldiers as well as his fellow colonists.

The website contributor, who identified himself as Umar al-Basrawi, railed in his post that Letterman had referred to both bin Laden and Kashmiri and said that Letterman, in discussing Kashmiri’s death, had “put his hand on his neck and demonstrated the way of slaughter.”

“Is there not among you a Sayyid Nosair al-Mairi ... to cut the tongue of this lowly Jew and shut it forever?” Al-Basrawi wrote, referring to El Sayyid Nosair, who was convicted of the 1990 killing of Jewish Defense League founder Meir Kahane. Letterman is not Jewish.

Al-Basrawi, considered likely to be an alias, has made some 1,200 postings to the Muslim website, according to Adam Raisman, an analyst for the Site Monitoring Service. The private firm, part of the Site Intelligence Group, provides information to government and commercial clients on what jihadists are saying on the Internet and in traditional media. Raisman said the online forum is often used by al-Qaida.

The FBI said last week that it was looking into the threat.

While Letterman and his writers were polishing their jokes Monday afternoon, outside, a bomb-sniffing dog was led around the periphery of the Ed Sullivan Theater in midtown Manhattan. Meanwhile, ticket-holders queuing up along Broadway seemed relaxed about attending Letterman’s first taping since the assassination threat. Some were even unaware that his life had been threatened.

“I’m not worried. They’ve got metal detectors,” said Kendall Phillips, a 25-year-old from Houston, noting a standard provision in the TV world for screening audience members. “Plus, it’s like really hard to get tickets.”

Steve Jobs, Apple CEO and creative force, resigns



SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Steve Jobs, the mind behind the iPhone, iPad and other devices that turned Apple Inc. into one of the world's most powerful companies, resigned as CEO on Wednesday, saying he can no longer handle the job but will continue to play a leadership role.

In this March 2, 2011 file photo, Apple Inc. Chairman and CEO Steve Jobs waves to his audience at an Apple event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco. (AP)




The move appears to be the result of an unspecified medical condition for which Jobs took a leave from his post in January. Apple's chief operating officer, Tim Cook, was quickly named CEO of the company Jobs co-founded 35 years ago in his garage.

In a letter addressed to Apple's board and the ``Apple community,'' Jobs said he ``always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.''

The company said Jobs gave the board his resignation Wednesday and suggested Cook be named the company's new leader. Apple said Jobs was elected board chairman and Cook is becoming a member of its board.

Genentech Inc. Chairman Art Levinson, in a statement issued on behalf of Apple's board, said Jobs' ``extraordinary vision and leadership saved Apple and guided it to its position as the world's most innovative and valuable technology company.''

He said that Jobs will continue to provide ``his unique insights, creativity and inspiration,'' and that the board has ``complete confidence'' that Cook is the right person to replace him.

````Tim's 13 years of service to Apple have been marked by outstanding performance, and he has demonstrated remarkable talent and sound judgment in everything he does,'' Levinson said.

Jobs' health has long been a concern for Apple investors who see him as an industry oracle who seems to know what consumers want long before they do. After his announcement, Apple stock quickly fell 5.4 percent in after-hours trading.

Jeff Gamet, managing editor of The Mac Observer online news site focused on Apple, said Jobs' departure has more sentimental than practical significance, and that he has been telegraphing the change for several years.

``All Apple really has done is made official what they've been doing administratively for a while now, which is Tim runs the show and Steve gets to do his part to make sure the products come out to meet the Apple standard,'' he said.

``I expect that even though there are a lot of people that right now are sad or scared because Steve is stepping back from the CEO role, that ultimately they'll be OK,'' Gamet said.

But Trip Chowdhry, an analyst with Global Equities Research, said Jobs' maniacal attention to detail is what set Apple apart. He said Apple's product pipeline might be secure for another few years, but predicted that the company will eventually struggle to come up with market-changing ideas.

``Apple is Steve Jobs, Steve Jobs is Apple, and Steve Jobs is innovation,'' Chowdhry said. ``You can teach people how to be operationally efficient, you can hire consultants to tell you how to do that, but God creates innovation. ... Apple without Steve Jobs is nothing.''

Earlier this month Apple became the most valuable company in America, briefly surpassing Exxon Mobil. At the market close Wednesday its market value was $349 billion, just behind Exxon Mobil's $358 billion.

Jobs' hits seemed to grow bigger as the years went on: After the colorful iMac computer and the now-ubiquitous iPod, the iPhone redefined the category of smart phones and the iPad all but created the market for tablet computers.

His own aura seemed part of the attraction. On stage at trade shows and company events in his uniform of jeans, sneakers and black mock-turtlenecks, he'd entrance audiences with new devices, new colors, new software features, building up to a grand finale he'd predictably preface by saying, ``One more thing.''

Jobs, 56, shepherded Apple from a two-man startup to Silicon Valley darling when the Apple II, the first computer for regular people to really catch on, sent IBM Corp. and others scrambling to get their own PCs to market.

After Apple suffered a slump in the mid-1980s, he was forced out of the company. He was CEO at Next, another computer company, and Pixar, the computer-animation company that produced ``Toy Story'' on his watch, over the following 10 years.

Apple was foundering as he returned as an adviser in 1996 _ a year it lost $900 million as Microsoft Windows-based PCs dominated the computer market. The company's fortunes began to turn around with its first new product under Jobs' direction, the iMac, which launched in 1998 and sold about 2 million in its first 12 months.

Jobs eventually became interim CEO, then took the job permanently. Apple's popularity grew in the U.S. throughout the 2000s as the ever-sleeker line of iPods introduced many lifelong Windows users to their first Apple gadget. Apple created another sensation in 2007 with the iPhone, the stark-looking but powerful smart phone that quickly dominated the industry.

The iPad was introduced less than a year and a half ago but has already sold nearly 29 million units as it inspired myriad rivals in a tablet computer market that scarcely existed before Apple stepped in.

There have been some setbacks. Apple was swept up in a massive Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into stock options backdating in the mid-2000s, a practice that artificially boosted the value of options grants. But Jobs and Apple emerged unscathed after two former executives took the fall and eventually settled with the SEC.

As Jobs was praised for his vision, concerns about his health persisted. The January leave was Jobs' third medical leave over several years. He had previously survived pancreatic cancer and received a liver transplant.

Shannon Cross, an analyst at Cross Research, said Cook is a good choice to replace Jobs.

``He has taken over for Jobs twice in two medical leaves and the company has functioned extremely well,'' she said, adding that Cook has been Jobs' ``right hand guy'' for many years.

Cross also said Jobs put in place a ``culture of innovation'' that will help Apple remain a creative force in the industry.

``Steve Jobs is an extremely strong leader and clearly has made Apple a leading consumer electronics company and one of the most innovative companies in the world,'' she said. ``However, he didn't do it alone.''

Korean builders brace for post-Gadhafi boom


KOTRA forecasts bonanza for construction firms, valuing the market at $120 billion

Korean engineering and construction firms are ratcheting up their ambitions in Libya as the waning days of a six-month civil war signal new business opportunities in the North African country.

Colonel Moammar Gadhafi’s fate remains uncertain and rebel forces face a long slog to stabilize the country coming out of a 42-year totalitarian regime. Once peace prevails, however, the long-stalled economy could rapidly thrive given its vast oil reserves and infrastructure projects necessary for the reconstruction drive, experts say.

“There are high expectations that Libya would bring a new market for reconstruction projects as the turmoil begins to calm down,” said Byun Sung-jin, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities Co. in Seoul.

“But even with a new government, the resumption of ongoing projects and new orders will actually come after next year given lingering uncertainties.”
A new flag made by Libya’s opposition forces is posted at the Libyan Embassy in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap News)

The state-run Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) also forecasts a bonanza for builders, valuing the market at $120 billion.

The rebel stronghold of Benghazi would lead a revamp, KOTRA noted, as eastern Libya had been left out of Libya’s pre-war robust economic development. The region accounts for nearly 70 percent of the country’s oil supplies.

“The demand is equivalent to building three or four new towns in the Seoul metropolitan area,” KOTRA said in a report. “The government will likely prioritize sectors such as oil refining, electricity, housing, ports and roads.”

Kang Sin-young, head of the International Contractors Association of Korea’s market research division, said the construction market in a post-Gadhafi era could expand on an unprecedented scale.

“It could go beyond $120 billion,” he said. “Competition would become tougher against European and Chinese builders but Korea has also contributed to the Libyan market so no one knows. We’ll try to bring in as much as we can.”

Prior to the February revolt, 21 Korean builders had been working on various construction projects including thermal power plants, electric cables, hotels and residential complexes.

Their combined orders are worth $36.6 billion as of July, of which a backlog amounts to $7.4 billion, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.

Hyundai, the front-runner, has secured nearly $3.9 billion worth of deals with the Libyan government over the last decade. Daewoo has also won orders valued at around $3.1 billion since it dipped into the market in 2000. Other firms include Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, GS Engineering & Construction and Kolon Engineering & Construction.

Shares of the companies, including Hyundai and Daewoo, soared on Wednesday on hopes for future orders.

Most companies remain in a bullish mood, even though they see no plan to redeploy their employees on the scene anytime soon.

“In principle, the market condition would be better than before the civil war and (there will be more opportunities) given our project experience there. But for now we just have to wait and see how things pan out,” a Doosan official said.

Daewoo said it has returned the chief of the Tripoli unit, who left for Tunisia at the height of a rebellion, on Wednesday to get a grip of the situation on the scene.

“It would take some time for the new government to settle down, but we’re expecting a surge in demand for infrastructure construction including power plants, hospitals and schools after the dust settles,” a Daewoo spokesperson said.

The Korean government is stepping up support for the Libyan opposition leaders in efforts to shake off ties with Gadhafi and to pave the way for the firms to resume work as soon as possible.

It provided $1 million in aid to the National Transitional Council and plans to give another $1 million following a request from the cash-strapped rebels, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Tuesday.

A Korean delegation met with the TNC four times in Benghazi between June and July, a ministry official said, and the TNC promised to facilitate the resumption of the projects once the war ends.

The ministry is also considering lifting a ban on traveling to Libya, which was imposed in March.

More than 1,300 workers had been evacuated after a series of attacks by Libyan rioters on some construction sites in February. Only three staff members each from Daewoo and Hanil Engineering & Construction Co. stay there at present.

On Tuesday, 17 corporate executives called for the removal of the travel restrictions at a meeting hosted by the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.

“What we need the most at the moment is being on the spot,” Kang of the ICAK said. “Then companies will be able to meet with the authorities in each region to settle problems concerning any damage or loss on the site.”

To gain a firm footing in the Libyan market, Korean industry leaders should entail humanitarian aid policies, said Kwak Dong-woon, chief of KOTRA’s information consulting unit.

“Libyans regretted that in the past Korean companies had approached the market seeking only economic benefits,” he said. “They now should embrace social efforts involving recovery aid and corporate responsibility activities.”

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldm.com)

Report says Sprint to get iPhone in October


NEW YORK (AP) — Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest cellphone company, will start selling the iPhone in mid-October, The Wall Street Journal said Tuesday.

Citing unnamed people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said the wireless company will get to sell both the new iPhone 5 and the current model, the iPhone 4. The iPhone 5 will launch at the same time that AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless get it, the newspaper said.

Sprint's stock increased 33 cents, or more than 10 percent, to close Tuesday at $3.59.

Apple Inc. normally launches a new iPhone model in June or July, but this year's launch has been delayed for unknown reasons.

White Apple Inc. iPhone4 mobile devices are arranged for a photograph in New York, U.S. (Bloomberg)


Apple watchers had expected the new phone to arrive in September, but speculation has recently shifted toward October.

Sprint, headquartered in Overland Park, Kan., has been turning around its ailing operations through improvements in customer care, but its inability to sell the iPhone has hampered its recovery.

In the three months ending in June, it lost 101,000 subscribers from contract-based plans, while Verizon and AT&T, already larger, added subscribers. Contract-based plans are the most lucrative for wireless carriers.

AT&T was the exclusive U.S. carrier for the phone for three and half years, until Apple allowed Verizon to start selling one in February.

Nokia launches its cheapest phones at $30-$35


HELSINKI (AP) _ Nokia on Thursday unveiled its two cheapest cellphones to date aimed at attracting users in the low end market as it fights increasing competition from Asian manufacturers.

The Nokia 100 and 101 _ priced $30 ((euro) 20) and $35 ((euro) 25) respectively _ will be available in the third and fourth quarters of the year.

The launch comes a day after Nokia announced three new mass-market smartphones, including what it called the world's smallest touch-screen smartphone and one with the world's brightest display.

The Finland-based company is being increasingly squeezed in the low end market by Asian manufacturers like ZTE and in the high end by the makers of smartphones like Apple Inc.'s iPhone and Research in Motion's Blackberry.

It is hoping to regain momentum with the Windows Phone 7 _ to be launched later this year _ after teaming up with Microsoft, whose Windows Phone operating system will become the main platform for Nokia cellphones.

The three smartphones unveiled Wednesday are based on Symbian technology, seen by some developers as clumsy and dated. It was surpassed by Google's popular Android as the world's No. 1 smartphone software at the end of last year, but Nokia said it will continue to develop Symbian products.

The Nokia 100, a basic handset for calls and sending text messages, features a color display with a grid-based menu system and an FM radio.

The Nokia 101 has dual SIM device, enabling users to connect to two different networks to receive calls and messages. It also has an FM radio, integrated MP3 player and supports 16-gigabyte microSD memory cards.

Nokia shares were up 1 percent at (euro) 4.20 ($6.06) in afternoon trading in Helsinki.

Based in Espoo near Helsinki, Nokia Corp. employs 132,500 people worldwide. It claims 1.3 billion daily users of its devices, and has said it hopes the partnership with Microsoft will lead to capturing the next billion users to join the Internet in developing growth markets.

Samsung jumps on court ruling, Jobs resignation


Shares of Samsung Electronics Co., the world's second-largest smartphone maker, jumped on Thursday after a court ruling in the Netherlands and news that Steve Jobs, the chief executive officer of Apple Inc., had resigned.

Shares of Samsung Electronics were trading at 733,000 won ($675.4) on the Seoul bourse as of 10:00 a.m., up 3.53 percent, after jumping more than 4 percent in early trading.

On Wednesday, a Dutch court rejected most of the claims by Apple Inc. that Samsung's smartphones, including its hot-selling Galaxy-series smartphones and tablets, infringed on its patents.

Under the ruling, Samsung would also be banned from marketing some of its smartphone models in some European countries for three months.

"The ruling would not seriously affect the sales of Samsung's smartphones in Europe. What's more important is that the Samsung virtually won the legal battle over design patents and other key issues," said Song Jong-ho, an analyst at Daewoo Securities.

Apple, the world's leading smartphone maker, and Samsung have been locked in a patent fight in some countries, including the U.S., as the two electronics giants are competing to win the top spot in the global smartphone market.

Shares in Samsung Electronics were also boosted by news earlier in the day that Steve Jobs, the legendary figure that led Apple to emerge as the world's largest and most valuable tech firm.

According to foreign news reports, Jobs is succeeded by Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook, and he was named chairman.

"Jobs is regarded as the whole thing of Apple, and his resignation would affect Apple's growth strategies in some ways," said Lee Sun-tae, an analyst at Meritz Investment Banking Corp.

"It's hard to say exactly how his resignation would change the landscape in the global IT sector, but the news is absolutely good for Samsung."

Jobs has been hailed as Apple's driving force that helped the world's strongest tech firm repel harsh competition from rivals such as Google Inc. (Yonhap News)

Same-sex couples grow in the US



Same-sex couples in the U.S. have increased rapidly and the cities where they live have also changed dramatically.

There has been a 50 percent increase in the number of same-sex couples since 2000 according to demographer Gary Gates of UCLA Law School's Williams Institute, a think tank dedicated to sexual orientation and gender-related law and public policy, the New York Times reported on Thursday.

Provincetown, Mass., is the city with highest number of same-sex couples, occupying 163.1 per 1,000 people. Second and third on the list are Wilton Manors, Fl., and Palm Springs, Calif., with 136.9 and 115.2 same-sex couples per 1,000 households, respectively.
San Francisco, which was well known as mecca of homosexual couples, is pushed back on the top 10. Once the city ranked third in 1990, but dropped gradually, ranking 11th and 28th in 2000 and 2010, respectively.

West Hollywood, Calif., was the gayest city but also pushed out of top 5 to the 6th.

"What may be happening is this idea that baby boomers were the first generation to really have a visible LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) community, and of course, they're starting to retire now," Gates said. “Growing social acceptance of homosexuality has led to a greater willingness to report it,” he added.

Cafe Bene favored most among specialty coffee brands: survey

http://www.koreaherald.com/business/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20110824000734

Café Bene, a homegrown coffee house chain, received best reviews in a recent consumer survey, while other local coffee retailers also scored high compared to international rivals.

Korea Consumer Agency and KAIST Center for Fair Trade and Consumer Protection announced Wednesday the result of a recent survey on 1,020 consumers who have visited six specialty coffee retailers here.

Café Bene earned 5.32 points out of the total seven in terms of overall ambiance, the highest followed by Angel-In-Us with 5.08 and Starbucks with 5.03, the consumer protection agency said.

When it comes to flavor of coffee and other side menus, Coffee Bean scored the highest with 5.03. But the difference was insignificant among the rivals – Tom N Toms with 4.99, Starbucks with 4.96 and Café Bene with 4.95.

Café Bene, established in 2008, said its strategy selling not just coffee but also the whole space where coffee is enjoyed has successfully appealed to the high standards of local consumers.

“Along with coffee flavor, which is the most basic thing, we aim to satisfy our customers with comfortable, specially-designed cultural space,” Kim Dong-han, the company’s spokesperson said.

The coffee chain has recently become a market leader with more than 660 stores, beating the U.S-based rival Starbucks, which opened its 400th store here in June.

Local brand names scored highly in other evaluation categories, reflecting their widespread presence in the domestic market.

Hollys and Angel-In-Us received the highest points on consumer benefits, while Café Bene and Hollys scored well for the convenience of location.

Starbucks and Hollys scored the same when it comes to customer service. When it came to variety of menus, Café Bene, Tom N Toms and Starbucks all got positive reviews.

In terms of consumer royalties, Hollys scored highest with 5.43, followed by Tom N Toms and Café Bene with 5.39 and Starbucks with 5.36.

“Unlike our global rivals who stick to the concept built in the United States, Korean brands are targeting the very demand of local consumers. For instance, Korean retailers place wider chairs in stores compared to other global brands,” Kim said.

Kim said such Korean-style strategy is shifting the attitude of Korean consumers about local coffee house brands.

The nation’s take-out coffee market has been fast-growing, with its current volume estimated to stand at 1.3 trillion won. There are already more than 2,500 stores owned by the top 10 coffee house chains nationwide.

Last year, Koreans drank 22.8 billion cups of coffee in total, which means 452 cups of coffee per person.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldm.com)

LG, GM join hands to build electric cars


Joint efforts to put more eco-friendly vehicles on the road

LG Corp. and U.S. automaker General Motors signed a deal to jointly build next-generation electric cars to strengthen their partnership amid the growing demand for eco-friendly vehicles, the Seoul-based company said Friday.

The agreement was inked in Detroit on Thursday, with the two companies agreeing to develop all the core components and solutions involved in next-generation electric cars that GM will be manufacturing.

“The agreement between LG and GM is strategically important for the future of our company, and LG will do its best to support GM’s electric car business,” said Cho Juno, president and CEO of LG Corp.
LG Corp. CEO Cho Juno (right) poses with GM CEO Dan Akerson after signing a strategic alliance to jointly develop high-performance electric cars in Detroit on Thursday. (Yonhap News)

Steve Girsky, vice chairman of GM said the combined efforts between such top tier enterprises will offer consumers a chance to drive eco-friendly vehicles built with the most up-to-date technology.

The details need to be further ironed out, but LG said it would be mostly be involved in battery systems, while GM handles electric motor systems and the overall design of the cars.

LG and GM have been forging closer ties since LG Chem, an LG affiliate, began to exclusively supply lithium-ion batteries for GM’s Chevrolet Volt in the latter half of 2010.

A total of four LG affiliates ― LG Chem, LG Electronics, LG Innotek and V-ENS ― will be participating in this latest venture.

The demand for environmentally-friendly cars has spiraled as more countries across the world are stepping up their guidelines to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The U.S. and Europe are leading the global campaign for hybrid and eco-friendly cars by avidly pushing for higher fuel standards.

The U.S. government in July said it now has a deal with 13 automakers to increase fuel efficiency to 24 km per liter for all cars and light-duty trucks by 2025.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldm.com)