Korea JoongAng Daily - Daily News from Korea

Kang Won-taek

The author is a professor of political science and international relations at Seoul National University.

President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating has stabilized at a relatively high level. A series of diplomatic achievements and efforts to communicate more actively with the public and the recent rally in the stock market appear to have helped. The Democratic Party seems to be distancing itself from several contentious legislative initiatives that it had previously pushed, which likely also played a role. This does not mean responses to the president have been uniformly positive. Corruption scandals involving lawmakers Kim Byung-kee and Kang Sun-woo have erupted, as has controversy surrounding the nomination of Lee Hye-hoon as the budget minister. The ruling party's one-sided management of the National Assembly and its lack of political finesse have drawn additional criticism.

Even so, the president's sustained popularity owes much to what might be called the opposition's unintended assistance. The People Power Party, under leader Jang Dong-hyeok, has failed to step out of the shadow of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, allowing the narrative of "overcoming an insurrection" to become the Democratic Party's all-purpose weapon. People having problems with the president or the ruling camp does not translate to support for the opposition. The People Power Party's approval ratings have remained stuck in place for a long time. With the exception of a small group of ardent supporters, the party is already no longer a viable alternative for many voters, including those in the political center.

As a result, Korea's party system increasingly resembles what Italian political scientist Giovanni Sartori described as a "predominant party system." Elections remain competitive and democratic, but one party maintains long-term dominance. Japanese politics since 1955, marked by the long rule of the Liberal Democratic Party, is a classic example. In such a system, parties other than the ruling one are permanently condemned to be the opposition. This is not an abstract concern. Since 2016, conservative parties have struggled to win major elections. They have lost three consecutive parliamentary elections since that year, suffering crushing defeats in 2020 and 2024. They lost two presidential races and won one in 2022, but that victory came by a margin of just 0.73 percentage points, effectively a draw in political terms. The 2022 local elections, taking place during the postinauguration honeymoon period, remain the only clear conservative victory in the past decade. The record since then comprises eight contests, one win, one draw and six losses. After the shock of an emergency martial law fiasco, the party's prospects look even darker.

When a car breaks down or can no longer take you to your destination, you change vehicles. If an existing party ceases to be a credible alternative, voters will look elsewhere. The People Power Party may assume that it is too big to fail, but history offers many counterexamples. Britain's Liberal Party, which produced leaders such as William Gladstone and long dominated politics alongside the conservatives, declined rapidly after the 1920s, yielding its place to the Labour Party. Italy's Christian Democracy party and the Italian Communist Party, which shaped postwar politics, disappeared entirely in the 1990s. More recently, France's Socialist Party, once led by François Mitterrand and governing as recently as 2017 under François Hollande, has since collapsed.

What these failed parties shared was an inability to respond to changes of the times. Britain's Liberals faltered as they failed to adapt to the socioeconomic transformations brought by World War I and industrialization. Italy's Christian Democrats and Communists became relics as the Cold War ended. France's Socialists lost public trust by mishandling the financial crisis and deindustrialization. Internal divisions and corruption compounded ...

The government has unveiled a blueprint for the organization and operation of two new bodies set to launch in October: the Office of Prosecution and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency. The Prosecutorial Reform Task Force under the Prime Minister's Office said on Monday that it has drafted bills governing the two agencies and begun the legislative notice process. This follows the passage last September of a government reorganization law that dismantled the existing prosecutors' office and split its functions, marking the start of full-scale follow-up legislation four months later. A closer look at the bills, however, raises concerns about potential side effects. While the government says its guiding principle is to strengthen the investigation of serious crimes, it remains unclear on what basis the new agency's investigative capacity would exceed that of the current system.

The key point of contention in the office of prosecution bill is whether prosecutors should be granted authority to order supplementary investigations. Hard-liners within the ruling party have flatly opposed the idea, while the government says it will be reviewed during revisions to the Criminal Procedure Act. Given the far-reaching implications for the criminal justice system, a cautious approach is appropriate. If investigations by the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency or the police were always thorough, supplementary probes would be unnecessary. In reality, such perfection is rare. A safeguard is needed in case investigators soften their work to accommodate political power. Recent disputes over alleged preferential treatment in police investigations, including controversy surrounding nomination irregularities involving former Democratic Party floor leader Kim Byung-kee, underscore lingering public distrust.

Another issue that warrants scrutiny is the concentration of power under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. With the National Police Agency, the National Office of Investigation and the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency all placed under the ministry, an already powerful department would gain further clout. The interior minister would exercise oversight over specific cases through the head of the new agency, effectively inheriting investigative command authority once held by the justice minister via the prosecutor general. The government says such authority would be used only in exceptional cases involving clear and serious illegality. Still, as seen in recent controversy over the decision not to pursue an appeal in the Daejang-dong case, the risk of political use cannot be dismissed.

Preventing confusion stemming from fragmented investigative authority is another urgent task. From October, nine categories of serious crimes, including public corruption and election law violations, will fall under the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency, while general crimes will be handled by the National Office of Investigation. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials will continue to operate separately. Although jurisdictions are defined by law, gray areas are inevitable in practice. Any disruption to criminal investigations will ultimately burden the public.

The government should use the remaining time to solicit diverse views and put safeguards in place. Structural reform alone does not guarantee stronger investigations. Without careful calibration, the costs may outweigh the benefits.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

This article is by Jeong Jin-ho and read by an artificial voice.

Prosecutors estimate that 116.4 billion won ($79 million) in alleged fraud was committed in relation to Homeplus as they move against the executives of major Korean private equity firm MBK Partners, the owner of the beleaguered retail chain.

The prosecution applied fraud charges to bonds issued starting Feb. 17, 2025, concluding that top figures in MBK Partners, including Chairman Michael ByungJu Kim, and Homeplus already knew by then that a credit rating downgrade was imminent.

The private equity denies the allegations.

An anti-corruption division at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, led by Acting Chief Prosecutor Kim Bong-jin, detailed these findings in arrest warrant requests filed on Jan. 7 against Chairman Kim, MBK Vice Chairman and Homeplus CEO Kim Kwang-il, MBK Vice President Kim Jeong-hwan and Homeplus CFO Lee Sung-jin, according to sources in the local legal community.

The alleged fraud includes 106.4 billion won in asset-backed short-term bonds, known as ABSTB, and 10 billion won in commercial paper and short-term bonds.

Homeplus allegedly engaged in the issuance of 24.4 billion won in ABSTB through securities firms on Feb. 17, followed by 3 billion won in commercial paper on Feb. 18, 5 billion won in commercial paper and 2 billion won in short-term bonds on Feb. 21, and another 82 billion won in ABSTB on Feb. 25.

Prosecutors suspect Homeplus went ahead with the offering of the bonds from Feb. 17 to Feb. 25 without disclosing the risk of a credit rating downgrade, causing losses to investors.

Credit rating agencies, including Korea Investors Service and Korea Ratings, downgraded Homeplus' rating to A3- from A3 on Feb. 28, 2025. Homeplus filed for court-led rehabilitation on March 4.

After analyzing internal MBK documents, prosecutors concluded that MBK and Homeplus knew about the impending downgrade at least 11 days earlier, before Feb. 17. The investigation initially focused on whether the companies recognized the downgrade risk before the Feb. 25 ABSTB issuance. Prosecutors now believe they had that knowledge even earlier.

Prosecutors also identified circumstances indicating that MBK and Homeplus began preparing for corporate rehabilitation as early as 2023. MBK reviewed Homeplus' worsening financial condition that year and considered rehabilitation after receiving management reports. The company ultimately avoided filing at the time by securing loans.

Ahead of filing the arrest warrants, prosecutors sought the Financial Supervisory Service's opinion late last year.

The warrant hearing will take place at the Seoul Central District Court at 10 a.m. on Jan. 13, presided over by Senior Judge Park Jung-ho. The court will examine whether MBK recognized the risk of rehabilitation and investor losses stemming from the credit rating downgrade in advance, and whether Chairman Kim received reports and issued directives.

MBK and Homeplus denied all allegations.

"We did not foresee a credit rating downgrade, nor did we prepare in advance for rehabilitation," the companies said. "We fully deny all charges stated in the arrest warrants."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

This article is by Kim Ji-ye and read by an artificial voice.

The upcoming thriller film "Project Y" holds special meaning for actor Jun Jong-seo, as she says it may be her only chance to share the screen with another actor her own age, Han So-hee.

"I thought that I might never get another chance to make a film like this with a fellow actor my own age," said Jun during an interview with reporters at a cafe in central Seoul on Friday while recalling the grueling shoot, which took place during an especially cold period last year.

"That thought stayed with me even before I chose the project, and it continued throughout the shoot, when we struggled through the freezing cold. Even now, after finishing the film, I feel exactly the same."

Borrowing Han's words, she said the project was "a moment when time and fate aligned."

She also reflected on her chemistry with Han and said she was pleased with their on-screen pairing after watching the final version of the film, though she admitted her view might be "biased."

"For me, seeing the close-ups of Mi-sun [played by Han] and Do-kyung [portrayed by Jun] and their chemistry as the two faces completely fill the screen, was simply entertaining," she said.

Directed by Lee Hwan, the film "Project Y" is set in the dark underworld that lurks beneath a glamorous city, where crime, relentless desire and greed prevail. Centering on Do-kyung and Mi-sun, its story follows the two young women as they try to escape their jobs in the city's nightlife after saving enough money for a fresh start. Their hopes, however, are shattered by a betrayal, sending them back to square one. In a desperate bid to avoid returning to their former lives, the two become entangled in crime, leading to a series of chases and constant flights.

The film, rather than offering detailed character backstories upfront, plunges straight into its narrative, with the characters' inner layers gradually unfolding midway through the story. This blank space was something that intrigued Jun when she first saw the script — a work that came to her at a time when she felt that the film industry was "paralyzed."

"When I first looked at my character, I felt there were other layers I could explore beyond what was written in the script," she said. "I wanted to give her a fragile, almost glass-like feel, like as if she could shatter at any moment. I thought it would be interesting to play with that sense of precariousness and to convey that tension through my performance."

Jun added that because "Project Y" is essentially a buddy film, she and Han wanted to give it an iconic visual identity, all the way down to the colors and fashion choices. For Jun's character Do-kyung, that color was red, reflected in the red jacket she frequently wears throughout the film.

The film's two leads exhibit a ride-or-die dynamic that depicts a strong bond of sisterhood. This aligns with a recent growing trend seen in Korean content, where female-driven narratives are at the forefront, as shown in "You and Everything Else" (2025) and "The Price of Confession" (2025).

Jun voiced her support for such a trend, saying, "I think it's a positive shift. There was a period when roles, scripts and directors that allowed female actors to explore this kind of performance were hard to come by. The fact that those opportunities are now increasing is something I truly support and feel very good about."

With only two weeks left until the film's release, Jun admitted she feels a mix of nerves, fear and excitement about finally sharing the film with audiences.

"The film isn't heavy or overly serious," Jun said. "It's a film that people can walk into the theater without expectations and simply enjoy, like the so-called popcorn movies that people can watch to fully blow off some stress."

Looking ahead, Jun said she expects to reveal a different side of herself as she moves beyond her 20s. The actor is currently shooting the Hollywood film "Highlander," directed by Chad Stahelsk...

This article is by Sarah Chea and read by an artificial voice.

LAS VEGAS — A city crowded with casinos, where Uber passengers hop in and out with little order and unexpected situations emerge by the minute, Las Vegas is chaos that never sleeps.

The city has been chosen by U.S. autonomous vehicle company Motional as a launch location for its full driverless ride-hailing service later this year.

While traveling through Las Vegas in an Ioniq 5 robotaxi, developed by Motional, I quickly understood why this company had kept delaying commercialization. With streets filled with cars, pedestrians and unpredictable situations, a singular thought entered my mind: safety.

The 14-kilometer (8.7-mile) test ride through the very heart of the Las Vegas Strip was eye-opening, even with a safety driver onboard. The streets were relentlessly unpredictable — jaywalking pedestrians, sudden stops and delivery trucks idling where they shouldn't. While the vehicle consistently yielded to pedestrians and navigated obstacles with composure, the environment itself demanded constant vigilance, making every moment feel charged with tension.

Equipped with 29 sensors in total, including 13 cameras, 11 radars, four short-range lidar units, and one long-range lidar, the result is a vehicle that feels acutely aware of its surroundings. When the road ahead cleared, it signaled on its own, changed lanes decisively and charted the safest possible path forward.

On narrow streets lined with towering casino hotels, the robotaxi resisted the temptation to maneuver aggressively around a poorly parked truck. Instead, it held a safe distance, waited patiently until the obstruction had cleared — and only then proceeded.

"Safety is paramount to all that we do, and it's critical for removing a driver and having a truly driverless operation," said Motional CEO Laura Major, who joined the company in 2020 as chief technical officer. The CEO spoke to the Korean press during a tour to the Motional Technical Center on Jan. 8.

"We had to slow down in our commercial operations so we could accelerate our technology development. We had to take on things like transformer architectures, large language models and vision-language-action systems (VLAs) to transition from a more classic AV stack approach to one that's based on large driving models and is prepared to scale in a cost-efficient way."

Founded in 2020 as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, Hyundai has acquired Aptiv's stake since then, bringing Motional firmly under the Hyundai umbrella, with an ownership share of some 90 percent. To date, Hyundai has invested roughly $3 billion in total investment.

Motional also outlined its technology road map toward end-to-end (E2E) autonomous driving system based on machine learning.

The company explained that it is evolving beyond a traditional modular architecture — where perception, decision-making and control are handled by separate, task-specific models — toward an integrated structure centered on end-to-end motion planning.

In this E2E approach, AI does not merely connect isolated functions but instead, it learns and generates driving decisions holistically, unifying perception, reasoning and control into a single continuous process.

"So, this gives us the benefits of both extremes but in a way that progresses toward an E2E solution that's capable of achieving level four safety standards," Major said. "And no one has achieved this yet. We feel like we'll be the first to get there," she added.

Starting this year, Motional has already begun pilot operations through Uber and Uber Eats in Las Vegas and Pittsburgh, two cities selected with deliberate contrast in mind. To date, its service has completed more than 130,000 rides with public passengers.

It has already achieved over 2 million autonomous miles "without a single at fault," according to the company.

Motional currently operates a fleet of 109 vehicles, running 50 to 65 robotaxis per day across two shift...

This article is by Shin Ha-nee and read by an artificial voice.

[INTERVIEW]

At the University of Southern California (USC) this spring, a new course will cover G-Dragon — not to celebrate the K-pop idol's decades-long career, but to ask harder questions about the industry itself.

The upcoming four-credit communication course at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, called "Crooked Studies of K-pop: Reimagining K-pop's Dominant Discourses Through G-Dragon," sets out to be something far less reverential than one might expect.

Rather than revisiting the highs of G-Dragon's career, the class invites students to treat the singer as a case study to examine where K-pop stands today, and why the genre, despite its expanding global reach, remains constrained by persistent critical assumptions, according to Professor Lee Hye-jin.

"I did not create this class because I'm a huge G-Dragon Fan," said Lee during a virtual interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily on Thursday. "This course is challenging dominant discourses through the body of work of an artist."

That, Lee explained, is precisely why G-Dragon — one of the few K-pop idols to sustain such a long-running, influential career across music and fashion — makes an ideal subject.

Lee, who describes herself as "a generalist," earned her PhD in mass communication from the University of Iowa and has taught at USC Annenberg since 2015, becoming a full-time faculty member in 2017. Her earlier courses focused largely on Western pop culture, but she expanded into K-pop amid the genre's global rise, led by BTS's breakthrough later that decade.

After developing a K-pop-specific course in 2019, she began teaching "Evolution of K-pop" in 2022, the first regular communication course centered on K-pop offered by a U.S. university.

Because Lee's research is grounded in the broader pop culture rather than K-pop or its fandom specifically, she noted that responses to K-pop vary sharply among students.

"We like to think that K-pop is very mainstream and liked by everybody, but that's really not the case," noted Lee. "There's still a lot of resistance and reluctance that I see from the non-K-pop fans."

That gap between K-pop's perceived ubiquity and its uneven acceptance has caught Lee's academic interest, the professor said, as she examines what continues to limit K-pop despite its global visibility.

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q. Why G-Dragon? And what is the analytical lens of the course?

A. While the class is informally called the "G-Dragon class," I did not create this class because I'm a huge G-Dragon fan, though I do respect how he's been able to establish himself as a cultural icon.

As someone who teaches K-pop classes and is aware of other pop-star-focused courses on, for example, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift or Madonna, I had been thinking about this format for a while. But I couldn't think of anybody until last year when I saw G-Dragon making a major comeback.

There was an intergenerational reception to his comeback, and it was interesting, particularly because of his long hiatus. It's rare for artists who have been away from the spotlight for that long to still get that kind of welcoming response.

For me, the goal isn't to celebrate his achievements. What I want to do is to use this K-pop artist as a way to challenge and to critically interrogate dominant discourses surrounding K-pop, particularly in Western contexts, where there's still resistance to embracing K-pop.

K-pop artists are often perceived as "manufactured commodities" without any originality or as carbon copies of Western music. There's also this idea that K-pop is childish and only for young people.

Therefore, I needed to find an artist with a long career trajectory. G-Dragon is also a good case to talk about creative agency, as an artist with creative control over their own music.

How is the class structured? Did you consult with Galaxy Corporation or YG Entertainment in...

Kim Bong-ryeol

The author is an architect and a former president of the Korea National University of Arts.

Seokguram grotto on Mount Toham in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, has long inspired a sense of mystery. Its builders erected cylindrical stone walls carved with Buddhist figures, constructed a dome ceiling adorned with lotus motifs and then covered the entire structure with rubble and earth so that it would appear as if it had been carved directly into a cliff. Despite its name, Seokguram is not a natural cave but a stone chamber designed to resemble one. This architectural form is without precedent in Korea, and its dome is unique in East Asia. The sculptures, especially the sublime main Buddha, are widely regarded as masterpieces of Buddhist art.

In 2025, Gyeongju hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, and an international academic conference focusing on Seokguram took place to mark the occasion. I delivered the keynote address on the monument's international significance. The tradition of constructing rock-cut temples originated in India, developed through Gandhara and Central Asia and eventually spread to China as part of a pan-Asian cultural movement. As a Buddhist kingdom, Silla (57 B.C. to A.D. 935) also sought to build such temples. But the Korean Peninsula's hard granite geology made excavating caves virtually impossible. After numerous failed attempts, this challenge culminated in the completion of Seokguram in 774. A movement that had traveled some 9,000 kilometers (5,592 miles) over more than 900 years reached its final destination in Gyeongju.

The hemispheric space traces its origins to India's earliest rock-cut temples, such as the Sudama Cave, and the dome construction techniques were developed in Sasanian Persia. The cylindrical wall composition recalls the Bamiyan caves of Gandhara, and the lotus ceiling motifs resemble those found in the cave temples of Kucha in Central Asia. The main Buddha statue, depicting the moment of enlightenment, closely matches the scale and form of the principal structure at Bodh Gaya in India, the site of the Buddha's awakening. In its artistic and technical elements, Seokguram differs from Chinese models and aligns more closely with Indian and Gandharan traditions.

However, no complete prototype comparable to Seokguram can be found anywhere along the Silk Road. Its dry stone dome, assembled without adhesive, was unprecedented for its time. Equally distinctive was the transformation of the enlightenment image, previously confined to 2-D painting or relief, into a fully realized 3-D spatial composition. While Silla artisans drew on diverse sources, they fused these elements into an entirely new whole. This synthesis, rather than simple imitation, stands as a testament to the originality of the Silla people.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

The author is a professor at Sogang University's Graduate School of Real Estate.

Korea's economy has entered a phase of large-scale fiscal expansion this year. The main budget has been set at a record 729.9 trillion won ($500 billion) in total spending and discussions over a supplementary budget to respond to economic conditions suggest that actual fiscal outlays could exceed 750 trillion won. This expansionary stance may help cushion a complex downturn marked by slowing consumption and weak investment.

The real estate market, however, interprets this signal very differently. Expectations are growing that expanded fiscal spending will increase liquidity and put a floor under housing prices. As a result, the psychological tension needed for price stabilization may ease. In the past, some of this liquidity was absorbed through corporate investment. Today, Korea has heavier regulations and fewer incentives than many other countries, making it difficult to find firms willing to invest domestically. Financial institutions, in search of returns, are therefore more likely to turn to real estate, an asset class that remains relatively accessible.

A more troubling factor is the possibility that fiscal expansion ahead of the June 3 local elections could further stimulate the housing market. Last year's one-off consumption coupons and region-specific subsidies, totaling 13 trillion won, were promoted as measures to support the economy. In practice, they increased short-term liquidity and reinforced what market participants perceive as price support in housing. The policy signal is straightforward: the government is prepared to spend more to prevent an economic slowdown. This expectation quickly translates into a stronger psychological floor in the real estate market.

Defending the economy against a downturn through fiscal expansion may be unavoidable. But if the resulting upward pressure on housing prices is left unaddressed, the benefits of fiscal stimulus will be diluted and long-term burdens will grow. In that case, expansionary policy risks entrenching asset price instability rather than easing economic stress.

At this point, simple regulatory tightening or heavy-handed price controls could worsen market anxiety. A more effective approach would be to lower supply-side costs and address structural inefficiencies that are pushing up presale prices. Much of the recent rise in housing prices reflects accumulated increases in construction costs, driven by higher labor expenses and the growing burden of complying with safety regulations.

In particular, the 52-hour workweek, the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and the so-called Yellow Envelope Bill are frequently cited as major contributors to rising costs at construction sites. A visit to Vietnam late last year offered a stark contrast. Construction was underway day and night, on weekdays and weekends, with no interruption. Construction is a highly leveraged industry, typically relying on borrowed funds to undertake large projects with limited equity. When projects are delayed, financing costs, equipment rental fees and labor expenses inevitably rise. The 52-hour workweek fails to fully reflect the realities of construction sites, increasing rigidity in labor deployment and reducing productivity while driving up costs.

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act is grounded in the legitimate goal of improving safety. Yet, the heavy burden of criminal liability and the risk of business suspension have increased costs and encouraged overly conservative site management. The Yellow Envelope Bill, despite its stated purpose, is also certain to raise labor costs for primary contractors. Measures introduced in the name of safety and worker protection are ultimately passed on to buyers in the form of higher presale prices.

What the current housing market needs is not demand suppression but rationalization of supply-side costs. Regulatory easing does not mean retreating from safety or labor rights....

Lee Ha-kyung

The author is a senior columnist at the JoongAng Ilbo.

The level of a country's politics can be measured by how its leaders treat human dignity. Recent revelations involving Kim Byung-kee, former floor leader of the Democratic Party, and Lee Hye-hoon, a nominee for minister of planning and budget, have exposed an unsettling underside of Korean politics. Accounts of abuse of power and pursuit of private gain that drag in spouses, children, daughters-in-law and even grandchildren go far beyond what ordinary citizens might imagine. Arrogant power, once unleashed, carries a stench that makes one dizzy.

Kim is accused of ordering aides to assist his eldest son, an employee of the National Intelligence Service, with work-related tasks and to arrange a delay in his second son's reserve military training. He allegedly had staff handle airport protocols for his daughter-in-law and grandchild. Aides were treated as personal subjects. When his eldest son failed to secure a position at the country's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Kim is said to have helped place him at a rival firm. He then instructed staff to draft parliamentary inquiries aimed at undermining the market leader, telling them it should be "shut down." Both companies fell under the oversight of the National Assembly committee on which Kim served. If accurate, the actions amount to a clear abuse of public authority for private interest and retaliation. When six aides protested, Kim dismissed them, prompting a cascade of whistle-blowing.

Lee Hye-hoon faces separate allegations of misconduct. She reportedly berated an intern for failing to report an article that mentioned her name, asking whether the intern's "IQ was in the single digits" and saying she "wished you were dead." She also allegedly made late-night calls to staff with insults that crossed the line from verbal abuse into what critics call an assault on dignity. Further accusations followed. A suspected 3 billion won ($2.06 million) windfall from real estate speculation using information obtained through her position and claims that her eldest son posed as unmarried to win a lottery for a high-priced apartment. If proven, these acts would stand in stark contrast to her public rhetoric about economic fairness.

Not all Korean leaders treated power this way. Former presidents Kim Young-sam, Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun were known for regarding aides not as subordinates to be exploited but as partners and comrades. Kim Young-sam was remembered for his warmth. After an aide's mistake once left him the only guest wearing a red sash at a Blue House event, he scolded the aide in the car ride home with a sharp remark but harbored no grudge. His generosity inspired loyalty that lasted decades.

Kim Dae-jung addressed aides as "comrades," even after becoming president. He took notes like a student when receiving briefings from young officials and worried about the families of fellow dissidents who had been tortured, even as he himself faced execution. Sixteen years after his death, aides who shared those difficult years still visit his grave weekly.

Roh Moo-hyun's record was similar. Lee Kwang-jae, a former aide who later became Gangwon governor, recalled that Roh shared all allowances with staff and slept in the same room with them during regional trips. Roh taught aides the law himself, believing legislative work required legal understanding. When Ahn Hee-jung, a close associate, was later imprisoned, Roh wept, saying Ahn was suffering in his place. Former aides say Roh used honorifics even when addressing staff members such as Hwang Yi-soo and Lee Kwang-jae, who were 19 years younger than him, and that when he lost elections, he personally sought positions for them in other lawmakers' offices so they could continue working. He was generous to the weak and unflinching before the strong.

These contrasts echo lessons from political philosophy. In the fourth century B.C., Aristotle and his students studied t...

North Korea's military claimed last Friday that it had forced down an unmanned aerial vehicle that infiltrated its territory, asserting that the drone originated in South Korea. Kim Yo-jong, a senior Workers' Party official, denounced the incident as a "grave violation of sovereignty" and issued a thinly veiled warning that Pyongyang would "seriously consider a price to be paid." Korea's military authorities responded that they do not operate the type of drone in question and said they would examine the possibility that it was flown by a civilian actor. President Lee Jae Myung ordered a "swift and rigorous investigation."

Given past cases in which drones were reportedly sent north during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to provoke a reaction from Pyongyang, the situation warrants particular caution. A misstep could easily push events in an unintended direction. The most urgent task for Korea's security agencies is to assess North Korea's intentions. Even by Pyongyang's own account, there were two alleged incursions. If one occurred last September, it raises questions about why the North chose to publicize the matter only now. If the aim is to heighten inter-Korean tension and build a pretext for further provocations, the authorities should respond firmly. At the same time, it is prudent to consider that Pyongyang may be testing the posture and resolve of the Lee administration.

If a civilian group did indeed send a drone into North Korean airspace, the activity should stop immediately regardless of motive. Such actions could provoke the North and create a pretext for escalation. Still, the decision to publicly frame the matter as a "serious crime threatening peace and national security" and to highlight the president's direct order for a strict investigation, carries risks of its own. Korea should not mirror Pyongyang's heightened rhetoric simply because the North reacted sharply. Responses must be proportionate to the gravity of the facts as they are established. Sending a signal that Kim Yo-jong's remarks alone are enough to mobilize the president would only encourage further brinkmanship.

There is a precedent worth recalling. During the Moon Jae-in administration, Kim Yo-jong criticized leaflet launches by civic groups in the South, prompting the government to revise the Inter-Korean Relations Development Act. The move sparked domestic backlash, with critics deriding it as a "Kim Yo-jong decree" and fueling internal polarization. That episode underscored the dangers of appearing to overreact to Pyongyang's pressure.

For now, the military must remain vigilant to prevent the incident from spiraling into hostile action, without slipping into deference to North Korean sensitivities. The government should determine the facts, including whether civilian actors were involved, through discreet and careful investigation. It must also avoid being pulled into Pyongyang's narrative or creating the impression that it is acting under pressure from the North. Kim Yo-jong's warnings may be designed to amplify tension. The more heated the rhetoric from the North becomes, the more essential it is for Korea's leadership and security agencies to keep their footing and respond with restraint and clarity.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.