Feb 15, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — He was once thought to be a Swiss-educated cosmopolitan taking the side of reform in North Korea. But some say Tuesday’s nuclear test has squandered hopes that Kim Jong Un will open the militarized nation to the world. That’s because the hermit...
Feb 4, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — Hundreds of thousands of mourners gathered today for the cremation of Cambodia’s colorful king-father, Norodom Sihanouk, at 5 p.m., bidding their final farewells. The flamboyant former prince, a national figurehead who oversaw independence of the...
Feb 2, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — “We should settle accounts with the United States only with the gun barrel, not with words, as it regards jungle law as the rule of its survival.” That was the North Korean National Defense Commission’s response on Jan. 24 to...
Jan 30, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — It’s official: the hyper-wired tech center of Asia, South Korea, has joined the global space club, just weeks after its isolated archrival North Korea accomplished the same. Following two botched satellite launch attempts, an air of tension...
Jan 24, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — Four years ago, Kim Eun-seo, 40, fled political persecution and poverty in North Korea’s gritty far-north city, Chongjin. After dwelling secretly in China for a year, she escaped to South Korea and, to her relief, was able to live more freely,...
Jan 18, 2013 | Writing
SEOUL, South Korea — He’s worked all his life to graduate from an elite university this year. But in a tight job market, Kim Jun-sang, 23, is worried about escaping his pileup of debt. Sound familiar? With $20,000 in private loans and a soon-to-be wife, Kim is also...
