Ban Ki-moon Becomes U.N. Chief
Ban Ki-moon, 62, former minister of foreign
affairs and trade, will officially take over his
predecessor Kofi Annan’s post on Jan. 1.
He is the first Asian in 35 years and first
South Korean to lead the international
organization. Ban spent 37 years as a career
diplomat at the ministry beginning in 1970.
As the U.N.’s eighth secretary-general, he took
an oath of office in a ceremony in the General
Assembly Hall in New York on Dec. 14. Many eyes are on him to
clean up the world body’s corruption scandal in recent years.
His other agendas include keeping peace in the Middle East,
settling humanitarian crisis in Sudan’s Darfur and
persistent North Korea issues.
Singer Rain Pours on World Stage
Rain, whose real name is Jeong Jihoon,
born on June 25, 1982 in Seoul, is a leading
Korean pop star of hallyu, or the Korean Wave
throughout East Asia including Japan,
Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, and Thailand.
Named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most
Influential People in the World this year, he
successfully held his first concert of a world
tour at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in
Las Vegas on Dec. 23, following two sold-out concerts in the
Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City last February.
Rain gained popularity also as an actor throughout Asia in the
hit dramas, “Full House” on KBS in 2004, “Sangdoo, Let’s go to
School,” on KBS in 2003. This year, he also starred in his first
movie, “I am a Cyborg, But That’s Okay” directed by Park Chan-
wook, which was invited to next year’s Berlin International Film
Festival.
Hines Ward Reaches Out to Biracial Kids
Hines Ward, Korean-American football player,
has given Korea a chance to reflect on its
discriminatory and hostile attitude toward
biracial people. The Pittsburgh Steelers receiver,
who won the most valued player award at the
2006 Super Bowl, was born in Seoul to a Korean
mother and an African- American father.
People said Ward would not have achieved success
if he had stayed in Korea, where many multi-racial
people face discrimination and unfair treatment because of their physical
appearance. Ward visited Korea with his mother in April and set up a
foundation to support biracial children here.
Many government offices and agencies, including the National Human
Rights Commission, started to discuss measures to boost the welfare
of biracial people and abolish discrimination against them. Most recently,
the 30-year-old invited eight biracial children from Korea to Pittsburgh for a
one-week trip.
Park New Swimming Star
South Korea’s Park Tae-hwan stepped up as
one of the world’s top-ranked swimmers in 2006.
The 17-year-old swimmer won three gold medals
in the men’s 200-meter, 400-meter and 1,500-meter
freestyle races at the Asian Games in Doha, Qatar,
with two Asian records in the 200- and 1,500-meter
races.
Park, who is 1.81 meters (5 feet and 9 inches) and 69 kilograms, also
added four more medals _ one silver and three bronzes _ to become
the most valuable player of the Asian Games as well as the top medal-
winner. In addition, the Korean swimmer took two golds in the Pan-Pacific
Swimming Championships last August in Canada, finishing first in the men’s
400 and 1,500-meter freestyle.
Former Seoul Mayor Lee Leads Run for 2007
Former Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak has emerged
as one of the most promising presidential candidates,
topping the most recent survey polls. A member of the
main opposition Grand National Party (GNP), Lee is
expected to have fierce competition from other GNP
candidates, including Rep. Park Geun-hye, the party’s
former chairwoman, to win an intra-party poll next year.
Lee is the richest presidential hopeful so far. As of last December, Lee had
18.6 billion won worth of personal property, including three buildings in Seoul.
Lee accumulated his wealth while serving as CEO for Hyundai Group subsidiaries.
Jang Shakes Chaebol
With the launch of the Korea Corporate Governance Fund, Prof.
Jang Ha-sung of Korea University transformed himself from minority
shareholder activist into an institutional investor who can take chaebol
by the horns and change their behavior.
Owned by the U.S.-based Lazard Asset Management, Jang’s fund
first targeted Daehan Synthetic Fiber and successfully forced it to
improve its corporate governance through the stock market. Now it is
pursuing Hwasung Industrial, Crown Confectionary and Dongwon
Development.
Not everybody supports Jang, with critics calling him the same as
a foreign corporate raider.
Korean B-Boys Win World Fame
B-Boys have been the most sought after item
in the Korean performing art market this year.
From “The Ballerina Who Loved a B-Boy,”
which has been running at its own theater near
Hongik University for more than a year, to “BBoy
Korea” presented in November by PMC, producer
of the hit non-verbal performance “Nanta” (Cookin’),
about 20 pieces dependent on the popularity of
B-Boys met audiences on stage, not on the street.
The phenomenon may not be surprising considering that top-notch skills
of the Korean B-Boys have earned titles at various competitions around the
world in recent years. The government also hopes to take Korean B-Boys
abroad to expand the spectrum of Hallyu, or the Korean Wave. Next year
will be another litmus test on how the BBoys will fare further in the market.
Several performances, including re-run of the hit piece “Marionette,” are
lined up for audiences from January.
Lee Home Run King
Few Koreans would deny Lee Seung-yeop of
the Yomiuri Giants was one of the nation’s most
accomplished sports figures of 2006.
The 30-year-old slugger became a world fame at
the World Baseball Classic in March, hitting five
homers and driving in 10 runs, as Korea reached
the tournament semifinals. Lee, Asia’s homerun
leader for one season with 56, lived up to expectations
in his first year as a Giant, with 41 homers and 108 RBIs
and 101 runs. He batted .323. Lee also achieved a career milestone,
400 homers, in August, while battling a chronic knee injury. But he underwent
a successful knee surgery at the end of the season, and re-signed with
Yomiuri in a four-year deal that will keep him with the Giants through 2010.
‘Mr. Chip’ Hwang Upgrades Semiconductor Biz
Hwang Chang-gyu, chief executive of Samsung
Electronics’ semiconductor business, has been in the
spotlight throughout this year for leading a series of chip
developments.
Affectionately known as “Mr. Chip,” Hwang introduced a
32-gigabit flash memory chip made using 40-nanometer
inscription technology this year. Thanks to his achievements,
he is also touted as one of the leading candidates to succeed
Samsung Electronic’s Yun Jong-yong, Samsung Electronics CEO.
Chief Justice Lee Speaks Out
Supreme Court Chief Justice Lee Yong-hun,
an outspoken 64- year-old evangelist and an
advocate of legal reform, often found himself entangled
in verbal battles with prosecutors and lawyers while
calling for changes in courtroom procedures.
The biggest controversy came when Lee publicly criticized
the professional practices of prosecutors and lawyers.
Prosecutor General Choung Sangmyoung said his comments
were “inappropriate” and “misguided.” Although the emotions
later died down, the two haven’t exactly kissed and made up.
