Latest news with #SejongUniversity
NHK
16-07-2025
- General
- NHK
South Korean court annuls provisional order on book about 'comfort women'
A court in South Korea has annulled a decade-old provisional order to bar the publishing of a book on those referred to as wartime comfort women, unless some descriptions in it were deleted. A district court in Seoul issued a provisional order in 2015 regarding the book "Comfort Women of the Empire," published in 2013 by Park Yu-ha, professor emerita at Sejong University. The court annulled the order on Tuesday. The order targeted descriptions such as that the relationship between the women and the now-defunct Imperial Japanese military was akin to that of "comrades." Park was charged with defamation. But last year, a high court acquitted her, saying the book should be viewed as an academic argument and cannot be considered defamation. Park posted on social media that her book, which had been sold with 34 sections edited out, can now be put back to its original form.
Korea Herald
15-07-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Sejong University tops Korea's tech transfer earnings in 2024
Sejong University announced that its technology transfer income for 2024 was the highest among South Korean universities, posting 17.37 billion won ($12.5 million) that year. It outpaced other top Korean universities, including Kyung Hee University at 9.7 billion won, KAIST at 8.1 billion won, Seoul National University at 6.4 billion won and Sungkyunkwan University at 4.3 billion won. This figure is the second-highest in Korean history, following Hanyang University's 27.9 billion won in 2022, and reflects a dramatic leap from just a few hundred million won a decade ago, the university explained. University technology transfer is the process of moving scientific discoveries and inventions from university research labs into the public and private sectors, often leading to new products, services and businesses. The achievement stems from Sejong's longstanding commitment to structured innovation through the Education Ministry's Bridge program, which supports the commercialization of university intellectual property, the school said. The school has developed high-value, mature technologies by establishing tailored support across the research and development and startup lifecycle. A standout success lies in its diversification of standard essential patent royalties, especially in video codec technologies. Since joining global patent pools for HEVC, VVC, AV1 and VP9, Sejong University has secured hundreds of billions of won in royalties. 'Through the specialization of a dedicated technology commercialization organization, Sejong University has been conducting demand-driven, high-value technology commercialization that is in line with the university's characteristics,' said Um Jong-hwa, president of Sejong University. "This achievement is the result of fulfilling the university's social responsibility to return its excellent research results to society and contribute to improving national competitiveness.
Korea Herald
03-07-2025
- Korea Herald
Scholar to be compensated after being cleared of defamation against comfort women
Park Yu-ha, author who argued sex slaves for Japanese army during World War II were prostitutes, to receive 8.75 million won for trial-related costs The Seoul High Court has ordered the South Korean government to financially compensate Park Yu-ha, professor emeritus at Sejong University, after she was cleared of defamation charges related to her controversial book about victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, local media reported Thursday. The court ruled that Park should be paid 8.75 million won ($6,440) to cover damages caused by her prosecution. The charges stemmed from her claim in her 2013 book "Comfort Women of the Empire" that the comfort women, a euphemism for victims of Japan's wartime military sexual slavery, were prostitutes and were not forcibly mobilized by the Japanese forces during World War II. Park was indicted in 2015 for defaming the surviving victims. The Supreme Court in October of 2023 ruled in favor of Park, saying her expression does not constitute the crime of defamation as stipulated in the Criminal Code. It was deemed that Park's expression should be considered a claim based on the right of academic freedom and her personal opinion. In the previous rulings, the district court in 2017 found her innocent, but the appellate ruling by the Seoul High Court had convicted her of defamation. The ruling by the appellate court had said that the claims made by Park were enough to depreciate the dignity of the former comfort women. It pointed out that the UN human rights report and the international community agree that the comfort women were indeed sex slaves. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of women from across Asia were forced to work in front-line brothels for Japanese soldiers during the war. The legal fight surrounding Park's claim was not over the legitimacy of the comments in her book, but over whether or not they should be legally considered defamation. Park also won the civil lawsuit filed by the former victims of Japan's sexual slavery in January, with the civil court basing its decision on the 2023 ruling by Korea's highest court.
Korea Herald
25-06-2025
- Science
- Korea Herald
Sejong University earns global recognition, ranks third domestically
Sejong University has been ranked third among Korean universities in the recent global university rankings, which evaluated over 2,250 institutions worldwide based on research output and international competitiveness. The Seoul-based university placed 238th overall, following Seoul National University and Yonsei University, which ranked 122nd and 234th, respectively. The rankings were compiled by US News & World Report, an American publication that annually evaluates universities across 13 indicators, including research reputation, publication and citation performance, and the extent of international collaboration. This marks the second consecutive year that Sejong has held the No. 3 position among Korean institutions in the assessment, while rising three places in the global ranking from the previous year. Specifically, Sejong University ranked 38th globally for the proportion of top 10 percent most-cited papers, and 89th for the share of top 1 percent most-cited papers. Its level of collaboration with international institutions was also highly rated. Sejong also earned global recognition for its academic departments, with water resources engineering ranked 35th, mathematics 51st, electrical and electronic engineering 70th, and artificial intelligence 99th. Sejong University President Um Jong-hwa attributed the results to the university's longstanding focus on strengthening its research capacity and global engagement. 'This outcome reflects our commitment to a research-driven education model, continued investment in research, and expansion of international collaboration,' Um said. 'We will continue to grow as a leading global research university that delivers academic excellence and social contributions.'
New Straits Times
04-06-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
The challenges facing South Korea's new leader Lee
SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Jae-myung assumes office with a bulging in-tray, from a deepening economic slump and global trade war to mounting concerns over military ties between nuclear-armed North Korea and Russia. And just hours after Lee took office, South Korea's crucial steel and aluminium exports are set to be hit by steep levies of 50 percent as part of US President Donald Trump's tariff bonanza. AFP takes a look at what Lee will have to deal with as president: Chief among Lee's priorities will be steering South Korea's export-dependent economy – Asia's fourth largest – through economic turmoil sparked by the tariffs Trump has imposed on US trading partners. "One of South Korea's major export items is aluminium and steel," Kim Dae-jong, a professor at Sejong University, told AFP, adding that the tariffs could worsen "the already sluggish domestic economy." South Korea was the fourth largest exporter of steel to the United States last year, accounting for 13 percent of its total steel imports. With the US doubling Wednesday its tariffs on imported aluminium and steel, Seoul will need to work quickly to shield its economy from the headwinds. Lee is seen by his supporters as a pragmatic and effective negotiator, with over a decade of experience as a city mayor and provincial governor. "Political leadership is crucial at times like this. And with an elected president, a phone call with Trump could improve the situation significantly," Kim added. On the campaign trail, Lee said Seoul needs to "start negotiations on tariffs immediately" with the Trump administration, but also stressed there was no need to "rush" a deal. Lee's Democratic Party has taken a relatively dovish approach to North Korea in the past, with former president Moon Jae-in holding several historic summits with Pyongyang's leader Kim Jong Un – and Trump. But Moon's efforts to normalise ties failed and the North has since bolstered relations with Russia, sent at least 14,000 troops to help Moscow's war in Ukraine, and declared the South its enemy state. Lee has hinted that he will take a different approach compared to hawkish Yoon, under whom inter-Korean ties fell to their worst point in years. On the campaign trail, Lee accused Yoon of deliberately provoking the North to justify his martial law bid – prompting backlash from conservatives. During Yoon's administration, North Korea blew up roads and railways connecting it to the South and erected what looked like walls near the border. "Wasn't it out of fear that the South might push up with tanks that North Korea built those tank barriers?" Lee said. Lee's tenure begins as South Korea finds itself in the middle of a growing superpower standoff between the United States, its traditional security guarantor, and China, its largest trade partner. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in May warned Beijing was "credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific." He called on US allies in Asia such as Seoul to boost their defences in the face of mounting threats. Lee, however, has suggested his country should pursue friendlier ties with Beijing, a long-time backer of Pyongyang. He drew backlash last year by saying he would say "xie xie" – thank you in Chinese – to both China and the self-ruled island of Taiwan in the event of a conflict involving the two. When asked during the campaign by TIME magazine whether he would come to Taiwan's aid if it were attacked by Beijing, Lee said: "I will think about that answer when aliens are about to invade the earth." Lee must also lead a nation still deeply divided and reeling from the political turmoil triggered by Yoon's martial law bid in December. If the new centre-left administration too aggressively goes after the conservatives, it will "only galvanise the far-rightists, ultimately undermining efforts to reduce political polarisation", Gi-Wook Shin, a sociology professor at Stanford University, told AFP. During the campaign, Lee said he would push to amend the constitution to make it harder to impose martial law. He also said it was necessary to launch a special investigation to identify those who may have been complicit with Yoon's bid to suspend civilian rule. Lee's administration will also have to deal with one of the world's lowest birth rates, a soaring cost of living and growing inequality. During the campaign, Lee said the younger generation's "sense of hopelessness" and deepening inequality were the main causes of South Korea's declining fertility rate. Many young South Koreans are not confident that "their children's lives will be any better than their own." Lee has pledged to create a shorter work week, extend the retirement age, expand state-led care services for children, people with disabilities and seniors, offer more housing options and increase support for small businesses and young South Koreans, among others.
