top 10 domestic news stories-2009

Yonhap picks Roh's death as Korea's top news story in 2009
SEOUL, Dec. 18 (Yonhap) -- Yonhap News Agency on Friday selected former President
Roh Moo-hyun's suicide in May as this year's top domestic news story. The
following is a list of the 10 biggest domestic news stories that jolted South
Korea in 2009, as selected by Yonhap.

-- Roh Moo-hyun's death
Former President Roh Moo-hun, who served as the country's leader between 2003 and
2008, leaped to his death from a mountainside precipice above his rural
retirement home in southeast South Korea on May 23, amid a widening corruption
investigation that sent several of his closest confidants to prison. His funeral
was held at Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul on May 29. His abrupt death brought
about heightened political and social tension, with supporters claiming the probe
into Roh was politically motivated. The prosecution closed the probe right after
his death.

-- Sejong City controversy
Prime Minister Chung Un-chan triggered a nationwide debate in September by
proposing that a state project to relocate a dozen government ministries and
agencies to Sejong City under construction in central South Korea be revised due
to concerns the relocation could lead to government inefficiency. The plan began
as an election campaign pledge by former President Roh Moo-hyun in 2002. The
proposed revision met with fierce opposition by residents of Chungcheong
Province, where the new town is located, as well as by all opposition parties and
even a key faction in the ruling party.

-- Massive spread of Influenza A virus
The outbreak of Influenza A (H1N1) in Mexico in April was followed by a rapid
spread of the disease to countries around the world. In South Korea, a female
traveler was the first to be diagnosed with the H1N1 virus after returning from
Mexico on May 2. The country's death toll from the new strain of influenza
reached 148 as of Dec. 17. South Korean authorities downgraded the nation's flu
alert status from "red," the highest level, to "orange" on Dec. 10 as the pace of
infections appeared to have abated.

-- Deadly fire at redevelopment site in Seoul's Yongsan Ward
On Jan. 20, a police SWAT team raided a dilapidated four-story building in
Seoul's central Yongsan Ward to evict dozens of squatters opposing a
redevelopment plan there. Six people, including a police officer, were killed in
the blaze that occurred during the pre-dawn raid. The incident triggered violent
protests by the squatters and heated debate over the government's redevelopment
policy. The conflict between families of the victims and the government has yet
to be settled, with both sides blaming each other for the deaths.

-- Kim Dae-jung's death
Former President Kim Dae-jung died on Aug. 18 at age 85 following a prolonged
battle with pneumonia. Kim, who served as president between 1998 and 2003, was
honored with a state funeral as the nation commemorated his lifelong dedication
to democracy, inter-Korean reconciliation and human rights. A North Korean
delegation led by Kim Ki-nam, a secretary of the North's Workers' Party, came to
Seoul to pay condolences over the late leader's death.

-- Kim Yu-na's record-breaking victories
Figure skater Kim Yu-na won all five major competitions and set a series of new
records, emerging as the favorite to win the gold medal in the upcoming Vancouver
Winter Olympics. After winning the Four Continents Championship in February, the
19-year-old claimed her first victory at the World Championships in March. She
also swept every Grand Prix event, including the GP Final in December. Kim
acquired 208.71 at March's World Championships, topping the 200 mark for the
first time in women's figure skating. The reigning world champion also set a new
record with 210.03 at Trophee Eric Bompard in October.

-- North Korea's rocket launch and nuclear test
On April 5, North Korea fired what many believed was an intercontinental
ballistic missile, though Pyongyang insisted the test was a satellite launch. The
U.N. Security Council issued a statement a week later condemning the launch.
Pyongyang went on to conduct a nuclear test in May, its second following an
earlier test in 2006, prompting the council to impose sanctions banning the North
from weapons trade and nuclear development. The isolated country has since
withdrawn from the six-party denuclearization talks and announced a plan to
bolster its nuclear arsenal by pursuing both plutonium reprocessing and uranium
enrichment.

-- North Korea's new successor
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, widely believed to have suffered a stroke in
August last year, initiated a series of moves to transfer power to his third and
youngest son, Jong-un. The communist country appeared to have incorporated a new
propaganda song in praise of the state's heir entitled "Footsteps" as a regular
theme during public events. In April, the North's parliament approved a revised
constitution to formally strengthen the power of the head of the National Defense
Commission in an apparent move to pave the way for a smooth power transition.

-- Serial killer sentenced to death for killing 10 women
Kang Ho-sun, a resident of Ansan, south of Seoul, was arrested in late January
for the murder of a female college student. The 38-year-old Kang subsequently
admitted to raping and killing seven other women between 2006 and 2008. He was
also charged with killing his former wife and mother-in-law in 2005 by setting
their home on fire to receive an insurance payment. He was sentenced to death in
September for the murder of the 10 women.

-- South Korea selected as host of G20 summit in November 2010
South Korea won the right to host next year's Group of 20 summit. Leaders of the
G20 countries agreed at their September summit in Pittsburgh to meet again next
year in Canada in June and in South Korea in November. The South Korean summit
will be the fifth after the first in Washington in November 2008 and the second
in London in April 2009. In November, the government picked Seoul as the venue of
next year's G20 summit. The summit of the world's 20 advanced and developing
economies aims to deal with various economic and financial issues facing the
globe. South Korea will be the first emerging economy to host the G20 summit, a
rare opportunity to upgrade its national status.
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