Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Australia
China
India
Indonesia
Japan
Malaysia
Philippines
Thailand
Vietnam
Search
Search:
SKorea's opposition downscales parliament sit-in
AFP - 2 hours 10 minutes ago
SEOUL (AFP) - - South Korea's main opposition party downscaled a sit-in at parliament on Monday after scuffles with security guards left dozens of people injured.
The Democratic Party (DP) said it was also ready to negotiate a deal with the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) on ending the row -- primarily over a free trade agreement with the United States -- which has crippled the national assembly for weeks.
About 150 security guards, acting on the order of Speaker Kim Hyung-O, moved Saturday to break up the sit-in by opposition legislators.
DP members agreed to end the protest and remove a barricade at the entrance of the main parliamentary hall late Sunday after the speaker promised not to take further action until Thursday.
But they refused to end their main sit-in inside the hall.
The three-day scuffle left 53 security guards and two opposition legislators injured.
Security guards handed 19 protesters from the minor Democratic Labor Party to police early Monday, on charges of violence.
The row began on December 18 when the GNP began procedures to ratify the US-South Korean free trade agreement which was signed last year and awaits ratification by legislators.
The opposition, which has 83 seats in the 299-member legislature compared with the GNP's 172, says South Korea should not ratify the pact before the US Congress does.
Opposition lawmakers insist that the deal be given another review.
The GNP sees the agreement as necessary to stimulate the slowing economy and argues that approval by Seoul will encourage the US Congress to move faster.
South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak and US President George W. Bush agreed during an April summit to push for approval of the FTA this year.
For the US, the deal with South Korea would be its biggest since the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994.
Some estimates say it could boost two-way trade, worth 78.4 billion dollars last year, by up to 20 billion dollars in coming years.
However US president-elect Barack Obama has called the deal "badly flawed" and said it does too little to narrow a huge imbalance in the auto trade in Seoul's favour.
South Korea has ruled out any renegotiation.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
Average (0 votes)
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Related Articles: Asia Pacific
Sri Lanka troops keep up assault on last Tamil Tiger bases: armyAFP - 15 minutes ago
India hands evidence on Mumbai attacks to Pakistan: ministerAFP - 22 minutes ago
CORRECTED - CORRECTED-GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia stocks at 2-mth high as risk takinReuters - 33 minutes ago
India gives Pakistan evidence over Mumbai attacksAP - 41 minutes ago
Sri Lanka honors troops fighting rebelsAP - 1 hour 6 minutes ago
Enlarge Photo
SKorea's opposition downscales parliament sit-in
Most Popular – Asia Pacific
Viewed
US steel industry in collapse, eyes government aid: report
John Travolta's teenage son dies, autopsy planned
Israeli army moves on Gaza City as war toll passes 510
Rare Bugatti untouched for 50 years could fetch millions: report
France leads alarm over Gaza, splits with US
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular