Latest news with #Rho
Korea Herald
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Election committee chair seeks to allay growing voter concerns
Rho Tae-ak, chair of the National Election Commission, said Monday in a written statement that transparency in election procedures and restoring the public trust in the June presidential election are the NEC's top priorities. It was an apparent move to address growing voter concerns due to abnormalities at polling stations during the two-day period of early voting on Thursday and Friday, while conspiracy theories concerning the NEC's involvement in vote-rigging during the 2024 general election still linger. Rho said election authorities are to take measures to ensure that ballots cast during the early voting period remain under 24-hour watch until vote counting starts Tuesday evening. Vote counting for paper ballots submitted in advance voting are to be counted manually, in addition to the automated ballot processing using machines. These measures have been taken since the general election in April 2024. Moreover, authorities have employed independent observers to monitor polling stations nationwide, while introducing a new system for this year's election to estimate the number of early voters on an hourly basis. "The National Election Commission has prepared for this election, placing our priority on ensuring transparency in the election process and reliability of the election outcome," Rho said. This comes as 14,295 polling stations, including 4,574 in Seoul, are to operate from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. under the monitoring of some 130,000 polling station staff nationwide Tuesday, with voters heading to their designated polling station. A total of 28,590 police officers will be dispatched for patrol duty. Vote counting will take place at 254 locations. Over 70,000 workers will be involved in the process, while some 7,600 police officers will be deployed to the locations. Rho said Tuesday's presidential election could be a cornerstone for South Korea to "not only overcome social conflict and confrontation, but also achieve harmony and hope" in his public statement. The remarks follow a series of incidents at polling stations during the two-day early voting and persistent disputes over election authorities' management of polling stations. On Sunday, a South Korean court issued an arrest warrant for a worker at a polling station in her 60s for casting a vote on behalf of her husband without him being present at the station on Thursday. Police have also launched an investigation into a person who posted a marked paper ballot on social media site Douyin. On the other hand, the NEC has taken legal actions against those who caused commotion at the scene of polling stations. Among them were a person who wrapped herself in a US national flag while working as an observer at a polling station in Incheon, a person taking photos of a polling station without authorization and swearing at polling station workers on Jeju Island, a man attempting to intrude in the election commission building in Hadong, South Gyeongsang Province, and a person who inflicted injury to a polling station worker while attempting to forcefully open the door of an election commission building in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, among others. The main conservative People Power Party claimed that negligence in polling station management was the reason public concerns about early voting have been growing. Rep. Kim Yong-tae, interim chief of the party, on Friday called for an all-out inspection of polling stations and suggested a law revision to require all early-voting ballot papers to carry the signature of a polling station staff member. Tuesday's presidential election is being held extraordinarily to choose a new leader to take the place of former conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was removed from office in April after the Constitutional Court confirmed his impeachment. The disgraced former president had pointed to a purported threat of election-rigging in early voting and his belief that his People Power Party lost the 2024 general election to cheating as being behind his decision to deploy hundreds of soldiers to the NEC headquarters in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Dec. 3, 2024, with the apparent intention to arrest dozens of election authorities. Yoon, who has said he intended to inspect the election authorities, was impeached in mid-December and ousted in April for his hourslong imposition of martial law in December. His term was due to expire in May 2027.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Care homes closure warning after PM's visa pledge
Care homes could be forced to close their doors over immigration law changes, according to bosses in the sector. A new UK government white paper proposes care workers on sponsored visas would need to remain in the UK for 10 years before gaining the right to live and work here indefinitely - double the current requirement of five years. One care worker on a care sponsorship visa described the announcement as "shocking", and said it was "dashing" her hopes of building a better life. Downing Street has said it will not "shy away from direct conversations on immigration", while the Welsh government said it was analysing the proposal and its potential impact on all sectors, including social care. Starmer accuses Plaid MP of talking 'rubbish' Rating system launched for care homes in Wales Labour's immigration plans at a glance The proposal was announced in a speech by the prime minister this week, where he warned the UK risks becoming an "island of strangers". Sir Keir Starmer did not set a precise target, but the Home Office estimated the new policies could lead to a 100,000 drop in immigration per year by 2029. Folake, from Nigeria, is currently on a care sponsorship visa which ends in January. She said she "loves" her job as a nursing home carer and that community "makes me happy". "I came with the hope of settling here in the United Kingdom and building a better life for my children," she said. "It's shocking and depressing, and it's dashing that hope." Folake, who lives in Rhondda Cynon Taf, said people do not want to become illegal immigrants or asylum seekers and want to work here legally and "live our lives". "Each time I think about it, I question 'is this really becoming a reality?' It's sad, and I panic," she said. "[The UK government] made a promise, you asked us to come - this feels like a betrayal of trust." Successive governments have tried unsuccessfully to reduce net migration, which is the number of people coming to the UK minus the number leaving. Net migration climbed to a record 906,000 in June 2023, and last year it stood at 728,000. Sir Keir argued the proposals bring the immigration system "back into control", and said the new plans, which tackle legal migration to the UK, would ensure a "selective" and "fair" system, where "we decide who comes to this country". A sponsorship visa for carers is a type of skilled worker visa that allows overseas nationals to work in UK adult social care roles under a licensed employer. Mukesh, from India, came to the UK in 2022 as a dependent of his wife, who was a student at the time. He later obtained a sponsorship visa to work in care, which is due for renewal in September. "We don't know what to do next. It feels like we're being punished for doing everything right," Mukesh, who lives in Cardiff, said. "We didn't come here illegally. We pay all our taxes and follow all the rules, but still feel punished." According to Social Care Cymru, around 88,000 people work in Wales' care sector, with approximately 15% to 20% coming from overseas. Oakville Care Homes, which operates four homes across south Wales, employs more than 200 staff, 65% of whom are from overseas. "It's going to have a drastic effect," according to Mahesh Patel, one of the company's general managers. "I wouldn't be surprised if many care homes eventually close. It will have a huge impact on local health boards and local authorities. "We've had lots of meetings with staff - it's been quite upsetting for them. Some managers have been in tears." Mr Patel said he has had meetings with companies this week to arrange recruitment banners to display outside its homes. "We have to act now, given the number of staff we could potentially lose in the next 12 months," he added. Caron Group, which runs 18 homes, said more than 50% of its workforce are on sponsorship visas. At Ely Court Care Home in Cardiff fears are shared, with staff concerned about the impact on the services they provide to residents. General manager Rebecca Roberts said the proposal would have a "huge impact on the whole industry". "Changing the employment route makes it harder for us to recruit and retain the staff needed to provide high-quality care," Ms Roberts said. "It's not just about numbers - it's about the expertise we're losing. "More and more homes will struggle to find staff, and that will have a knock-on effect across the entire care sector in Wales." The UK government has defended Keir Starmer's speech and insists it will not "shy away" from direct talk on the subject. The Welsh government said it was "analysing the immigration white paper and its impact on all sectors, including social care".
USA Today
16-05-2025
- Science
- USA Today
Why are orange cats orange? A small missing piece of DNA is why, 2 new studies explain
Why are orange cats orange? A small missing piece of DNA is why, 2 new studies explain The type of DNA mutation responsible for orange cat coloration is "very unusual," Stanford University genetic professor Gregory Barsh said. Show Caption Hide Caption Viral cat-ceañera shows owner's love for her furry friend This cat's owner always dreamed of throwing a big party for her soul cat, Holly. Now, her Quinceañera gripped the hearts of social media users. Orange cats may be known for their silly behavior, but two new studies are a step closer to understanding "the why" behind the furry felines' coloring. Two independent studies published on May 15 by geneticists in Japan and from Stanford University in California explain how orange cats' coloring is a direct result of a missing DNA code near a specific protein found within the X chromosome. Inherently, the studies also explain why most orange cats, about 80%, are male. So, to answer the question: What makes orange cats orange? Here's a deeper look into the findings of the two studies. Furry felines: We know why cats knead. But here's why humans love it so much. Why are orange cats orange? Here's what researchers found Both studies found that a small missing piece of DNA code located next to the Rho GTPase-activating protein (ARHGAP36) resulted in orange fur coloration. In cats, ARHGAP36 is responsible for fur coloration. When this piece of DNA is missing, it causes ARHGAP36 to become more abundant, roughly 10 times more abundant, Gregory Barsh, Stanford University genetics professor and study co-author, told USA TODAY. This leads to the production of more red, orange or yellow pigment, which is incorporated into a cat's hair. This type of mutation is "very unusual," according to Barsh. "Most mutations ... like genetic conditions in humans ... (are) inactivate or take away the function of a gene," Barsh said. "But what this does is really different. It increases the expression of this gene ARHGAP36, and moreover, it does it in a specific type of cell, the pigment cell ... that is found in hair, eye and skin color." So why does this happen? Why does an increased amount of ARHGAP36 result in orange fur? "It's interfering with a central signaling pathway, a hormonal signaling pathway that's present in many, many cells of the body ... basically all animals," Barsh said. "That is a hormonal signaling pathway that ... normally produces black or brown pigment. What increased expression of a ARHGAP36 does it is destroys that signaling pathway, or it inhibits that signaling pathway. So instead, the melanocytes (cells that form melanin) make red or yellow pigment." Studies point to why orange cats are mostly males Most orange cats are male, about 80%, to be more exact, according to the Regional Animal Protection Society. And the findings from the recent studies make sense of why. ARHGAP36 is found within the X chromosome. Females have two X chromosomes, and males have an X chromosome and a Y chromosome. For the mutation to appear in female cats, it would need to occur in both X chromosomes, which has a lesser chance of occurring than in a male's one X chromosome. Watch: Fabulous feline stories on International Cat Day What do these findings mean? Learning about the ARHGAP36 mutation goes beyond just understanding cats. The gene is found in all animals, including humans, Barsh said. Learning how it functions allows researchers to better understand hormonal signaling pathways as a general phenomenon. 'No cats in the lab' As cat lovers, Barsh said he and his research team worked with volunteers and nonprofit organizations to collect the samples necessary for their study. First, the team worked with cat owners to obtain voluntary samples. Barsh said the study's lead author, Stanford University genetics professor Christopher Kaelin, went to several cat shows and asked owners if he could swab their cats' cheeks for samples. The team also partnered with spay and neuter clinics to study tissue samples. In some cases, when a female cat is neutered, she is already pregnant, Barsh said, adding that the fetal tissue, or the embryonic tissue, gets discarded. When partnering with clinics, Barsh and his team collected these tissue samples instead to use for their study. While the two studies were completed independently, Barsh said the researchers have been in contact with each other for the last year and decided to publish in the same peer-reviewed journal, "Current Biology," on the same day. Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@
Forbes
21-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Jane Austen, K-Dramas And Tragic History Meet In ‘Stone Angels'
Protestors sit next to a statue of a South Korean teenage girl in traditional costume. The Statue of ... [+] Peace acknowledges the women who served as sex slaves for Japanese soldiers during World War II. JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images Stone Angels was not an easy story to tell. It has been almost two decades since author Helena Rho first heard about the wartime sex slaves known as 'comfort women.' Yet, in all those years these victims have not received the only thing they care about, an apology, In 2006, while Rho was in Korea, relearning her native tongue and reconnecting with her mother's family, she was shocked to learn that before and during World War II, institutionalized sex trafficking by the Japanese Imperialist Forces enslaved as many as 200,000 women and girls. The majority of these women were Korean. The victims were taken to provide 'comfort' to the Japanese armed forces, in the process suffering repeated rape and horrifying abuse. Many died and those who survived were crippled by shame, often unable to return home. 'The surviving victims want just one simple thing from the government of Japan, a formal governmental apology,' said Rho, a four-time Pushcart Prize nominated writer and author of American Seoul. 'Not a personal apology, because several prime ministers of Japan have issued personal apologies, but they've made it clear that this is on behalf of just themselves. Every human being should feel terrible about sex trafficking of young girls and women, but they have never formally apologized as a government or acknowledged their war crimes and crimes against humanity and that's all the survivors have ever wanted. And they would like an offer of reparations. I've interviewed these survivors and they told me, we're old women. We don't need the money. We don't want the money, but it would indicate that they are sincerely, truly sorry if they offer us reparations, because this was a war crime.' Helena Rho's second book 'Stone Angels was published in 2025. Rho wanted to tell the story of these women and initially focused her story on Sun-yah, a fictional character who was enslaved. 'I realized very quickly that I could not have only one point of view in the novel,' said Rho. 'I started with Sun-yuh and thought, I can't stay in darkness that long. It took me so long to write her chapters because they were emotionally devastating to write." That's when Rho decided to alternate the story of Sun-yah, with the character's niece Angelina Lee, who returns to South Korea to find out more about her mother's family. In the process she discovers that her mother had an older sister, Sun-yuh, who survived enslavement, but whose memory the family had erased. While exploring her family history Angelina also discovers what she needs from the world and from relationships. Her life/love story involves a narcissistic ex-husband, a longtime friend she grows wary of, and a younger admirer who helps uncover her family's mystery. 'Once I realized I couldn't stay in the point of view of a sexual slave for the entire novel, I thought, oh, I've always wanted to do my own version of Persuasion by Jane Austen,' said Rho. "I wanted to call it Regret and Redemption. So that's how Angelina came about. I based her loosely on Anne Elliot from Persuasion and then decided on a multi-generational novel. I wanted it to be about mothers and daughters. There are literally millions of iterations of mother-daughter relationships and I wanted to explore that.' Rho is such an ardent Jane Austen fan she re-reads the author's published works every decade. References to Austen abound in the Stone Angels. The heroine's daughter is named Emma. Her sisters are named after other Austen characters. 'Once I decided that a version of Anne Elliot from Persuasion was going to be my central character, I realized that a love story was integral to her journey. And then I realized I didn't know how to write a love story. So I was like, okay, let's go back to Jane Austen. She's the OG.' At one point in the novel Angelina cites two of her favorite love quotes. One was written by Austen and the other is a phrase commonly pronounced by male leads in Korean dramas, which Rho also loves. For the record, her favorite dramas include Our Blues, Fated to Love You, Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, Descendants of the Sun. What's Wrong with Secretary Kim, Encounter, Forecasting Love and Weather and My Liberation Notes. She's currently enjoying When Life Gives You Tangerines. Helena Rho first learned about the history of the comfort women while in Korea reconnecting with ... [+] family. Angelina watches k-dramas, like Rho, and the man she falls for may seem familiar to k-drama fans. He has some classic k-drama male lead attributes: good looks, talent, but also humility and a kind heart. Does he seem too good to be true? Maybe. Rho is fine with perpetuating the idea that you can find the perfect man. 'I'm totally fine with it because I think that it started with Jane Austen,' said Rho. 'Honestly, I think all women who are attracted to men want a man like that.' She compares Yoon, a character who devotedly loves Angelina's aunt, to Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility. Rho admits that Angelina's younger love interest, Keisuke, is a version of Darcy, Austen's most compelling male character. Rho has always loved reading. When she was six years old, her South Korean family moved to Uganda, where she remembers reading a copy of Jane Eyre left behind by the previous British tenant of their Kampala house. After seeing Gone With the Wind, she started a diary, titled Dear Scarlet. 'Margaret Mitchell's book is problematic now with its depiction of slavery,' said Rho. 'But as a 10-year-old, I just thought, here's a strong woman who has a pretty amazing story. So, I started a diary, Dear Scarlet, and kept at it for a year. I suppose that was probably my first desire to write, but that wasn't practical for my culture, for a Korean American immigrant at that.' Rho followed her father into medicine. A former assistant professor of pediatrics, she practiced and taught at the top children's hospitals in the U.S. However, an accident at the age of 40 prompted her to reassess her goals. 'It also coincided with my mother's first suicide attempt and I was reevaluating everything in my life,' said Rho. 'I had never experienced chronic pain before. I had herniated several discs in my back and had excruciating back pain. I thought, you know what? To use that cliché, life is too short. And as Marianne Evans, who wrote as George Elliot, once said, 'it is never too late to be what you might've been.' So I decided, I want to be a writer. I've always loved books. I want to be a writer and I'm going to do this.' While Stone Angels bears literary witness to the horrors of war, it has another message to convey. Families are messy. 'Angelina is at a very difficult time in her life where her mother has died by suicide," said Rho. "She's going through an ugly divorce from an even uglier husband and has two unhappy children. She discovers a horrific family secret and then it's about what she chooses to do. I hope readers will laugh and cry along with Angelina and with Sun-yuh. Also, I hope that they will avail themselves of the resources in my author's note and learn more about the victims of sexual slavery by Japan during the Asia Pacific War.' The Statue of Peace, a statue of a girl that symbolizes the victims, was first erected in 2011 in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul to urge the Japanese government to apologize to and honor the victims. Since then more of these statues have been placed in South Korea and in locations around the world. Stone Angels is published by Grand Central Publishing, a division of the Hachette Book Group.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Global EV sales soared in February, as China's market kept its growth pace with 76% surge
Worldwide sales of electric vehicles (EVs) surged in February, driven mostly by a 76 per cent growth in China even as Europe and the United States erected import barriers to stem the domination of made-in-China marques. Global sales of battery-powered EVs and hybrids jumped to 1.2 million units in February, 50 per cent more than last year, according to data compiled by Rho Motion. About three-quarters of those took place in China, where purchases soared 87 per cent from last year, according to data released separately by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. "Much of the growth continues to come from China, which is seeing a sales renaissance of pure electric [vehicles] this year compared to the hybrid love affair of 2024," Rho's data manager Charles Lester said. Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. China continued its outsize domination of the world's market for EVs and oil-guzzling vehicles. Sales in the first two months of 2025 - which coincided with the Lunar New Year, a seasonal peak for splashing out - rose 35 per cent to 1.4 million units, about 60 per cent of what was sold worldwide during the same period. Xiaomi's SU7 Ultra electric car at the 2025 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on March 3, 2025. Photo: Xinhua alt=Xiaomi's SU7 Ultra electric car at the 2025 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on March 3, 2025. Photo: Xinhua> Battery-driven EV sales grew 46 per cent in China, as a plethora of new models by BYD, Xiaomi, Xpeng and Zeekr drove consumers to eschew petrol-electric hybrids and go all-in to embrace the electric revolution. Sales of plug-in hybrids grew 22 per cent, slower than the same period last year, Rho said. BYD, which surpassed Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2023 as the world's largest maker of "pure" battery-powered EVs, maintained its relentless growth pace. The Shenzhen-based carmaker said it sold 133,361 EVs and hybrids in the first two months. Exports doubled in February to 67,025 EVs to set the third consecutive month of records. Tesla continued to lose market share on the mainland to its Chinese rivals in February, as sales plunged more than 50 per cent to 30,688 units last month, a faster pace than the 49.2 per cent decline in January. BYD's EV being loaded on NYK Line's ro-ro (roll on/Roll off) ship at Guangzhou port in southern China on February 22, 2025. Photo: AFP. alt=BYD's EV being loaded on NYK Line's ro-ro (roll on/Roll off) ship at Guangzhou port in southern China on February 22, 2025. Photo: AFP.> The EU imposed tariffs on made-in-China cars at the end of last October after an anti-subsidy probe. The US and Canada also introduced a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese-made EVs while US president Donald Trump threatens to impose more. "Despite high tariffs, their domestic brand, BYD, shows no signs of slowing down their home and international expansion," Lester noted. China dominates the EV supply chain, holding more than three-quarters of the world's production capacity for batteries. Mainland companies also account for more than two-thirds of the market in all of the categories of components needed to assemble EVs, according to Beijing-based Insight and Info Consulting. BYD, in which Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett holds a stake, doubled down on its research spending, announcing a plan to raise US$5.6 billion in a stock sale. BYD appears to be unfazed by tariffs, as its factories in Brazil, Hungary, Indonesia and Thailand approach completion to increase its production capacity, analysts said. Europe's EV sales increased 20 per cent to 500,000 units in the first two months of the year, while deliveries in North America rose by the same quantum to 300,000 units, Rho said. This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Copyright (c) 2025. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
