State tourism agency chief resigns

SEOUL, May 27 (Yonhap) -- The head of South Korea's state tourism agency has
resigned, a government official said Wednesday, following his defeat in elections
to become the new president of an international tourism organization.

Oh Jee-cheol, president of the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), challenged
incumbent Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO) Taleb Rifai for the post but was defeated in the election on May 8.
"He handed in his resignation to the culture ministry right after he returned to
Seoul and it was accepted," said Cho Hyun-jae, director of tourism policy in the
Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. The KTO is a state-funded organization
that reports to the culture minister.
Oh's term of office ends in January next year.
Cho said that the next KTO president has not yet been decided.
brk@yna.co.kr
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