Korea: Propaganda with balloons
Prison term, fine
Anyone found guilty of violating the law can now receive a prison sentence of up to three years or a fine of 30 million won (€22,549). The legislation was passed by a vote of 187 to zero after opposition parties staged a boycott of the proceedings.
As part of bridge-building measures in 2018, when inter-Korean relations were on a better footing, Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to halt hostile acts on the border, including the sending of leaflets.
Human rights and defector groups continued their campaigns, however, and were clearly having some effect north of the Demilitarized Zone that divides the Korean Peninsula. On June 13, Kim Yo Jong, the sister of Kim Jong Un, demanded that Seoul crack down on defectors who were sending propaganda into the North, describing them as human scum.
South Korea’s parliament has banned the launching of propaganda leaflets into North Korea, drawing fierce criticism from rights activists and defiance from a prominent North Korean defector who said he would not stop sending messages to his homeland.
Defectors and other campaigners in South Korea have for decades sent anti-North Korean leaflets over the tightly guarded border, usually by balloon or in bottles on border rivers. They also send food, medicine, money, mini radios and USB sticks containing South Korean news and dramas.
Isolated North Korea has long denounced the practice and recently stepped up its condemnation of it, to the alarm of a South Korean government intent on improving ties on the divided peninsula.
North Korean defector says he ll risk jail to defy South Korea s propaganda leaflet ban
Story by Reuters
Updated 5:23 AM ET, Tue December 15, 2020
North Korean defectors, now living in South Korea, remove propaganda leaflets after a protest against a North Korean nuclear test, near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on September 15, 2016 in Paju, South Korea.
Seoul, South KoreaA prominent North Korean defector has vowed to continue sending messages to his homeland at the risk of going to prison after South Korea banned the launching of propaganda leaflets into North Korea.
The ban, passed by the South Korean parliament on Monday, drew criticism from rights activists. For decades, defectors and other campaigners in South Korea have sent anti-North Korean leaflets over the tightly guarded border, usually by balloon or in bottles on border rivers. They also send food, medicine, money, mini radios and USB sticks containing South Korean news and dramas.
South Korea bans anti-North leaflets, but one defector says he won t stop Sorry, but your browser needs Javascript to use this site. If you re not sure how to activate it, please refer to this site: https://www.enable-javascript.com/
A North Korean defector prepares to release a balloon containing leaflets denouncing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, near the demilitarized zone in Paju, South Korea, in April 2016. | REUTERS
Reuters Dec 15, 2020
Seoul – South Korea on Monday banned the launching of propaganda leaflets into North Korea, drawing the criticism of rights activists and defiance from a prominent North Korean defector who said he would not stop sending messages to his homeland.