SEOUL, July 19 (AJU PRESS) - The Unification Ministry said on Friday that it has no plans to stop activist groups from sending propaganda leaflets to North Korea to guarantee their freedom of speech. The ministry cited a September 2023 ruling by the Constitutional Court of Korea, which struck down a 2020 law that defined sending such leaflets to the North as "criminal activity."
Sending balloons over the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a decades-old practice. South Korean activists, mostly consisting of defectors, use balloons to send food rations, USB sticks with video clips condemning the North Korean regime, and a few dollars to attract attention from North Koreans.
A ministry spokesperson emphasized during a briefing that the South Korean government has no plan to stop them, as it could violate freedom of speech. Earlier this week, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Yo-jong warned that Seoul will "pay the price" for sending propaganda leaflets.
Pyongyang prohibits its people from collecting South Korean balloons, but the propaganda packages are often recognized by North Koreans as "flying money" that sometimes include snacks along with video clips.
In retaliation, Pyongyang has been sending balloons carrying wastepaper and other garbage, including feces, southwards several times since May this year. Thousands of these balloons have landed in South Korea.
Early last month, Pyongyang issued a statement saying it would temporarily stop sending the balloons, explaining that they were meant to show South Koreans how much manpower is wasted in collecting trash and how miserable it feels to do so. However, North Korea also warned that if South Korean activists continue to send propaganda leaflets, it will respond by sending one hundred times more wastepaper and feces.
Pyongyang resumed floating garbage balloons again on Thursday.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
