Leafleting into North Korea exercise of right to freedom of expression: UN rights official In this April 29, 2016, file photo, members of a South Korean civic group send leaflets denouncing the North Korean regime in Tanhyeon, Paju, near the North Korean border. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukThe sending of leaflets into North Korea by defectors is an exercise of the right to freedom of expression, a U.N. official said, amid Pyongyang's threats to punish Seoul for failing to stop the launches that criticize the North Korean leader.Signe Poulsen, head of the Seoul office of the U.N. Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights, made the remarks amid heightening tensions on the Korean Peninsula after the North threatened to retaliate against the South for what it called Seoul's "connivance" at the floating of anti-Pyongyang materials in large balloons.The flying of leaflets has long been a source of tensions between the two Koreas, as the leaflets contain strong criticism of the North's authoritarian regime and leader Kim Jong-un, as well as the country's poor human rights situation."It's very difficult to give information to people in North Korea. There are organizations Jun 23, 2020
North Korea reinstalling propaganda loudspeakers Loudspeakers at a North Korean guard post in the Demilitarized Zone is seen in the left photo taken in September 2017, while it is removed in the right photo taken May 4, 2018, after the two Koreas agreed in the April 27 Panmunjeom Declaration that year to remove their respective speakers. The North began to reinstall the speakers, Monday, as inter-Korean tension has risen recently. YonhapBy Kim RahnNorth Korea is reinstalling “propaganda loudspeakers” on the inter-Korean border, after having removed them in 2018 following an agreement reached at an inter-Korean summit, the military said Monday.The move followed Pyongyang's earlier threat to resume “activities against the enemy” ostensibly in protest of propaganda leaflets that have been sent across the border by North Korean defectors and civic activists in the South.The military detected signs, Sunday afternoon, that the North was working on the reinstallation at multiple places inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ).South and North Korea used to promote their respective ideologies and criticize each other throJun 22, 2020By Kim Rahn
N. Korea reaffirms plan for anti-Seoul leaflet campaign This captured image from the Korean Central News Agency website shows photos of President Moon Jae-in imprinted on anti-South Korea leaflets being covered with cigarette butts and dirt. YonhapBy Yi Whan-wooNorth Korea reaffirmed its plan to launch anti-South Korea leaflets, Sunday, a day after the Ministry of Unification expressed regrets over the plan and urged the North to drop it immediately. Tasked with propaganda operation, the North's United Front Department (UFD) holds the South responsible for “scrapping” a 2018 inter-Korean agreement that sought to end hostile activities at the border.“We, clearly aware that leaflet scattering is a violation of the South-North agreement, do not have any intent to reconsider or change our plan at a time when South-North relations have already been broken down,” a UFD spokesman said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). “The South Korean authorities must no longer talk about the agreement that has been already reduced to a dead document.”On Saturday, the unification ministry asked Jun 21, 2020By Yi Whan-woo
N. Korea vows to send anti-Seoul leaflets; calls inter-Korean agreement 'dead document' This photo provided on June 20, 2020, by the North Korean government shows North Koreans prepare anti-South Korea propaganda leaflets in North Korea. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)North Korea said Sunday it has no intention to cancel its plan to send anti-South Korea leaflets across the border, calling an inter-Korean agreement that bans such activity "a dead document."On Saturday, the North's state media said Pyongyang was printing anti-Seoul propaganda materials in large numbers and preparing to send them across the border. South Korea's unification ministry expressed regret and urged Pyongyang to withdraw the plan immediately, calling it a violation of an inter-Korean summit agreement."We, clearly aware that leaflet scattering is the violation of the North-South agreement, do not have any intent to reconsider or change our plan at a time when the North-South relations have already been broken down," a spokesman for the North's United Front Department (UFD) said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency.This photo provided on June 20, 2020, byJun 21, 2020
N. Korea getting ready to send anti-Seoul leaflets to S. Korea North Korea is printing anti-Seoul leaflets in large numbers and preparing to send them across the border to South Korea, the country's official news agency said Saturday."The enraged people across the country are actively pushing forward with the preparations for launching a large-scale distribution of leaflets to pour the leaflets of punishment upon those in South Korea who are bereft of even elementary morality," said the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).The KCNA added that the publishing institutions are printing out the leaflets, saying they will be "indiscriminately slapped on the south Korean authorities who have played on the hope and expectations of all the compatriots placed on the inter-Korean agreement with wicked puns over the past two years."It added that the leaflets will be launched "as soon as the areas close to the boundary between the north and the south are opened and their entry into the areas is approved according to relevant procedures."It also released several photos of North Korean workers printing leaflets criticizing the South, including one againsJun 20, 2020
Call for deployment of US strategic assets Rep. Shin Won-sik, third from left, of the main opposition United Future Party (UFP) speaks during a press briefing at the National Assembly in Seoul, Friday, calling for the resumption of annual joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States and the deployment of U.S. strategic assets on the Korean Peninsula amid growing tensions here due to North Korea's threats of military action. From left are fellow UFP lawmakers Reps. Tae Young-ho, Cho Tae-yong, Shin, Park Jin, Ji Seong-ho and Cho Su-jin. / YonhapJun 19, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
North Korea strengthens internal solidarity by criticizing external enemies A North Korean guard post in Gaepung, North Hwanghae Province, is seen from the Odusan Unification Tower in the border city of Paju, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. The South Korean military said there have been no specific signs suggesting the North is following through on its threat to beef up its military presence along the border. YonhapKim Yo-jong silent on President Moon's warningBy Jung Da-min North Korea seems to be strengthening its internal integrity by stepping up public criticism of South Korea, the U.S., Japan and a number of European nations, as well as issuing internal publications to praise the political achievements of North Korea's former leader Kim Jong-il.But it has refrained from issuing official statements from high-profile officials, like the ones issued by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister Kim Yo-jong since early this month, which contained raw comments regarding South Korean authorities and President Moon Jae-in. The demolition of the joint liaison office in Gaeseong has fueled speculation that Pyongyang could prepare another round of hostile acts dependingJun 19, 2020
Two left-wingers cause stir for divisive comments Radio news show host Kim Eo-jun / Korea Times fileBy Kang Hyun-kyungTwo left-wing figures have found themselves in trouble after drawing public backlash over their inappropriate remarks on minorities in Korean society. Poet and commentator Kim Gab-su dropped out of a KBS daytime talk show after his controversial remarks on North Korean defector-turned-lawmaker Ji Sung-ho.Kim Eo-jun, who rose to stardom among President Moon Jae-in's supporters for his satirical comments and critical views about conservative politicians, came under fire for his apparent criticism of housing tenants. As a panelist in the talk show on June 8, Kim Gab-su rebuked the main opposition United Future Party lawmaker for his remarks on the anti-North Korea leaflets sent by North Korean defectors. “I am telling this to a man named Ji Sung-ho. Know yourself. Please know where you are from,” Kim said. “We accepted you and let you win the election to become a lawmaker. Aren't we so nice to you? If you agree, from now on, you'll never say anything like what you said earlier.”Kim warned Rep. JiJun 19, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Ex-chief of staff, ex-DPK floor leader top candidates for unification minister By Kang Seung-wooFollowing Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul's resignation over worsened inter-Korean ties, Cheong Wa Dae is now searching for his replacement, with politicians coming to the fore. Given that the current relations between South and North Korea are headed toward their lowest ebb under the Moon Jae-in administration, politicians are regarded as a better fit for the job than bureaucrats or scholars as they are believed to be able to make and push ahead with bold decisions in North Korea policy.Under the current administration inaugurated in 2017, President Moon has had two unification ministers ― Cho Myoung-gyon and Kim. The former was a career bureaucrat and the latter was a professor of unification at Inje University. Im Jong-seok / Korea Times fileIm Jong-seok, a former presidential chief of staff, is one of the most-discussed candidates thanks to his track record.The 54-year-old led the government's preparation for three inter-Korean summits between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, during which he had opportunities to meet the leader and his sister Kim Yo-jJun 19, 2020By Kang Seung-woo
North Koreans are exploding with anger at South Korea: state media This photo provided by the North Korean government shows the demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office building in Kaesong, North Korea, Tuesday, June 16, 2020. APNorth Korea issued no new statements against South Korea for the second day Friday as state media reported that people from all walks of life in the communist nation are exploding with anger at the South.The North has sharply ratcheted up tensions with the South in anger over anti-Pyongyang leaflets flown from the South. It has made a series of bellicose threats and rhetoric that culminated with Tuesday's shocking demolition of the inter-Korean liaison office in its border city of Kaesong.Pyongyang has also vowed to cut off all cross-border communication lines, redeploy troops to joint economic zones near the border, restore guard posts removed from the Demilitarized Zone and restart military exercises near the border.Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued a harshly worded statement against South Korean President Moon Jae-in, saying his recent speech urging the North not to backtrack on the peace Jun 19, 2020
