Taeyoungho: "I Will Use Smartphones to Inform North Korean Residents About Korean Freedom and Democracy"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Former North Korean diplomat to the UK, Tae Yong-ho, who is running in the April 15 general election under the resident registration name 'Taegumin,' announced that he intends to inform North Korean residents about freedom and democracy through smartphones.

At a briefing held on the 19th at the Seoul Press Center by the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Korea, former diplomat Tae stated, "I want to make my election process an opportunity to inform North Korean residents about the freedom and democracy of the Republic of Korea."

In response to foreign reporters' questions about how election information could be conveyed to North Korea, where there is no internet, he replied, "North Korean diplomats, students, trainees, and workers abroad are closely observing South Korea through smartphones. More than 4 million North Korean residents use smartphones, and North Korea is currently a digital society."

This means that if former diplomat Tae runs and participates in the election, the process can be transmitted to North Korean residents via smartphones.

He revealed the reality of North Korea by saying, "The first thing North Koreans buy with their first month's salary abroad is a used smartphone," and "The North Korean authorities are also uploading the Rodong Sinmun online so that people abroad can read it on their smartphones, following global trends."

Former diplomat Tae emphasized, "My diplomatic colleagues who had been indifferent to South Korean general elections, North Koreans abroad, and even the North Korean authorities have started to take an interest in this election because of me," adding, "Communism and totalitarianism are difficult to dismantle with physical hard power alone. As German reunification showed, soft power such as the values of freedom and democracy and prosperity through a market economy brought Germany back together."

Regarding his reason for running for the National Assembly, he explained, "I thought it was the most significant way I could contribute to the Republic of Korea and our people at this point in time," and "At this historic and critical moment, as a citizen of the Republic of Korea, I will devote myself to fully utilizing my capabilities in diplomacy and security."

He also added that he wants to prove through the National Assembly election that the South and North were originally one. Former diplomat Tae said, "Through this election, I wanted to prove that the South and North were originally one, are still one now, and will be one forever," and "This election will be an opportunity to show the hope of a unified Korea to the people of the South and North, as well as to the entire world."