'Spy Activities' Former Democratic Labor Union Executive Receives Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund for Visit to North Korea

Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund Used for 'Spy Suspect' North Korea Visit Costs
Seobeomsoo: "Effectively Aiding Spy Activities with Public Taxes"
Ministry of Unification: "Will Review Inadequacies in Support Process"

It has been revealed that a portion of the Ministry of Unification's Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund, which should have been used to improve inter-Korean relations, was used for espionage activities. It was belatedly discovered that former officials of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), who were prosecuted for violating the National Security Act, visited North Korea with the support of the fund.

The People Power Party's Civil Society Advancement Special Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Special Committee) held its 5th meeting on the 13th and received a report on the results of an internal audit of the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund from Kim Ki-woong, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Unification. The Special Committee pointed out that some costs amounting to hundreds of millions of won from the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund were used for the travel expenses of suspects engaged in espionage activities in North Korea and urged a full investigation.

People Power Party Civil Society Organization Advancement Special Committee. From the left, People Power Party lawmakers Seobeom-su, I Man-hee, Ha Tae-kyung (Special Committee Chairman), and Ryu Seong-geol.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to Representative Seo Beom-su, a member of the Special Committee, former KCTU official A was listed as a participant in the "Inter-Korean Workers' Unification Conference" held in North Korea in 2004 while he was active in the Gyeonggi branch of the KCTU. The event was supported by the Ministry of Unification's Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund, and a budget of 130 million won was confirmed to have been spent under the category of support for personnel exchanges.

A was arrested and indicted last month on charges of violating the National Security Act. Intelligence authorities believe that around the year 2000, he secretly communicated with North Korean agents and engaged in espionage activities. His specific charges include espionage, special infiltration and escape, meetings, and communications. In other words, national funds prepared to improve inter-Korean relations were used as travel expenses for a spy conducting covert operations.

Furthermore, it was revealed that the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund also flowed into the activities of B, a member of the Jeonbuk People's Action, who reportedly met with North Korean agents more than 80 times. He visited North Korea in 2007 through an event called the "6.15 National Unification Grand Festival," which was supported by a budget of 310 million won from the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund. B met with A more than five times in places such as Hanoi, Vietnam, and Beijing, China, and was indicted without detention in January this year on charges of reporting major domestic political situations and trends. It is known that he began espionage activities around April 2007, just two months before his trip to North Korea funded by the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund. According to the indictment obtained by Representative Seo Beom-su's office, phrases such as "ran tirelessly until impeachment" were reported, and euphemisms like sweet potato, box, and parcel were used to coordinate meeting schedules with North Korean agents.

North Korean flag

In addition, the Special Committee raised suspicions that preferential fund support was provided only to the KCTU and the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU). From 2003 to 2008, private organizations visited North Korea 38 times by chartered flights, but the charter flight costs were supported only for events attended by the two major trade unions.

Representative Seo Beom-su of the People Power Party criticized, "As a result, the money that people engaged in espionage activities received when visiting North Korea was from the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund," adding, "There is reason to suspect that taxpayers' money was used to assist espionage activities." He also demanded, "The Ministry of Unification and local governments should conduct a full investigation of the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund."

An official from the Ministry of Unification said, "It has been confirmed that the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund supported related events in 2004 and 2007," adding, "We will internally examine in detail whether there were procedural shortcomings during the support process at that time." However, the official added, "Since investigations by the authorities are currently underway, it is necessary to wait for the results of the investigation."

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Unification, the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund is legally mandated to support all or part of the costs necessary for exchanges between residents of South and North Korea. Among the funds from 2004 to 2007, when support was provided to the specific organizations in question, the budget allocated under the category of support for personnel exchanges was 20.5 billion won, and the actual amount finally executed was 11.829 billion won.