Government to Pursue Meeting with 'Anti-North Korea Leaflet' Group... Likely to Urge 'Situation Stability'

Government Holds Meeting with North Korean Defector Groups on 'Situation Management'
Government "Will Not Request Restraint as Before"
"Dirty Water Balloons Blamed on Leaflets" - Won't Fall for North Korea's Logic
Unnecessary Provocation, Likely to Indirectly Ask for Restraint

The government is understood to be planning meetings with groups that have been distributing leaflets to North Korea. While maintaining its existing stance of respecting 'freedom of expression,' it is expected that the meetings will serve as an indirect appeal for restraint in leaflet distribution to help stabilize the situation, even if the government does not explicitly demand a halt.

According to the Ministry of Unification on the 11th, the government plans to hold meetings with defectors' groups that have been distributing leaflets to North Korea. The schedule is being coordinated while confirming attendance. The Ministry of Unification is known to have maintained communication with defector groups regarding leaflet distribution through frequent contact. The ministry explained that holding separate 'face-to-face' meetings is part of continuing close communication.

North Korean defector group sending leaflets to North Korea Photo by Yonhap News

An official from the Ministry of Unification said, "We intend to meet with related groups as soon as possible to have close discussions," adding, "Rather than gathering all groups in one place, we plan to meet with as many as possible, and depending on circumstances, conduct one-on-one meetings to continue engagement."

North Korea has used the leaflet distribution by South Korean groups as a pretext to release large numbers of balloon-borne waste since the end of last month, doing so four times. The Joint Chiefs of Staff identified at least 1,600 such balloons. Unlike leaflets aimed at 'information dissemination,' these balloons carried feces and garbage and were simply released toward the South. However, Kim Yo-jong, deputy director of the North Korean Workers' Party, absurdly claimed that these waste balloons also represent 'freedom of expression.'

In response to North Korea's release of waste balloons, South Korean groups increased leaflet distribution, and the government responded by reactivating loudspeakers for broadcasting to the North for the first time in six years. North Korea has retaliated by repeatedly releasing waste balloons, escalating military tensions in border areas.

Given this context, there is significant interest in the agenda of the upcoming meetings. A Ministry of Unification official emphasized, "There is no change in the government's position on leaflet distribution to North Korea," and added, "We do not plan to request restraint in distribution at this meeting."

Last year, the Constitutional Court ruled the 'Anti-North Korea Leaflet Act,' enacted during the Moon Jae-in administration, unconstitutional. This was an amendment to the Inter-Korean Relations Development Act, often called the 'Kim Yo-jong Directive Law.' The court's decision emphasized respecting 'freedom of expression' and the 'right of North Korean residents to know,' stating that leaflet distribution should not be prohibited or punished by law. The government maintains the position that it is difficult to request restraint based on this ruling.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced on the 9th that they recently conducted a live exercise in the frontline area in preparation for the immediate implementation of broadcasts to North Korea.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, since resuming broadcasts to North Korea on the 9th, the government has focused on managing the situation without activating additional loudspeakers. In this context, it is anticipated that even if the government does not explicitly request restraint, it will indirectly appeal for 'stabilization of the situation' through face-to-face meetings.

A government official stated, "We should not be caught up in North Korea's baseless claim that the release of waste balloons is due to leaflet distribution," and pointed out, "Many groups have been distributing leaflets secretly for a long time, and North Korea has not always taken issue or provoked in response." The official added, "It is necessary to ask groups not to unnecessarily publicize some leaflet distributions or excessively provoke North Korea to induce retaliatory actions."