Mayor Kim Kyung-il: "We Will Use All Means to Stop the Distribution of Leaflets to North Korea"

Emergency Countermeasure Meeting with Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police, Full Mobilization of Administrative Resources
Paju City to Actively Block Leaflet Distribution to North Korea by Families of Abductees Association
City Urges Paju City Council to Promptly Review Ordinance to Fundamentally Prevent Leaflet Distribution

Gyeonggi Paju City (Mayor Kim Kyung-il) announced on the 13th that, as the Families of Abductees to the North Association (Representative Choi Seong-ryong) has announced the resumption of leaflet distribution toward North Korea, it will mobilize all administrative resources together with the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police to actively block and respond with full force. The city also urged the prompt review of the "Paju City Ordinance to Prevent Leaflet Distribution toward North Korea," which was deferred during the standing committee review at the Paju City Council’s extraordinary session in February.

Kim Kyung-il, mayor of Paju City, is stopping the distribution of leaflets to North Korea by the families of abductees on October 31 last year. Photo by Paju City

First, on the 11th, Paju City held an emergency countermeasure meeting with the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police to focus on measures to prevent the distribution of leaflets toward North Korea. This meeting was urgently convened in response to the Families of Abductees to the North Association’s notification of a rally in front of the Imjingak Abductees Memorial Hall in Paju from April 8 to April 2, along with their announcement to distribute leaflets toward North Korea.

At the meeting attended by Paju City, the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police, and the Paju Police Station, all possible types of safety accidents that could occur during the rally were reviewed in advance, including measures to prevent conflicts and friction between the Families of Abductees to the North Association and residents of the border area in Paju who intend to block the rally. The meeting also thoroughly examined the specific permissible scope, such as the possibility of installing tents for the rally. Additionally, it was agreed to immediately share information regarding the holding of the rally by the Families of Abductees to the North Association to prevent the rally.

Since October 16 last year, Paju City and the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police have designated the entire Paju area as a danger zone under the Disaster and Safety Act and have organized patrol teams of public officials to monitor and block leaflet distribution activities that could threaten the safety of residents in the border area, conducting 24-hour day and night patrols. Over the past five months, no leaflet distribution activities have been detected within Paju City.

The border areas of Paju City, such as Daeseong-dong and Tongilchon, which are located closest to North Korea, have experienced leaflet distribution by some defector groups since around May last year. This was followed by retaliatory balloon releases of North Korean waste and garbage, and loudspeaker noise attacks toward the South have continued for over eight months, escalating military tensions between the two Koreas to the highest level. Residents in the Military Demarcation Line border area express anxiety that if leaflet distribution, which triggered these situations, is carried out again, it could lead to retaliatory strikes from North Korea.

Meanwhile, to fundamentally prevent leaflet distribution activities within Paju City, the city proposed the "Paju City Ordinance to Prevent Leaflet Distribution toward North Korea" at the Paju City Council’s extraordinary session in February. However, this ordinance was deferred during the standing committee review due to the need for further discussion. Given the urgency of the situation, the city expressed hope for a swift review by the Paju City Council.

Mayor Kim Kyung-il of Paju City emphasized, “During the intense standoff between the two Koreas, residents in the border area, who have done nothing wrong, are suffering severe damage due to noise broadcasts and waste balloons,” and added, “We will use all means to block leaflet distribution activities, which act as a trigger that escalates the confrontation between the two Koreas.”

He also stated, “I hope the 'Paju City Ordinance to Prevent Leaflet Distribution toward North Korea,' which was deferred by the Paju City Council, will be passed as soon as possible so that citizens can live safer and more peaceful lives.”