South Korea bans the flying of propaganda leaflets to North Korea

Propaganda balloons over the Korean border. Photo / Twitter: @SkyNews

South Korea's parliament on Monday (local time) approved contentious legislation criminalising the flying of propaganda leaflets by balloon toward North Korea, despite fierce criticism that the country is sacrificing freedom of expression to improve ties with the rival North.

The legislation passed with the support of 187 lawmakers, mostly governing party members who support President Moon Jae-in's policy of engagement with North Korea. Outnumbered opposition lawmakers didn't attend the vote after their attempt at delaying the balloting with non-stop speeches was foiled by governing party lawmakers and their allies who used their three-fifths super majority to halt the speeches in a separate vote.

It was the first time that South Korea's Parliament has passed a bill formally banning civilians from floating anti-North Korea leaflets across the tense border. South Korea has previously banned such activities only during sensitive times, and has normally allowed activists to exercise their freedom of speech despite repeated protests from North Korea.

Lawmakers aligned with Moon say the legislation is intended to avoid unnecessarily provoking North Korea, to ensure the safety of people who live near the border, and to secure stable relations with the North. Opponents accuse Moon of sympathising excessively with North Korea or yielding to North Korean threats over the leafleting.

"This is a law that will block the flow of South Korea's great values, the spirit of democracy, freedom and equality, to North Korea," conservative opposition lawmaker Tae Yongho said during a 10-hour speech. "It's a law aimed at joining hands with Kim Jong Un and leaving North Korean residents enslaved for good."

Activists and defectors from North Korea have for years used huge helium-filled balloons to carry leaflets criticising North Korea's nuclear weapons programme and human rights record, USB sticks with information about world news, and US dollars. Observers say North Korean leader Kim Jong Un likely saw the leafleting as a threat to his absolute rule over his 25 million people, who mostly have little access to outside information.

South Korea is using balloons to send counter-propaganda into North Korea. pic.twitter.com/7jxjMmvaRD

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) August 23, 2017

The bill will take effect three months after being promulgated by the Government, which is regarded as a formality. A lawyers' group in Seoul earlier said it would file a constitutional appeal if the bill is passed.

Under the legislation, anyone flying leaflets, auxiliary storage devices or money toward North Korea without government permission can be punished by up to three years in prison or a fine of 30 million won ($40,000). The same penalty can also be applied to blaring loudspeaker broadcasts or placement of giant billboards at border areas, but no civilians in South Korea are known to have been involved in such activities.

North Korean defector floats balloons carrying news about the death of Kim Jong Un's brother, Kim Jong Nam, into the country from South Korea. Photo / Twitter: @cnni

Moon and Kim agreed to halt Cold War-style psychological warfare and lower animosities when they met in April 2018 at the start of now-stalled global diplomacy on North Korea's nuclear programme. Moon's Government says that agreement must be applied to civilian leafleting, but opponents argue the accord didn't clearly prohibit it.

The bill's passage came six months after Kim's powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, responded furiously over what she called South Korea's inability to halt civilian leafleting and demanded it ban the activity. She called North Korean defectors involved in the leafleting campaign "human scum" and "mongrel dogs".

Moon's Government responded that it would introduce an anti-leafleting law and press charges against some activists. But an angry North Korea went ahead with a threat to blow up an unoccupied South Korean-built liaison office on its territory, in its most significant provocation in more than two years.

Tensions further rose in September when North Korean troops fatally shot a South Korean fisheries official found on a floating object in the North's waters. Kim Jong Un later offered a rare apology for the killing.

Police officers collect a propaganda balloon in Hongcheon, South Korea. Photo / AP

In 2014, North Korean troops opened fire at propaganda balloons flying toward their territory, triggering an exchange of fire that caused no known casualties.

It's unclear whether the bill's passage might promote ties between the Koreas.

After nuclear diplomacy stalled last year due to wrangling over US-led sanctions, North Korea halted nearly all co-operation with South Korea. It hasn't responded to a South Korean offer of coronavirus-related co-operation. But observers say North Korea may push for reconciliation with South Korea again when it wants a new round of diplomacy with US President-elect Joe Biden's administration.