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| ▲ In this file photo, Choi Seong-ryong, head of the group representing the families of those abducted by North Korea, holds up a newly designed anti-Pyongyang leaflet to send off to North Korea on Nov. 19, 2024. (Yonhap) |
abductee group-leaflet
Abductee family group vows to go ahead with leaflet campaigns against N. Korea
GOSEONG, South Korea, Dec. 17 (Yonhap) -- A group representing the families of those abducted by North Korea said Tuesday it would fly leaflets into North Korea "shortly" despite the unification minister's calls for a "prudent" approach to the leaflet campaign.
Choi Seong-ryong, the group's head, announced the plan, while stressing that their acts amounted to sending "newsletters" to the abductee's family members and not "anti-Pyongyang leaflets."
"We just want to hear from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the abductee issue," Choi said during a phone call with Yonhap News Agency. "It's not a political or ideological act."
The group registered for a rally near the Unification Observatory in Goseong County on the east coast until Thursday to fly the leaflets.
Choi said the group had no plans to extend the permission for the rally, adding they would proceed with the event in public.
The group has been preparing to launch 50,000 leaflets and newsletters of abductees' family members in Goseong and the western border city of Paju, respectively.
"We temporarily postponed the flying of the leaflets amidst the impeachment state of President Yoon Suk Yeol, but our plans have not changed," Choi said.
Border residents of Goseong County have formed a task force to prevent the leaflet campaign, while blocking off the area with farm tractors since last month.
Choi's announcement came a day after Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho called for a "prudent" approach to sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border, in sharp contrast to the ministry's earlier stance prioritizing the rights of freedom of expression.
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