Don’t Leave North Koreans in the Dark: South Korea’s Misguided Ban on Sending Information Across the Border

My latest Foreign Affairs article joins the chorus of voices who are critical of the legislation recently passed by the South Korean Parliament that criminalizes the dissemination of information into North Korea.

Don’t Leave North Koreans in the Dark: South Korea’s Misguided Ban on Sending Information Across the Border

(It’s a guest link that bypasses the paywall, so do skim it if you have time)

Note that the nickname “anti-leaflet bill” is misleading; the legislation is much more comprehensive in its ban than leaflets across the inter-Korean border.

Others who have expressed strong concern and criticism of this South Korean legislation:

Representations Made To the UK Foreign Secretary about the Republic of Korea’s “Gag Law” (co-signed by Assemblyman Thae Yong-Ho; Assemblyman Ji Seong-Ho; Timothy Cho, British-North Korean escapee & Inquiry Clerk to the All-Parliamentary
Group on North Korea; Benedict Rogers, Deputy Chair of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission and Senior Analyst, East Asia, at CSW; Jihyun Park, British-North Korean escapee & Human Rights Activist; Greg Scarlatoiu, Executive Director, Committee For Human rights in North Korea; and yours truly.

US Republican Representative Chris Smith voices ‘serious concern’ over South Korea’s growing disregard of fundamental civil liberties, acquiescence to Communist North

Olivia Enos in Forbes (https://bit.ly/3h5VnBL)

Josh Rogin at the Washington Post (https://wapo.st/38kCh6S)

If you share our strong concern over this bill, call your US representative, or your representative if you live outside the US, and encourage them to voice their concern over this very problematic bill.