Is the ROK Goverment Warming Up to N. Korean Defectors’ Leaflet Campaign?

The ROK government is still sending people to question the balloon people, but it’s not the Unification Ministry anymore. Even the Lee Administration clearly wasn’t comfortable with their activities. Now, however, it’s the boys from ROK Army psyops that are asking the questions. Although it’s not completely clear from this Joongang Ilbo article, I take this as a good sign:

“Only a while ago, we had officials from the Unification Ministry telling us to refrain from sending leaflets,” said Park Sang-hak, head of the civic group. “But I guess the government stance has changed since.

The JoongAng Ilbo interviewed Park, 42, on Wednesday, the same day he was visited by two Defense Ministry officials handling psychological operations. Park – an old hand at these interrogations, having been questioned by police a dozen times during previous administrations whose policy was to engage North Korea – was grilled about who wrote the messages on the leaflets, and how the group was printing them. Park later gave the officials samples of the leaflets, as well as a CD containing videos showing how they are produced.

Lots of interesting stuff in that article about how the balloons work; I recommend you read the whole thing.

The Army’s money might be best spent by simply supporting Park’s group, since North Koreans may be the most knowledgeable about what messages might appeal to other North Koreans. If you want to contribute to the leaflet campaign, you can do so through the North Korean Freedom Coalition.