North Korean Defectors Send Anti-Kim Jong Il Leaflets by Balloon to North | Voice of America - English
A group of North Korean human rights campaigners has defied a request of the South Korean government and launched thousands of balloon-borne leaflets into North Korea.
Abouta dozen people belonging to the South Korea-based "North Korea FreedomCoalition" took to the seas on Friday, carrying a cargo of thousands ofleaflets - each one printed on tissue-thin plastic material resemblingconvenience store shopping bags. The leaflets describe NorthKorean leader Kim Jong Il as a "devilish killer who views his peopleonly as slaves." They say Kim Jong Il is the sole reason for NorthKorea's hunger and poverty. When their boat reached a pointabout eight kilometers west of the South Korean city of Incheon,coalition members filled giant 12 meter long balloons with helium. Then they attached bundles of leaflets to the balloons, and let theocean wind whisk them away, off in the direction of North Korea. Bythe end of the day some hundred thousand leaflets were airborne. ParkSang-hak is the president of the North Korea Freedom Coalition. Likethe group's members, he is a North Korean defector who left his countryto escape severe deprivation and political repression. He saysoperations like this are designed to give hope to those still livingunder North Korea's authoritarian rule. Park says the groupaimed the balloons at North Korea's Hwanghae province. He says theweather is much better than the group expected, and that the resultslook good. Balloon launches like this have gotten North Korea'sattention. At inter-Korean military talks earlier this month, theNorth complained specifically about leaflets carried by balloon, andasked Seoul to put a stop to the launches. South Korea'sUnification Ministry followed up by requesting the defectors group stopthe leaflet operations - but Park says he had no intention of complying. Hesays only dictatorships order people what to do. South Korea, he says,is a democratic nation - and the government here cannot orderlegitimate human rights groups around. Improving North Koreanhuman rights is a stated priority of South Korean President LeeMyung-bak's administration. South Korean naval vessels kept watchduring Friday's launch, but did not intervene. Previousadministrations sought to avoid angering Pyongyang on matters of humanrights, and might have done more to discourage such balloon launches. About14,000 North Koreans now live in the South. Another 100,000 areestimated to be living illegally in China, hoping to make it here via athird country. Park says groups like his will keep up their work untilall Koreans live in freedom.