S Korea to take necessary action on anti-DPRK leaflet spread

South Korean unification ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs said Wednesday that it will take action, if necessary, on the spread of leaflets against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Unification Ministry spokesman Lim Byeong-cheol told a press briefing that the ministry will cooperate with police to take necessary "safety measures" to reduce possibilities for endangering the life and property of the people if those who intend to disperse anti-DPRK leaflets across the border are spotted in advance.

Lim, however, noted that there is no change in the government's basis position that the activity of spreading anti-DPRK leaflets, which belongs to "freedom of expression," cannot be blocked by the authorities.

The spokesman said that the necessary safety measures would not mean a direct physical restriction.

His comments came a day after a South Korean court ruled that the government should restrict the anti-DPRK leaflet spread in response to clear dangers against people living in regions near the inter-Korean border.

South Korea had maintained the position that it has no legal ground to block the spread of anti-DPRK leaflets via hot air balloons, which the DPRK has strongly denounced. Pyongyang rejected Seoul's dialogue offer in October last year for the leaflet dispersion.

On Oct. 10, 2014, the DPRK military fired machine gun shots at the balloons containing anti-DPRK leaflets scattered by a conservative South Korean civic group, composed largely of " defectors" from the DPRK, near the western border. Residents near the border area strongly opposed to such activity due to rising military tensions.

The DPRK's KCNA news agency said in a commentary on Wednesday that the South Korean authorities connived at the leaflet dispersion, urging Seoul to make clear whether to improve inter- Korean relations through dialogue or maintain a confrontational situation.

One South Korean civic group, composed mainly of DPRK defectors, floated about 600,000 anti-DPRK leaflets via balloons across the border on Monday in regions near the western land border.

The ministry announced a statement on Tuesday repeating its position that Seoul is open to all forms of dialogue with Pyongyang to discuss the issues of mutual concern, urging the DPRK to respond positively to Seoul's offer to hold a senior-level dialogue in January if it sincerely wants to improve inter-Korean relations.

Top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un made an apparent offer for a summit with South Korea in his New Year's address, and South Korean President Park Geun-hye assessed Kim's address positively during the first cabinet meeting of this year.