S.Korea groups' leaflet launches taunt angry North
02 Dec 2008 08:27:27 GMT Source: Reuters
By Kim Junghyun PAJU, South Korea - South Korean civic groups on Tuesday launched anti-Pyongyang leaflets into North Korea, a day after the destitute state sealed its border, partly blaming past barrages of leaflets sent from the South. North Korea, furious at the tough policies of the South's president, on Monday restricted exchanges with its wealthy neighbour, cutting tourism and limiting the access of South Korean workers to a joint factory park just north of the border. But South Korea's top officials have stuck to their argument it was up to the prickly North to change its ways if increasingly icy relations had any chance of warming, while the groups launching the leaflets also show no signs of backing off. "We will keep doing this no matter what. We will do this even more frequently. There will be no compromise or stop to this," said Choi Sung-yong, one of the leaders of an anti-North group. His and other civic organisations have been sending hundreds of thousands of leaflets, many with U.S. dollars or Chinese yuan, across the heavily mined border by attaching them to balloons. The latest flare-up between the rival Koreas comes days before the North is due to discuss a disarmament pact with five regional powers. The agreement gives Pyongyang economic and energy aid in return for taking apart its nuclear programme and allowing inspections. Last week the North said the scattering of the leaflets was one factor leading to the border clampdown. South Korean government officials have asked the groups to stop but said they cannot halt them because of free speech laws. Millions of leaflets have been floated into the North over the years. Analysts said recent rounds touched a nerve because of references to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's suspected stroke in August, which could fan unwanted speculation in the hermit state about its leadership. Police had to move in to stop clashes between the groups sending over the leaflets deriding Kim and those who accuse them of damaging relations between the two Koreas. South Korea's conservative President Lee Myung-bak and his ruling Grand National Party (GNP) have ended a decade of unconditional aid, but say they are ready to rebuild the North's ruined economy if it opens up, improves human rights and commits to ending its nuclear weapons programme. "If North Korea wishes to recover its economy and avoid starving its people, it does need to open up. If not, its isolation and economic hardship will persist," GNP chairman Park Hee-tae told reporters in Seoul. "It's North Korea's policy to South Korea that should change." (Additional reporting by Jonathan Thatcher; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Jerry Norton)
Wrecked cars are seen outside a damaged building in Wudu town, Longnan city, Gansu province in this video grab from CCTV footage of November 20 released November 21, 2008. The governor ...
