Seoul law enforcement say they’re questioning anti-North activists

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean law enforcement claimed Tuesday that they’ve summoned two activists accused of boosting tensions with North Korea by sending propaganda balloons or plastic bottles filled with rice throughout the border.

Park Sang-hak, a North Korean refugee who has floated anti-Pyongyang leaflets by balloon across the land border, and his brother Park Jung-oh, who has floated plastic bottles loaded with rice throughout the sea boundary, have been being questioned at the Seoul Metropolitan Law enforcement Company, an agency officer with immediate know-how of the instances explained.

The officer spoke on ailment of anonymity due to the fact he was not approved to release the information to the media.

Law enforcement raided the workplaces of the Park brothers final week and confiscated leaflets, account publications, cellular phone information, laptop data files and other supplies relevant to their functions.

The officer said additional investigation was wanted right before determining regardless of whether the brothers should be billed with a crime.

North Korea elevated Park Sang-hak’s yearslong propaganda marketing campaign and South Korea’s failure to avoid it previously this month prior to it blew up an empty liaison office environment on the North’s territory and threatened other provocative steps.

South Korean officers later on requested law enforcement examine the Parks and other activists for increasing tensions and probably endangering people residing in the vicinity of the border.

Authorities in a person province that borders North Korea have also accused several activist groups, including individuals of the Parks, of fraud, embezzlement and other rates more than their donation things to do.

The moves in opposition to the activists have invited criticism that President Moon Jae-in’s liberal governing administration is sacrificing democratic ideas to test to fix deteriorating ties with North Korea.

Following his business was raided Friday, Park Sang-hak told reporters that he would continue to keep sending leaflets toward North Korea to inform men and women there about their authoritarian government. He also accused the South Korean authorities of “gagging its people and destroying independence of speech immediately after succumbing” to North Korea.

Tensions eased a little bit past week when North Korea introduced it would place off planned steps to nullify reconciliation promotions it earlier reached with South Korea.

Some gurus say North Korea has been deliberately boosting tensions as part of a strategy to wrest outside the house concessions at at time when it is dealing with worsening financial difficulties brought on by U.S.-led sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic.