Overview

• The Unification Ministry on June 9 expressed regret over the third leaflet campaign by families of abduction victims and urged them to stop future launches.
• On June 2, the families dispatched four large balloons from Paju carrying messages demanding information on seven returned abductees and warning North Korea.
• This is the first government request to suspend leaflet campaigns since the Constitutional Court deemed the anti-leaflet ban unconstitutional in September 2023.
• Spokesperson Koo Byoung-sam warned that continued leafleting could escalate tensions along the Korean Peninsula and endanger residents near the border.
• The ministry said it will work with relevant agencies to enforce existing regulations on leaflet distribution in line with President Lee Jae-myung’s pledge to ease inter-Korean tensions.