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Monday, April 19, 2021, 17:55
ROK looks to ban internet file-sharing with DPRK
By Reuters
Monday, April 19, 2021, 17:55 By Reuters

This June 30, 2019 photo shows the Blue House in Seoul, the capital of the Republic of Korea. (PHOTO / AFP)

SEOUL - The government of the Republic of Korea (ROK) on Monday said it had proposed a law to require its citizens to get official permission before using the internet to exchange digital material such as movies, music, scanned books, or artwork with anyone in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). 

That law already regulates physical goods sent into or out of the DPRK, and the proposed changes would add digital content, Lee Jong-joo, a spokeswoman for ROK's unification ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, told a briefing

If approved by parliament, the measure would be the fist major amendment to ROK's Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act in three decades and is part of its recent efforts to improve relations with the DPRK. 

That law already regulates physical goods sent into or out of the the DPRK, and the proposed changes would add digital content, Lee Jong-joo, a spokeswoman for ROK's unification ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, told a briefing. 

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"While in the past the main target (of the law) was the movement of goods, gradually there have been cases of transferred or received scanned files or software via the internet becoming a focus," Lee said. 

The revision, first outlined in January, comes after the ROK in December banned the launching of propaganda leaflets into the DPRK.

That measure drew the criticism of rights activists, who have for decades sent anti-DPRK leaflets over the border using balloons or bottles in the sea. 

It also attracted negative attention from some politicians in the United States, which is Seoul's biggest ally. 

Last week the Human Rights Commission of the US House of Representatives raised concerns that some measures taken by Seoul may infringe on freedom of expression. 

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Campaigners in the ROK have sent food, medicine, money, mini radios and USB sticks containing news and dramas in the ROK, while defectors often try to remain in touch with family members through calls or the internet. 

The DPRK has long denounced the practice and last year had stepped up its condemnation of it, to the alarm of a Seoul's intent on improving ties on the divided peninsula. 

When asked whether the ministry was considering restricting radio broadcasts, Lee said such broadcasts are not categorised as a transfer of digital materials.

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