Seoul mulls removal of rule on reporting contact with pro-North group in Japan

The Ministry of Unification will seek to scrap the requirement for South Koreans to report contact or meetings with pro-Pyongyang residents in Japan, a ministry official said Friday.

The ministry said it plans to work with the National Assembly during this year's regular session to bring forward a revision to the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, which currently classifies members of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, referred to as "Chongryon," as North Korean.

Article 30 of the act stipulates that members of overseas organizations aligned with North Korea are legally regarded as North Korean residents regardless of their actual nationality.

Under the article, South Koreans are required to report planned meetings with Chongryon members in advance or report unplanned meetings afterward. Violations are subject to fines or penalties.

The ministry's push for a revision comes as it recognizes that the size, membership and character of Chongryon have changed since the law was enacted in 1990, and that the legislation has produced unintended side effects. The group's influence and membership have reportedly diminished significantly over the decades.

The shift underlies much of the criticism directed at the law.

Critics of the legislation argue that many South Koreans have contact with Chongryon members whose views on North Korea vary too widely to be uniformly subject to the reporting requirement.

The official also noted the law creates a "legal burden" in cases where South Koreans unknowingly meet someone in Japan without being aware of that person's Chongryon affiliation.

Supporters of the act, however, argue that Chongryon is still classified as an antigovernment organization in South Korea, and that removing the reporting requirement would be inappropriate.

Yonhap