SEOUL, South Korea — Six American citizens had been detained Friday in South Korea for looking to ship 1,600 plastic bottles full of rice, U.S. bucks expenses and Bibles towards North Korea through sea, police mentioned.
The American citizens attempted to throw the bottles into the ocean from front-line Gwanghwa Island so they might go with the flow towards North Korean shores through the tides, mentioned a police officer who spoke on situation of anonymity as a result of he wasn’t approved to talk to media at the factor. He mentioned they’re being investigated on allegations they violated the legislation at the control of security and screw ups.
A 2d South Korean police officer showed the detentions of the American citizens.
The law enforcement officials gave no additional main points, together with whether or not any of the six had made earlier makes an attempt to ship bottles towards North Korea.
Activists floating plastic bottles or flying balloons wearing anti-North Korea propaganda leaflets around the border has lengthy led to tensions at the Korean Peninsula. North Korea expressed its anger on the balloon campaigns through launching its personal balloons wearing trash into South Korea, together with a minimum of two that landed within the presidential compound in Seoul closing yr.
In 2023, South Korea’s Constitutional Courtroom struck down a 2020 legislation that criminalized the sending of leaflets and different pieces to North Korea, calling it an over the top restriction on unfastened speech.
However since taking place of job in early June, the brand new liberal govt of President Lee Jae Myung is pushing to crack down on such civilian campaigns with different safety-related rules to keep away from a flare-up tensions with North Korea and advertise the protection of frontline South Korean citizens.
On June 14, police detained an activist for allegedly flying balloons towards North Korea from Gwanghwa Island.
Lee took place of job with a promise to restart long-dormant talks with North Korea and identify peace at the Korean Peninsula. Lee’s govt halted frontline anti-Pyongyang propaganda loudspeaker declares to check out to ease army tensions. North Korean declares have now not been heard in South Korean front-line cities since then.
However it is unclear if North Korea will reply to Lee’s conciliatory gesture after it vowed closing yr to sever family members with South Korea and abandon the purpose of non violent Korean reunification. Legit talks between the Koreas had been stalled since 2019 when the U.S.-led international relations on North Korean denuclearization derailed.
