North Korean defector and activist Park Sang-hak, among others, has been told to suspend activities at the border. File Photo by Yonhap/EPA-EFE
Sept. 10 (UPI) -- South Korea is resuming audits of local groups registered with Seoul's unification ministry, after a brief hiatus in August due to a new wave of COVID-19 infections.
The unification ministry oversaw the on-site office inspection of the group People Working Together, a support group for North Korean refugees in the South, Yonhap reported Thursday. The ministry was also planning to audit the office of the group North Korean Defectors, but the group turned officials away at the last minute, according to the report.
Earlier in the year, the ministry had said it would inspect registered organizations, including Fighters for a Free North Korea and Kuensaem. The activists came under government scrutiny in June after North Korean official Kim Yo Jong condemned their activities that include balloon launches at the border.
The audits were first publicly disclosed in July, but a massive outbreak of COVID-19 in August led to postponements. Some audits did take place in the first half of last month.
Seoul has added more groups to its audit list. About 30 organizations on the list have said the inspections are unjust and "inappropriate in light of COVID-19." In July, a total of 25 groups, including Citizens' Alliance for North Korean Human Rights, Transitional Justice Working Group and North Korean Democratization Network, called for an end to the "political activities" of the unification ministry.
Hubert Younghwan Lee, executive director and founder of TJWG, told Yonhap the audits go against the words of Unification Minister Lee In-young. The audits go against the rules for physical distancing amid the pandemic, Younghwan Lee said. Ministry officials have defended the inspections and said the visits do not violate guidelines as auditors wear masks.
Criticism of President Moon Jae-in's policies related to North Korea is rising among U.S. analysts. Joshua Stanton and Sung-Yoon Lee said in an editorial in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday the South Korean leader and members of his administration have filed multiple defamation lawsuits against opponents and demanded Google Korea remove political commentaries.
The inspection of defectors gives North Korea an incentive to make more threats, the analysts say.
