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National Security Act (South Korea)

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National Security Act
Hangul
국가보안법
Hanja
國家保安法
Revised RomanizationGukga Boanbeop
McCune–ReischauerKukka Poanpŏp

The National Security Act is a South Korean law enforced since 1948 with the stated purpose "to secure the security of the State and the subsistence and freedom of nationals, by regulating any anticipated activities compromising the safety of the State."[1] However, the law now has a newly inserted article that limits its arbitrary application. "In the construction and application of this Act, it shall be limited at a minimum of construction and application for attaining the aforementioned purpose, and shall not be permitted to construe extensively this Act, or to restrict unreasonably the fundamental human rights of citizens guaranteed by the Constitution."[1]

In 2004, legislators of the then-majority Uri Party attempted to annul the law, but failed due to opposition from the Grand National Party. Some poll results in 2004 and 2005 from the media cartel Chojoongdong showed that more than half of the Korean people were against the abolition of the act.[2][3] A survey in 2021 had support for abolition of Article 7 of the act at 45% and opposition at 40%.[4]

The South Korean constitution nominally guarantees freedom of speech, press, petition and assembly for its nationals. However, behavior or speeches in favor of the North Korean regime or communism can be punished by the National Security Law. In recent years, prosecutions under this law have been rare.[4][vague]

Purpose

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The "anti-government organizations" law aims to suppress any "domestic or foreign organization or group which uses fraudulently the title of the government or aims at a rebellion against the State, and which is provided with a command and leadership system."[1]

In other words, all of the following were made illegal: recognition of North Korea as a political entity; organizations advocating the overthrow of the government; the printing, distributing, and ownership of "anti-government" material; and any failure to report such violations by others. It has been reformed and strengthened over the past few decades, with the Anti-communism Law being merged with it during the 1980s.[1][5]

According to certain analysts, the National Security Act can be viewed as a product of the Cold War and the national division of Korea. After World War II, Korean politics was polarized between left and right by the Cold War, forcing Koreans to adopt the ideology of being left or right. This created “one nation-two states” on the Korean peninsula. The resulting tension culminated in the Korean War between 1950 and 1953.[6]

This law has been acknowledged by some politicians, scholars, and activists as a symbol of the anti-communism of South Korea's dictatorial First Republic and a potential restriction on freedom of speech since the law not only regulates activities that directly threaten the safety of the State but also punishes those who praise or incite an anti-state group. Indeed, according to a report written by Amnesty International, the most widely used clause of the National Security Act is:

Any person who praises, incites or propagates the activities of an antigovernment organization, a member thereof or of the person who has received an order from it, or who acts in concert with it, or propagates or instigates a rebellion against the State, with the knowledge of the fact that it may endanger the existence and security of the State or democratic fundamental order, shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than seven years[7]

Because of the law's extensiveness and high risk of false accusation, this law also penalizes false accusations and fabrication of evidence. A violator of Article 12 of the National Security Act may receive the same sentence that the victim would have if the violator's crime had not been undisclosed.[8]

Administration

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Since 1978, the South Korean High Court has ruled to classify 1,220 books and print material as "Enemy's Expressions" by force of precedence. Two state-established research institutes decide what books and print materials meet the criteria of "Enemy's Expressions": the Democratic Ideology Institute, established in 1997 under the direct orders of the Chief Prosecutor, and the Public Safety Affairs Institute of the Korea National Police University.[citation needed]

In 2012, a South Korean man, Park Jung-geun, was indicted and charged under the National Security Law for reposting altered North Korean propaganda on social media. The man, who described his use of the material as intended to lampoon the North Korean regime, received a ten-month suspended prison sentence.[9][10]

Military

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During the Lee Myung-bak government, some South Korean military officers were arrested for suspected pro-North Korean or pro-communist activities.[11]

Controversies

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This law restricts the activities of anti-capitalist socialist parties or pro-North Korean parties in South Korea. Therefore, the law has been criticized by liberals for dampening the freedom of party activities.

Some scholars and international organizations have also expressed negative views towards the law. Some argue that the National Security Act has justified violations of human rights under the name of defence against the perceived threat of North Korea and that it functions as an obstacle for peaceful reunification with North Korea.[6]

Amnesty International reported that 90 people were charged under the law in 2011, increasing by 95.6% between 2008 and 2011. It described the National Security Act as a tool to "harass and arbitrarily prosecute individuals and civil society organizations who are peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression, opinion and association" and to "remove people who are perceived to threaten established political views, to prevent people from taking part in discussions surrounding relations with North Korea."[7]

In 1998, Ha Young-joon, a graduate student at Hanyang University formerly active with the International Socialists movement, was tried and sentenced to 8 months in prison for having summarized and made available online Chris Harman and Alex Callinicos's main writings on South Korea's national BBS network, in violation of NSA Article 7 Clauses 1 and 5.

In 2002, a new recruit in the South Korean Army surnamed Lee, was sentenced to two years in prison for having said to fellow soldiers, "I think Korean separation is not the fault of the North Koreans but the Americans." The Military Prosecutor's Office could not charge him for his comment alone, but it searched the recruit's civilian home and found various illicit books and charged him in violation of the NSA under Article 7, Clauses 1 and 5.

In 2012, Ro Su-hui was arrested after he returned from an unauthorized visit to North Korea. The arrest was described by NK News as "a clear but unnecessary propaganda victory" for North Korea.[12]

Other well-known uses of the National Security act include the 1999 banning of the students' union Hanchongryun and the 2003 spy case against Song Du-yul, a Korean living in Germany. The severest penalty that could be given according to NSL is the death penalty. The best-known example of the death penalty is the People's Revolutionary Party Incident, where eight citizens were falsely charged and executed.[13]

  • On 12 June 2011, the South Korean government officially apologized to the family members of South Korean citizen, Kim Bok-jae who was wrongfully accused of being a spy for North Korea under the NSA.[14]
  • On 15 August 2011, the South Korean government officially apologized to a 54-year-old South Korean citizen, Ku Myeong-u (구명우) who was wrongfully accused of being a spy for North Korea by working in a Chongryon-affiliated company in Japan.[15]
  • On 23 September 2011, the Seoul High Court officially apologized to Zainichi Koreans Kim Jeong-sa (김정사) and Yoo Seong-sam (유성삼) who were wrongfully accused as spies during the Zainichi Korean Spy Incident.[16]
  • On 10 October 2011, the Changweon Regional Court formally posthumously apologized to the now-deceased Lee Sang-cheol (이상철) who was a South Korean fisherman who was kidnapped by North Koreans for one year but was wrongfully accused as a spy by the regional prosecutors.[17][18]
  • On 10 November 2011, the Supreme Court made a decision that the South Korean government should compensate the 33 individuals who were involved in the 1982 Osonghoe Incident [ko].[19]
  • On 25 December 2011, the Gwangju High Court issued an apology to two South Korean fishermen (one deceased) with the last names of Kim and Lee who were wrongfully accused for being North Korean spies during the fourth and the fifth republic.[20]
  • On 22 May 2012, the Supreme Court of South Korea issued an apology to the deceased Byeon Du-gab (변두갑) who was wrongfully arrested for allegedly spying for a North Korean spy in 1970.[21]

Criticism

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The Journalists Association of Korea made an official statement in 2007 that the National Security Act reduced the status of South Korea to "a third world country" due to its infringement of human rights.[22] Rhyu Si-min of the People's Participation Party was interviewed by the Pyeonghwa Bangsong radio and criticized the existence of the NSA as "a 60 year old political tool" of public oppression.[23] Louisa Lim of the American NPR also criticized the increased use of the NSA under the Lee Myung-bak government.[24][25] One of the 33 victims of the Osonghoe Incident, Chae Gyu-gu, said that "the National Security Act must disappear" in order to prevent innocent South Korean citizens from being falsely accused.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d 국가보안법, Korea Ministry of Government Legislation Accessed 6 Oct 2014.
  2. ^ The Chosun Ilbo article - National Security Act: Amendments rather than Abrogation - 57% Archived 22 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine (in Korean)
  3. ^ The Dong-A Ilbo article (in Korean)
  4. ^ a b South Korea debates scrapping Cold War-era ban on North's propaganda Reuters
  5. ^ 반공법, Korea Ministry of Government Legislation Accessed 7 Oct 2014.
  6. ^ a b [Cho, 2997], Tension Between the National Security Law and Constitutionalism in South Korea: Security For What. BU Int'l LJ, 15, p.125.
  7. ^ a b Amnesty International, THE NATIONAL SECURITY LAW CURTAILING FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND ASSOCIATION IN THE NAME OF SECURITY IN THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA.
  8. ^ [1], 제12조(무고, 날조)
  9. ^ Sang-Hun, Choe (2 February 2012). "South Korean Indicted Over Twitter Posts From North". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  10. ^ Sang-Hun, Choe (21 November 2012). "South Korean Gets Suspended Sentence in Twitter Case". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  11. ^ Kwak (곽), Jae-hun (재훈) (15 March 2011). 위관급 장교 또 '국보법 위반' 기소…軍 매카시즘 바람. Pressian (in Korean). Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  12. ^ "An Unnecessary Propaganda Victory for Pyongyang". NK News. 6 July 2012. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  13. ^ Families Of Eight Wrongfully Executed South Korean Political Prisoners Awarded Record Compensation. The People’s Revolutionary Party 8 The Asia-Pacific Journal (The Hankyoreh)
  14. ^ Lee (이), Ung (웅) (12 June 2011). `좌익활동 옥살이. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  15. ^ Na (나), Hwak-jin (확진) (18 August 2011). `간첩 누명' 구명우씨 24년만에 무죄. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  16. ^ Na (나), Hwak-jin (확진) (23 September 2011). 재일동포 간첩사건 34년만에 무죄. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  17. ^ Kim (김), Jeong-hun (정훈) (20 October 2011). ‘간첩 누명’ 납북어부, 27년 만에 무죄. The Kyunghyang Sinmun (in Korean). Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  18. ^ Park (박), Yu-ri (유리) (28 October 2011). 죽은 어부의 절규 … "나는 간첩이 아니다". Kuki News (in Korean). Retrieved 19 November 2011.
  19. ^ a b Im (임), Sang-hun (상훈) (11 November 2011). "이 땅에서 빨갱이로 몰려 산다는 것은" 오송회 사건 피해자의 절규. No Cut News (in Korean). Retrieved 12 November 2011.
  20. ^ Sohn (손), Sang-weon (상원) (25 December 2011). 납북어부 간첩사건 연루 2명 재심서 무죄. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 15 January 2012.
  21. ^ Park (박), Su-jin (수진) (22 May 2012). 대법, 간첩 누명 故변두갑씨 27년만에 무죄 확정. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). Retrieved 22 May 2012.
  22. ^ 국보법 존속은 인권 후진국 자처하는 것. Journalists Association of Korea (한국기자협회) (in Korean). 23 May 2007. Retrieved 19 November 2011.
  23. ^ Chin (진), Na-ri (나리) (1 August 2011). "유시민 "MB정권, 60년 묵은 국보법 악용 또 발동"". Newsface (in Korean). Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  24. ^ Lim, Louisa (1 December 2011). "In South Korea, Old Law Leads To New Crackdown". National Public Radio. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
  25. ^ Kwon (권), Min-cheol (민철); Lee Ji-hye (이지혜) (3 December 2011). 美 방송, "MB정부서 매카시즘 공포" 매섭게 비판. No Cut News (in Korean). Retrieved 3 December 2011.
  • Park(박), Jae-kyu(재규) (2009-06-07). "Time to change Security Act". Yonhap News.
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