Photo : YONHAP News
Gyeonggi Province has designated eleven areas near the North Korean border as “danger zones” and prohibiting the distribution of anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets there.
The province’s first vice governor for administrative affairs, Kim Sung-joong, announced in a briefing Tuesday that the designation applies to parts of the cities of Paju and Gimpo, as well as the county of Yeoncheon.
The lives of people residing near the border are at risk due to the drastic deterioration in inter-Korean relations, he said.
The province seems to have experienced an increase in sightings of North Korea’s trash balloons, and the North has accused South Korea of flying drones over Pyongyang to distribute propaganda leaflets.
Fears that the leaflets could trigger a military conflict also appear to have influenced the province’s decision.
The province plans to deploy special law enforcement officers to the designated areas to crack down on leafleting activities.