South Korea to allow public access to North Korean newspaper

According to NDTV, South Korea has announced that it will reclassify North Korea’s long-banned state newspaper as general information, marking a significant shift in policy and allowing greater public access for the first time.

The move was confirmed on Friday as part of the latest outreach effort by the administration of President Lee Jae Myung, who has adopted a more dovish approach toward inter-Korean relations. Despite this step, South Korea remains officially at war with North Korea, and long-standing national security laws banning Pyongyang’s propaganda will otherwise remain in place.

Critics of the ban, including President Lee, argue that South Koreans are politically mature enough to evaluate such content on their own. They say the restrictions amount to unnecessary censorship in one of the world’s most technologically connected and educated democracies, even though the material often glorifies the North’s leadership.

On Friday, Seoul convened an inter-agency government meeting and confirmed agreement among relevant bodies on the “reclassification of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper from special material to general material,” according to an official statement. The government added that the “official measure to reclassify Rodong Sinmun as general material will be implemented early next week through necessary administrative procedures.”

The announcement follows comments from the unification ministry last week, which told President Lee that it intended to ease public access to selected North Korean propaganda materials. At the time, Lee dismissed concerns that exposure could radicalise the public, saying fears that “the public will fall for the propaganda and become commies” were exaggerated.

“Rather, (granting access to such materials) will be an opportunity to understand the reality of North Korea accurately and think, ‘That shouldn’t be happening,’” he said.

Earlier this month, Lee also suggested that an apology may be owed to Pyongyang over allegations that his predecessor ordered drones and propaganda leaflets to be sent across the border.

So far, North Korea has not responded to the latest overture from Seoul, even as President Lee continues efforts to repair strained ties between the two Koreas.