hankyoreh

2005

The South Korean government has virtually denied approval for a visit to North Korea by a delegation of the Youth Student Headquarters of the Southern Committee for the Implementation of the June 15 Joint Declaration.

In a press briefing Friday, Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyoun said that the ministry had decided to put a hold on approval for the visit by three representatives of the Youth Student Headquarters to visit Pyongyang from February 28 to March 3.

The ministry’s decision is being seen as a virtual denial of approval for the trip because it was announced a day before the group was set to depart. “The decision was made after a comprehensive review of the organization’s past activities and the current state of inter-Korean relations was made,” Kim added.

The Youth Student Headquarters was seeking approval for visit to the North that would include working-level meetings in Pyongyang with representatives of North Korea’s June 15 Youth Committee.

Although the South Korean government denied the group approval for a planned visit to North Korea by some 120 young people organized by the Youth Student Headquarters last August, this is the first time that it blocked a visit by a delegation seeking to conduct working-level meetings.

In addition, on Feb. 4, the government informed the media division of the Southern Committee for the Implementation of the June 15 Joint Declaration that it was rejecting its application for permission to exchange news articles with the North.

The Youth Student Headquarters released a statement on Friday that said, “Immediately after Unification Minister Hyun In-taek was appointed, the ministry took issue with activities by organizations related to the June 15 Joint Declaration. That shows it has no will to improve inter-Korean relations. It is deplorable that inter-Korean exchanges, which were not viewed as problematic before the administration of Lee Myung-bak was inaugurated, are being trampled on.”

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