Man faces jail in South Korea over poem praising North Korea

27/11/2023 19:07

        A man in South Korea has been sentenced to one year and two months in prison for writing a poem in 2016 praising authoritarian North Korea and breaching a law banning access to the North's websites, news agency Yonhap reported on Monday.
        
        The man, in his 60s, was charged with breaching the National Security Act, which blocks access to the North's government websites and media, and bars efforts at "praising, inciting or propagating" its activities.
        
        The neighbouring countries are still technically at war since an armistice put an end to fighting in the 1950-1953 Korean War, rather than a peace treaty.
        
        An official at the Seoul Central District Court declined to provide details on the case.
        
        The man was accused of accessing Uriminzokkiri - a North Korean state-controlled website - and submitting a poem in 2016 praising a North Korea-led unification.