North Korean TV announcer speaks on hydrogen bomb test[courtesy of Xinhua News]
The tensely guarded inter-Korean border has been strewn with leaflets from both sides along with the ear-splitting sound of loudspeakers in an escalating propaganda war triggered by North Korea's nuclear test, military officials said Monday.
South Korean police and soldiers have been busy with the unusual daily job of collecting leaflets sent by North Korean troops across the border since Pyongyang made a surprise announcement on January 6 that it successfully tested a hydrogen bomb.
So far South Korea has colleted nearly one million North Korean leaflets, which landed mainly in border areas north of Seoul, defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok told reporters. "Leaflets have been scattered every day," he said.
The North's nuclear test prompted South Korean border troops to switch back on clusters of loudspeakers blaring messages criticizing North Korea's leadership. The North responded with its own giant loudspeakers and leaflet launches along the border.
Pyongyang has reacted angrily to South Korean loudspeakers but Seoul vowed to step up its propaganda war seen by President Park Geun-Hye as "the surest and most effective" measure to punish North Korea's provocative activities.
Defense ministry officials said bundles of propaganda leaflets have sometimes caused minor damage to civilian quarters because North Korea used time bombs to control the explosion of huge plastic balloons. On January 14, a bundle of North Koran leaflets crashed into a sport utility vehicle in a northern residential area and damaged its roof.
South Korea's audio bombardment, which has been running on and off in recent years, included news, weather reports, K-pop music and criticism of the regime in Pyongyang.
South Korean officials insist their equipment is far more powerful than that of North Korea as their broadcasts can be heard as much as 10 km (6.2 miles) across the border in the day and farther at night.
In August, the South briefly switched on speakers at 11 places after an 11-year break. They now use vehicles mounted with loudspeakers to evade possible attacks from North Korea's artillery. North Korea has threatened to blow up South Korean loudspeakers, calling them an act of war.
Charles Lim
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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