Greenpeace East Asia and Greenpeace International agreed to drop the lawsuit against the Ministry of Justice in exchange for “positive measures” and government assurances it would permit Greenpeace campaigners to enter the country in the future.

Greenpeace agreed to drop the suit “with an understanding that the Ministry of Justice would take positive measures including the end of its denial of entry against Greenpeace campaigners,” the environmental organization said in a statement on Thursday.

Six Greenpeace staff members tried to enter the country on several separate occasions from November 2011 to October 2012 as part of a campaign opposed to nuclear power, to attend a seminar on nuclear power and on one occasion to meet with Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon in Seoul. Their entry was barred, however, on each of those occasions.

Greenpeace then sued the Justice Ministry last year in December in what the organization described as a “violation of legal principles and abuse of (the Korean government’s) discretionary authority.”

The ministry contacted the law firm representing Greenpeace to request a settlement on June 5.

“We welcome this gesture by the Ministry of Justice as an indication that the current government is showing the possibility that it will uphold democratic principles, especially people’s right to freedom of expression,” said Pino Lee, a campaigner for Greenpeace East Asia.

The parties were given 14 days to conclude a settlement by the Seoul Central District Court at a hearing on Wednesday.

“We were able to confirm the (Ministry of Justice) intention of taking progressive measures that should include lifting the ban, so we made the decision to agree to a settlement and drop the lawsuit. However, we will continue to seek the motives behind the suppression of voices that oppose nuclear energy expansion in Korea,” said Pino Lee, a campaigner for Greenpeace East Asia.

“These denials of entry also illustrate the improper influence of the nuclear industry on Korea’s political system, and represent a violation of the right of freedom of expression and association as guaranteed by the Korean constitution,” Greenpeace East Asia said in the press statement.

By Philip Iglauer (ephilip2011@heraldcorp.com)