The Korea Herald

피터빈트

S. Korea begins loudspeaker broadcasts to inform N. Koreans of Kim Jong-nam's murder

By KH디지털2

Published : Feb. 22, 2017 - 10:24

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South Korea's military began loudspeaker broadcasts over the weekend to inform ordinary North Koreans of the murder of the communist state's leader Kim Jong-un's half brother, military officials said Wednesday.

The move aims to underscore the brutality of the dictatorial ruler in Pyongyang, whom Seoul believes masterminded the assassination of Kim Jong-nam at an airport in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 13.

In this photo taken on Jan. 8, 2016, a soldier stands before a loudspeaker system in a front-line area in Gyeonggi Province. (Yonhap) In this photo taken on Jan. 8, 2016, a soldier stands before a loudspeaker system in a front-line area in Gyeonggi Province. (Yonhap)

"We have made broadcasts through 34 loudspeakers along the inter-Korean border to inform North Korean soldiers and civilians that their leader Kim Jong-un was behind the killing of his elder half brother Kim Jong-nam," a military official told Yonhap News Agency.

Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, was allegedly assassinated by two women under directions from North Korean agents. He had spoken out publicly against his family's dynastic control of the reclusive North.

The propaganda broadcasts using loudspeakers installed near the heavily fortified border have been Seoul's crucial means of psychological warfare.

Past broadcasts highlighted the South's economic achievements and the benefits of liberal democracy, and brought attention to the importance of human rights -- a reason why Pyongyang called them a "threat" to its communist system. (Yonhap)