The practice was common in the days of the late dictator Kim Jong-il, but was stopped. The Seoul government has tried in every way to stop the launch, which Pyongyang sees it as a "provocation" to which it may respond with a direct military attack.

Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A group of South Korean activists managed to escape the control of the border police and launch a series of small balloons with about 120 thousand leaflets denouncing the North's communist regime led by Kim Jong-un. On 19 October Pyongyang threatened a "direct military attack" at the launch site in case the activists had succeeded in their aim. This is the first case of "flier" propaganda against the new dictator, the third son and heir of the late Kim Jong-il.

The current conservative South Korean government, tried to prevent the launch and had at first blocked the activist group, made ​​up of about 80 people. Another 10 have however were able to evade control and launch the balloons, which are located on the small island west of Imjingak. The Seoul Interior Ministry has sent hundreds of police to the island, which has cleared the streets and tried in every way to block the activists (mostly refugees from North Korea).

The Stalinist regime sees the launch of leaflets as a form of "psychological warfare" and for years has responded to this form of propaganda with military provocations. The current government of the South has maintained a tough stance towards its neighbour, but the approaching presidential elections (scheduled for December 19) has forced an easing in tension.

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