The Democratic Party of Korea introduced a bill on Thursday to transfer the management of North Korean special materials from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) to the Ministry of Unification. This measure aims to clarify the classification criteria for documents that were previously managed in a closed manner by the NIS and to improve public access to general materials that do not contain sensitive political content.
Lee Yong-sun, a member of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee from the Democratic Party, presented the Act on the Management and Use of North Korean Materials on the same day. The bill primarily seeks to establish a new North Korean Materials Review Committee within the Ministry of Unification to oversee special materials. It also proposes to review the collection, management, and use of North Korean materials in cooperation with the NIS. In addition, the bill includes plans to establish a National Peace and Unification Materials Center within the Ministry of Unification.
Special materials are defined as North Korea-related documents that clearly: (1) deny the existence, safety, or fundamental democratic order of South Korea; (2) praise, incite, or propagate violent or destructive activities by North Korean agents or their affiliates; or (3) reproduce, copy, or excerpt materials from the first two categories, whether inside or outside North Korea. Any documents not meeting these criteria are classified as general materials.
The proposed committee will consist of 15 members. The Vice Minister of Unification will serve as chairperson, while a senior official designated by the NIS director will act as vice-chairperson. The remaining 13 members will be appointed through consultations between the Ministry of Unification and the NIS.
Representative Lee previously introduced a similar bill, the Act on the Collection, Management, and Utilization of North Korean Materials, in July 2022 during the 21st National Assembly. However, that bill was discarded when the assembly’s term expired in May 2024.
The latest version addresses concerns regarding potential violations of the National Security Act by strengthening cooperation with the NIS during the review process. Notably, the bill now requires that both the Minister of Unification and the NIS director be notified of all matters related to special materials.
The 12 co-sponsors, including Representative Lee, defended the proposal by stating that North Korea-related materials have been classified as special materials under NIS guidelines rather than by law, leading to highly restricted management. They argue that academic demand for North Korean materials has steadily increased, and there is a need to enhance public understanding of North Korea to facilitate reunification efforts and promote civilian exchanges.
Earlier, on July 22, the Ministry of Unification announced that it was undertaking various efforts to expand public access to North Korean materials and was cooperating with the National Assembly in this regard.