South Korea finally turns off loudspeakers blasting K-Pop into North Korea

South Korea has taken its first concrete step toward easing tensions with North Korea under its new president, Lee Jae-myung, by switching off loudspeakers that had been broadcasting K-pop music, news, and other propaganda across the border.

According to presidential spokeswoman, Kang Yu-jung, Lee ordered the military to silence the high-powered loudspeakers on Wednesday afternoon to “help restore trust in South-North Korean relations and build peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

This decision marks a sharp shift from the policies of Lee’s predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached earlier this year. Under Yoon, inter-Korean relations hit a low point.

He supported sending outside information into the North, including launching balloons filled with propaganda leaflets.

These balloons, mostly sent by North Korean defectors, often contained sharp criticism of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, calling him “a bloodthirsty dictator” or “pig.”

North Korea responded with its own balloons—this time filled with cigarette butts and trash—which it sent across the border.

In retaliation, Yoon’s government turned on loudspeakers that blasted K-pop and news toward the North.

The North then activated its own speaker systems, blasting “eerie noises” that disturbed South Korean villagers.

Some residents near the border installed double-pane windows and insulation to cope with the noise.

By switching off its loudspeakers first on Wednesday, South Korea effectively proposed a cease-fire in the loudspeaker standoff.

On Thursday, South Korean military officials confirmed that North Korea’s loudspeakers also fell silent.

“We hope that North Korea will also stop its noise attack, so we can all go back to a normal life,” said Park Yong-cheol, mayor of Gwanghwa, a county bordering the North.

During his election campaign, Mr. Lee criticised Yoon’s North Korea policy, saying it escalated tensions unnecessarily.

He promised to restore “channels of dialogue” between the two Koreas and stop actions that inflamed the situation.

Earlier this week, Lee’s government also began discouraging activist groups from launching balloons into the North.

Officials argued the balloons raised tensions more than they helped North Koreans gain access to information.

So far, North Korea has not officially responded to Lee’s actions. But it has not sent trash balloons since November, when South Korea entered political chaos following Mr. Yoon’s declaration of martial law and eventual impeachment.

Relations between the Koreas remain tense. Under Kim Jong-un, the North has become increasingly hostile, ending communication with both Seoul and Washington, and ramping up nuclear missile testing.

In October, the North demolished all road and rail links with the South using dynamite.

(New York Times)

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