S. Korean prosecutors indict U.S. resident on security law violation

SEOUL, Dec. 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korean prosecutors indicted on Tuesday a 46-year-old man on charges of unauthorized visits to North Korea and contacts with its officials.

The U.S. permanent resident, identified only by his surname Jeong, went to North
Korea in 2005 without Seoul's permission and also met North Korean
representatives to the United Nations in New York, according to the Seoul Central
District Prosecutors Office.
Under the South's National Security Law, South Korean citizens must have prior
government permission before visiting the communist nation or contacting North
Koreans in or outside the country.
Seoul's National Intelligence Service raided Jeong's South Korean residence in
October, tracking him down from his encounters with a leader of a pro-North Korea
group. Five leaders from the Solidarity for Practice of the South-North Joint
Declaration were also indicted for breach of the security law early this month.
brk@yna.co.kr