Kyungmoonhyeop: "North Korea Copyright Fees Belong to Individuals"... Dispute Over Collection Lawsuit

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The South-North Economic and Cultural Cooperation Foundation (Gyeongmunhyeop) claimed in a lawsuit over the collection of funds related to Korean War POWs that "the copyright fees for the use of Chosun Central TV, etc., belong to individuals, not the North Korean authorities."

On the 17th, Gyeongmunhyeop made this claim during the first hearing of the lawsuit for the collection of approximately 85 million won filed by Korean War POWs Han and No at the Seoul Eastern District Court, Civil Division 1, presided over by Judge Song Seung-yong. The plaintiffs Han and No did not appear.

Attorney Lee Hyung-taek, representing Gyeongmunhyeop, stated, "The previous civil judgment did not deeply consider important issues such as the legal nature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," and added, "The seizure manager of the collection funds submitted by the plaintiffs is not North Korea but individuals, including about ten writers."

Attorney Lee further explained, "There is a precedent where wages were paid to individual residents, not the North Korean authorities, even in the Kaesong Industrial Complex," and said, "We will prove that the copyright business was also planned to proceed in the same manner." He then requested the court to apply to the Ministry of Unification for a fact-finding inquiry, asking to compare whether the creditor is the North Korean authorities or individual North Korean residents.

Attorney Koo Choong-seo, representing the plaintiffs, said, "This case has nothing to do with wages from the Kaesong Industrial Complex," and added, "This is just a delay tactic."

The court stated, "Our legal system has a principle of direct payment, so copyright should not be compared to wages," but also noted, "There is room to consider this as part of inter-Korean economic cooperation projects," and requested both parties to submit written opinions.

Previously, Han and No filed a lawsuit last July against North Korea and Chairman Kim Jong-un, claiming damages for being captured as prisoners of war by North Korean forces during the Korean War and forced to perform labor assigned to the Ministry of Interior Construction Unit, winning the case.

A collection order was also issued against Gyeongmunhyeop, which is currently depositing the copyright fees for Chosun Central TV with the court. Gyeongmunhyeop appealed, arguing that the copyright fees are exempt from seizure, but the appeal was rejected.

After the hearing, the plaintiffs and the nonprofit organization Mulmangcho stated, "The defendant's claims are completely unfounded," and argued, "It makes no sense that inter-Korean cooperation would block individual rights." They added, "Among the eighty POWs who returned on their own, only sixteen are still alive," and asked, "Are you just waiting for the plaintiffs, who are over 90 years old, to die?"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.