Prosecutors Indict Democratic Labor Union Executives for 'Espionage' Under North Korean Orders

North Korea "Firmly Resolves to Uphold the General Secretary (Kim Jong-un) in the Unification and Revolutionary Movement to the End"
Led by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, Carrying Out North Korean Orders to Promote 'Anti-Government Struggle, Anti-American, and Anti-Japanese Sentiments'

Former and current executives of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) who engaged in espionage activities under North Korea's orders disguised as labor union activities have been brought to trial.

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Construction Union is holding a rally in the Gwanghwamun area of Seoul to protest the government's crackdown on illegal activities at construction sites. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

The Public Investigation Division of Suwon District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Jeong Won-du) on the 10th indicted four KCTU executives on charges of violating the National Security Act (espionage, special infiltration/escape, meetings/communications, providing convenience, etc.) and detained them. They are accused of being recruited by operatives from North Korea's Cultural Exchange Bureau, establishing underground organizations, meeting with North Korean operatives overseas, and conducting secret communications to carry out espionage activities.

Through searches and seizures of KCTU offices and their residences, the prosecution secured 24 North Korean directive and report documents, along with cipher keys, totaling 90 cases?the largest scale among past National Security Act violation cases. As a result, it was revealed that they frequently communicated with North Korea, established underground organizations within KCTU's central, industrial, and regional unions, took control of KCTU's leadership and key departments, and carried out missions to recruit union members working in national key industries.

Additionally, the prosecution confirmed that they reported anticipated results of KCTU chairman elections, information reports including internal communication network IDs and passwords, recruited new members to expand the underground organization, built subordinate organizations, detected and collected military intelligence and other state secrets, and executed anti-government activities under the guise of KCTU's executive and propaganda organizations, regularly reporting the outcomes to North Korea.

According to the prosecution, North Korea instructed them to monitor factional movements within KCTU, leadership election trends, the takeover of KCTU's executive branch by specific forces, forming personal networks in key institutions, leading anti-government struggles spearheaded by KCTU, and fomenting anti-American and anti-Japanese sentiments.

They mainly met with North Korean operatives overseas in countries such as Cambodia and Vietnam to receive directives and conduct operations.

In particular, former KCTU Director of Organization and Dispute Affairs A, who has been brought to trial, maintained close relations with North Korean operatives for over 20 years, meeting and exchanging with them to the extent that the operatives described him as a "warm comrade" sharing "familial affection." A held key positions in KCTU, including Director of External Cooperation, Director of Organization, and Director of Planning.

According to decrypted notices secured by the prosecution, North Korea sent directives to KCTU executives last year stating, "We firmly believe that Director A will faithfully serve Chairman Kim Jong-un and steadfastly walk the path of the unification revolutionary movement to the end. We have not forgotten the days over 20 years when we met, firmly shook hands, warmly embraced, and shared the warmth of comradeship and familial affection throughout the night while having sincere conversations."

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