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| A screen capture of an article titled "North Korea is what Jesus dreamt of" posted on the pro-Pyongyang website Jajusibo, Tuesday. It refers to the North by its own name, "Joseon." |
By Kim Hyun-bin
A pro-North Korea website named "Jajusibo" has been under fire for spreading articles praising the totalitarian regime by linking it with Jesus Christ over the Christmas holiday.
A Korean-American correspondent of the media, Lee In-sook, wrote the two-part article titled "Jesus' dream has become a reality in North Korea" on Christmas Day on Tuesday and Wednesday.
"What Jesus dreamed of is a society where food is provided for all, a society full of brotherly and sisterly love where people share food when there are limited resources," Lee wrote. "North Korea has a system where people have no worries about their survival. It has achieved a family-like society where people do not need to be selfish."
Jajusibo is a successor of "Jajuminbo," which was ordered to halt publication by the South Korean Supreme Court in 2015 for spreading propaganda that praised the North.
The online news outlet's registered address is Goryeong County in North Gyeongsang Province and has been operating through donations.
In other articles, it also called on the South to carry out the agreements made in the June 15 South-North Joint Declaration this year and the Oct. 4 Declaration in 2007. While praising the North Korean regime, the media outlet has continuously condemned the United States.
In the past month, it has published over 24 articles about some South Korean civic groups' moves to welcome North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on his anticipated visit to Seoul.
"Soon we'll see the historic moment when Kim will visit Seoul as the first North Korean head to do so," it said in one of its stories. "Please give him a fervent welcome."
Jajuminbo was established in 2005 as an online news outlet registered in Seoul and has endlessly written articles praising the North. In 2014, the Seoul Metropolitan Government filed a lawsuit to annul the registration and a year later the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the city government.
Following the ruling, Jajuminbo changed its name to Jajusibo and registered in South Jeolla Province. In February 2017, it changed the registration to North Gyeongsang Province.
"We will thoroughly review Jajusibo to see if there are any legal issues. If so, we will take all necessary measures including filing a suit to halt its registration," an official from the North Gyeongsang Provincial Government said.
