Seoul backs easing contact rules for pro-Pyongyang group in Japan

The South Korean government is moving to abolish a requirement that citizens report contacts with members of Chongryon, a pro-Pyongyang organization of Korean residents in Japan, as part of an effort to ease regulations on inter-Korean exchanges.

A Unification Ministry official said Friday that the government would actively support a pending legislative proposal to remove a provision that legally treats Chongryon members as North Korean residents. “A bill proposed by a lawmaker to repeal the pro