Politics · South Korea · 1 hr ago
South Korea’s unification minister files complaints over alleged false claims
South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young filed criminal complaints over alleged false claims about him.
The ministry named a former National Intelligence Service employee who wrote a column and a YouTube operator who is also a film director.
They were reported to have made claims including that Chung has a 27-year-old daughter in North Korea.
The ministry said Chung has no daughter and never visited Wonsan, and denied that he received hospitality from North Korea’s so-called “pleasure squad.”
It said he met former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang in 2005 as a special envoy for then-President Roh Moo-hyun.
The ministry said the claims harmed Chung’s reputation and undermined confidence in its work.
It is considering further legal action against people who continue to spread what it calls false claims and malicious attacks.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry said it filed criminal complaints against two people over alleged false claims about Minister Chung Dong-young.
The ministry said the complaints concern a former National Intelligence Service employee who wrote a column and a YouTube operator who is also a film director.
The claims reportedly included that Chung had a 27-year-old daughter in North Korea and had received hospitality from the so-called “pleasure squad.”
The ministry said Chung has no daughter, has never visited Wonsan and did not receive such hospitality.
It said the alleged personal attacks harmed Chung’s reputation and undermined trust in the ministry’s policies.
- Who
- Unification Minister Chung Dong-young filed the complaints against a former National Intelligence Service employee and a YouTube operator and film director.
- What
- The ministry said it filed criminal complaints over alleged false claims and defamation.
- When
- The ministry announced the complaints on October 28, 2026.
- Where
- South Korea. The ministry announcement was made in Seoul.
- Why
- The ministry said the claims were fabricated personal attacks that damaged Chung’s reputation and undermined confidence in its policies.
Alleged claim-makers
Unification Ministry
Claims about Chung
Alleged claim-makers
They reportedly claimed that Chung had a 27-year-old daughter in North Korea and had received hospitality from the so-called “pleasure squad.
Unification Ministry
The ministry said Chung has no daughter, has never visited Wonsan and did not receive such hospitality.
Limits on speech
Alleged claim-makers
Not stated.
Unification Ministry
The ministry said criticism and disagreement over policy are welcome, but fabricated personal attacks are not protected as freedom of expression.
Chung answered questions at a National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee audit in Seoul.
The Unification Ministry announced that Chung had filed criminal complaints over the alleged false claims.
- Minister
- Chung Dong-young
- Complaint targets
- A former National Intelligence Service employee and a YouTube operator and film director
- Reported claim
- Chung allegedly had a 27-year-old daughter in North Korea
- Ministry’s denial
- Chung has no daughter and has never visited Wonsan
- Official meeting
- Chung met Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang on June 17, 2005, as a special envoy for President Roh Moo-hyun
What people are saying
Policy criticism and disagreement will always be heard with humility, but personal attacks based on fabricated facts cannot be protected as freedom of expression.
The minister has no daughter, has never been to Wonsan, and the claim that he received hospitality from the so-called “pleasure squad” is entirely untrue.