A high court yesterday overturned an earlier ruling that South Korean-German dissident scholar Song Du-yul had been a Politburo member of the ruling North Korean Workers' Party.

But it upheld a lower court's conviction of Song, 59, for violating the National Security Law by holding frequent unauthorized meetings with the late North Korean leader Kim Il-sung and engaging in other pro-Pyongyang activities.

The Seoul Appellate Court gave him a three-year jail term but suspended the sentence for five years, saying his North Korean visits and activities there did not pose a serious threat to South Korea's democratic order. He was later released from prison.

Song was arrested last November and sentenced to seven years in prison in March for his pro-North Korean activities and playing a key role in the North Korean Workers' Party.

"The evidence the prosecution presented is not enough to prove that he worked as a Politburo member in the North," the high court said in its ruling.

"Song's condolence visit on the death of Kim Il-sung (in 1994) and his congratulatory letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on his birthday were ceremonial and cannot be seen as a treasonous act," the appellate court said.

"The court decided to give a suspended sentence to Song in light of the growing perception of North Korea as a dialogue partner," it said.

Song returned to South Korea in September 2003 after 35 years of self-imposed exile in Germany and was taken into custody for his pro-North Korean activities.

Song acknowledged most charges except an allegation that he served as a secret Politburo member under an alias, Kim Chul-su, a key charge denied by him.

Embarrassed by the unexpected court ruling, the prosecution said it would decide soon whether to appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

"Prosecution investigators did their best to prove Song's close relations with the North Korean government," a senior prosecutor said. "As in most cases of security law violations, it was difficult to present sufficient evidence."

Another prosecutor said the latest ruling seems to reflect the court's changing view of the threat from North Korea in relation to developments in inter-Korean relations.

(shinyb@heraldm.com) (Yonhap)

2004.07.22