[ti:Does a South Korean Law Limit Speech or Protect the Nation] [ar:Jim Tedder] [al:As It IS] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]The United States ambassador to South Korea [00:04.31]continues to recover from a knife attack. [00:07.60]Mark Lippert was released from a hospital in Seoul on March 10, [00:12.70]five days after he was repeatedly stabbed in the capital. [00:17.21]A South Korean supporter of North Korea [00:20.40]cut Ambassador Lippert on the face and hand. [00:23.84]Police arrested 55-year-old Kim Ki-jong [00:28.08]immediately following the attack. [00:30.78]He faces charges including attempted murder. [00:34.28]But, officials say [00:36.48]the attacker might have also violated a law [00:39.57]designed to stop the spread of communism. [00:42.57]Some rights groups oppose the law. [00:45.22]They say it mostly limits freedom of speech [00:48.87]without increasing public safety. [00:51.26]Police searched Mr. Kim's home and office. [00:54.95]They say they found documents supporting North Korea. [00:58.67]South Korea's National Security Law bans such documents. [01:04.12]Park Kun-young is a member of the group [01:07.57]People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy. [01:11.61]He opposes the law and is worried about how the government might use it. [01:17.45]He says it is bad that the attack carried out [01:20.74]by one violent man is bringing attention to other activists [01:25.18]who do not share the South Korean government's thoughts on North Korea. [01:30.27]He says the South Korean government might now use the National Security Law [01:36.04]to try to punish its political opponents. [01:39.39]Lawmakers approved the measure in the late 1940s [01:43.54]to try to stop the spread of communist North Korea's influence. [01:47.82]But rights activists say it restricts freedom of speech [01:52.82]and gives the government power to send innocent people to jail. [01:57.16]In 2012, 26-year-old photographer Park Jung-geun [02:03.63]was found guilty of violating the law. [02:06.32]Last year, a higher court [02:08.77]cancelled the ruling and said the man was innocent. [02:12.26]Mr. Park says he was charged because of a humorous comment he made [02:18.46]about North Korea on the social networking website Twitter. [02:23.26]He says he thinks the way North Koreans worship their leaders is funny. [02:28.73]He says he only re-tweeted a message he found [02:33.32]on a pro-North Korea website because he thought it was funny. [02:37.90]Mr. Park says he is now more careful about [02:41.94]what he communicates on social media. [02:44.33]Many South Koreans support the National Security Law. [02:49.38]They say the fight against North Korea is continuing. [02:53.36]Suh Jung-kap is a member of the organization [02:57.20]National Action Campaign in South Korea. [03:00.93]He says the attack on the American ambassador [03:04.50]proves that the government needs to take stronger action [03:08.78]against South Koreans who support North Korea. [03:12.98]He says North Korea is the world's worst dictatorship. [03:17.85]He says it launched attacks in 2010 and killed 46 South Korean soldiers. [03:24.58]He says he does not think issues like the economy [03:28.51]and human rights are as important as that of uniting the nation. [03:33.96]Critics of the law say they agree [03:36.84]that North Korea is still a threat to South Korea. [03:40.53]But they say the attack on the ambassador shows [03:44.62]that the law does not keep people safe from attack. [03:48.06]That is one reason why activist Park Kun-young [03:52.29]says the law should be cancelled. [03:54.84]He says security is important and the country needs laws to stop spies. [04:00.91]But he says the National Security Law does not do that. [04:05.50]He says it only stops people from expressing their opinions. [04:10.47]I'm Jim Tedder. [04:12.46]¸ü¶àÌýÁ¦Çë·ÃÎÊ51voa.com