Late Poet Namju Kim Acquitted in 'South Korea National Liberation Front Case' Retrial

Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison in 1980 for Violating the National Security Act

Late poet Namju Kim, who served a prison sentence on charges of joining the Preparatory Committee of the South Korea National Liberation Front (Namminjeon), was acquitted in a retrial.

Late poet Namju Kim. Photo by Yonhap News

On September 2, the 28th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Chief Judge Han Dae-gyun, delivered a not-guilty verdict in Kim's retrial for alleged violations of the National Security Act and related charges.

The Namminjeon was an underground organization formed in 1976 with the goal of resisting the Yushin regime and promoting democratization movements. More than 80 members were arrested for activities such as distributing leaflets criticizing the Yushin regime.

In 1978, Kim was arrested on charges of joining the Namminjeon Preparatory Committee and participating in the anti-Yushin movement. The following year, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Kim was released on parole approximately nine years and two months after being imprisoned, due to a suspension of the sentence. He passed away from pancreatic cancer in 1994.

Approximately 250 poems that Kim wrote while in prison were published in his first poetry collection, "Requiem," in 1984, as well as in works such as "My Sword My Blood" and "There Is Only One Homeland."

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