North Korean leaflets liken South's first lady to Marie Antoinette, condemn her expensive fashion tastes

Anti-South leaflet shows a picture of first lady Kim Keon Hee. North Korea sent the leaflets with balloons which flew over the inter-Korean border on Thursday. [JOONGANG PHOTO] North Korea sent balloons carrying anti-South leaflets criticizing South Korea’s first lady Kim Keon Hee and her expensive sartorial tastes, according to a report Thursday in the JoongAng Ilbo, an affiliate of the Korea JoongAng Daily. The balloons sent from Pyongyang on Thursday morning landed in Seoul and even at the presidential office compound in Yongsan District, in the heart of the South Korean capital. Unlike previous trash-laden balloons, the latest balloons on Thursday carried propaganda materials, not filth. Anti-South leaflets featured a photo of the first lady, Kim, with a caption dubbing her a “modern Marie Antoinette.” Another leaflet listed the prices of accessories worn by Kim during her visits to foreign countries — $46,154 for a necklace, $11,538 for a bracelet and $20,000 for a brooch — with the phrase “Do you know?” Related ArticleNorth Korean trash-carrying balloons land near Seoul’s presidential office ahead of summit with PolandNorth Korea sends about 20 trash balloons toward South: JCSSouth Korea to counter North's potential balloon bioterrorism with new vaccine Such leaflets appear aimed at instigating public dislike toward South Korea's first lady by highlighting how much she spends on her appearance and prompting internal divisions among South Koreans. It can also be interpreted as a tactic to shift people’s attention from North Korean troops in Russia to the political impasse in Seoul. The report also said the leaflets could be a response to anti-Pyongyang leaflets showing luxury clothes worn by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his daughter. A photo of an anti-Kim leaflet run in the North’s state-controlled newspaper Rodong Sinmun criticized Kim Ju-ae — the daughter of the North Korean leader — for wearing clothes made by French luxury brand Dior. The report speculated that Pyongyang took the “Marie Antoinette” reference from Kim Kyung-yul, a former supreme council member of the conservative People Power Party who likened the first lady to “Marie Antoinette” in January. Anti-South leaflets are scattered on roads in Yongsan District in central Seoul on Thursday. [JOONGANG PHOTO] On Tuesday, regime leader Kim's sister, Kim Yo-jong, released a statement saying that “a lot of political motivational rubbish” from South Korea “was discovered and removed in many parts” of North Korea a day ago. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Thursday that North Korea launched trash-laden balloons toward the South from around 2:30 a.m., noting that the winds would likely carry them to Gyeonggi, Gangwon and the greater Seoul area. The balloon that fell on the presidential compound was determined to be nonhazardous and free of contaminants, according to the Presidential Security Service on Thursday morning. The balloon and its payload have since been recovered and are being investigated in coordination with the JCS. BY CHUNG YEONG-GYO, LEE YU-JUNG, LEE SOO-JUNG, WOO JI-WON [[email protected]]