(Photo: KBS World)

The South Korean government may begin broadcasting North Korean media in the spirit of seeking mutual openness, KBS WORLD reports.

Unification Minister Kwon Young-se said the ministry would establish a public consensus on the gradual importing of North Korean broadcast media and publications through cooperation between the National Assembly and relevant institutions.

The Korea Times reports that the ministry had stepped up its efforts over the past three months to give the public access to North Korean television and, in the long run, other media outlets such as Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North’s Central Committee of the Workers’ Party.

“We have been discussing the issue with related government agencies, including which laws should be revised to make it possible,” an official said.

The liberal main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, which holds the majority in the National Assembly, has long said that the National Security Act – the law that de facto prohibits individuals from getting direct access to such content – is excessive and needs to be revised or abolished entirely.

Last year, 21 lawmakers from the left, mostly from the party, proposed a bill to repeal the law.

The newspaper says the history of efforts of repeal the act means that the policy of the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol administration could soon be codified into law with bipartisan support.