South Korea spies meddled in election to boost conservatives

SOUTH KOREA’S spy agency has admitted that it had engaged in a far-reaching attempt to manipulate voters as it sought to help conservatives win parliamentary and presidential elections.

In-house investigators from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) confirmed that the agency’s cyber warfare unit organised and operated up to 30 teams for more than two years in the run-up to the 2012 elections, the agency said in a statement.

They hired internet-savvy civilians and sought to sway opinions through postings on portals and Twitter.

“The teams were charged with spreading pro-government opinions and suppressing anti-government views, branding them as pro-north Korean forces’ attempts to disturb state affairs,” it said. At the time the country was led by the conservative Lee Myung-bak, and in the event the December 2012 presidential election was won by his now-disgraced colleague Park Geun-hye, who defeated liberal Moon Jae-in.

Moon won South Korea’s presidential vote in May this year after Park was impeached and dismissed over corruption and abuse of power, and ordered an investigation. He has vowed to reform the NIS to prevent it meddling in elections and make it focus on collecting and analysing intelligence on North Korea and foreign affairs.

A spokesman for Park’s party, now in opposition and renamed Liberty Korea, said yesterday that the inquiry was “politically motivated”.