The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a North Korean defector who sued the Foreign Ministry for refusing to give him a passport.

Justice Koh Hyun-chul confirmed a lower court ruling that the ministry must retract its decision not to issue a passport to Kim Dok-hong, a former senior official of the North Korean Workers’ Party.

Kim defected to South Korea in 1997 with Hwang Jang-yop, the highest-ranking North Korean official ever to escape to the South.

In June 2004, Kim applied for a passport so he could visit the United States at the invitation of U.S.-based foundations and research institutes.

Justice Koh said the government should not place excessive limits on a person's freedom to travel, which he called a basic human right, due to that individual's status as a North Korean defector or what Koh described as "vague safety issues."