Seo Man-sul, chairman of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, known as Chongryon in Korea, died of a chronic illness at his home in Tokyo on Monday. He was 84.

Seo joined the association, one of the two main organizations of Korean residents in Japan, in 1955. He moved from Korea to Japan in 1941. In the association, he had held major posts in the group from director to the second chairman.

The association has strong ties to North Korea and shares its official state ideology. 

Seo was reported to have played a key role in then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s visit to Pyongyang in 2002, after he became the second chairman of the group following the death of his predecessor and inaugural chairman Han Deok-su in 2001, according to domestic news reports.

Seo also served as a member of the North Korean legislative body of the Supreme People’s Assembly.

He wished to visit the North when Kim Jong-il died last year, but the Japanese government turned down his request for his trip to Pyongyang, saying that he would not be permitted to enter Japan should he go.

Currently, the association is headed by vice chairman Heo Jong-man, who is expected to remain as acting chairman until the election earlier next year.

By Lee Woo-young  (wylee@heraldcorp.com)