Former justice minister Choo Mi-ae attends an anti-government rally in Seoul in this undated file photo taken from the web site of the North's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun. Yonhap

North Korea's main newspaper on Tuesday published a rare photo of a former South Korean justice minister attending an anti-government rally in Seoul as part of apparent propaganda coverage criticizing the South.

The photo of former justice minister and liberal politician Choo Mi-ae appeared on the Rodong Sinmun alongside 11 other photos of a candlelight protest held near the presidential compound in central Seoul last week.

The photo, carried without a source, showed a smiling Choo as she held up a picket sign calling for a special prosecution investigation against first lady Kim Keon Hee.

While Pyongyang has often used its main newspaper for a domestic audience to carry articles on anti-government protests in South Korea, it has rarely published a photo of a prominent politician in South Korea.

From May to early November this year, the Rodong Sinmun carried some 40 articles on anti-government protests in South Korea, according to government data.

An official at South Korea's unification ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, earlier said such coverage appeared to be an attempt to "distort and emphasize a negative image of South Korea and prevent North Koreans from developing positive expectations." (Yonhap)