Unification Media Group (UMG): We are here with reporter Lee Sang Yong today to discuss cases of human rights violations enabled by the North Korean regime. What do you have for us today?
Lee Sang Yong (Lee): Ms. Kim, an informant residing in Hyesan, Ryanggang Province, spoke on the phone with Daily NK to report an ongoing case. Senior Lieutenant Kang Jin Hyuk, a male in his 30s from Hyesan’s Yonbong second district is using his position to extort money from local residents with threats, and is sexually assaulting some residents on a regular basis.
The official was formerly part of anti-espionage unity in Hyesan’s Ministry of State Security. During his time there, he would extort sexual favors from women in return for leniency on charges leveled at them. Now his sphere of influence has expanded, with the informant reporting that his transgressions have increased.
According to the informant, Senior Lieutenant Kang learned that a local woman in her early twenties living alone was making regular phones calls to her mother in South Korea and receiving remittances. Senior Lieutenant Kang realized the opportunity and went to confront Ms. Heo at her home, in the middle of the night, with specific information he had obtained. He threatened her with arrest if she did not acquiesce to his demands.
Despite her firm protests, Senior Lieutenant Kang repeatedly issued his demands and ultimately sexually assaulted her. The victim’s sense of shame and fear of Senior Lieutenant Kang’s retaliation has kept her from reporting the incident to higher-ranking officials.
UMG: Are there any other victims?
Lee: A woman in her thirties from Yonbong’s second district was also accosted in similar fashion. Senior Lieutenant Kang visited the woman, who lives alone without a husband, under the guise of Ministry of State Security (MSS) affairs. Senior Lieutenant Kang began talking with her while drinking alcohol and after some time, sexually assaulted her. The victim has refrained from lodging and official report and has only disclosed the incident to close friends.
UMG: How is it that he can commit such crimes without fear of punishment?
Lee: In response to hearing about incidents like these, North Korean residents often use the phrase, “The water must be clear at the top if it’s to be clear at the bottom”. It is common for cadres in law enforcement and other party organizations to violate rules of law. Many North Koreans believe that this type of behavior is rampant because “the lower ranking officers follow the examples of higher ranking officers.”
MSS agents, in particular, are among the worst offenders, as they wield the ability to label anyone a traitor. When they receive orders from above to “severely punish users of Chinese mobile phones” in the border areas for example, they see it as an opportunity to elicit sexual favors.
UMG: It seems that the complacency of the Kim Jong Un regime and its refusal to punish these so called ‘loyal servants’ have led to these events.
Lee: Individuals from the MSS are at the forefront of the political ideology battle and are considered to be fervent supporters of Kim Jong Un. Therefore, it is very difficult to get them punished. Cadres like Senior Lieutenant Kang abuse their power and use the Party’s orders to their own advantage.
If you cause trouble for these individuals, you are threatened with charges of espionage or anti-state activities and sent to a political prison camp. Residents have no choice but to endure, even in the face of great injustice.
UMG: Are there other cases relating to Senior Lieutenant Kang?
Lee: A man in his fifties living in Hyesin district was found guilty of assisting river-crossings in August 2015 and was investigated by the MSS. Senior Lieutenant Kang was in charge of the investigation.
In the interrogation room, he tortured the man for over two hours.The accused confessed his innocence throughout the violent interrogation but to no avail. In the end, he lost six front teeth, had four ribs broken, and fell unconscious.
But it didn’t end there. Senior Lieutenant Kang continued to threatened him with indefinite hard labor, demanding a bribe of 30,000 yuan (around 5,000,000 won) to escape the sentence. The inhumane acts of these security agents perpetuate the suffering of the people of North Korea.
