[imText1]“I want to go to South Chosun (Korea) too…”
As the number of defectors entering South Korea beings to surge, North Koreans are growing ever more envious of going to South Korea.
Defector Kim Young Sik (37), who resides in Seoul, recently had a phone conversation with family members living in Chongjin, North Korea, and relayed on the 22nd that “North Koreans no longer really fear going to South Korea. Many people are saying that they plan to go to South Korea.”
Kim said, “When people from the village go missing, word spreads that they have gone to South Chosun, and when people gather in groups, they often talk casually about going to South Chosun.”
This is a surprising new development as in the past, when rumors of someone having gone to South Chosun spread, people were afraid of being charged with treason.
As of June, there are currently 8,500 defectors who have gained entry to South Korea, and this figure will soon rise to 10,000. As rumors of defectors entering South Korea spread throughout North Korea, North Koreans have begun to view defection to the South as a real possibility, a definite change from the past.
Defector Lee Chun Sik (60, assumed name) residing in Nowon-gu, Seoul says “Even within Nowon-gu where I live, there are more than 100 people from my hometown (Saebyeol-gun, North Hamkyung province).” There are rumors that within some villages, such as Musan, Hoiryeong of North Hamkyung province, and districts around the boarder, that ‘a whole neighborhood has moved to South Korea.’
Recently, the living conditions in the North have worsened, leading to an increase in the number or defectors, particularly those with connections to South Korea. If the oppression and the watch of the authorities worsens, families in North Korea will continue to be willing to cross the Tuman River.
‘National Security Agents, “Let’s share some of the money”
Kim Myeong Ja (56, assumed name), who came to Korea with the help of her daughter who entered South Korea first, recently graduated from ‘Hanawon’ (the Resettlement Education Center for North Korean defectors).
It had been 2 years since Kim and her daughter communicated after her daughter’s disappearance, when she left only a written letter. Yet Kim had somehow managed to live off the money sent by her daughter in South Korea.
A National Security agent discovered that Kim possessed some money, after which agents frequently came to her home and demanded she share the money.
Until a few years ago, defectors would hide the fact that they were entering South Korea in order not to put thier families in danger, informing their families that they were somewhere in China. However, Kim says that the Judicial Office was aware of who may have defected to South Korea, and that officials woud go to the homes of those suspected of defecting to the South.
In response to the increasing number of defectors, the inspection at the border crossing has intensified.
North Korean authorities have increased the number of divisions from 2 to 3 within the 10th guard (to barricade the border) of the National Security Agency between Chongjin and Hoiryeong, where they verify identification cards with the faces of each individual who passes the border. Particularly, people with accents from different districts, who come from Pyongyang, are subject to particular scrutiny.
Defector Kim says “The guards have begun strict regulation of the borders”, stating that “lately, even the people who attempt to secretly cross the mountain at the border are all caught.”
