[imText1]After two North Korean citizens crossed over to South Korea on June 17, a family of three people (Mr. Hong, his wife and his son) came to South Korea for the second time by sea.
The ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff reported, “The naval radar at Baekryeong Island spotted a small fishing boat and was escorted as soon as it crossed the Northern Limit Line (NLL) of the west coast. They departed from Kumi port in Ryongyeon-gun, Hwanghe Province at dawn of June 26.”
On the same morning, there was a lost boat spotted at 3.3mi. away from Baekryeong Island around 11:50am. Although it crossed over 1.8mi. into the NLL, the navy handed over a compass and returned it back to the North.
There have been five cases of North Korean civilian boats’ transgression of NLL. The government of South Korea returned all of them as soon as it was revealed that they crossed the NLL by mistake.
However, in this year, two incidents occurred within ten days which the passengers of the boat stated their intention of escape from North Korea. In the combined questioning, it was verified by Hong’s remark, “we came out (escaped) because we had hard time making a living,” that it was not a mistake but was an intended “transgression.”
Despite general assumption that they would have been North Korean crab catching boats equipments crossing the NLL by mistake, have proven to be intentional by the two incidents that occurred in the last ten days.
North Korean Government, Entire Family Side Jobs on Beach Prohibited
The three people who came to South Korea on a boat on June 26 is residents of Kumi-ri, Youngyeon-gun of Hwanhe Province who were fishermen. According to the defectors’ testimonies, there is state owned cultivating sea farm that grows seaweed and abundant with sea slugs and crabs. Due to the “fashion” of earning foreign currency, individuals rent boats and buy diving suits to do their own fishing.
On a bright day, you can see a bit of Baekryong Island if you look southwestward from the port of Kumi. The government of North Korea has long been educating the residents of Kumi about Baekryeong Island to be “ground for spies.” They said the people should especially be careful about diving suits and “belongings of the enemy” (such as toothpaste, toothbrush and radio) that floating on water, and they must never be used for they may contain poison.
According to Soon Young Bum, who defected with his family by sea in 2002, many people in the coastal areas know that people in South Korea live much better and are planning to come to South Korea by sea.
Furthermore, due to the increase of defectors, it is said that North Korea is strengthening law and patrol to control the passage on the sea. Only one person of married couple can be fisherman and the sailing by a family is prohibited.
Why Sudden Emergence of Defection by Sea?
There have not been many cases of successful “boat people.’ The cases include Soon Young Bum and his family in 2002, Kim Man Chul and his family (ten people) crossed the East Sea, arrived in Japan first and entered South Korea in 1987, and Ahn Sun Guk, Kim Won Hyung and their families (14 people) came to South Korea in 1997.
In the mid 1990s, during the food crisis, international media reported on the possibility of mass “boat people” from the North to the South.
However, thousands of North Korean people defected by taking the route to China. This is because defection by sea is much more dangerous and adventurous than by land. Since North Koreans are not familiar with water path, they sometimes rented Chinese ships for defection.
Defection by sea has nothing to do with defection through China. It would be difficult to choose defection by sea only because route to China is closed, because sailing out to sea requires a high cost.
Firstly, you cannot plan for a defection and openly ask people in the coastal area for help.
Secondly, there are no boats and no fuel. Most of the boats have long been tied to the pier that many of them are old and rotten. They are not strong enough to endure waves.
Thirdly, due to the heavy control by the sea patrol. In case of arrest, death is guaranteed.
For such reasons, it is clear that defection by sea is not at all easy. However, taking the advantage of the fact that small fishing boats are rarely spotted on radar, those who have decided for defection by sea leave on a foggy and successfully enter South Korea.
