It has been reported that over 30 residents of North Korea’s Jagang Province, who were arrested between April and May for illegal activities such as external contact and smuggling using Chinese mobile phones, have been sentenced to severe punishments.
This action is seen as a clear demonstration of the North Korean authorities’ resolve to harshly penalize illegal activities in border areas, Daily NK reported on August 28.
A source from within North Korea told the media outlet that “all 30 individuals who were apprehended by the Jagang Province Ministry of State Security for using Chinese mobile phones between April and May were sentenced to heavy penalties in two separate sessions this month.”
The source added that the Ministry of State Security viewed these individuals not merely as lawbreakers but as potential internal agitators who could oppose the party and state, which significantly influenced the severity of their punishment.
Following the Ministry of State Security’s declaration of April as the “Month of Eradicating Illegal Activities,” the Jagang Province Ministry intensified crackdowns on residents in border areas using Chinese mobile phones for external contact. As a result, numerous residents were arrested and underwent preliminary trials, leading to their sentencing on August 16 and 21.
According to the source, during the crackdown, six Chinese mobile phones and a sack containing Chinese currency were found at the home of a repeat offender, who was subsequently labeled a spy. Additionally, three other repeat offenders were forcibly relocated to controlled areas along with their families on August 16.
The remaining individuals were handed over to the provincial Ministry of Social Security, where one first-time offender was sentenced to one year of hard labor, while the others received sentences of over ten years of hard labor or life imprisonment. Families of those sentenced to labor were reportedly exiled to remote areas within Jagang Province.
The source further revealed that a public trial took place on August 21 at a vacant lot in Doksan-dong, Kanggye. During the trial, an official from the provincial Ministry of Social Security issued a stern warning, stating, “Those who access foreign information and their families will be eradicated from our society without leaving a trace.”
This public warning appears to be an effort to prevent ideological relaxation among residents who come into contact with external information and to thoroughly block any potential anti-regime activities.
Given the frequent smuggling and illegal communications in the border areas adjacent to China, North Korean authorities are treating the use of Chinese mobile phones as a serious anti-state offense rather than just a simple illegal act. The crackdown is also seen as an effort to tighten control over residents in Jagang Province, a region of strategic importance due to its concentration of military factories.
The source noted that some residents in the border areas expressed fear, stating, “It seems that the authorities intend to gradually replace the residents here (in the Jagang border area) by accusing us of being spies simply for using Chinese mobile phones. They cannot arrest or kill us all at once, so they are slowly exiling us.”
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
