North Korea has toughened surveillance of locals suspected of gathering information about its atomic and military activities in the wake of its Oct. 9 atomic bomb test, an informed source said Sunday.
The Ministry of People's Security, Pyongyang's top police agency, issued a directive to its security agencies on Oct. 15 that they should closely monitor and report suspicious activities, the source said.
Those subject to stronger surveillance include former North Korean defectors, former convicts, smugglers, merchants and those who have relatives in China, the source said.
"North Korea issued the order for increased surveillance, believing that intelligence activities from the outside will intensify after its underground nuclear test," the source said.
The Security Ministry also decided to conduct a joint inspection with a regional army unit every month and such inspections of accommodation facilities twice every week, the source said.
As China joined the United Nations' punitive sanctions against North Korea for its nuclear test, Pyongyang increased guard patrols in its region bordering China out of fear of mass defections by its people, the source said. Also, the value of Chinese currency and rice prices in the North Korean market have risen, the source said.
"In the face of international sanctions, and concerned over possible mass defections, North Korea has dispatched a guard officer every 20 meters along its border region," the source said.
Shenyang, China, Oct. 29 (Yonhap News)
N. Korea beefs up counterintelligence following nuclear test |
