◆ Most documents leaked from the country are photographs
In January 2020, the Kim Jong-un government shutdown its borders to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which led to almost a complete cutoff of human traffic across the country’s borders, including with China. Moreover, smuggling across the border with China has almost ceased completely after the country intensified security along the border. Given these circumstances, it has become physically impossible for printed documents to find their way into China from North Korea.
Most, if not all, of the internal documents published recently by ASIAPRESS and other news outlets are photographs that have been taken in North Korea before being sent out of the country by email.
※The North Korean government has long strictly controlled the management and storage of documents through the “DPRK National Secrets Act.” The second article of this act states that secret documents are to be labelled “absolute secret,” “secret,” or “internal use only” depending on their importance.
※ ASIAPRESS sends Chinese cellphones into North Korea to communicate with its reporting partners.
- ＜Inside North Korea＞ Outer walls of the special tourism zone pushed by Kim Jong-un have collapsed and cracks are occurring one after another. (2022-04-19)
- ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Escape From Samjiyon: Young People Flee Kim Jong-un's Luxury Tourism Zone. "There are no Chinese tourists because of coronavirus. We can't survive." (2022-03-31)
- ＜Inside N. Korea＞ State of Emergency Ordered Following Coronavirus Outbreak in China…Night Curfew and Strict Quarantine Measures Reinstated and Construction at the Border Brought to a Halt (2022-03-22)
- ＜Inside N. Korea＞ Regime Maintains 8 Year Enlistment Policy but Shifts Focus to Training University Graduates for “Scientific Warfare” (2022-03-17)
- Gas Prices in North Korea 1.6 Times Higher Compared to Beginning of the Year…Situation in Ukraine Expected to Exacerbate Economic Difficulties (2022-03-14)
