{"id":3887,"date":"2018-09-18T14:52:07","date_gmt":"2018-09-18T05:52:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.01.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=3887"},"modified":"2018-09-21T16:06:06","modified_gmt":"2018-09-21T07:06:06","slug":"foundation-day-released-prisoners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2018\/09\/recommendations\/foundation-day-released-prisoners\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cInside N. Korea\uff1e A grand pardon to mark N. Korea\u2019s 70th Foundation Day, Released prisoners are malnourished, Authorities surveil ex-prisoners to prevent defection"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Reference Photo) The outer walls of the third prison on the outskirts of Pyongyang City. It is said that prisoners inside are engaged in cement production. Photographed in August 2009 by Kim Dong-chul (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6Sentences Commuted by 3 Years<\/h2>\n

On September 9th, the Kim Jong-un regime announced that it will be granting a \"grand pardon\u201d to prisoners to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the DPRK. Accordingly, prisons across the country have been releasing select inmates since early August. This is the third such pardon decreed by the Kim Jong-un regime in the last three years. (Gang Jiwon \/ ISHIMARU Jiro)<\/p>\n

According to our source in North Korea, the special pardon reduces prison sentences by three years and calls for the release of prisoners with less than three years left to serve. However, the pardon does not apply to political prisoners.<\/p>\n

Our partner in North Hamkyung Province reported the following:<\/p>\n

\"In Hoeryong City, 20-30 people were set free with the first such release on Aug. 6. I won't risk talking about the situation inside the correctional center (prison) though. I returned home with a pledge to not commit a crime again\".<\/p>\n

The families of released inmates are, of course, very glad but, at the same time, shocked by the treatment and management of the prisoners. They say that due to the poor living conditions in the prisons, released inmates are ill, beaten, and on the verge of death.<\/p>\n

Next page: Fragility due to malnutrition...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25c6Fragility due to malnutrition<\/h2>\n

\"Most of the ex-prisoners are malnourished. On the party\u2019s (Kim Jong-un\u2019s) orders, former coworkers and neighbors of ex-prisoners are being told to give rice and corn. The police want to provide ex-prisoners with jobs but they are too weak and malnourished to go back to work and, for the moment, need time to recuperate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The United Nations and several Korean research institutes are also well aware that North Korea's detention facilities are severely inadequate. Malnutition is common as inmates are given insufficient rations and infectious diseases often break out due to the cramped living conditions in shared, narrow cells.<\/p>\n

According to a woman who was released two years ago from the 12th Correctional Facility (aka Chongori Concentration Camp) in North Hamkyung province:<\/p>\n

\"People died from hunger and illness every day. The bodies were carried by prisoners in carts to be buried in the mountain. The cells were so full that you couldn't turn around. Tuberculosis was rampant.\"<\/p>\n

\u25c6Surveillance to prevent released prisoners from fleeing the country<\/h2>\n

Some prisoners, who are divorced or whose families have fled the country, are released but have nowhere to go. In these cases, they are instructed by the police to live with colleagues from their previous job or with neighbors. Of course, there are many people who do not appreciate it.<\/p>\n

In addition to this, the police have to deal with the sticky issue of monitoring released prisoners who may attempt to flee the country. After their release from correctional centers, many ex-prisoners attempt to escape through China, with some being caught and forcibly repatriated. After getting a taste of life in China, however, the ex-prisoners no longer tolerate life in North Korea and will try to escape again.<\/p>\n

According to our reporting partner, \"In Hoeryong City, the police are looking for jobs and homes for ex-prisoners in order to discourage defecting. Although the police are struggling to care for the lives of ex-prisoners, they are acting on orders from the central government and, therefore, are making an excruciating effort.\u201d<\/p>\n

* ASIAPRESS provides its partners in North Korea with Chinese mobile phones to maintain contact.<\/p>\n

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