North Korea Builds Tough Border Fence

By: Unknown on 3:54 PM

The recent escape of eight North Koreans has prompted the reclusive state to boost its border security, as the country's leader, Kim Jong Un, has ordered barbed wire fences be installed around the area where the defections were believed to have taken place. The defectors, from two separate families, are believed to have escaped to China.
The escapes have prompted a massive investigation, but so far none of the defectors have been found, the South Korean news agency Daily NK reported Wednesday. The North Korean garrison was reportedly "thrown into chaos" following revelations of the escape, United Press International reported. Kim has called for immediate action to be taken and the escapes are being considered "political incidents," a source in North Korea told Daily NK.
There have been some 28,000 defections to South Korea since the 1990s. An informant told Daily NK that the recent defections were likely to lead the North Korean government to heighten its surveillance of the families of defectors still in the country.



Defection from North Korea is considered a crime. About 1,300 people were reported to have defected from the kingdom in 2014, a drop from the more than 2,400 who escaped the country annually in the years prior. The drop in defections might be attributed to the country's changing economic situation, as well as Kim's increased focus on cracking down on defectors, the Guardian reported. Kim reportedly believes the border grows more porous with each defection.
Human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized the Kim family's dynasty for its autocratic style of rule and rampant human rights violations. It is considered to be among the most repressive countries in the world, a Human Rights Watch report found.
North Korea's government maintains secret labor camps for government opponents, where torture and starvation are routine. Religion and free speech in the kingdom are virtually nonexistent, human rights groups have said.
Meanwhile, Kim recently instructed border patrol to remain on high alert in the lead up to the 70th anniversary of the North Korean government's communist party, set for October 10.