WORLD NEWS: North Koreans continue to seek out foreign radio despite crackdown

North Koreans continue to seek out foreign radio despite crackdown
source: DailyNK

A handmade radio built by a North Korean listener
(courtesy of North Korea Reform Radio).Image: Daily NK


Police in North Korea have recently focused their attention on cracking down on listeners of South Korean radio broadcasts in another sign of the government's dual-approach to warming ties with the South, according to a source inside the country.


Speaking from Ryanggang Province on April 24, a source told Daily NK that "police have begun inspections of households possessing radios,” explaining that one method used to restrict radio usage includes applying stickers to the tuning buttons to prevent users from finding foreign broadcasts.


State-approved radios in North Korea are fixed to prevent tuning to non-official stations, but the authorities have used additional methods in recent times to handle the increasing amount of personal radios in the country. In addition to radio controls, authorities also place heavy restrictions on DVD players, phones, televisions, and other media devices.


"The central authorities ordered the crackdown to thoroughly prevent people from listening to foreign stations. Anticipating that people would be listening to South Korean broadcasts, some officials are planning to simply seize all radios," the source added.


With multiple foreign-based stations targeting North Korean people through daily broadcasts, including South Korea's KBS, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia and more, the authorities have grown more concerned about these programs reaching the ears of the people, leading to their deployment of powerful jamming technology.


In 2015, the government under Kim Jong Un revised the country’s criminal law to strengthen restrictions on foreign information. The law stated in 2012 that "(those listening to enemy broadcasts) should be sentenced to 5 years reform labor in extreme cases," but this was changed to "5 to 10 years" in 2015.


But despite the crackdown, North Koreans continue to secretly watch and listen to foreign broadcasts in greater numbers.


"There are people who only want to listen to the radio more as a result of restrictions," a source in South Pyongan Province said, explaining that arrests in the latest crackdown are a result of this 'reverse psychology' enticing people to want something more when told it is forbidden.


"There are some cases where people can bribe their way out of it, but others are having their radios confiscated, which in many cases means the police just end up taking them home for personal use," he added.


It is typical for those North Koreans willing to take the risk to listen to foreign broadcasts to remove the stickers or otherwise modify their devices to get around government controls.


Both sources said that skilled individuals are often able to find the South Korean stations on their radios, but there are occasional crackdowns when authorities hear about these cases.


However, many believe that the authorities will not be able to keep up with the efforts of resourceful and curious North Koreans who are testing the boundaries of state control.


"Many in the younger generation say that modifying their radios is 'easy as pie,'" and that "when one person figures out how to do it, they gather in secret to share it with people around them," a separate source in Ryanggang Province said.


"People have hardly any interest in the propaganda broadcasts they've been hearing since they were 5 or 6 years old. The reality is now that no matter what their background is, everyone is hungry for new information."