THE NEWS: Security agencies tussle over power

Security agencies tussle over power
source: DailyNK


The responsibility for investigating human trafficking cases has recently been transferred from the North Korean Ministry of State Security (MSS, which monitors ideological trends within the population), to the Ministry of People’s Security (MPS, North Korea’s national police agency).

“The investigation and management of human trafficking cases has moved to the MPS,” said a North Pyongan Province-based source on July 17. “[It means that] human trafficking has shifted from being a crime against the state to being considered a regular crime.”

The context behind the development is not unrelated to the gradual weakening of the MSS, which has consistently failed to follow orders even from the central government apparatus, according to the source who noted that “the central government seems to have decided that giving too much power to the agency will make it a threat to Kim Jong Un’s authority.”

Human traffickers in the North Korean context generally refers to those who support the selling of young women to China or help them to escape to other countries. The North Korean state has considered human trafficking to be an act “against the motherland” because it supports defections, and had placed the responsibility for dealing with such cases in the hands of the MSS.

The North Korean government had also declined to list the crime of human trafficking in its criminal code and instead classified it as a crime against the state. This may be because doing so would contradict North Korean propaganda, which continues to claim that there is no human trafficking in the country.

The ill-effects of this policy were clear. The MSS conducted many of its investigations in secret, which led to cases where MSS agents received bribes in return for turning a blind eye. The North Korean government was aware of the widespread corruption that was taking place.

Some North Koreans have welcomed the change while expressing concerns.

“MSS investigations generally meant that those accused of criminal activity had to live with the repercussions for the rest of their lives and as a result people would sell off their belongings just to pay bribes to make the investigation go away,” a source in South Pyongan Province reported.

“People are optimistic about the transfer to the MPS because those investigations generally don’t involve political repercussions.”

Some are concerned that although the seriousness of the crime has been reduced, it will paradoxically lead to harsher punishments.

“There are growing concerns that MPS agents will handle cases according to the rulebook, so to speak. People are worried that state control over the border region will increase,” ,” said an additional source in North Pyongan Province.

She also reported on the strange power play that is occurring between the MPS and MSS due to the central government’s moves to take power away from the MSS.

“The MSS has lorded over the people in the past but is now losing authority. The MPS agents are enjoying this. The status of MSS agents is growing so they are just watching it all unfold,” she said.

“There is a great power play happening between the two agencies. The MPS feels that the MSS misjudged that the trust they received from the Party meant they were all-powerful, while the MSS seems to be warning the MPS not to enjoy their demise too much – because the MPS could also end up in the same situation.”