＜Inside N. Korea＞ Big Brother Never Leaves: Domestic Security Tightened, Despite Leader’s Absence

(Photo) A traffic guard in blue stands at a checkpoint. Photograph taken in South Pyongan Province by Kim Dong-chulin January 2011 (ASIAPRESS)

◆Kim Jong-un is in Vietnam, so Why is Security so Tight Back at Home?

Though Kim Jong-un is away in Vietnam to meet President Trump, security back in North Korea is reportedly tighter than ever. With the North Korean leader absent for so long, police and party officials are on high alert and have been instructed to prevent any incidents that could possibly embarrass the regime on the international stage. (Kang Ji-won)

According to reports from multiple reporting partners in North Pyongan Province, security started to get much tighter from early February.

Speaking on the tense atmosphere back home, a reporting partner said, "Police officers and secret police are patrolling residential areas around the clock. I know it's just to prevent possible incidents, but I'm afraid they might find fault with any small thing and arrest me."

In other cities in the North, it is said that residents are being assigned by local district officials to act as guards over their own residential areas, with local government officials running random checks of posts every night from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.

According to the reporting partner, "If a stranger or someone from a different area is found, it is the responsibility of residents to identify and report them to the police."
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