{"id":4249,"date":"2019-06-24T10:32:23","date_gmt":"2019-06-24T01:32:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.01.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=4249"},"modified":"2019-06-24T17:28:02","modified_gmt":"2019-06-24T08:28:02","slug":"hide-off-base-to-phone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2019\/06\/military\/hide-off-base-to-phone\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cNorth Korea\uff1e Defying Debasement: Soldiers Disregard Orders, Hide Off Base to Phone Families"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Reference photo) A thin young man, a military officer, buying goods at a market. Photographed in Hyesan City, Ryanggang Province, in August, 2013 (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

In late April, orders reportedly came down through the Ministry of the People\u2019s Armed Forces (equivalent to South Korea\u2019s Ministry of National Defense) for soldiers to no longer be allowed the use of private mobile phones, with their belongings to be inspected thoroughly by military police. (Kang Ji-won)<\/p>\n

As soldiers are banned from using private mobile phones, they must instead apply for permission to call family members at official telephone stations, following strict procedures the military put in place for fear of leaks.<\/p>\n

In reality, however, it is common for officers to have mobile phones and even make calls from inside the base. In addition, a growing number of rank-and-file soldiers secretly possess mobile phones of their own.<\/p>\n

Behind this is the rapid spread of mobile phones across the country. North Korea\u2019s mobile communications project, launched in December 2008, grew its subscriber base to more than 5 million in the space of just a decade.<\/p>\n

A reporting partner with insider knowledge of the military said, \u201cIn recent years, not only commanding officers, but also political officers, in charge of giving the Party\u2019s ideological guidance to units, have been secretly using mobile phones registered under the names of their wives and relatives. The Defense Security Command (political police organization of the military) has been investigating and cataloguing the phone numbers of officers\u2019 family members, so it seems that this new order bans officers\u2019 families from owning phones as well.\u201d
\nNext page : Rank-and-file soldiers hide so as to call their parents...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25c6 Rank-and-file soldiers hide so as to call their parents<\/h2>\n

When the reporting partner asked his son, now in his fourth year in the military, about the situation, he replied, \u201cI ask to use a civilian\u2019s house near the base and make calls from there a few times a week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the 90\u2019s, insufficient meals have resulted in widespread malnutrition among young soldiers. Naturally, the worried parents of enlisted soldiers have found ways to look after their children, usually by leaving cash for them at private houses near army bases.<\/p>\n

Of course, parents give a small gratuity to these private houses, which they refer to as \u201cour home\u201d. Families who can afford to do so, even leave mobile phones at the homes so they may hear from their child occasionally.<\/p>\n

So has the order from the Ministry of People\u2019s Armed Forces been effective?<\/p>\n

The reporting partner explained, \u201cDespite the crackdown, most officers still hold onto their mobile phones but use them when they return home, rather than at the base. You can see officers in plain clothes using their phones at the market. It will not be easy to put an end to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the inauguration of the Kim Jong-un regime, there have been serious leaks of military secrets, with South Korea\u2019s KBS and NHK networks, as well as the Tokyo Shimbun, reporting between 2013 and 2014 on corruption, lack of discipline, and a shortage of soldiers in the North Korean military.<\/p>\n

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