It has been reported that public security in some areas of China’s Liaoning Province has recently been further strengthening surveillance, including by requesting daily ‘verification photos’ from North Korean defectors.
On the 17th, Daily NK’s local Chinese source on North Korea reported, “Since the end of last month, the police in Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province, have started a project to install a facial authentication app on the phones of North Korean defectors,” and “The police are requesting facial authentication every morning through this app.”
Regarding this, a source said, “China regards North Korean defectors as illegal immigrants who must be thoroughly controlled and managed, and is strengthening surveillance in a new way to block their attempts to go to South Korea.”
Previously, this newspaper reported that two North Korean defectors exchanged messages asking to go to South Korea in February and were arrested by the police a few days later. (Go to related article: North Korean women in China arrested after exchanging text messages saying, “Let’s go to South Korea”)
According to sources, Chinese police are censoring the phone records and text messages of North Korean defectors and arresting them if they show even the slightest sign of attempting to travel to South Korea. In addition, they have recently introduced facial recognition apps to further strengthen surveillance.
It has been reported that if you authenticate your face with this app, not only your location but also your personal information will be displayed.
It is said that North Korean defectors living in Chaoyang City are suffering from mental pressure and extreme stress. In fact, the source said that they are expressing great despair, saying things like, “My hands and feet feel tied up so tight that I can’t breathe,” “There is no hope anymore,” and “I am living in a prison that is not a prison.”
A North Korean defector said, “I came to China in my late teens and lived there for over 10 years, but the only thing I’ve gained is stress-related illnesses, so I decided to go to South Korea, albeit late. However, the coronavirus has made it difficult to travel to South Korea, and I haven’t been able to go yet.” He added, “Recently, the police have made me install a facial recognition app and are demanding that I verify my face every day. I don’t know if I’ll have to continue living like this.”
The Chinese public security authorities’ measures to require North Korean defectors to install apps and verify their identity are likely to expand to other areas in Liaoning Province, including Shenyang, as well as across China, sources said, adding that the pressure North Korean defectors will feel is likely to intensify in the future.
In relation to this, it was reported that earlier this month, in a city in Jilin Province, a North Korean defector who had been on the phone with a broker to travel to South Korea was visited by police, who warned him by mentioning the exact content of the phone call and demanded verification photos taken at home every day.
Another local source in China said, “This defector is still taking photos every day and sending them to the police,” and “It seems that they are having him take photos for authentication via his cell phone as a transitional step before implementing full-scale authentication via the app, and are monitoring and cracking down on him.”
Source: www.dailynk.com
