Explained | When world was battling pandemic, why North Korea was busy sealing borders with China and Russia

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un had embarked on a big exercise to seal its borders with Russia and China, cutting off routes which were being used by defectors and smugglers, in 2020 when the world was battling the Covid pandemic.

Since then hundreds of kilometres of upgraded or new border fences, guard posts and walls have been built by Pyongyang, as per commercial satellite imagery.

These steps helped the government in tightening the flow of goods and information in the country and also ensured that foreign elements are kept out and its people remain inside, according to a report published by Reuters.

"The traditional North Korea-China route is now effectively over, unless there is a major change in the situation," stated Kim, who is a South Korean pastor. Kim along with others has helped North Koreans defect.

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Last year, only 67 defectors could reach South Korea compared to 1,047 in 2019, as per official data. There was a decline in the figure even before the pandemic because of tighter restrictions in China, the route towards which is preferred by defectors.

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How border walls helped North Korea keep out coronavirus and 'alien things'?

The government of North Korea and state media have spoken little about the construction of the wall at the border. However, the country's official organisations have noted that the security was beefed up to ensure that coronavirus and other "alien things" stay out of the country.

In his speech in which Kim Jong Undeclared victory over COVID-19, he had asked officials to "ensure perfection" of an "overall multiple blockade wall in the border, frontline and coast areas and in the seas and air".

The sealing of the border will have a lasting effect on the nascent mercantile class of North Korea and over towns where thriving informal trade earlier offered the opportunity to people to make their own way, stated Benjamin Katzeff Silberstein, a non-resident fellow at the US-based Stimson Center who researches on the economy of North Korea.

Those towns "benefited from formal and informal trade since the famine in the 1990s, but really don't have many other economic advantages," he stated. "So the crackdowns are hitting two vulnerable groups, women and the population of the geographic periphery,” he added.

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Are these border walls choking people's lifelines?

Google Earth Pro satellite imagery of the northern frontier of North Korea, which was collected at various time intervals from 2019 and early 2023, was examined by Reuters and Middlebury.

Middlebury research associate Dave Schmerler said that they could see new or expanded security infrastructure along at least 489 km of the border, which included the robust concrete wall, simple wire fencing, additional guard posts and double fencing.

He added that apparent changes were also seen in other areas, however, limitations in the imagery stopped them from reaching conclusive determinations.

Schmerler stated that many installations could be seen around populated areas that lacked natural obstacles like mountains. However, they also noticed new features in agricultural, flat areas near the country's northeastern border.

"Those areas don't necessarily have larger city or village infrastructure but lack the natural boundaries that could act as a barrier from getting into or leaving the country," added Schmerler.

Human rights activists and defectors in China, who are involved in smuggling people or goods across the border, stated that the new security features have been choking vulnerable people's economic lifelines, closing their paths to escape the country that has an authoritarian regime and limiting access to North Korea to the outside information.

One defector stated that the officials have placed security cameras at regular intervals and have installed multiple layers of fencing, which includes electric fencing and barbed wire.

In a statement sent to Reuters, China's foreign ministry stated it was not aware of the situation, but added that "China and North Korea have been maintaining communication and working together to maintain the security and stability of the border".

Did North Korea use COVID-19 as an excuse to build border fences?

The government of North Korea gaveorders to border guards to immediately shoot anyone who is seen trying to cross, as per official notices issued by Chinese authorities in 2020, which were released to warn people about the risks involved.

Human rights organisations have confirmed that the shooting orders still remain in effect.

In December 2022, the US Treasury Department sanctioned North Korea's Border Guard General Bureau over human rights abuses, "including land mines and shoot-on-sight orders that have resulted in the deaths of numerous North Koreans".

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch's senior Korean researcher Lina Yoon said, "The North Korean government has been using COVID-19 as an excuse to build these new fences, guard posts and other infrastructure.”

Sokeel Park, who is associated with Liberty – an organisation that works with defectors, stated that as the pandemic subsides, it may become harder for the government to justify the restrictions.

"It's all the more reason for the international community to step up efforts to support North Korean rights," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)

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