North Korean workers avoiding international sanctions while working in China
Only six months remain before workers from North Korea must return home in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2397. Most North Koreans working in the northeast region of China are now under more intense surveillance as the international community watches to see whether China will abide by the UN resolution.
Daily NK sources based in China told Daily NK that teams of North Korean workers in China had previously been permitted to leave their factories to shop at nearby markets. Now, however, they are being confined to their factories and dormitories.
“A chain-link fence surrounds a development zone located about a 15-minute car ride from Hunchun. North Korean workers can’t leave the zone until they decide to return home to North Korea.”
The source also noted that Chinese factory managers and Chinese police prevent North Korean workers from walking around outside the zone.
The Chinese authorities appear to be strongly cracking down on the movement of North Korean workers given that any reports by foreign media could lead to controversy.
“The mass defection of 13 female restaurant workers back in 2016 led to the introduction of restrictions on North Korean workers by the Chinese authorities. These restrictions have now gotten even worse,” said the source. ......
[Source: Daily NK]
