북한 '우주발사체' 2단부 서해서 인양
북한이 탄도미사일 기술을 이용해 발사한 우주발사체 '천리마 1형'의 잔해가 서해에 낙하한 지 15일 만에 인양됐다. 사진은 합참이 공개한 발사체 잔해.연합뉴스
North Korea’s failed launch of the spy satellite (Chollima-1) is a source of an uproar among the official DPRK workers dispatched to China.
Freedom Chosun has learned that the official workers are upset about the failed launch. Also, they are furious at the DPRK authorities about South Korea’s retrieval of the missile debris. They criticize Pyongyang for “presenting a gift package to the enemy (South Korea).”
Freedom Chosun talked with a DPRK company operative named Kim, who works in Hunchun, China. He ridiculed the failed launch as “the greatest shame, greatest humiliation. Another DPRK company operative (Jung) from Dalian, China, expressed his dismay about South Korea’s debris recovery, saying, “The General (Kim Jong-un) defaced himself.”
Kim from Hunchun said that most DPRK official workers thought the incident was “shameful” and “it would have been better if they didn’t brag about the launch beforehand.”
Also, they were very disappointed, saying, “Mistake is one thing, but how could they hand it over to the enemy nation?”
Jung from Dalian added, “They made a mistake at the worst time possible. They worked so hard for the launch, but it was all for nothing.”
A trader named Choi from Dandong said, “The news about South Korea’s debris recovery is causing a lot of talk inside North Korea. Besides the rocket, the satellite itself was supposedly equipped with a self-destructive device in the event of a failure. But it is possible the explosive device didn’t work. Rumors are going around that ROK-US combined forces might have collected the satellite itself.” He explained that all kinds of rumors and speculations are spreading.
Many North Korean residents I talked to on the telephone seemed to accept that the launch-failure could happen. On the other hand, they could not fathom the possibility of a military satellite being handed over to the enemy state, indicating their hostility toward ROK and US.
Jang Se-yul