2019년 11월 동해상으로 남하했다가 강제 북송된 어민 2명이 타고 있던 북한 어선. 통일부 제공

DPRK Cabinet designated the “40-day Squid Catching Campaign” from July 1 to August 10. Also, the Cabinet issued special martial law for ocean fishing concerning Covid contamination and defection.

According to the Freedom Chosun correspondent in ChongJin, HamKyungBukDo, Rodong Party officials and administrative staff responsible for ocean fishing attended classes on June 19 for carrying out special martial law issued by the Cabinet.

The instruction class was conducted for 5 days from June 19th to June 23rd for all the departments and staff related to ocean fishing. The rules require any and all units to attend the instruction classes in order to go aboard fishing boats.

On June 18, DPRK Cabinet issued an order to follow the new oceangoing rules and to prevent any mishap.

The new rules require that all fishing boats register 2 days before sailing; appoint Party members, administrative officers, and security officers to control the fishing boat’s movement and fishing activities.

A fleet must be composed of a main lead boat (over 75 horsepower) and 4 boats (over 12 horsepower). All boats shall be equipped with GPS navigation in the event of unintended incidents.

Also, the lead boat shall be equipped with communication devices with Coast Guard and land-based emergency rescue center for real-time reporting.

According to the Freedom Chosun source, the security officers on the lead boat will be armed with pistols and backup ammo to be used in emergencies.

The Cabinet’s new rule prohibits over 30,000 small boats (with 6 and 8-horsepower engines) from fishing squid. The source explained that small boat operators are requesting permission to operate at sea.

The source added that prohibiting small boats from fishing was a new rule. It may be related to the rising trend of defection cases.

Jang Se-yul

프리덤조선 장세율 cjdwls444@gmail.com 장세율의 기사 더보기

저작권자 ⓒ 프리덤조선 무단 전재 및 재배포 금지