Parents of North Korean soldiers are growing increasingly anxious over reports of troop deployments to Russia, with many unsure whether their children in the military will be among those sent abroad. Concerns are particularly acute in Hyesan, where news of the deployments has spread rapidly through the border town.
According to a source in Ryanggang province recently, North Korean authorities have not informed the public about the deployment of troops to Russia. But in Hyesan and other border areas, people using Chinese-made cell phones to communicate with the outside world often alert the public to news the regime would rather keep secret.
In fact, Hyesan citizens using Chinese-made cell phones spread the news that North Korea had sent soldiers to help Russia in its ongoing war with Ukraine, and the information spread quickly from person to person.
However, in the absence of accurate information about which units were sent to Russia, rumors abound.
Some say that special forces have been deployed because North Korea hopes to achieve great things in Russia. Others, however, argue that ordinary soldiers with only moderate training have been deployed because the war has little to do with North Korea.
Parents of North Korean soldiers have no way to confirm if their children will be sent to Russia, as military personnel are currently barred from leaving their bases or receiving visitors. Unable to contact their children during this period of heightened tensions, these parents are spending sleepless nights worrying about possible deployments.
“My mind went blank the moment I heard about the deployment. I’m so worried that I keep getting the urge to go straight to my son’s base. But then I remember, to my bitter disappointment, that base visits are not allowed,” a Hyesan resident in her 40s said.
Another Hyesan resident in her 40s expressed her displeasure with the deployment. “It’s bad enough that people have to spend ten years in the army, but it’s absurd that our soldiers are being sent to Russia. Nobody knows how many of them will come back alive. And those who do return are not guaranteed to be in good health.”
News of the troop deployment has also reached residents of the border area in North Hamgyong province. Here, too, parents with children doing military service were greatly disturbed by the news, according to a source.
“Since the news of the deployment was spread by people using Chinese-made cell phones, people with children in the military have been suffering from mental anguish. Given the lack of information about which military units are being deployed, parents are doing everything they can to find out the whereabouts of their children. Some parents have paid unannounced visits to their children’s units, while others have consulted fortune tellers,” said a source in North Hamgyong province.
News of deployment reaches inner reaches of country
News of North Korean troop deployments to Russia has spread from border regions to the country’s interior through two main channels: local merchants’ trade networks and border officials monitoring their sons at military bases inland. State security and party officials in border areas have been particularly active in seeking information about service members stationed at interior bases.
“News of the deployment has been spreading among the people of the province since Oct. 25,” a source in South Pyongan province said. “At first people thought it was an unfounded rumor. But when they heard the same story from several sources, they became convinced that it’s true. The mood has turned sour, and parents with sons in the military are reeling from the news.”
North Korean parents curious about how their children are doing in the military usually try to reassure themselves that no news is good news. But parents of soldiers are now desperately trying to find a way to confirm that their children are safe, the source added.
Parents in South Pyongan province are particularly anxious because of unfounded rumors that the troops being sent to Russia are not soldiers from the border area, but only soldiers with clean records from inland provinces such as South Pyongan and South Hamgyong.
“So far, the Workers’ Party and the state security apparatus have done nothing to clear up all the rumors being spread. Some officials have tried to bribe people to keep their children off the draft rolls. But less privileged people can only sigh and hope for the best,” the source said.
The Daily NK works with a network of sources in North Korea, China, and elsewhere. For security reasons, their identities remain anonymous.
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November 05, 2024 at 07:46AM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)