Shortages of food could be the cause behind a series of suspected Korean drifters drifting in Japan.
The shortage of food and foreign currency in North Korea as a result of international sanctions may have contributed to the rise in the number of "ghost ships" suspected of dumping North Korea into Japanese shores, analysts said. regulations.
The "ghost ship" has long since erupted last month as North Korea sold its fishing rights to China's waters in an effort to seek foreign currency revenue, forcing fishermen, Often riding on rickety fishing boats, must go further to Japan to catch fish, according to AFP.
Pressure norm
Dozens of Korean fishing boats flickered to the shores of Japan each year, but only last month Japanese Coast Guard reportedly recorded 28 such cases, the highest monthly level since the force. Statistical data in 2014.
The number of Korean fishermen saved by the Japanese has risen to a record 42 this year, while no Korean fishermen survived last year. However, there are still many "ghost ships" suspected of carrying Korean bodies full of people washed up the coast of Japan. This year, Japan has detected 18 bodies on ships.
Japanese officials say it is difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of their death, since they often drift for months at sea before being hit by the waves.
"These fishermen are desperately looking for ways to accomplish increased fishing objectives year after year," said Toshimitsu Shigemura, a North Korean expert and honorary professor at Waseda University in Tokyo.
Analysts say North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered an increase in fishing yields for fishermen after he took office in 2013.
"Since then, Korean fishermen have been diligently trying to accomplish annual fishing targets, but this year's difference is that they go to distant waters on the old ships," said Pyon Jinil, a Korean observer in Japan.
"Last year, Korea sold part of its fishing rights in the Yellow Sea to China in exchange for foreign currency, so their fishermen were pushed out of the western part of the Korean seas," he said.
"In his New Year's greetings speech earlier this year, Kim Jong-un ordered the establishment of a new fishing ground in the Sea of Japan," Pyon added.
"Because they can not catch in their traditional waters, Korean fishermen have to go further." Korean fishing boats are quite old and they do not have much fuel, so they will float offshore. Sea of Japan, "said Professor Yang Moo-Jin from Korea's College of Korean Studies.
Analysts say the reason behind the phenomenon of North Korean fishing boats in Japan is a severe shortage of food, partly due to international sanctions.
Pyon Jinil said that control of the Korean food diet was tightening. Every Korean is said to be receiving 300 grams of food a day.
"To compensate for the lack of basic food such as rice and maize, Koreans often buy them from China but now they do not have much foreign currency to buy anymore," he said.
He said North Korea's foreign reserves have fallen by a third from last year due to the impact of two new UN Security Council sanctions this year, bringing the total sanctions imposed on Binh Dine at 9.
Suspicion of fishing ship spies
Japanese media have reportedly been circling vessels of suspected North Korean specimens, and some of the newspapers speculated that they might be carrying Korean spies.
Japanese Transport Minister Keiichi Ishii said he was "pushing for an attempt to investigate the coastal areas of Japan" after seeing the number of suspicious ships drifting or being hit by waves into the coast of the country. sudden.
Japanese Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the government was investigating carefully the possibilities, including whether the people on board the ships were indeed or not, after news of one of the ships tagged with the words "People's Army of Korea".
Professor Toshimitsu Shigemura said that the hypothesis that these fishermen were spies from Pyongyang was not convincing.
"Korean agents will not penetrate such old ships, they will invade ships with well-equipped equipment," he said.
One of the most recently discovered Korean fishermen in the waters of Japan is suspected of stealing much of the belongings including refrigerators, televisions and a doorknob before they flee on a Japanese island. Copy. They threw some of these items into the sea before being checked by the Japanese Coast Guard.
"They want to bring these things to sell in their country." But if they go home after being thoroughly investigated by Japanese police, they may be fined because authorities fear they have turned to spying for Japan. "said Professor Shigemura.
Hong Van
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