Fear and Loathing Update

North Korea is cracking down on illegal border crossings again. We are hearing about such border crackdowns with increased frequency, and yet there always seems to be an urgent need for another one a few weeks later. It never helps when the guys who are supposed to be watching everyone else are on the take:

Pyeongyang has launched a large-scale crackdown on “anti-state activities” along its border with China, targeting not only border crossings by North Koreans, but the smuggling of Chinese goods and South Korean videotapes into the North, South Korean intelligence officials said yesterday.

Besides North Koreans crossing into China, the units are targeting the smuggling of Chinese goods into the North, particularly mobile phones, the official said. Also targeted are videotapes of South Korean TV shows, as well as pornography from a variety of countries. Pyeongyang revised its criminal code in April to have legal grounds to prosecute such trade. Officials said the move was prompted by North Korean border patrols’ increased willingness to accept bribes. “The North is trying to tighten security because the [Tumen] river is now frozen,” another Seoul official said.

It certainly doesn’t sound like the actions of a regime yearning for fresh ideas and reforms from the outside world.