N. Koreans not told of assassination
In this file photo from last September, North Koreans wait for a boat that travels along the Yalu River ― also known as Amnokgang River in South Korea ― between the North Korean city of Sinuiju and Dandong in China. / Yonhap
By Ko Dong-hwan
Kim Jong-nam arrives at Beijing's international airport in February 2011. / AFP-Yonhap
North Koreans do not seem aware of the death of their leader Kim Jong-un's half-brother, with the totalitarian state tightening control over access to outside information.
But sooner or later people will find out about the assassination of Kim Jong-nam at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, because more and more people are learning other ways to get outside information, according to sources in Seoul.
The eldest son of late former leader Kim Jong-il was attacked by two women using a poisonous spray on Monday.
It has not been confirmed whether North Korea was behind the assassination.
However, Seoul’s National Intelligence Service said Wednesday that Kim Jong-un had issued a “standing order” to kill his sibling after taking control of the military state in late 2011.
North Korea’s state media has not reacted to Kim Jong-nam’s assassination.
The sources hinted that many North Koreans were unaware of the death or did not even know who Kim Jong-nam is, indicating that the regime has controlled all information about him.
A source living in a North Korean province bordering China was cited as saying he “has never heard about that news” and asking “Isn’t Kim Jong-un the eldest son of Kim Jong-il?”
Radio Free Asia in the U.S. also said that North Korean residents, including party officials in provincial areas, did not know about Kim Jong-nam’s death, which happened just before the 75th anniversary of his late father’s birth.
The sources added that people on the North Korea-China border began to pick up the information and spread it because the region offered relatively easy access to outside information.
Kim Jong-nam was once considered the heir apparent. But he had been living abroad for years, including China, after losing his father’s favor for trying to enter Japan using a fake passport.
Malaysian police have arrested three suspects, including two women, in connection with Kim Jong-nam’s death. One woman had a Vietnamese passport; the other woman had an Indonesian passport.