Since May of this year, North Korea has scattered waste balloons in South Korea a total of 22 times, and it has been found that there has been a considerable war of words between defectors and some residents of the North Korea-China border area. It seems that defectors in South Korea are using the opportunity to call North Korean residents to convey and point out the North Korean authorities’ wrongdoings of scattering waste balloons.
On the 24th, a source from Yanggang Province reported to NK Times that “When I call defectors recently, the first thing I hear is, ‘You (North Korea) sent waste again. Why do you keep sending waste balloons?'” and “When I hear people say things like they’re holding me responsible for something I didn’t send, I feel ashamed and embarrassed about living here.”
He continued, “Whenever I call (defectors) on the day or time when waste was sent to South Korea, most people talk about waste,” and “Every time I do that, they snap at me, ‘Did I send it? Ask the senders directly. ’”
He added, “I know very well that they are not trying to insult us because the waste balloons are not sent by ordinary citizens like us,” and “Still, whenever I get asked that question, it’s not nice to hear it as if I did something wrong.” This kind of reaction was also seen among residents of North Hamgyong Province.
In fact, a source from North Hamgyong Province reported to NK Times on the 24th, “Recently, news about waste balloons has been spreading through phone callers (remittance brokers) in Hoeryong City,” and “Whenever North Korean defectors in South Korea call, they keep telling me stories about waste balloons, such as, ‘You guys sent waste again. Don’t you know the whole world is laughing at you and keep sending waste? Do people there know?’”
He continued, “We often hear from people who have been there that say, ‘You guys are 00, so stop sending us trash,'” and explained, “Whenever I hear that, I think, ‘Who sent the trash, and why do we have to get cursed at?'”
The source said, “Phone callers who contact China or South Korea are embarrassed by the trash balloons the authorities (North Korea) send to South Korea,” and pointed out, “They are sending trash to propagandize that their own people are poor, and this is bringing shame on their own country.”
***This article is a Google translation, so it may differ from the Korean version.
