North Korea prohibits use of firearm on escapees near chinese border...

A South Korean organization on North Korean human rights says North Korea has instructed its military to not use firearms on escapees. "Good Friends" said Wednesday that the North’s Workers’ Party of Korea apparently ordered its military to take steps so gun shots will not be heard along the North’s border with China. The statement was published in a magazine released by a North Korea research institute that is run by Good Friends. The organization said the recent move was apparently made in consideration of the North’s relations with China. Good Friends said the Workers’ Party instructed that while efforts should be made to boost vigilance along the North Korea-China border, firearms, which could negatively affect friendly ties between the two nations, should not be used. The Workers’ Party instead ordered the military to work together with China’s frontline units to catch North Korean escapees. Shortly after Kim Jong-il’s death late last year, the North reportedly permitted the shooting of people trying to escape the North as part of efforts to boost citizen supervision.
(KBS World Radio, 2012-02-09)