North Korean ghost ships

Sea of Japan / East Sea between North Korea and Japan

Every year, dozens of derelict boats from North Korea wash up on Japanese shores; some of the boats house the remains of their crew. These "ghost ships" are believed to result when North Korean fisherman are lost at sea and succumb to exposure or starvation.

Analysis

Fishing is a dangerous occupation worldwide; for example, the work-related fatality rate for Australian fisherman in one study was 143 per 100,000 person-years, which was 18 times the Australian national average work-related fatality rate.[1] During the winter, North Korean fishing boats go out searching for king crab, squid and sandfish.[2] Some of the boats appear to be either operated by soldiers or rented by the army to civilians.[3][4] Fish is one of the main exports from North Korea to China.[5] Wreckage from North Korean boats often washes ashore in northern Japan during winter due to seasonal winds.[6]

The ghost ships washing up without living crewmen typically are old, lack powerful modern engines, and have no GPS. A lack of food may play a role in crew death; with little food on board, exposure and starvation can become significant dangers. Scholars such as John Nilsson-Wright of Chatham House find it unlikely that the boats resulted from attempts to defect; given that South Korea has closer cultural and linguistic ties, and is closer to North Korea by boat than Japan is, defection via Japan rather than South Korea by boat is uncommon.[2] There are a few, rare, precedents for defectors ending up near Japan. In 1987, eleven defectors drifted from North Korea to west Japan. In 2006, four defectors floated to northern Japan.[7] In September 2011, nine defectors accidentally made a five-day voyage to Japanese waters in a small boat while attempting to travel to South Korea.[8]

An analyst quoted by the South China Morning Post stated that it is unlikely vessels are being used to infiltrate North Korean agents into Japan, as it would be easier for them to just use fake passports and put the agents aboard a flight or a ferry ship to Japan.[8]

Defectors aside, fishing boats with living crew have also washed up on Japanese shores. In November 2017, eight North Korean men and a broken boat were found on Japan’s northern coast; the men stated they had washed ashore after their boat broke down.[6]

Disposition

Asked by the Los Angeles Times about fate of the boats and bodies in Wajima, local sources state that the unclaimed bodies are cremated and their ashes stored in a Buddhist compound. The boats are eventually dismantled, destroyed and incinerated.[3]

Statistics

  • 2011 – First year for which official data is available from the Japanese Coast Guard; the counts from previous years may be similar, but no pre-2011 data is currently available. 57 boats reported in 2011; number of bodies is not disclosed.[9] Because each piece of wreckage is counted as a separate incident, the number of boats may be overstated.[4] Most are believed to be North Korean in origin, due to the typical lettering, the primitive nature of the boats, and occasionally other clues; however, it cannot be ruled out that some of the boats could be from South Korea or elsewhere.[9]
  • 2012 – 47 boats reported.[9]
  • 2013 – 80 boats reported.[9]
  • 2014 – 65 boats reported.[9]
  • 2015 – 34 boats reported for the year to date, as of November 27 2015. According to the NHK, the wrecks reported in October and November contain the remains of 25 bodies total.[4] The coast guard stated that the bodies were badly decomposed; one boat contained six skulls, suggesting the boat had been adrift a long time.[10]
  • 2016 - Around 24 boats reported.[11]
  • 2017 - 99 boats with 31 bodies (and 42 survivors) reported for the year to date, as of December 26 2017,[12] including a 22-foot wooden boat containing eight skeletonized bodies found in late November. Analysts quoted by Fox News attributed the increase in North Korean ghost ships to North Korean food shortages and to mounting sanctions against Kim Jong Un.[11]
  • 2018 - Fox News reports [13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Korean Ghost Ships Wash Ashore in Japan". Snopes.com. 2 December 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 Paterson, Simeon (4 December 2015). "The 'North Korea ghost boats' washing up on Japan". BBC News. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  3. 1 2 Kaiman, Jonathan (10 April 2016). "North Korean ships with corpses on board have been washing ashore in Japan". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 "N Korean 'ghost ships' wash up on Japanese shores". Financial Times. 4 December 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  5. ↑ Yamaguchi, Mari (2 December 2015). "Ghost boats washing up in Japan may be result of North Korean fishing drive for food, cash". The Japan Times Online. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  6. 1 2 Yamaguchi, Mari (23 November 2017). "8 thought to be North Korean fishermen wash ashore in Japan". Washington Post. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  7. ↑ Ogura, Junko (29 November 2012). "Bodies found inside drifting boat near Japan". CNN. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  8. 1 2 "Defecting or fishing? 11 wooden fishing boats from North Korea with 25 dead bodies found in Japanese waters". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Ghost ships' found in Japan: What we know". CNN. 12 December 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  10. ↑ "Ghost ships with dead bodies found near Japan's shores". The Straits Times. 1 December 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  11. 1 2 http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/more-north-korean-ghost-ships-washing-up-on-japans-coast-due-to-food-shortage-sanctions-analysts-say/ar-BBGjxSi
  12. ↑ https://asia.nikkei.com/Japan-Update/North-Korean-ghost-ship-arrivals-in-Japan-hit-record-99
  13. ↑ http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/01/17/ghost-ship-washes-up-on-japan-s-coast-with-skeletal-remains-suspected-north-koreans.html
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