(ATTN: UPDATES with comments in last 4 paras)
SEOUL, March 18 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has convened a nationwide meeting of heads of the most basic administrative unit and urged a fight against anti-socialism, state media reported Tuesday, in what is seen as a measure to heighten state scrutiny and control over the general public.
North Korea held the meeting of heads of "neighborhood units" Sunday and Monday in Pyongyang to discuss measures to implement and renovate such units in line with "demands of the new era," according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
A neighborhood unit, the most basic administrative unit in North Korea, comprises 20 to 40 households, effectively monitoring its members on behalf of the state and keeping the regime informed about their neighborhoods.
This image, published by the Korean Central News Agency on March 18, 2025, shows a meeting of neighborhood leaders held in Pyongyang from March 16-17. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
Reporting to the meeting, Vice Premier Kim Myong-hun urged the participants to "thoroughly uphold the ethos of socialism" and "vigorously engage in a public fight against anti-socialism," calling them the foundation linking the public with the regime.
The KCNA said he also presented "a desperate task" to renovate the projects of neighborhood leaders but did not specify details.
The latest meeting is believed to be aimed at strengthening state scrutiny and monitoring of civilians. North Korea's parliament enacted a new law involving neighborhood leaders in late 2023, legally bolstering their authority and responsibilities.
An official at South Korea's unification ministry said the law requires neighborhood units to convene at least once a month, and provide support for military, agricultural, construction and other key projects.
"The clear goal of this law ... is believed to be to strengthen control and monitoring of the general public and the mobilization of their efforts," the official said.
The latest gathering is the third meeting of neighborhood unit heads, following the two previous sessions held in 1994 and 2007, the official said.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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