The two Japanese broadcasts that target North Korea, Shiokaze and Furusato no kaze, are updating their broadcast schedules to the winter (B11) period that runs from October 30, 2011 to March 25, 2012.

Shortwave radio remains a vitally important way to reach into North Korea because of the total lack of international communications offered to its citizens.

Shiokaze (????) is run by a private organization, the “Investigation Commission on Missing Japanese probably related to North Korea” (COMJAN), and it broadcasts from KDDI’s facility in Yamata near Tokyo.

Furusato no Kaze (??????, Hometown Wind) is run by the Japanese government and targets any Japanese citizens that were abducted by North Korea and remain alive in the country. There are two programs: Furusato no Kaze in Japanese and Nippon no Kaze (il bon ue baram, Japan Wind) in Korean. The first and last broadcasts of each day come from transmitters in Taiwan while the rest are from Palau.

The following schedules come from submissions made to the international frequency coordinating organization. Some frequencies, particularly for Shiokaze, may not be immediately heard but are held in reserve to escape North Korean jamming.

 

Shiokaze

1300 to 1500 UTC (2200 to 0000 Japan/Korea time) on 5910, 6015, 6135, or 6140kHz

1330 to 1500 UTC (2230 to 0000 Japan/Korea time) on 5985kHz

2000 to 2100 UTC (0500 to 0600 Japan/Korea time) on 5910, 5955, 5965, 5990, 6075, or 6110kHz

Shiokaze’s broadcasts mix Japanese, Korean, Chinese and English.

 

Furusato no kaze

1300 to 1357 UTC (2200 to 2257 Japan/Korea time) on 9950kHz – Japanese

1430 to 1500 UTC (2330 to 0000 Japan/Korea time) on 9950kHz – Japanese

1500 to 1530 UTC (0000 to 0030 Japan/Korea time) on 9975kHz – Korean

1530 to 1600 UTC (0030 to 0100 Japan/Korea time) on 9965kHz – Korean

1600 to 1630 UTC (0100 to 0130 Japan/Korea time) on 9780kHz – Japanese