OSAKA -- For nearly half a century, the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryun) has been the primary voice of the North Korean community in Japan, representing nearly 200,000 people.

Thanks to its status as a de facto diplomatic outpost for Pyongyang, many Chongryun facilities pay reduced taxes or none at all.

But with public sentiment calling for a crackdown on the flow of goods and funds to North Korea after Pyongyang's admission that it abducted Japanese nationals, local governments have said they will start re-evaluating the group's tax status.