North Korea Today No.304 November 2009

[“Good Friends” aims to help the North Korean people from a humanistic point of view and publishes “North Korea Today” describing the way the North Korean people live as accurately as possible. We at Good Friends also hope to be a bridge between the North Korean people and the world.]

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[Hot Topics]
“The Poorest Harvest in 80 Years” in Yangduk County
Even on the Yeonbaek Plains, “Unable to Visit Ancestral Tombs Due to the Poorest Harvest in 80 Years”
Frustrated Hopes for Success in Two-Crop Farming at Anjoo City Cooperative Farms
Yeonpoong Farm Anticipates a 40% Drop in its Corn Harvest
DaeHongDan County SamJang Group, Expects 20% Reduction in Potato Production Compared to Last Year
DaeHongDan County SinHung Group, potato yield 50% less than last year

[Food]
Porridge-Eating Households Increases Rapidly Since Early Fall in Jungpyung County
60% of Danchun Magnesite Factory Workers Are Absent Due to Lack of Food

[Economy]
Sariwon Inn, Alleged Place for Immoral Activities, Business Suspended
Haeju City Suspended Private Restaurants due to Poor Hygiene
Current Condition of the Eunha Garment Factory in Hamheung City

[Politics]
Secretary of Harbor and Port District Dismissed after Inspection at the Chungjin Electric Industry
Youth Anti-Socialist Conscience Investigation Patrol Activities in Soonchun City

[Society]
Fall Land Management Project Launched in North Hamgyong Province
Provincial Hospital in Hamheung Refuses Treatment without Money
The Department of Disease Prevention in the 49th Hamheung Municipal People’s Hospital Faces the Increasing Number of Methamphetamine Abuse Patients

[Women/Children/Education]
Members of the Sariwon Democratic Women’s Union (DWU) Complain About “Being Mobilized Too Much”
Sariwon First Middle School, “Bring 30,000 NK won to Buy Computer.”
Ryudong Middle School, Eunsan County, Expects Financial Independence by Engaging in Medical Herb Business

[Accidents]
In Chungjin, Pirates Were Arrested for Killing Fishermen
Cargo Truck from Chungjin Topples over due to Brake Failure

[Editorial]
“The Worst Harvest in 80 Years,” It’s Time to Learn the Wisdom of Tycoon Choi
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[Hot Topics]
“The Poorest Harvest in 80 Years” in Yangduk County
Talk of “the poorest harvest in 80 years” seems to be spreading throughout the nation. One can hear such talk, which originated in North Hamgyong Province, even in Yangduk County, South Pyongan Province. Even this region has been the victim of severe drought, as evidenced by the low grain yield. Residents barely survived on porridge during the 150-Day Battle. As the 100-Day Battle starts, immediately after the 150-Day Battle, residents rely on acorns collected in the mountains or other herbs. The shortage has caused any ‘zeal for battle’ to disappear and nobody is enthusiastic about work. There was once a time when the name ‘Yangduk’ represented a good liquor, well-known throughout the nation. The area was also praised as a place where the management of public hygiene and landscaping was excellent after the days of the Chollima Movement . Yangduk County, a place that residents were proud of, started losing its reputation because of how army units abused the forests. Blatant woodcutting by military units causes landslides whenever there is a heavy rain. Severe flood damage in 2006 and 2007 were man-made disasters, strictly speaking. As usual, this year, even though flood damage was anticipated, the county party and county administration committees could not devise any preventative measures against them. Such a wonderful and livable place has now become stricken with severe natural disasters. Residents sighed as they suffered from flood damages during the past years. All of a sudden, this year brought severe storms and drought, earning it the name ‘the year of the poorest harvest in 80 years.’

Even on the Yeonbaek Plains, “Unable to Visit Ancestral Tombs Due to the Poorest Harvest in 80 Years”
Farmers on the Yeonbaek Plains in the counties of Yeonan, Baechun, Chungdan and Ryongyeon, South Hwanghae Province claim that, “This year’s harvest is the lowest in 80 years.” Party leaders have become extremely concerned. “Opening the gate to a prosperous and strong nation requires, more than anything else, resolution of problems in food shortage. This year’s crop is so poor that everyone has been saying, ‘how can we feed ourselves next year and continue farming?’”
Farmers in this area swarm to the riverside. Carrying a few days’ worth of provisions, they live in tents and collect gold dust. They can make 2,000 to 3,000 NKW a day by collecting gold dust. Farmers say, “With this year’s poor harvest, it has become apparent that at least three to four months’ worth of grain will be taken from us at the end of the year to be used for military provisions.” Therefore, they say they would rather make money from prospecting gold dust than rely on anything from the grain rations.
Each work unit consists of approximately sixty families, 45% of whom survived on porridge last May. The poorest families did not have anything to cook, and they survived on soy plants plucked from the fields, boiled with cabbages. Malnutrition has caused more deaths among the elderly over the age of sixty than it did last year. Many elderly people say, “Watching our married children suffer from a shortage of food really hurts. What is there to live for? I would rather die in peace than watch them suffer.”
Moreover, there are many families who could not afford to visit their ancestral tombs on the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival. They could not afford a bowl of rice as part of the ritual for the deceased. Annually, it has been customary that families are provided with a few kilograms of rice, from the early crop, before Mid-Autumn Festival. As usual, the provincial party approved as a provision for each family a ration of 2.7 Kg of grain. The problem was that each family, regardless of the size, was given the same amount. Naturally, larger families ran out of food before the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Residents wonder whether the situation will improve when the harvest season is over. However, the fact that the crop output is less than last year has made residents very worried. A party leader of Haejoo commented, “If the food crisis is this serious in the ‘representative warehouse region of rice’, how serious is it in the other regions?”

Frustrated Hopes for Success in Two-Crop Farming at Anjoo City Cooperative Farms
Leaders of the Farm Management Committee of Anjoo City, South Pyongan Province set up a plan “to solve the problem of food shortage with a two-crop farming system during the 150-Day Battle in order to receive good evaluations.” The plan did not produce the desired result. This year, all the work groups attempted two-crop farming, pairing potatoes and corn or potatoes and potatoes. Even when farmers were absent from work due to a lack of food, the primary party leaders went to their homes and pushed the farmers to work. They emphasized the need to enrich the soil. Accordingly, they paid a great deal of attention to the collection of Heukbosan fertilizer and farmyard manure. Their estimate of this year’s harvest was at least 1.2 times that of an average year. However, as of October, the actual output has not been any better than last year. Thirty MT of Heukbosan fertilizer was given to the fields with the first crop of the pair and twenty MT was given to the field with the second crop of the pair, to little effect. “Heukbosan” fertilizer is, in fact, nothing more than a mixture of dirt, straw and human excrement. It is a fertilizer of the lowest quality. All farmers worked harder during this year’s 150-Day Battle than any other period of the year, with nothing to show for their redoubled efforts. They were disappointed and discouraged. Every farmer is worried about how much grain they will receive from this year’s harvest after the military has taken their share for provisions. Their only hope is that the party leaders’ apportionment of the grain rations will be just and fair.

Yeonpoong Farm Anticipates a 40% Drop in its Corn Harvest
An assessment by Farm Management Committee of Anjoo City, South Pyongan Province concludes that the corn harvest of Yeonpoong Farm this year will be about 40% less than last year’s. On the other hand, the rice output is estimated to be a little higher this year. The high expectations of the Farm Management Committee of South Pyongan Province were frustrated by the low yield at Yeonpoong Farm, which had received more fertilizer than other farms. Additionally, farming experts organized many technical presentations on the advances of modern farming. Food shortages among the farmers have caused many problems when it came to staffing the facility. Nonetheless, the farmers paid close attention to eliminating absenteeism during the 150-Day Battle.
After the military took their share of provisions, farmers were provided with only three months’ worth of grain at last year’s harvest. Farmers tried their best to save food, but surviving through the ‘difficult’ spring months was a formidable task. Because the military even took away all of the fresh potato crop and the barley, farmers had to roam around the mountainous areas to collect edible herbs and fed themselves with a porridge of crushed corn during the ‘corn field weeding battle’ of May and June. Families with many dependent children and elderly parents suffer the most. Yeonpoong Farm is organized according to nine regular work units and one independent group. Usually about ten families in each work unit were absent from work because they ran out of food.
During harvest time, this farm, along with many others, selects five people from each farm work group for security guard duties. Their guard duty lasts twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, without any shift changes. Most of the time, it is farmers who steal grain from the fields. These farmers conspire with the guards and steal corn or rice. Of course, they divide their spoils among themselves. One of the housewives who participated in the theft of corn some time ago complained, “The party leaders took their designated share of grain rations. At first, that share was 30% corn and 70% rice, but later they took 100% only in rice and no corn. Nothing was left for the rest of us. Even if it is only by theft, shouldn’t we also survive?”

DaeHongDan County SamJang Group, Expects 20% Reduction in Potato Production Compared to Last Year
Ryanggang Province DaeHongDan County SamJang Group expects 20 a percent reduction in potato production compared to last year. Farmers agree, based on their experience, that harvest this year is much lower than last year. Officials were disappointed because there was not much improvement despite full utilization of farmers through the 150-day battle period. Farmers raised a seed issue stating that, especially this year, they found a lot of seeds without potato buds. There are eight work units in SamJang Group that do very well on potato farming. Each work unit has eight subunits. Most of them are veterans from other regions. Approximately 70 percent of them are veterans from other regions, and the remaining 30 percent of them are farmers in this region. Each work unit is responsible for more than 100 farming areas. In the past, they were well equipped with germless seeds, Russian tractors, and various other facilities.
Since 2000, the machine utilization rate has dropped significantly because the machines are aging, there is no oil, and there are no spare parts to fix the glitches. Moreover, production is also hindered because seeds are not cultivated properly. One of the farm workers said the potato yield is poor this year as well because of these chronic problems.

DaeHongDan County SinHung Group, potato yield 50% less than last year
This year, the potato yield of Ryanggang Province, DaeHongDan County, SinHung Group is expected to be 50 percent less than last year because of the poor potato farming. Potato buds seemed to be fine, but the absence of timely fertilization caused the problem. The damages worsened because of the draught. When farmers estimated the potato yield, it turned out to be less than half of the last year's potato crop. Moreover, the yield is dropping more because the hungry farmers eat potatoes as soon as they ripen. In SinHung Group, about 200 veterans who got discharged in August 1999 work in the six working units. Many veterans ran away because the climate was bad and the work was tough. Other veterans still live in houses that the County Party has provided, but the living conditions are very bad because of the poor potato harvest. Next year is expected to be more difficult to make a living because they need to sell potatoes in order to buy grains and other necessities to live there, yet workers are expected to have less than half of the potatoes compared to last year. Meanwhile, DaeHongDan County Party administration, and rural management officials are conducting the political project regarding the 100-Day Battle. On October 7 officials hosted a meeting to reinforce the 100-day battle spirit and visited organizations, universities, professional schools and middle schools in order to preach the importance of a potato production. The main message was as follows: "Now we are striving for the 100-day battle to make a powerful nation despite the food shortages. Potato harvesters, you are the nation's food providers. Let's harvest every single potato to help resolve the food shortage problem. This is essential to build the economic powerhouse."

[Food]
Porridge-Eating Households Increases Rapidly Since Early Fall in Jungpyung County
Many households in Jungpyung town in Junpyung County in the South Hamgyong Province are surviving on porridges. Approximately 1/3 of the families began surviving on porridges since last August, and the fall only increased the number of families surviving on porridges. Families must ration their food supply because of the expected poor crop yields and the lack of means to earn money due to strict market control. Even the well-off families are replacing one of their two meals with porridges.

60% of Danchun Magnesite Factory Workers Are Absent Due to Lack of Food
Approximately 60 % of the magnesite factory workers in Danchun City in the South Hamgyong Province are absent due to food shortage. In some workplaces, 20 out of 70 workers miss work. The threat made during the 150-Day Battle, that the absentees will be arrested and sent to the discipline center, did not have much effect. The absentees are saying it is better to go to the discipline center and eat corn meals three times a day than to starve at home. Some are complaining, “If you want to send the absentees to the discipline center, wouldn’t you end up transforming the factory into a discipline center?” or “It would be better to change the name of the magnesite factory to an absentee discipline factory.” The magnesite factory has not been able to supply food to its workers since June of 2007. Because, there is no work at the factory, workers must find other work in the farm or other various labor mobilizations. Therefore, factory workers say, “Send me to the discipline center if you like.”

[Economy]
Sariwon Inn, Alleged Place for Immoral Activities, Business Suspended
The inn located in front of the railway terminal in Sariwon City, North Hwanghae Province, is a place for the travelers and out-of-town businessmen to stay. In 2008 it was renovated and converted the big room into 8 separate units for two people, and since then high officials periodically stayed there. They used the place for immoral activities. An investigation revealed that the members of Provincial Security Office, City Security Office, and the member of the city Party visited the place with female. The authorities issued several warnings but there was no sign of improvement and it was temporarily suspended in June. It reopened in August after eliminating all separate units and building 3 large rooms. The residents say that “The court officials and high ranking officers do more activities that the republic prohibits by law.”

Haeju City Suspended Private Restaurants due to Poor Hygiene
There are three restaurants in front of the railway station in Haejoo City, South Hwanghae Province. In July 2009, the Hygiene Inspection Unit of the Hygiene and Immunization Center pressured the restaurants to suspend their business. On September 11, the police officers came to the restaurant and took all food and gave the food to the Kkotjaebi rescue place. Residents who operated the private restaurants were detained two days and fined 15,000 won. The residents showed their dissatisfaction saying, “The inspectors from the Hygiene and Immunization Center and police officers had been treated with free food by the restaurants, but once a complaint was filed with the City Party they seemed to have forgotten all the free meals and began to crack down.” Under the name of hygiene inspection, they say, the authorities repeatedly cracked down if the business was making good money. Even if an individual registers his business with the concerned agencies, the cracking down does not slacken as they are worried about the spreading of capitalism.

Current Condition of the Eunha Garment Factory in Hamheung City
Eunha garment factory in Hamheung city in the South Hwanghae province employs 170 single women and 50 married women tailors. One male employee is assigned to each work unit as a sewing machine repairman. The city labor department recently dispatched 50 girls who graduated early this year and plans to dispatch 100 additional workers to the factory early next year. During 150-Day Battle, the garment factory has operating fully night and day, making work clothes for the South Korean workers. Food rations and special goods are distributed based on the productivity of each worker. A woman with high productivity will receive 25kg of rice, 2kg of corn oil, 2kg of sugar and 9000 NK won per month. Since February, a new policy has been implemented to allow attendance of each worker affecting the amount of goods received. Single women tailors work very hard without breaks in order to raise their productivity levels. Furthermore, on the Youth day on August 28th, Eunha trades headquarter imported Chinese buses through the Sinuiju customs and distributed them throughout the 13 cities where Eunha garment factories are located to assist and facilitate workers commute.

[Politics]
Secretary of Harbor and Port District Dismissed after Inspection at the Chungjin Electric Industry
On October 11, the secretary of Harbor and Port District in Pohang was dismissed after the industrial electricity inspection in the North Hamgyong Province. The secretary was accused of providing electricity for unproductive and personal uses instead of the enterprise within the district. He was punished for wasting energy during the crucial 150-Day Battle. The actions by the secretary were deemed to be “a branch of obstacle for the construction of the Strong and Prosperous Nation,” and he was dismissed from office and evicted to a farm.

Youth Anti-Socialist Conscience Investigation Patrol Activities in Soonchun City
The Youth Union Committee of Soonchun City in the South Pyongan Province formed the “Youth Anti- Socialist Conscience Investigation Patrol Unit” to regulate the young people’s anti-social phenomenon during the last 150-Day Battle. The investigation targeted 2007 graduates who are not working at their dispatched workplaces. The Youth Anti-Socialist Conscience Investigation Patrol Unit was started as a response to a recent surge in the problem among youth including robbery, stealing and drug use. Young people, who skip work to do business, gamble or use drugs are arrested by the Unit and sent to the Special Labor Brigade. Furthermore, the Unit conducts dress inspections of youth and students, targeting those who wear necklaces, tight clothes or clothes that resemble capitalistic appearance.

[Society]
Fall Land Management Project Launched in North Hamgyong Province
The Land Environment Preservation Management Office of North Hamgyong Province ordered everyone to attend the fall land management project during the 100-Day Battle. Workers were also dispatched to different enterprises to repair the roads or to plant trees of superior species. The mobilized workers planted larch trees and acacia trees. Factories and enterprises gave corns to those who could not bring their own food.

This year was extremely hard for the people because the government prohibited small patch farming or took the land away. In the farm or in remote area, older people who could not do trading had depended on the small patch farming for their food, but as they could no longer do that, some of them had collapsed in the field. Only those who had personal relations with the Forest Protection Staff or people who bribed them were able to farm at their small patches of land. However, due to severe draught the harvest was poor and the small patch farmers experienced a lot of hardship. They had used fertilizers that cost 2,000 NK won per kilogram, but it is a lean year and they may not be able to recoup the cost. Moreover, if the small patch farm is over 30 pyong, they have to pay tax, 50 NK won per pyong (3.954 sq yd), and those who have difficult time to make a living, are not in a position to pay the land tax.

Provincial Hospital in Hamheung Refuses Treatment without Money
The provincial hospital in Hamheung City is the biggest hospital in the South Hamgyong Province. This hospital is praised for accurate diagnosis and good quality of its treatment compared to the hospitals in other cities and counties. Last year, a new admission ward was constructed for patients and new equipment brought in. However, even though the general rule is free treatment for all, only patients with money are receiving treatment. It is difficult for people without money to receive even a simple medical examination. Patients even try to bribe the doctors with packs of cigarettes. The doctors are selling the medicine for profit to patients, claiming that they, too, need to survive. As a result, only the city and county officials, well off families and families receiving help from their relatives in China receive regular treatments.

The Department of Disease Prevention in the 49th Hamheung Municipal People’s Hospital Faces the Increasing Number of Methamphetamine Abuse Patients
The 49th Hamheung Municipal People’s Hospital, South Hamgyong Province, has been experiencing an increasing number of mental patients due to methamphetamine abuse. The number has increased from 40 in April 2007, to 55 in July 2008, and to 70 in August 2009. In particular, many young people are hospitalized because of drug abuse. On September 22, 2009, a young man in Shinheung -1 Dong, Hamheung, set a house on fire because of his mental illness caused by methamphetamine abuse. He was arrested by the police and transferred to a hospital after he burned the house and made a disturbance in front of the Kim Il-Sung statue. In recent years, the number of female drug abuse patients, as well as young drug abuse patients, has been increasing.

[Women/Children/Education]
Members of the Sariwon Democratic Women’s Union (DWU) Complain About “Being Mobilized Too Much”
The Sariwon City Party of North Hwanghae Province undertook a Party project of rebuilding a chicken farm to increase the production of chicken and eggs in order to improve residents’ living conditions. To rebuild the farm, the Party mobilized officials and laborers from the Construction Enterprise, the House Repairing Enterprise, and the Democratic Women’s Union (DWU).
The DWU members were instructed to clear the land and put rubble to lay the foundation for the farm, a tedious and arduous task that involves gathering a tremendous amount of rubble. Even during the hot summer, it becomes a daily routine for the members to start collecting riverbed rubble and fine gravel at 8 a.m. and return home around 2 or 3 p.m. The members also took care of the order from the Party that each household donate a cart of fine gravel and rubble. Because the ox cart delivery costs 1,500 to 2,000 NK won, each household in some Neighborhood Units chipped in to deliver the fine gravel and rubble by car. The members complete the rubble task by searching the riverbed every day.
As soon as the members finished the chicken farm reconstruction, they were mobilized again to deliver cement from early morning to 9 p.m. in order to construct the “Arirang” watchtower. Since most of the members are housewives, it is good for them to have a mother-in-law or any other person at home who can prepare their family dinner. If not, they have to prepare dinner late at night after work. Because many households do not have time to run a business in the market and thus do not make money to buy grain, they eat porridge. If they want to engage in business in the market, they have to miss mobilizations. However, the fine for the missed mobilization is 3,000 NK won per day. The endless mobilizations and the fine incur enormous resentment from the DWU members. They express a strong complaint, “The City Democratic Women’s’ Union always tries to impress the City Party. That is why the Union is so hard on us in regards to mobilizations.”

Sariwon First Middle School, “Bring 30,000 NK won to Buy Computer.”
As an attempt to improve the quality of education, the Education Department of Sariwon City, North Hwanghae Province, instructed the First Middle School to provide a computer in every class, and the school officials collected 30,000 NK won from the students. As the First Middle School is a school for the gifted and talented, many students are the children of high officials and rich people, yet 30,000 NK won is not a small amount. About half of the students paid without any question, of course, but the rest argued that the cost is too high. Some parents even reported it to the Provincial party that “30,000 NK won is an enormous amount.” Upon receipt of the complaint, the Education Department of City Party fired the staff who instructed the school to buy computers and the principal and teachers of the First Middle School were severely criticized during the teachers’ meeting.

Ryudong Middle School, Eunsan County, Expects Financial Independence by Engaging in Medical Herb Business
Ryudong Middle School in Eunsan County, South Pyongan Province, is famous for planting medicinal plants around the school flower garden and vacant lots. There are about one hundred twenty different types of medicinal plants. The teachers, saying that cultivating medicinal plants is beneficial for them to acquire biological knowledge, mobilized the students to do the work. Last year, they made money by selling herbs to the merchants, and since the herbs were sold so quickly they increased the area to plant. The principal says that the more they have herbs, the better data (they would have) to learn, and frequently emphasizes that they should work hard to plant and care for the medicinal plants. The school expects to use the money to furnish the classroom and this would in turn decrease the students’ extra payment.

[Accidents]
In Chungjin, Pirates Were Arrested for Killing Fishermen
Pirates were arrested In Chungjin City, North Hamgyong Province, for taking about 30 boats and killing the workers on the boat during the months of May thru August. The pirates were consisted of two residents living in Gwanhaedong, Sinam region, and two laborers working at the Chungjin port. They went to the sea in a fake squid boat, killed the workers on the fishing boat, and then returned with plundered squids and the boat. After checking the boat number, if the boat belonged to the factories or businesses in Chungjin, (the pirates) sold it in Urang County or Raseon, and if the boat was from Urang County or Raseon, (they) sold it in Chungjin. The police office of North Hamgyong Province declared that “(this is) a grand scale robbery on the sea” and as the crime is extremely atrocious, they deserve to be shot.

Cargo Truck from Chungjin Topples over due to Brake Failure
On September 16th, a truck from a shipping company in Chungjin City, North Hamgyong Province, was transporting cargo to Urangchun Power Plant, and while it was driving through Kyongsung County it was involved in an accident due to brake problem. Because of this accident, a cow and a farm worker who was driving the cow-driven cart died, and as the truck tumbled over a cliff, a staff was also killed at the scene. As the cargo did not arrive at the power plant on time, the Chungjin City Party and its administrative staff were harshly criticized and rebuked.

[Editorial]
“The Worst Harvest in 80 Years,” It’s Time to Learn the Wisdom of Tycoon Choi
The wealth of the Choi family in Kyung-joo lasted for 12 generations, and the family produced nine village officers. They shared family teachings that were handed down for 400 years. The teachings are: Do not accumulate money to the extent that hurts the sentiments of people in the community; Refrain from purchasing rice fields during a bad harvest; Don’t let people within a four kilometer radius die of hunger. Also, the family lowered the rent whenever they had surplus profit so that everyone could benefit from it. Although they spent enormous amounts of rice just for visitors every year they did not allow their own family members to eat rice during the spring hardship period and prohibited using silverware. There is an old saying that poverty and wealth do not last more than three generations, but the Choi family’s wealth could have survived for 12 generations because they followed their family teachings. That was possible only because they had the wisdom of living modestly even though they were rich and always thought about the deprivation other people experienced.
This year’s harvest in North Korea is so bad it is considered the worst in 80 years. Thanks to a good climate and an increase in crop yield, last year’s harvest was about average despite the shortage of fertilizer. However, this year’s corn farming suffered serious damage because of a lack of fertilizer as well as drought and cold weather. This year’s harvest is expected to be the worst one since 1929 during the Japanese colonial period when a large number of people suffered from hunger nationwide. The fact that there are many people surviving on porridge even in the harvest season attests to the severity of the problem.
To make matters worse, the beginning of 100-Day Battle and various non-tax burdens that are applied cause even more suffering to North Koreans. Although the central government issued a reduction of non-tax burdens numerous times, the practice continues. It is difficult to halt this practice because local officers are inclined to prove they are performing up to high standards. However, the real problem lies with the way the Central Party executes business using political propaganda as the key tactic whereby the Party selects the best practice unit in the production combat and establishes a mandate for all work stations and for every neighborhood unit. Moreover, as long as the practice of reprimanding officials with poor records and punishing them with dismissal or demotion continues, the problem of non-tax burden will continue.
We will have to remember the Choi family teachings. The lesson of not letting people within four kilometers die of hunger is good enough to show the South Korean government how humanitarian principles should be implemented as they insist on using “dismantling the nuclear program first” and “transparency of distribution” as conditions for food aid. The lesson about not buying other people’s rice fields during a bad harvest serves as a good lesson for the North Korean government regarding its ban on “small patch farming” and “peddling business.” The principles of a socialist nation and the construction of a “Strong and Prosperous Nation” are all for the sake of building a society where people live a good life with enough food for everyone. They need leadership like the Choi family provided.