[“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.]
___________________________________________________________________________
Food Rations Suspended for Families of
Police and Security Officers
An Official in South Hwanghae Province
Tearfully Pleads for Emergency Food Supplies
“Hwang-geum-pyong Development Project Is
Unlikely to Proceed”
Illicit Trading Continues Despite Bans
on Marine Product Trade Between China and North Korea
Okryu-gwan Restaurant Jumps into Foreign
Currency Earning Business
__________________________________________________________________________
Food Rations Suspended for
Families of Police and Security Officers
As North Korea’s food crisis intensifies,
even the Police Department cannot provide food rations to employees’ families.
With an exception of Pyongyang, food ration is given only to police officers;
their families get nothing. The concerns of provincial security officers and
police officers are rising. A police officer in Pyongsung, South Pyongan
province said, “We used to be able to keep six months worth of food, but these
days we barely have a month supply. I can handle not getting a ration for
myself for a month if my family gets the food ration. However, even people like
us have difficulties if there is no ration for the families.” Some security
officers are openly pessimistic, thinking that they will be given the overdue
rations when the food crisis is resolved. “If someone believes that he will
receive the overdue portion of food ration someday, then he is simply naïve. We
could be dead by the time arrears of rations are provided. At this point, the
only way we can survive is by making money any way we can.”
An Official in South Hwanghae
Province Tearfully Pleads for Emergency Food Supplies
Day-by-day,
food shortages grow worse in South Hwanghae Province. A Haeju City official
expressed frustration repeatedly: suffering – due to chronic food shortages
every year since the mid-2000s – is worse than during the Arduous March. He
tearfully appealed for food aid: “Because of severe flood damage in 2007, there
were many starvation deaths during 2008’s “Spring Hardship Season”. Officials
were scared by the rise in the number of deaths. On top of that, we were hit by
floods in 2008. Since we have to provide rice to the military – and so send
rice to the military before distribution – two straight years of poor harvests
left farms with little to distribute. Worse yet, after 2008, output has been
far from adequate, trapping farmers in a vicious cycle of starvation. Living on
the edge of starvation, farmers are too weak to start work this year. Hundreds
of tons of food, released by the Central Party for emergency relief for
farmers, are not enough to matter, given an already-critical situation.
Further, months of severe drought have left fields completely dried-out, so
planting is futile. Farmers are mentally and physically exhausted: nothing can
motivate them. No words can describe the seriousness of this crisis. I feel
like begging people to see for themselves and earnestly ask for help.”
“Hwang-geum-pyong Development
Project Is Unlikely to Proceed”
An official in Sineuiju, North Pyongan
Province, affirmed that projects at Hwang-geum-pyong and Wi-hwa-do are unlikely
to proceed. Because no work had been
done under the Authorities’ plans, farmers started to plant rice at these
sites. “Chinese will not invest, having concluded that profits will be slim.
Chinese investors say the situation is very different from that at Kaesong
Industrial Park. Chinese firms cannot control the workforce. Further, the
Chinese government does not protect them against the risks involved. By
contrast, the South Korean government backs-up companies in the Kaesong
industrial Park, e.g., with money and other help. A Central Party official
offered a similar analysis. “Our government thinks we should pursue the
development of Hwang-geum-pyong and Wi-hwa-do, despite the lack of progress so
far. Chinese statements suggest they want to invest, but think that is not
really the case. Their priority is to build the New Amrok River(also called
Yalu river) Bridge, to ease trade in goods and manpower.”
Illicit Trading Continues Despite Bans
on Marine Product Trade Between China and North Korea
It seems North Korea and China are
measuring each other’s strength in a conflict over the import and export of
marine products. In June, China issued an order to suspend the import of marine
products from North Korea. This was a big blow to all North Korean workers from
the Ministry of Fisheries and to trade officers, since their revenue stream
will be immediately cut off if marine products cannot be exported. North Korean
government officials are wondering whether the sudden ban is not an act of
retaliation for the incident a month earlier in which the North Korean military
seized a Chinese fishing boat. A government official from Sinuiju, North
Pyongan Province said, “Officials from the Dandong Department of Fisheries told
us that from now on they wouldn’t import any marine products from North Korea.
When I asked why, they snapped, 'You’re asking us this when you already know
yourself?' Because of this, our marine products and foreign currency earning
businesses have suffered a serious setback. Our province in particular has many
trade companies that handle marine products, and tension there is high.”
In fact, it
is the North Korean government that first prohibited the export of marine
products. Last April 15, after the Day of the Sun festival ended, the First Chairman Kim Jong-un
issued an order, stating, “The people have nothing to eat, so from now on do
not export marine products.” The intention was to use marine products for
domestic consumption, but there weren’t many enterprises that acted
accordingly. They are reluctant to relinquish one of the few business
opportunities to earn foreign currency. The more difficult legal trade becomes,
the more illegal trade is bound to prosper. One Central Party official
predicts, “While China and our government continue to squabble with each other,
saying, 'We won’t import' or 'We won’t export', illicit trading will continue.”
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Fisheries also expects great losses due to the
import and export bans of both countries. With export to China in mind, the
Ministry of Fisheries has been investing much in the cultivation of shellfish
and shrimp in the tidelands of the Yellow Sea coast.
Okryu-gwan Restaurant Jumps into
Foreign Currency Earning Business
The famous Pyongyang Okryu-gwan Restaurant, a pride of Pyongyang and
known as the best maker of traditional food, has eagerly joined the foreign
currency earning business. Pyongyang Okryu-gwan is the top restaurant in
Pyongyang, where people dine on foods such as Pyongyang nangmyun (cold
noodles), Pyongyang onban (warm noodles), and green bean pancakes. In the past,
the restaurant’s business model was to serve Pyongyang citizens, from which it
acquired its reputation as “the Grand Hall of Serving the People”.
Theoretically, typical Pyongyang citizens could receive a ticket (a kind of
meal coupon) to eat there, dispensed in order to exemplary families. These
tickets are so popular they are sold at high prices in black markets. However,
these tickets do not actually go to average citizens because officials and
wealthy people usually manage to keep them for themselves. Moreover, as
Okryu-gwan has started its foreign currency earning business in recent days,
the opportunities for the general citizen to eat there are now even fewer.
One official of the Central Party said,
“Pyongyang Okryu-gwan extended its second floor in order to serve more foreign
customers. Previously, foreign customers could eat only in a small space on the
second floor. As a matter of fact, the Koryo Hotel started its foreign currency
earning business first, with a nangmyun (cold noodle) restaurant for foreign
customers. Later Okryu-gwan came forth to compete with Koryo Hotel for foreign
customers. Okryu-gwan charges $3.00 for nangmyun soup because this is the price
the Koryo Hotel charges, and tray noodles is $4.50. I received a bill of $10.00
for a double order of tray noodles and green bean pancake the last time when I
went there with foreign customers. The bottom line of the Party is that
Okryu-gwan operates its business for the benefit of Pyongyang citizens not for
the sake of earning foreign currency. Currently, it appears they are quietly
extending their business to attract foreign currency without official
permission.”
