NK NEWS BRIEF | July 31, 2013

A NKorean soldier collapses due to exhaustion during events commemorating the 60th anniversary of the armistice in PY | Image: Ivan Watson (CNN) via Twitter

NK INTERNAL

• Kim Kyong-hui (67), KJU’s aunt, appeared at a ceremony marking the completion of a cemetery in PY for those killed in the Korean War. This marks her first public appearance since May amid speculation that she had fallen ill.

• NFI: NK has implemented an identity-based system for registering vendors in the markets in order to circumvent corruption. “Yet the implementation of the identity-based vendor system and the practice of rotating stall locations suggest that a notion of fairness in regulation is taking root at the heart of North Korean society – not as a matter of deliberate policy from above, but in response to the growing influence and importance of the North Korean marketplace and its grassroots origins”.

• The Atlantic Wire: Due to the incorrect administration of TB treatments on part of the Global Fund project, a strain of difficult-to-treat antibiotic resistant TB is developing in NK.

• Daily NK: The “Masikryeong Skiing Ground,” a key element in state propaganda surrounding KJU has recently seen its construction site collapse following seasonal rains. Due to the project’s importance in building KJU’s image, the state has attempted to block the spread of information surrounding the condition of the site to other parts of NK. Source: “Of late, officials have been sent out from the Central Party to deliver public lectures. The lecturers are saying that those people who pass around ‘weird rumors of flood damage’ will be subject to serious punishment.”  

• NFI has an internal Party Cadre application form showing some of its questions, such as whether “family members have ever collaborated with the Japanese before liberation, had dealings with religious elements, or connections with the opposition during the Korean War.”

• Washington Post: “The mass games are a spectacle of truly amazing performances, but, according to reports from defectors, it’s also the result of mistreatment and coercion, including of the children who participate in large numbers. It’s true that the citizen-participants do, by all indication, enter the event seeing it as a high honor and privilege. According to compilations of defector testimonies, though, participants are often given little food or even water and, to instill discipline, can be restricted in how often they may visit the bathroom. Reports are worryingly common about child participants developing cystitis or other urinary tract ailments as a result.”

ECONOMY & FOOD SECURITY

• ROKG has approved 7.3 million USD in aid to NK. 6.04 million USD of the aid will come via the ROKG and will be allocated towards a project to help NKorean infants, while the additional 1.25 million USD in aid will go toward NKorean children via five private SKorean donor groups.

• NK has not responded to SK’s “final offer” for N-S talks on the future of the KIC.  ROKG Presidential Spokesperson: “Recurrence prevention and the developmental normalization of the [Kaesong Industrial Complex] are the government’s stance and basic principles.”

• Though coordination in disaster preparedness between the NK regime and the Red Cross has improved, the situation due to recent rains is still dire. IRFC report: “In many communities, public institutions like kindergartens and children nurseries have been partly or completely damaged by heavy rains and floods, while a number of old and low-standard houses have collapsed.” It also reported that the over 49,000 displaced persons have inadequate shelter.

• VOA: Official stats show that China’s exports to NK shrank by more than 13.6% (1.59 billion USD) from January to June in 2013 compared to the same period in 2012. This downward trend is largely due to the decrease in crude oil shipments in the first half of this year, and marks the first decline in Chinese trade with NK since the 2009 financial crisis.

HUMAN RIGHTS

• SK’s National Human Rights Commission of Korea will offer translation and formatting support services for groups wishing to make submissions to the impending UN Commission of Inquiry into NKorean human rights abuses. Two working-level members of the Commission will visit SK next week to do on-site investigations.

REFUGEES

• Daily NK: The North Korean Refugees Foundation is providing five-day pre- and post-natal care training programs for 40 women defectors. This program is part of a broader education project targeting women defectors, who form a large majority of the refugee population in SK.

INTERNATIONAL POLITICS & SECURITY

• NKorean officials entered the SKorean press center unannounced after the 6th round of talks to deliver their stance on the KIC, prompting a scuffle between officials from both sides. NK blamed the SK for “driving the talks to the brink of breakdown” in a press release, claiming the ROK was “…unilaterally demanding us to take all responsibility for the shutdown.” The NKorean press release also threatened, “If the Kaesong cooperative businesses once again face disruption, our troops will occupy the areas [near] the Military Demarcation Line [near Kaesong].“

• A recent statement by the Chinese government referring to the “Korean War” rather than the normally used term of “a war against the U.S. and to help the DPRK”, has drawn suspicion that China is moving away from its total support for NK, while others take it as evidence of an improvement in relations with the US.

• SKorean intelligence officials are investigating a local IT company owner suspected of helping a NKorean hacker distribute malignant codes during attacks on SKorean government, banking, and media sites earlier this year.

• The inspection of a NKorean boat detained in the Panama Canal for carrying weapons from Cuba has been hindered due to melting sugar attracting excessive amounts of bees. Panamanian Security Minister José Raúl Mulino commented, “To call that [ship] filthy would be a compliment… [the ship] stinks of its crew’s sweat and urine, the greasy kitchen, the food left on the floor, the years of humidity and mold.”

• People’s Daily: Chinese Vice-President Li Yuanchao called for regional peace during a visit to a cemetery near PY for Chinese soldiers who died in the Korean War. Li: “The aim of our commemorations for the 60th anniversary of the Korean War armistice is to face the future, better maintain peace and stability on the Peninsula and seek regional prosperity and growth.” He said China remains firm in its policy to maintain bilateral ties, but also insisted that the NK make steps toward denuclearization.

• Obama on the 60th anniversary of the armistice: “When 50 million South Koreans live in freedom ― a vibrant democracy, one of the world’s most dynamic economies, in stark contrast to the repression and poverty of the North ― that’s a victory; that’s your legacy.”

• Reuters: Spokespeople from both “Representatives of the Elders” and the “Carter Center in Atlanta” have denied that former President Carter will visit NK in a bid to secure the release of Kenneth Bae.

ANALYSIS AND OPINION

• Delury: “A better way — indeed, the only real way — out of the North Korean quagmire is for Washington to take the lead in addressing Pyongyang’s insecurity through a comprehensive peace process, including a treaty that replaces the current armistice and at last ends the Korean War. Denuclearization should be the phased-in end goal, but not the precondition for the negotiation process. Along the way, to build trust and create momentum for the eventual resolution of the conflict, Park should make every effort to resume serious economic cooperation with the North by expanding joint economic projects, such as the Kaesong industrial park and the Mount Kumgang Tourist Region, and pioneering new ways to bind both Koreas to peace, stability, and further cooperation.”

MISC

• NK won its first title in the Women’s World Cup Championship East Asian Cup, partially thanks to SK’s 2-1 upset victory over the reigning champion, Japan.

• Tech Hive: A tablet device purchased by a visitor to NK reveals some of the restrictions placed upon devices in the country.  

• Daily NK are having a fundraising drive on Indiegogo.

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