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2017.06.28
| Won | Pyongyang | Sinuiju | Hyesan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exchange Rate | 8,070 | 8,050 | 8,095 |
| Rice Price | 5,800 | 6,000 | 5,900 |
The authorities in northerly Yangkang Province have mobilized the Chosun Union of Democratic Women to pick blueberries in order to raise funds for the beautification of the region, which is described as the home of Kim Jong Il. There is reportedly annoyance at the mobilization call, primarily since the members of the Union have been under a different mobilization order since the spring.
A source from the province explained to Daily NK on the 19th, “The city beautification project that started in the spring has nearly finished, and people thought that they would have until the fall potato harvest to do the work at home that they had been putting off. But now they have been sent to pick blueberries around Samjiyeon, and many of them are less than impressed with it.”
“Having been mobilized since the spring, some are openly showing their dissatisfaction at the order,” she added, going on, “Some say, ‘They need funds for city works projects and they want to solve this problem by mobilizing us to go and pick blueberries,’ but it is just us ordinary people who suffer because the sycophantic cadres are competing for position.”
According to the source, each member of the Women's Union is obliged to pick 10kg of blueberries per day, or 100kg over ten days.
Blueberries, which are used as an ingredient in a variety of foodstuffs, are one of the specialties of the Mt. Baekdu region and grow throughout the province. They should be harvested from mid-August to mid-September.
The fruit harvested in this way is then sold cheaply to foreign-currency earning enterprises or processing plants in the local region, where it is processed and exported. On this occasion the profit is to be used for the beautification of Hyesan, the source explained.
The largest blueberry fields in North Korea are those in Baekam, Daehongdan and Samjiyeon counties. Notably, Baekam and Samjiyeon Counties were populated with a number of extensive blueberry plantations in the early 90s, and local students and civilians are routinely mobilized to harvest the fruit.
A source from the province explained to Daily NK on the 19th, “The city beautification project that started in the spring has nearly finished, and people thought that they would have until the fall potato harvest to do the work at home that they had been putting off. But now they have been sent to pick blueberries around Samjiyeon, and many of them are less than impressed with it.”
“Having been mobilized since the spring, some are openly showing their dissatisfaction at the order,” she added, going on, “Some say, ‘They need funds for city works projects and they want to solve this problem by mobilizing us to go and pick blueberries,’ but it is just us ordinary people who suffer because the sycophantic cadres are competing for position.”
According to the source, each member of the Women's Union is obliged to pick 10kg of blueberries per day, or 100kg over ten days.
Blueberries, which are used as an ingredient in a variety of foodstuffs, are one of the specialties of the Mt. Baekdu region and grow throughout the province. They should be harvested from mid-August to mid-September.
The fruit harvested in this way is then sold cheaply to foreign-currency earning enterprises or processing plants in the local region, where it is processed and exported. On this occasion the profit is to be used for the beautification of Hyesan, the source explained.
The largest blueberry fields in North Korea are those in Baekam, Daehongdan and Samjiyeon counties. Notably, Baekam and Samjiyeon Counties were populated with a number of extensive blueberry plantations in the early 90s, and local students and civilians are routinely mobilized to harvest the fruit.
