Japanese
electronics have long been popular with North Koreans, particularly those in state,
military and Party posts; however, obtaining them has often meant resorting
to smuggling or other forms of illicit commerce. That is why it is affluent Party
cadres who have the highest hopes for bilateral agreement between Pyongyang and Tokyo, as this would mean the easing of Japan’s unilateral sanctions regime
and greater legal trade volumes.
“Not all
that long ago, senior Chosun officials in Pyongyang wanted Japanese mp3 and mp4
players, but now a lot of them also want laptops,” a well connected source told Daily NK on July 2nd. “They are always asking
traders to use whatever means necessary to obtain those goods.”
According
to the source, the most popular brands overall are Sony, Sharp and Panasonic.
Canon is also popular for cameras, and Toshiba for laptops. As more and more of
the children of officials take up foreign languages, there is also vibrant
demand for electronic dictionaries.
Cadres
wishing to obtain Japanese goods must put in orders secretly with traders. As such, no
matter how much the North may try to control the inflow of Japanese goods, as
with South Korean products, their efforts fall short due to the simple fact
that officials need the traders and deliberately protect them.
“More than 70%
of the Japanese and South Korean electronics in circulation here in Chosun are smuggled
in through Sinuiju,” the source said. “Apart from during big national events,
there’s no way they can stop it.”
Moreover, “Because officials have already taken measures in
Sinuiju, even if smuggling stopped in other places like
Hyesan [in Yangkang Province], it wouldn’t make such a big difference. This is why there are so many wholesale dealers in Sinuiju taking orders from officials.”
Although North Korea seeks to control the inflow of portable devices that can be used
for activities that the regime wants to eliminate, like the viewing of South
Korean media, cadres can use the pretext of educating their children to
explain away illegal possession. And if that does not work, there is always corruption to fall back on.
“People
keep giving bribes to members of ‘Group 109’, the inter-agency teams that are meant
to control possession and viewing of illegal videos and music,” the source explained. “So the system is
very flawed, and it’s a win-win situation for both the enforcement side and the cadres.”
“This is
why their love for these electronics does not go away. If anything, they are
now after more advanced electronics with better performance,” he said.
As is true
across much of the world, the reason why senior North Korean officials prefer
Japanese products is because they regard them as of better quality than most of the alternatives. “They think
that domestically made products are ‘fake’ because they are ‘domestic’ but use imported parts, while Chinese products are said to end up useless after a
couple of months.”
In sum,
cadres are hopeful that some kind of lasting bilateral accord can be reached
with Japan. “If some of the economic sanctions were lifted as a result of the
talks then there would be relief, since they would not be burdened with rising
prices whenever regulations got enforced,” the source reported.
Earlier
today, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe revealed that Tokyo is planning to
withdraw an unspecified list of the sanctions currently in place on North Korea.
His comments follow one day of talks between the two countries in Beijing on
Tuesday.
North
Korea’s chief delegate to those talks, Song Il Ho told reporters as he left
Beijing for Pyongyang, also today, “When I return to our country and report the
details to our government, it will announce measures that will match [Japan’s
announcement].”
According to one report carried by Japanese agency Kyodo News, North Korea has agreed to put a
member of the National Defense Commission, the highest organ in North Korean politics,
on a special committee established to reexamine the abductions issue. Song did not confirm the membership of the special committee.
Meanwhile, China has welcomed the talks, with a Foreign Ministry spokesperson expressing the wish to see it lead to relations “conducive to regional
peace and stability.”
