Last
month Daily NK reporters traveled to the Sino-North Korean border city of
Tumen, located in Jilin Province, returning with a cache of photos depicting
daily life for residents in the area. Pictured above, residents in the North
Korean village of Namyang are deeply engaged in the month-long mobilization
[May 15-June 15] for rice planting. Observed by Daily NK firsthand, and
corroborated by other Daily NK sources across North Korea, residents are
compelled to work countless hours under a blazing sun, absent any advanced
agricultural machinery and with only their bare hands as tools.
State
propaganda typically refers to these mass mobilizations as “battles,” the
latest iteration of which demands individuals from central agencies,
factories, social organizations, universities, and high schools–in other words, the majority of the population–contribute to
the effort.
Meanwhile, for the duration of the ordinance market operation hours have been severely curtailed and residents strictly hamstrung in their ability to move between regions for business or personal matters.
*This article has been brought to you thanks to support from
the Korea Press Foundation.
