A Year of Self-Reflection

As 2014 draws to a close, many around the
world find their lives stretched even thinner, rushing to attend parties and setting lofty goals
and plans for the New Year. For North Koreans, the end of the year is filled with celebrations, but above all, it is a time for self-reflection.

Much of this self-reflection is mandated: North Korean residents must engage in annual self-criticism exercises–set sessions for people to look back on all
their wrongdoings for the year and broadcast them in front of all the members
 of their affiliated work group. In turn, members are obliged to offer up counsel to the presenter on his or her alleged misconduct to avoid such shortcomings from occurring again in the future.

Typically held at the beginning of December, all residents–from those in the Chosun Democratic Womens Union down to youths in the Chosun Childrens Union–must attend this event. All refer to the atmosphere therein as “highly uncomfortable.”

Following the conclusion of these
widespread self-criticism sessions, residents begin preparations for year-end
parties, traditionally taking place among workers from one enterprise or within specific groups [e.g. Chosun Democratic
Women
s Union, General Federation of Chosun Trade Unions,
university groups, etc.].

Recently, however, a new trend has emerged where adults, students and close friends–regardless of affiliation– have been
putting together smaller, informal gatherings to celebrate the passing of the
year and talk of the possibilities for the upcoming one. 

December is also replete with state events in North Korea so gatherings on the personal level usually occur from the
27th to the end of the year. Unsurprisingly, the events compound signs of the ever-widening disparity present
between ordinary residents and Party cadres. Solvent foreign-currency earning enterprises cover all food-related expenses at lavish parties for their employees, while cash-strapped regular factories and organizations impose fees on their employees in order to host the event.

For an average gathering of 25 to 30
people, 10 kg of white rice [or rice cakes], 5 kg of pork and dog meat, 10 kg
of alcohol, 3 kg of seafood, and fresh greens, bean sprouts, kimchi comprise the basic spread around which these groups gather and share stories from the past year.  

The culmination of state and work-related year-end events sees people gear up for New Year’s celebrations. No matter how busy the end of the year gets, New Years preparation is paramount for North Korean residents, for all of whom exists underlying belief that [Yangnyeok] Seol [Solar New Years Day] must be spent in an abundance of joy to ensure a better fortune in the coming year. 

These convictions create a chaotic scene of intense preparations at home with vendors in the marketplace doubling their efforts to meet the increased demand. Astute merchants parse figures from years’ past to ensure their stalls have superior choices of goods customarily required during the holiday period.

Women labor in the kitchen to prepare rice
cakes and noodles to be gobbled up by relatives during the gatherings, while
still managing to find the time to purchase winter gear such as long underwear,
padded clothing, and shoes for the other members of their family. Markets are
swarming with women out shopping for food and supplies to ensure a pleasant
holiday for their loved ones.
 

More than any other time in North Korea,
this period is when a relative sense of abundance appears on people
s faces–be it vendors profiting from high volumes of sales, or
those out shopping to give everything they have–tangibly and emotionally–to the ones they love. The North
Korean people may not have much, but every mother wants her family to have
winter clothes and feed them nice food—at least on New Year
s Day. 

Debt is another matter that North Koreans
grapple with around this time of year, predicated on the idea that casting off the
year
s negative aspects enables them to enter the new year
with a fresh start.  Most increase their efforts to rectify debts accumulated over the year, but funds that go unpaid often erupt into
conflicts with money lenders, relentless in their pursuit to collect sums from the insolvent. Still, such skirmishes are generally resolved within a matter of days, as residents on the whole share notions of finding a solution and starting the new year with a
clean slate–or at least the hope of one.
 

December in North Korea is a busy month
for students, homemakers, workers, vendors, and everyone going about their
daily lives.
a North Korean defector who arrived in
the South earlier this year told the Daily NK.
People
worry about the money involved in celebrating the holidays or holding events,
but it
s a time when everyone tries to pay back their
debt and start fresh, so it
s also a time of excitement
and hope.