As elements of the market economy continue to seep into the social fabric of North Korea, the once highly valued membership to the Workers’ Party is losing its attraction, as there are more restrictions placed on Party members than those outside of the circle. Tending to operations at state-run enterprises they are assigned to and attending other organized Party activities leave many people with less time to sell goods in the markets, Daily NK has learned.
“In order to become a cadre member, you need a Party membership card, but once you have one it becomes an obstacle for business at the market, so the number of people who are trying to become Party members has dropped dramatically,” a source in South Pyongan Province told Daily NK on Wednesday. “With less people lining up to get into the Party, the bribes required to secure membership have plunged from hundreds of dollars to barely enough to buy rabbit meat,” he said.
Party members face more restrictions when it comes to doing business, and the lingering risk of being purged makes people uneasy, explained the source. “If you don’t show up at work, or if you are exposed for ‘anti-socialist’ operations because you have too large of a business, Party members have to pay much larger sums in bribes than the average person,” he said. “If you’re removed from the Party you receive much greater surveillance than residents who have been incarcerated at long-term reeducation camps, so being a Party member isn’t that popular anymore.”
Non-members do not face the same problems and are relatively free in running their businesses, the source said. Some people now say Party membership is not worth it unless it means securing a high-level cadre post. “Absolutely don’t join,” they say, with some going as far as commenting, “not even dogs would be interested,” according to the source.
“With the dwindling popularity of Party entry, the status of Party secretaries is also going downhill,” said the source. “The secretaries have less money flowing in so now they even suggest workers join the Party.”
While in the past, those from poor families or bad songbun [family political background and loyalty] had to pay hundreds of dollars in bribes to get into the Party, now the price tag is so low that often times a drink over some rabbit meat will do the trick, according to the source.
With this reversal in trends, Party secretaries are coming up with new ways to collect bribes. “For Party members who work in the market, they’ll let them skip organized Party events or tell them that they paid for their Party fees and in turn ask for bribes,” the source said.
*The content of this article was broadcast to the North Korean people via Unification Media Group.
