The fall harvest celebration known as Chuseok is one of the most cherished and important holidays on the Korean Peninsula. While North Korean residents busily shopped for foods to place on the traditional memorial service table for this year’s Chuseok festivities, they found that their wallets were a bit thinner than in years past, largely due to time-consuming forced labor mobilizations and “loyalty fund” offerings elicited by the North Korean authorities.
“Residents are really bargain hunting this time. Everywhere one looks, one sees people hesitating and debating purchases because of the financial burden,” a source in Kangwon Province told Daily NK.
“One woman in her 60s said, ‘We had the ‘70-Day Battle’ at the beginning of the year and then the ‘200-Day Battle’ shortly after that. I haven’t been able to fulfill my duties to my ancestors because of that. I heard about eating boiled rice and beef soup for Chuseok as a child. I’m still dreaming of that.’’
Due to these various mobilizations, residents were unable to devote a sufficient amount of time to farming and market selling. This affected their savings and reduced the amount and quality of holiday foods they could purchase.
An additional source in Kangwon Province spoke with a woman in Wonsan City, who said that last year she was able to buy 3.5 kg of pork spare ribs, dumplings, pork, and tofu for the holiday; this year, however, she purchased only 1.5 kg of pork spare ribs, and reduced the amount of the other foods as well.
“Some families are even banding together to cut down on the costs,” the source explained.
The situation is similar in other regions. Residents are purchasing the bare minimum quantity of foods to be placed on the memorial service table. A source in Ryanggang Province source said, “Last year, I bought a whole case of Chinese beer. This year, I could only afford corn-derived alcohol. Other houses in the neighborhood are in a similar position. They are buying less or using foods they were able to farm.”
She asserted that the money paid to the authorities to be excused from road and construction mobilizations would have been enough to finance a bountiful holiday meal. Residents also had to pay fines for mere suspicion of using a Chinese phone and were also responsible for making “loyalty payments” to the authorities through their workplaces and schools.
“To be excused from the mobilizations of the Korean Democratic Women’s Union for one year costs about KPW 250,000 (approximately USD 30). That’s what really gets the residents upset. Chuseok is considered a special time, and most residents want to purchase special food in honor of their ancestors. Because of this, residents are voicing criticism of the regime [among themselves],” she concluded.
