[imText1]As the result of the inter-Korean meeting, 200,000tons of fertilizers will be sent to North Korea. The 200,000 tons consist of 160,000 tons of mixed fertilizers, 30,000 tons of urea fertilizers, and 10,000 tons of ammonium sulfate fertilizers. The first aid was sent by the road already and the North Korean “Baek Du San Ho” and “Botong Gang Ho” already decked at the Ulsan and Yeosu ports of South Korea.
Among the people who have been observing the fertilizers sent to North Korea, some may wonder “how would the fertilizers distributed into the cooperative farms?” It is natural to question. This is because mass tons of fertilizers arrived to North Korea sent from the South Korean government, but we never heard about how the fertilizers were distributed or used within North Korea.
Farms Visited by Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il First to Receive Fertilizers
Distribution of supplies in North Korea has principles that the supplies first go through provincial Farm Management Committee under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture, then sent to each municipal and local (district) Management Committee to be distributed to each cooperative farms.
However, the practice in the Worker’s Party is somewhat different. They make sure the cooperative farms visited by Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il firstly receive the supplies. This is because such farms must be productive for the propaganda inside North Korea, which usually proclaims, “Under the wise leadership and guide of the Great Leader and the Dear Leader, we were able to have an abundant farming year.”
Farms visited by Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il (and tend to receive personal guidance on farming from them) such as Chungsan-ni Cooperative Farm (Personally directed by Kim Il Sung in the 1960s), firstly receive farming machines, tools and other supplies. Thanks to such system, such farms always had higher amount of production and provided basis for justification on propaganda for Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il’s leadership. Therefore, such farms also receive vehicles, gasoline, and fertilizers before other farms.
However, the common cooperative farms not only receive limited amount of fertilizers, pesticides and other supplies but also the equipments. Transportation must be taken care of by the farm itself.
The Common Farms Bribe to Obtain Means of Transportation
The Military Management Committee directs fertilizer distribution to the cooperative farms. For example, it issues out a paper that says, “Farm A of South Pyongan province must come and pick up as much fertilizers located in Nampo Port as it can.” However, the means of transportation is not provided.
However, it is not easy for the common cooperative farms to bring back the fertilizers. This is because they do not have means of transportation. The only means they have are old tractors and small vehicles. It is hard to mobilize even those because they do not have gasoline. Imported resources such as oil or parts of the car are monopolized by the government offices such as military or for the “foreign currency earning” offices.
For this reason the cooperative farms look for expediency. They go to the factories where they make auto parts and bribe them with grains, livestock, or any of their production and bring out auto parts with them.
In North Korea, auto parts and unfinished products which do not count as part of the national economy do not count into the Production Schedule. For this reason the farms and the factories make secret contracts where they trade their productions. Of course, this is illegal.
The military and foreign currency earning offices can make a sum of profit thanks to the cooperative farms in urgent need of gasoline. This is because such government offices possess gasoline distributed by the government. The cooperative farms bribe the government cadres with their agricultural products to bring out some gasoline.
The Ultimate Benefactors of the Fertilizers Are the Government Offices
The cooperative farms unable to find ways to secure transportation means end up giving up their fertilizer tickets. The amount of fertilizers that have not reached to where needed to go are usually taken by the military or the Party cadres. At the end, the humanitarian aid transforms into cash. This is because the fertilizers could be sold in the markets. Those of who have even a little land in their yards buy fertilizer for family farming.
This is not all. The fertilizers sent from South Korea are also sued for opium plantation for foreign currency earning. The Worker’s Party sends fertilizers to the foreign currency earning office and the military corps that have opium plantation.
Most of the South Korean people expect and hope that he fertilizers will be used to relieve hunger of the North Korean brethren. However our North Korean brethren is still starving. Although the South Korean government sends aid for free of charge, but the North Korean government charges people.
There is a reason why the state owned media in North Korea is silent about the free fertilizers from South Korea. If the people find out about the “free aid,” they will stop “buying” them.
Some in the politics criticize, “We were still unable to solve the nuclear problem after giving the fertilizers. They have a point. Some people also argue, “Putting conditions for giving fertilizers to our brethren is a humiliating act.” This is also a right criticism.
However, none of them are correct. Before debating about the political significance of the fertilizers in the inter-Korean talks, it must first verify the last destinations of the fertilizers. The 200,000 tons of fertilizers heading to the North at the moment are deceiving all of our brethrens in the North and the South.
