North Korea has beefed up crackdowns on
smuggling gold and other precious metals out of the country to China, as the
resources are considered an important means to earning foreign currency.
Recently, the country even carried out a public trial to prosecute smugglers,
Daily NK has learned.
“Last month on the 22nd, a public trial
took place at Chongjin city’s Pohang stadium with some thousands of people
gathered to watch a group of smugglers,” a source from North Hamgyong Province
told Daily NK in a telephone conversation. “There was a total of 55 smugglers
who were exposed within the province for gold-related trade, and they were prosecuted under the state’s precious metals control act.”
This news was verified by an additional
source in the same province.
Most of the defendants were in their 30s
and 40s and were charged with ‘damaging the procurement of loyalty funds (for
Kim Jong Un) and state development’, amounting to political crimes. Although
most were largely caught for trade of gold within the 1 kilogram range,
intensifying control over state-regulated goods like gold means that all were
apprehended.
According to the source, most of the gold they were trading made its way to China via the
Amrok River near Hyesan City, Yanggang Province. This is because the area offers low water
levels and relatively narrow river width, making it a preferred route for smuggling the the precious metal from North and South Hamgyong Provinces, both home to massive mineral reserves.
“The smugglers would buy gold from miners
or residents around gold mines at cheap prices and then sell it for exorbitant
prices across the border to Chinese traders, getting a huge cut for
themselves,” she said.
The stadium, which is around 230,000 square
meters, was packed with thousands of university and middle school students from
Chongjin as well as factory workers and market vendors, who had all been forced
to attend. The trial itself was perfunctory, and the session was instead used
mostly to idolize Kim Jong Un and his ‘love and consideration’ for the public, the source asserted.
“In the past, public trials led to criminal
charges and years of ‘re-education’ (and incarceration), but this time, it
closed with a ruling of ‘magnanimous forgiveness’ from the Marshal,” she explained. “Having actually announced it would offer pardons for people in light of
the upcoming 70th anniversary for Party foundation day, it seems like the
Central Party feels political pressure about throwing hordes of people into
prison.”
The event that was largely used to promote
the leader’s ‘generosity’ by giving people a clean slate surprised some, as
others had earlier speculated there would be a public execution, when markets
were sealed off hours before the event that had thousands of residents
mobilized.
*The content of this article was broadcast
to the North Korean people via Unification Media Group.
