The North Korean military’s Eighth Corps received a failing grade in a recent interim evaluation of the unit’s performance in winter training, Daily NK has learned.
The unit, which is based in Ryongsan Village, Yeomju County, North Pyongan Province, faced an unannounced inspection by the Operations and Training Department of the General Staff Department (GSD) from Jan. 23 – 27, according to a North Korean military source yesterday, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.
The Eighth Corps received a “satisfactory” rating during the same period last year. During training evaluations, the North Korean military hands down one of three grades: excellent, satisfactory, or poor.
“The GSD criticized the pathetic participation rate in the winter training compared to last year,” the source said. “It was also informed that scabies became rampant in the unit, which forced soldiers to spend their afternoons receiving medical treatment.
“The review further revealed that some battalions of the Eighth Corps organized baths only once every ten days because there was no electricity and no firewood available. Overall, the lack of improvement in the level of training was brought to light during the interim evaluation.”
The Eighth Corps command was shocked to have been given a low grade after getting an intermediate rating last year, the source said.
“They don’t understand why the GSD is taking issue with the training format when it’s the same as last year,” he said, adding that “the chronic difficulties facing the unit during the winter is not something the corps can solve alone.”
Meanwhile, the GSD put in place measures to guarantee the integrity of the interim review, such as ensuring that evaluation methods are not shared between units. GSD officials did this because they recognized that if unit officers know what to expect they will only prepare for those parts of the inspection.
The source added that the GSD conducted “individual interviews” with soldiers at the Eighth Corps this year, which served to highlight issues in the unit better.
Translator requested anonymity. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Daily NK works with a network of sources living in North Korea, China, and elsewhere. Their identities remain anonymous for security reasons. For more information about Daily NK’s network of reporting partners and information-gathering activities, please visit our FAQ page here.
Please send any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
