Tag: corruption
North Korea’s farm labor exemptions for top students spark fairness row
A Ryanggang province party committee directive exempting top-scoring students from seasonal farm labor mobilization has ignited a fairness dispute among parents, with many arguing...
Three words humbled a North Korean checkpoint inspector and got him...
A single claim of membership in the Kim Il Sung-Kim Jong Il Fund was enough to cut short the career of a North Korean...
North Korea fuel hoarding spreads as Middle East conflict drives up...
Fuel hoarding has spread across parts of North Korea in April as rising global oil prices driven by the ongoing Middle East conflict push...
Central party inspection teams descend on Sinuiju factories, rattling local officials
North Korea has dispatched central party inspection teams to major factories in Sinuiju, the capital of North Pyongan province, in a sweeping audit of...
North Korea threatens to send failing students to coal mines after...
North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) launched a sweeping inspection of senior middle schools in 2026 after a new elective subject system...
Political bloodlines drive North Korea’s Social Safety Forces recruitment
North Korea's annual military conscription season is now underway, and the Social Safety Forces — the country's internal security force, roughly equivalent to South...
North Korea brokers extort defector families with surveillance threats
Remittance brokers operating near North Korea's border are shaking down the families of North Korean defectors, extorting money from people who recently received funds...
Middle East oil shock doubles North Korea freight costs, squeezes traders
Rising oil prices driven by instability in the Middle East are pushing up fuel costs inside North Korea, with transport fees charged by private...
North Korea arrests factory workers for diverting goods to markets
Three workers at a state-run local industry factory in North Hamgyong province were publicly struggled against and arrested last month after diverting factory output...
North Korea’s state security apparatus undergoes generational overhaul after party congress
North Korea's state security bureau in North Hamgyong province has ordered the replacement of roughly 40% of its agents at municipal and county offices...
