Residents of flood-ravaged Unpa County, North Hwanghae Province, are still experiencing hardship even after grain and other relief goods were distributed to them at the order of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Daily NK has learned.
“People shed tears of gratitude when trucks carrying grain arrived on Aug. 9 and distributed supplies to help recover from the flooding,” a source in North Hwanghae Province told Daily NK on Wednesday. “Less than a month later, locals now find themselves in a dire situation once again.”
According to the source, who requested anonymity for security reasons, many residents were in debt and used the grain they received to repay those debts, leaving themselves with nothing to eat. Around ten households on one farm in Unpa County were reportedly forced off their land by moneylenders and are currently skipping meals after using the relief rice to pay off their debts.
“Most of the flood victims are farm workers suffering from malnutrition, and about 60% of them are using the distributed rice to replace one in three meals, subsisting on rice porridge for three meals a day or selling the rice in exchange for corn to eat [which is cheaper],” the source explained.
The victims are also being brought in to lend a helping hand in the construction of houses due to a lack of available manpower. They are forced to muster the last ounces of strength in their malnourished bodies to work, so people are reportedly lamenting the lack of construction progress.
“The distributed rice was supposed to last until Oct. 10 [Party Foundation Day], but people are saying it will be difficult to hold out until then,” the source said. “With no more support in sight, locals are worried about how they will survive.”
Unpa County residents are reportedly also disappointed that most of the relief goods provided were made in China. While smaller items such as toothbrushes, toothpaste and facial soap were produced domestically, some residents complained that all the household goods such as bedding, cooking equipment and kitchen utensils were made in China.
Locals were critical about the fact that North Korea was unable to produce even such trivial items on its own and had to purchase them from China, cynically questioning whether the country had become a part of China.
“People were already in a difficult economic situation, and now the flood damage has made their outlook even bleaker,” the source said. “They are very angry and expressing outrage toward the government, wondering how much longer they will have to live like this.”
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