North Korean authorities have launched a crackdown on the sale of homemade food, directing law enforcement to target individuals involved in the production and distribution of these goods. The campaign has met with strong opposition from North Koreans who see it as a threat to their means of survival.
According to a source in Ryanggang province, in early October the provincial police bureau instructed city and county police departments to assign police officers in charge of each organization, business, and neighborhood to track down producers of substandard food.
The province’s police bureau issued the following statement: “For several years, the Workers’ Party has stressed that fake food should not be produced or distributed, but such practices have continued. This crackdown is being carried out because several people have recently nearly lost their lives after consuming fake food.
“Anyone caught continuing to produce and distribute fake food during the crackdown may be forced to move to another area.”
Confusion over what “fake” food really is
But many North Koreans are complaining about the new directive.
“What in the world is fake food? Are you saying everything we’ve been eating is fake?” one local resident told a local police officer explaining the instructions.
It is common in North Korea for market vendors to sell homemade foods of various kinds – not only alcohol, but also foods such as soy sauce and fermented soybean paste. So when the authorities threatened to crack down on the sale of homemade “fake food,” North Koreans demanded to know why homemade food should be considered “fake.”
“Without these foods that the government calls ‘fake,’ people’s lives would be much harder. Everything from basic ingredients like soy sauce and doenjang to candy and cookies are homemade and sold in marketplaces,” the source said.
“Food imported from China or produced by local companies is in short supply, and people prefer homemade food because it’s cheap and tasty. That’s why people are complaining that the authorities are making their lives harder with this senseless crackdown.”
In early October, a woman in her 50s who sells homemade blueberry jelly in Hyesan chased away a policeman who had visited her house in search of homemade food.
“Get out of my house right now! You’ve never helped me make a living. I’m very conscientious about how I make the jelly I sell,” the woman said.
Some say the authorities will never be able to eliminate the sale of homemade food and medicine, no matter how much they tighten controls, because people can always bribe their way out of the rap.
“These crackdowns are pointless because if you bribe the police, they’ll look the other way no matter what you’re doing. In the end, this is just another hurdle for people selling homemade food,” the source said.
The Daily NK works with a network of sources in North Korea, China, and elsewhere. For security reasons, their identities remain anonymous.
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October 15, 2024 at 12:30PM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)