Members of North Korea’s official women’s organization are working four-hour shifts in the country’s 2026 weeding campaign, but authorities now demand written proof that they actually showed up. This requirement has been introduced as part of the latest farm mobilization drive across the nation.
A source in South Pyongan province told Daily NK on Tuesday that the provincial branch of the Socialist Women’s Union of Korea ordered members to take an active part in spring farming support work. “Women’s union members in Pyongsong are going out to farms for four hours a day to weed fields,” the source said. “They are mobilized either from 8 a.m. to noon or from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.” Participation in this season’s farm mobilization appears more strictly organized than in prior years.
In previous years, union members typically packed lunches and weeded in the fields all day. This year, officials have split them into morning and afternoon shifts instead, reflecting adjustments in the farm mobilization procedures.
The source said the change partly reflects economic reality. Women shoulder most of the burden of supporting their families, and recent price increases have made daily life even harder. The increased emphasis on farm mobilization only adds to these burdens.
Shorter hours have come with tighter control, however. After finishing work, union members must obtain certificates from farms or work teams and submit them to their union organizations. Anyone who fails to hand in a certificate counts as absent, even if she actually worked. This administrative change is a direct result of heightened farm mobilization monitoring.
Certificates now required after farm mobilization shifts
The certificates also matter on the way home. Patrol units, the roving inspection teams that enforce public discipline, now run checkpoints on major routes between farms and city centers when morning and afternoon shifts end. Only women carrying certificates may pass. These strict requirements follow this year’s directives for comprehensive farm mobilization efforts by local authorities.
In early June, a union member from Pyongsong’s Yokjon neighborhood finished weeding a corn field at a local farm and headed home without collecting her certificate. A patrol stopped her on the way. She explained that she was returning home after finishing her work, but the patrol sent her back to the farm for additional labor because she lacked the document. This illustrates how farm mobilization is strictly enforced at checkpoints.
“The certificates are meant to stop women who just show their faces at the farm and slip away,” the source said. “Control over rural support workers is so tight this year that complaints are growing. People are saying things like ‘this isn’t even a workplace, so why go this far’ and ‘just taking part should be more than enough.’” Such sentiment reveals the mounting frustration with the ongoing farm mobilization requirements.
The Socialist Women’s Union of Korea is a mass organization that all married women without formal workplace jobs must join. Members must attend regular lectures and self-criticism sessions and take part in various state mobilization campaigns. Farm mobilization is only one of several compulsory activities for these women.
The problem is that many union members actually support their families through market trading and other private economic activity. Time spent on farm mobilization directly cuts into their incomes.
“Making a living through trade keeps getting harder, and farm mobilization eats into selling time, which means less money,” the source said. “Most women still take part because they see rural mobilization as party policy. But forcing them to collect and submit certificates proving they worked has caused real resentment.”
Union members expect the weeding campaign to continue all summer. “They are already worried,” the source said. “Temperatures keep rising, and this year is especially hot. Rumors are circulating that women may also be mobilized to water the fields, so the mood is grim.” The ongoing trend suggests new phases of farm mobilization could be ahead.
Reporting from inside North Korea
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June 10, 2026 at 10:56PM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)