{"id":4829,"date":"2021-02-01T10:01:59","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T01:01:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=4829"},"modified":"2021-03-11T17:26:39","modified_gmt":"2021-03-11T08:26:39","slug":"compost-battle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2021\/02\/society-economy\/compost-battle\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cInside N. Korea\uff1e Nationwide \u201cCompost Battle\u201d Begins: Kim Jong-un\u2019s Huge Demand for Home-Made Fertilizer Spurs Human Feces Thievery"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Photo) Women mobilized to collect compost in the freezing cold. Photographed in central North Korea in mid-January 2015 by Kim Dong-cheol (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 Officials anxious as carts of human excrement are collected<\/h2>\n

Following the 8th Korean Workers\u2019 Party Congress that ended in mid-January, meetings are being held across the country to determine how to fulfill the demands set out by the party. Compost production is a top priority, with neighborhood organizations and workplaces mobilized to meet demand. With the atmosphere even more tense than usual, everyone is concentrating on the \"compost battle.\" (Jiwon Kang)<\/p>\n

\u25c6 Compost production is a critical challenge<\/h2>\n

Compost is made in North Korea by mixing ash, soil, human feces, and straw. A \u201ccompost battle\u201d is always held at the beginning of each year to reach production targets but, this year, mobilization for production is much more strict. This is because Kim Jong-un gave such an order at the Korean Workers\u2019 Party Congress, the Party\u2019s most important event of the year.<\/p>\n

Kim Jong-un emphasized that \u201cthe key goal for the agricultural sector is to realize food self-sufficiency\u201d through a national \u2018seed revolution\u2019 along with other agricultural-related research, land reclamation, farming mechanization, etc. However, none of these processes can be completed overnight.<\/p>\n

The first thing the North Korean regime has to do before planting in the spring is to complete the soil fertilization required for a successful harvest later in the year. These efforts are critical because the economy is paralyzed by the coronavirus crisis, and it is impossible to predict what the future holds.<\/p>\n

Next page: \u25c6 Keeping watch over excrement at public toilets...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25c6 Keeping watch over excrement at public toilets<\/h2>\n

On January 25, a reporting partner from Ryanggang Province said the following about the particularly difficult \"compost battle\" this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe compost production quota directed from above is 2 tons for employed people, 1.5 tons for dependents, and 500 kg for full-time housewives (these figures are similar for residents of North Hamgyong Province). We have been told to meet our quotas no matter what. Neighborhood political units are in charge of keeping watch at public toilets to prevent theft.\u201d<\/p>\n

Employees are each told to bring compost made at home to work. As it's so difficult to meet the quota, there are people who will sell their own compost to others. The reporting partner says:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe selling price of 500 kilos of compost is 80 Chinese yuan (about South Korean 13,670 won). Last year, more than 70% of people bought the compost rather than making it themselves, but this year less than 10% can afford to buy it due to coronavirus. Everyone is making it themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

If, due to special circumstances, it is impossible to take part in the compost battle, they say you must pay fuel costs for compost made in the city to be transported to the countryside.<\/p>\n

\u25c6 Officials take the initiative<\/h2>\n

This year's \"compost battle\" is an interesting phenomenon. Officials are taking the lead. \"Some party officials are even pulling carts of compost to work themselves,\u201d the reporting partner says.<\/p>\n

At the party conference, Kim Jong-un repeatedly urged officials to take the lead and emphasized that corruption would not be tolerated. With the organization overseeing local management stepping into high gear, officials are becoming nervous.<\/p>\n

The reporting partner gave the following context for the \u2018compost battle\u2019, explaining, \u201cAs much as these patronizing officials say they are proud and boast of doing well, they are inflexible and putting immense pressure on us to produce more compost. Some people are even turning to stealing compost.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u203b ASIAPRESS contacts its reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.<\/p>\n

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