{"id":5776,"date":"2022-03-31T12:16:27","date_gmt":"2022-03-31T03:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=5776"},"modified":"2022-05-19T10:10:00","modified_gmt":"2022-05-19T01:10:00","slug":"samjiyon-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2022\/03\/society-economy\/samjiyon-2\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cInside N. Korea\uff1e Escape From Samjiyon: Young People Flee Kim Jong-un's Luxury Tourism Zone. \"There are no Chinese tourists because of coronavirus. We can't survive.\""},"content":{"rendered":"
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Kim Jong-un visited Samjiyon in November 2021. Photo quoted from the Labor Newspaper.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6<\/strong>Authorities face punishment\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cCreate a world-class international tourist city...\u201d<\/p>\n

In November 2016, Kim Jong-un suddenly ordered the construction of a \"mountain cultural city\" in Samjiyon County located in Ryanggang Province, the northernmost part of North Korea.<\/p>\n

Samjiyon is located at the foot of Mt. Paektu and has been labelled by the regime a \"sacred place of revolution.\" South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who visited North Korea in September 2018, stood at the top of Mt. Paektu with Kim Jong-un after going through Samjiyon.<\/p>\n

Kim Jong-un, who is enthusiastic about the development of Samjiyon, frequently visited the site and pushed the progression of construction work until the completion of the project in December 2019. His plan was to generate foreign currency revenue by attracting tourists from China.<\/p>\n

The North Korean authorities demolished all the shabby houses in the centre of Samjiyon, built new apartments and a hospital, brought in young people as new residents, and elevated the area from a county to a city. Now, however, these young people are reportedly leaving Samjiyon in droves. What is happening?<\/p>\n

In mid-March, we spoke with our reporting partner, who lives in Ryanggang Province.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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The special tourism zone in Samjiyon, which was built through a rushed construction project at the initiative of Kim Jong-un. State-run media widely publicized the project. Quoted from the Labor Newspaper.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 No Chinese tourists because of coronavirus.<\/h2>\n

\u2015\u2015Why are young people leaving Samjiyon?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"People were told that '(Chinese President) Xi Jinping said he would send them 100 million tourists.,' and they expected this city to become a tourist city and bring in more income, but not a single tourist from China has come because of coronavirus. Although young men were sent into the area in groups, life deep in the mountains was too hard for them to adapt.\"<\/p>\n

\u2015\u2015 But I heard that there is a splendid all-electric apartment building built in Samjiyon and that the electricity supply is much better than in other places.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A new hospital has indeed been built and electricity is available for more than 15 hours a day, but there are no tourists, so there is no income. Since the area is a potato-producing region, the rationing is all potatoes. Many people have given up because they can't do business and don't know when the pandemic will end.\"<\/p>\n

\u2015\u2015What do you mean that people can't do business?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Markets are not allowed in Samjiyon in the first place. The market is closed, and only state-run and cooperative stores are operating.\"<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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Map of the Chinese-North Korean border region (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6<\/strong> Young people who were forcibly relocated are now leaving the city.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2015\u2015What kind of young people are fleeing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"The authorities forced young people who had graduated from high schools and universities to go to Samjiyon in groups, making them say, 'I want to go to Samjiyon.' There was frustration from the beginning because the authorities would often transfer the residence registration document without the person's knowledge about it.\"<\/p>\n

\u2015\u2015Can one freely leave Samjiyon?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"They need a reason, of course. They are fleeing more and more, making up excuses such as marrying, getting medical treatment, family difficulties, etc.\"<\/p>\n

\u25c6<\/strong>Authorities have tightened penalties, even proscribing banishment.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2015\u2015Are the authorities allowing this to happen?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"No way. The People's Committee (local government) is intensively investigating the matter. They prohibit business trips to other places, and in the case of an illness, they do not even allow the patient to return to his\/her parents' home for treatment without a hospital certificate. In the case of women, the city labour department will not transfer food ration documents to those who try to leave Samjiyon with the excuse of getting married. Many who have left without telling have been sent to the \"Labour Training Corps\". In the worst cases, they even exile them to completely different remote areas.\"
\n*Labour training corps are short-term forced labour camps.<\/p>\n

The Samjiyon development is a top national priority project directly under Kim Jong-un. It is prohibited for young people who have been assigned to the project under the direction of the Workers' Party to leave the project. This is the reason why the authorities are punishing deserters severely.<\/p>\n

One of our reporting partners said the following.<\/p>\n

\"The youths who went to Samjiyon became 'rats in a trap.' They can't move inside, and they can't go outside either.\" (Kang Ji-won \/ ISHIMARU Jiro)<\/p>\n

\u203bASIAPRESS contacts its reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.<\/p>\n

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