![\"Labor](\"https:\/\/www.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/20160318_70days_01.jpg\")
<\/a>Labor camp detainees packed in a truck are heading for the work site in the early morning. Taken by Shim Ui-cheon at east Haeju city of Hwanghae province in September 2008 (ASIAPRESS)<\/p><\/div>\n
All the people in North Korea are forced to enroll at a workplace after graduation from middle school except those who enlist in military, enter college, or become a homemaker. However, people are trying to do their own business by abandoning their workplaces since the wages are not paid due to a deteriorated economic situation. The authorities crack down on those who are doing their own businesses or hired in a private business, defining them \u201crunaways\u201d<\/p>\n
Checking and control are enforced but some rich people pay certain amounts to the authorities to be exempted from the 70 days battle. Our reporting partner reported that they require people to pay 600,000 won (=U$70) per person, saying \u201cPay the money as a way to join the battle!\u201d<\/p>\n
Another burden of \u201cthe 70 days battle\u201d is added to the people who have been forced to pay enough money and collective delivery of material by the authorities. There have been repeated patterns of collecting money from the people as \u2018supporting money\u2019 on big national events.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>People who were mobilized for river improvement. Complaining is rising as mobilizing people is more frequent for the coming party\u2019s conference. Taken by ASIA PRESS at a local city of northern area on June 2013<\/p><\/div>\n
On telephone conversation on March 16, B, a reporting partner in other part of north Hamkyung province, told that the regional office began to urge everyone to deposit 1,000 won per month at a bank as 70 days battle started.<\/p>\n
Officials of the regional office visit every house, saying \u201cThe state doesn\u2019t have money. Our safe is totally empty. If you deposit 1,000 won every month until the end of 70 days battle, interest will be given.\" While I deposited my money two days ago, I was not told how much the interest would be. He continued that the people are negative to the urge for deposit as they had experienced the huge loss of their money at the currency reform (*2) by forced deposit.<\/p>\n
He reported the current situation there, saying \u201cthey asked to deposit 3,000 won (amount for the period from January to March) and then suddenly changed the amount to 5,000 won, matching the period of 70 days battle. The officials who want to save their faces by achieving the goal demanded to deposit money in advance. But people remain unconvinced.\u201d(There is no one who voluntarily goes to bank for deposit. Once bank get the deposit, they usually takes 50% of the withdrawal as commission.)<\/p>\n
It is interesting to see how they draw the economic planning and how they would accomplish the goal in North Korea where functional manufacturing facilities are rare due to the paralyzed economy. Rodong Shinmun (a North Korea government newspaper) runs articles on \u2018achievement of economic goal earlier than planned\u2019 almost every day after the beginning of 70 days battle.<\/p>\n
The front page of Rodong Shinmun on Mar 17 propagates how four factories in Pyongyang accomplished the goal of the first half of this year under the title \u201cAchievement of the people\u2019s economic goal for the first half of this year.\u201d While no information is available for how they draw economic planning, it is interesting to see the reports that the factories have accomplished their goals even though there are two months more remaining for the target date.<\/p>\n
Many endeavor competitions were started in North Korea, when there were extraordinary environments, or when they felt a necessity to secure the stability of the regime. The first 70 days battle, called \u201cthe battle for increasing,\u201d(*3) was started by an order of Kim Jong-il for 70 days from October 21, 1974 to the year end. The battle was used to give justification to the nomination of Kim Jong-il as the successor. Being awarded with the title, \u201cthe hero of the republic,\u201d in the following year, he was able to solidify his position as the successor with the achievement through the battle. It is apparent that the achievement of 70 days battle at this time must be attributed to the excellent guidance by its great young leader as well.<\/p>\n
The central committee of the Workers\u2019 Party pleaded its members with a letter to wage 70 days battle for the upcoming 7th<\/sup> Party\u2019s conference on February 24. If counted that date as the first day, 70 days battle would seem to be finished on May 6.<\/p>\n *2 : Currency reform from November 30 to December 6 in 2009. The exchange rate for old and new money was 100:1 for cash and 10:1 for deposit respectively. The limit to exchange was 200,000 won for each household during the given period of 1 week. Any money over the limit became nullified. Cash rich people\u2019s money became scrap paper by this measure. In addition, inflation began as the value of the \u201cwon\u201d plummeted by the currency reform. The inflation hit hard on people\u2019s lives as it caused price rise in markets.<\/p>\n *3 : \u201c70 days battle\u201d is originated from the endeavor competition movement\u00a0 which Kim Jong-il addressed to accomplish 6 years plan for economic development in October 1974. The aim of the battle was to find every unused resource for economic development and ignite a fire for \u201cspeed battle\u201d in every economic department through skill innovation. The North Korean government informs that the industrial products were increased by 1.7 times and 6 years plan was achieved two years earlier than planned by 1,100 factories and enterprises through this battle.<\/p>\n Declaring nationwide 70 days battle (*1) to prepare the Workers\u2019 Party conference in May, which was held 36 years ago, t\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3611,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[7,11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2187"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3611"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a>*\u00a0Editor\u2019s notes on North Korean reporters<\/a>
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