This is about as close as it gets to a protest in North Korea. Citizens are grumbling that the North Korean government has revalued the won. North Koreans are supposed to turn in their savings this week and get a new currency next week.
The government initially set a limit of 100,000 won per person that can be turned in for the new currency. Those that have frugally set aside large amounts of cash suddenly found that the worthless won was worth even less.
“Loud sounds of weeping in every house have not ceased since the news was released,” reported a South Korean news agency.
Why the sudden need to cast aside the old won?
The reason is that North Korea is facing a serious outbreak of the free market. In the 1990’s the state-run distribution system broke down, famines developed and the government turned a blind eye towards small-scale entrepreneurs.
Outside of Pyongyang, a bustling market of 30,000 small vendors sell in an area known as Pyongsong. Black market goods from China and elsewhere are traded along with vegetables grown from home gardens and homemade handicrafts. Some North Koreans actually began to experience a rise in their standard of living.
That is just too much dissent for the communist overlords. Recently, a crackdown started to reign in the free-wheeling vendors. Some stalls were closed while limits were placed on what goods could be sold. Issuing a new currency is one of the ways that the government hopes to wipe out the capital of aspiring business owners.
The protestations were more than the government expected, however. Local officials even feared unrest, unheard of in this tightly controlled police state. Almost immediately the government raised the limit to 150,000 that could be exchanged. In addition, bank accounts with up to 300,000 could be exchanged if proof was provided that the money was derived from an acceptable source.
That does not help the most prudent and hardworking North Koreans who had stashed away millions of won.
The real sorrow for the North Koreans who have lost their savings is the actual value of the money. Many of these people have toiled for years to make extra won and hid away sizeable quantities of it. Unfortunately, 100,000 won is worth only $40. Even one million won is only $400. Basically, it is a pittance to the rest of the world, but in North Korea, it is a millionaire’s fortune.
It is just another example how the hardworking are punished in North Korea. No one should be surprised if another famine comes, especially since the small vendors are going to find it harder to sell produce on the outskirts of the cities. The end result of this may be a famine. The UN estimates that half the calories of the North Korean diet comes from food vendors. It probably is not a wise decision to crackdown on them as the country heads into winter.
Pingback: Twitted by Foolocracy