North Korean ghost ships..

came across this recent documentary about the ghost ships washing up on the west coast of Japan and the reason these are increasing.


the conclusion is basically that the fishing industry of North Korea is a good way to earn revenue for the state.
even though it's illegal due to sanctions, the fish can still be sold under the table so to speak. it's a good deal for other countries because they expect to get fish and squid for less money. it's a buyers market in favor for the likes of China, etc.

the fishing industry in North Korea has become privatized although officially it's state run but the owners of the fishing companies and fishing boats are under pressure from the regime to fullful quotas.
as a result the boats have go out further to get a decent catch. this means encroaching on Japanese fishing waters.

such long trips on unseaworthy boats and inexperienced fishermen is resulting in more shipwrecks and more deaths

the documentary includes interviews with Jiro Ishimaru of aisapress. his news organization has informants who live in north Korea and feed his organization real life on the ground information and Andrei Lenkov who knows alot about north Korea, has lived there, visited multiple times and teaches Koren history.

enjoy the mini documentary.

North Korea complained against the USA approved the resolution of a U.N. committee condemning North Korea’s human rights violations.

North Korea complained against the USA also approved the resolution of a U.N. committee condemning North Korea’s human rights violations.

North Korea does not know the USA is always standing in the front line for human rights issues in the world.

I wonder if North Korea knows the meaning of human rights. North Korea is doing its best to hide its severe violation of human rights. Many North Korean officials must be accused of their violation of human rights after the unification of Korea.

http://www.fnnews.com/news/201911171724067881

North Korea plays the role of matchmakers between North Korean women and Chinese men.

North Korea plays the role of matchmakers between North Korean women and Chinese men on condition that Chinese men should invest money in North Korea and live half a year after marriage.

North Korea insists that they do not accept a marriage proposal from Chinese women to North Korean men.

North Korea emphasizes that they prefer Korean Chinese who immigrated to China during the Japanese invasion in Korea or Chinese who are in favor of North Korea.

I wonder North Korea is trying to accept a foreign investment by selling its women?

https://www.rfa.org/korean/in_focus/food_international_org/investwedding-11042019092238.html

The serious drought in North Korea will result in a Poor Harvest.

Because of a serious drought, irregular raining and insufficient storage of water North Korea will have a Poor Harvest.

This year North Korea will be short of one hundred million tons of rice
The United Nations expects four in ten North Koreans will suffer from starvation.

Mor than 10 million people in North Korea are in need of rice and corn.
North Korea recently refused fifty thousand tons of rice from South Korea, because of the conflict between the USA and North Korea.

The lives of North Korean people should not be ignored because of the current political conflict between the USA and North Korea.

https://www.bbc.com/korean/news-50364405

Korean War changed the life of my grandmother

My grandmother passed away a few days ago.

She was in the middle of Korean War. At that time she was attending Daejon teacher's school to become an elementary school teacher.

She had to quit her studying and escaped on foot from her home to her grandfather's house located in Goheung. I understand it took many days and nights because she had to walk toward Geheung from Daejeon on foot.

I hope there will be no war again in Korean Peninsula.

save North Korean refugees day

this came to my inbox today. just passing along

this was in Malawi, south east Africa
the link below shows pictures from washington DC event with Suzanne Sholte

all petitioning on behalf of North Koreans telling the chinese government to stop betraying refugees who are just trying to escape a bad situation. this is a basic human right which the united nations pays lip service to.

Chinese Embassy petitioned” On Save North Korean Refugees Day

Dear Suzanne
More than hundred protesters gathered in front of the Chinese Embassy on TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24th “Save North Korean Refugees Day to submit a petition to H.E. Liu Hongyang, the Chinese Ambassador to Malawi where we have sang the song “Sing Hallelujah to the Lord". The petition has been delivered amidst heavy presence of   Malawi Defence Force (MDF) soldiers, Riot police vehicles and Police officers in full combat gear were also seen all over at the Chinese Embassy. Upon arrival at the Chinese Embassy Police officer stops people which were taking pictures with their cell phones as part of their security.
The government defended its position saying that recent protests “had not been peaceful” and had led to “vandalised offices”.
I really hope something good will comes of this.

With best wishes and my eternal gratitude
Rev Jones Chamangwana

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPShIJHzI_RP6JCGSgX-yBCEwVlm3Q1Y8MRctjKP4YaiCZGP4m-9jWoAjo_mJJogA?key=SG1xdlBLaW9KMjNPX1pLeDBKRzk2TXBrX0ZwazhR

typhoon LingLing over North Korea

well they needed the rain but not that much.

report says 8 north Koreans killed and more injured probably, structural damage and farmland flooded. the death and injury toll will be higher though but one of the video reports that the north Korean regime were more organized this time around telling everyone to get ready.

the crop losses are the most significant impact though as the north was already struggling with poor yields.
i wonder how many seized the opportunity to escape to China though since the power must have gone out in those electric fences.

 https://watchers.news/2019/09/10/typhoon-lingling-north-korea-landfall-damage/

https://watchers.news/2019/09/08/typhoon-lingling-south-korea-north-korea-landfall-september-2019/

also, a good report by DailyNK interviews a north Korean living in south Hwanghae province in the south west of the country after the storm. the resident reports that there is significant damage to the crops there due to landslides, people buried, dead livestock, damage to fishing boats, etc. 

the people as usual have no help from the regime in the way of equipment so they have to use what they have to salvage or rebuild.

https://www.dailynk.com/english/typhoon-lingling-devastates-beadbasket/ 

a quick summary on how Korea really came to be divided

it's been a while since posting but i came across this excellent article on why there is perpetual war around the world.

the author Sylvain LAFOREST gives us an idea who profits from these wars and who starts them.

i thought it was relevent because there is a paragraph in the article about how Korea became north and south.

if anyone is interested, i recommend reading the entire article but here is a screenshot of the part i'm referring to.

and here is the url to the article
https://orientalreview.org/2019/08/24/the-guide-to-real-history/?fbclid=IwAR0Mb2tDfIKVPPNbTK6UbPTHmunulBW-V5Hw_Rua_8uk3DVcaF1U7VF6X1w

 

drought on the Korean penninsula taking it's toll...

thought this was worth posting.
although south Korea is suffering, you can bet the average north Korean is suffering more.

https://electroverse.net/korea-heatwave-causes-unprecedented-natural-disaster-heavy-crop-damage/

the north Korean regime is telling everyone to exercise their patriotic zeal in saving water. just another patriotic thing they have to do...

the result of the drought and heatwave is loss of life, livestock and crop failures.
the north Koreans never get a break.

domestic rice shortage due to drought..

this is out of the asiapress / rimjingang website reporting that domestic rice has doubled in price due to inventories running out.

the good news though is that chinese rice is still available in the markets at a more normal price but i wonder how long that is going to last since china has been having its own food growing issues with the flooding last spring.

 

http://www.asiapress.org/rimjin-gang/2019/08/recommendations/komekakaku/ 

here is an article out of DailyNK about the drought situation

https://www.dailynk.com/english/north-korean-officials-order-resid/

Ten students arrested and condemned in front of 500 observers.

Disgusting.

some kids and their families will be punished for the heinous crime of watching american and south korean shows.

article out of asiapress

http://www.asiapress.org/rimjin-gang/2019/07/society-economy/cinema-crowd/

President Trump wants to visit Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

President Trump wants to visit Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

President Moon is expected to escort President Trump to DMZ.
I wonder if Kim Jong Un will be able to show up at DMZ and also wants to President Trump?

https://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LPOD&mid=sec&oid=001&aid=0010922332&isYeonhapFlash=Y&rc=N

lousy conditions in Hong Kong too

i think even the North Koreans are a bit better off as far as living conditions for some Hong Kong residents.

came across this mini documentary and thought it worth posting

North Korea calls bolton a defective human...

found this article on zerohedge.

and whoever the NK official was is correct. in fact, bolton should be hanging from a rope. he really works for the military industrial complex and is looking at any excuse to bomb a country. any country.

it's about the recent missile launches by NK

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-05-27/north-korea-calls-john-bolton-defective-human-product-warmonger

Bribe to maintain North Korean local markets

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reveals a report based on interviews with 214 North Korean refugees about bribery and corruption in North Korea.

The reports says that everyone involved in North Korean local markets (Jangmadang) has to give bribe to government officials in order to maintain their rights to earn money from the local market.

North Korea has a long way toward democratic market economy full of human rights and equal opportunities.

http://news.kbs.co.kr/news/view.do?ncd=4210256&ref=A

food insecurity in NK or no?

here is another article out of DailyNK reporting the potential food aid from South Korea.
the editors note however reports from traders living in NK that food prices are stable and have not heard anything about people starving yet.

not sure what is going on here but i think the world food organization and UN food and agriculture organization know something that the traders don't. that is: worldwide droughts and flooding to the extreme. you can see it all over if you look.
they are alerting south korea to a potential famine like the one in the 90's

the north has been experiencing drought though and crop failures so i don't know how there couldn 't be cause for concern here.

DailyNK says they are going to get more reports from traders in NK so we'll see.

here is the report

https://www.dailynk.com/english/even-north-korean-farmers-are-starving/

here is another article that came out today.
an interview with an NK official but again, DailyNK states that no one on the ground is reporting food shortages yet.

 https://www.dailynk.com/english/north-korean-official-shares-views-on-south-korean-aid/

update
recent article out of Asiapress talking to reporting partners from within NK say things are tight but people are not starving yet.

http://www.asiapress.org/rimjin-gang/2019/05/recommendations/south-to-send-support/

some reccomended movies about life in North Korea

two movies i've seen both produced by North Korean defectors give the viewer an idea about the harshness of what life must be like in NK.
people find themselves in impossible situations and are forced to do things they wouldn't normally do.

the first one is called "Crossing". as the name implies, a father crosses into china to find medicine for his wife who is pregnant.

the movie is available on amazon and has english subtitles if anyone interested.

 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9740330355/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

more information here with screenshots of the movie and there is a trailor on this page as well

http://asianwiki.com/index.php?title=Crossing&forcepurge=1#comment-2002805

the second one i saw recently at the winter film awards in New York city on the invite of SoonJa of No Chain for North Korea.
it's called "the Gift of Love"

we met at Cinema Village to watch the move.
the director of the movie, Gyu-min Gim was there as well and we went out to dinner afterwards.

this time, the wife makes a hard decision to earn some money to help her ailing husband and things go wrong.

you can read about it here.

https://winterfilmawards.com/film/wfa2019-the-gift-of-love/

 there is also a link to questions and answers of the director Gyu-min Gim
he was a major in the DPRK army and witnessed many situations like this.
he co-directed the movie Crossing also.

here is a trailor of the movie

so to sum up. these movies wont cheer you up but you get an idea through the eyes of people who have been there what it must be like.

this is why we do what we can.

more articles reporting food shortages..

came across this article from the watchers website reporting drought and frost causing more crop losses.
estimate 10 million in urgent need of food assistance

droughts and flooding are signs of worldwide climate cooling

the average person is in a bad spot because they cant move to a better region for growing food. the border security has been reinforced and refined over recent years mainly by the chinese
it is very difficult now to escape the confines of DPRK.
if one does manage to get into china, there is a higher probability they will get caught as well. 

https://watchers.news/2019/05/13/hunger-warning-after-early-drought-hits-dprk-10-1-million-in-need-of-urgent-food-assistance/

here is another article out of rimjingang reporting starving farmers because regime set such high quotas

http://www.asiapress.org/rimjin-gang/2019/04/recommendations/rural-starvation/

more news of food shortages

this was mentioned by the ice age farmer in his presentation of the cooling climate.

he sited this article

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/north-korea-food-report-1.5121684

with the growing season getting shorter for everyone, it will be particularly hard for north Koreans (as usual) because of sanctions and lack of fertilizer.

here is the video (North Korea at the 3:45 mark)

introducing No Chain for North Korea

No Chain is an organization that was started by a North Korean by the name of Jung Gwang-il.

he spent time in Yodok political prison camp and was released in 2003.
Shortly after, he managed to escape his homeland

His strategy has been to send rice in bottles, radios, dvd's and information about the outside world on usb drives or sd cards.
the groups delivery method has traditionally been via the sea currents that flow towards North Korea or balloons floated over the border but they are now looking at drone delivery.
the group also helps NK refugees get out of China and in to safe countries.

i see this group as worth supporting.

you can read about Jung Gwang-il in this article

https://www.mic.com/articles/186655/i-spent-a-day-with-north-korean-defectors-who-lived-through-hell-and-want-a-revolution

here is a video of the founder at the Oslo freedom forum which is embedded in the article but i'll post it here anyway

they have a facebook page but i think they have a website in the works

https://www.facebook.com/NKNoChain/

here are some pictures of the group doing their work

 

How many churches are there in North Korea?

How many churches are there in North Korea?
There are about 500 churches in North Korea.

Pyongyang Seminary educates pastors and new pastors are dispatched to churches throughout North Korea.

Worship is almost the same as ordinary churches do.

What is the difference between North Korean churches and ordinary churches in the world?

The main purpose of North Korean is the unification of Korea, while the main goals of churches is mission and evangelism.

http://news.kmib.co.kr/article/view.asp?arcid=0924077123&code=23111111&cp=nv

agriculture will continue to deteriorate in North Korea

been looking into the climate lately and despite what the nightly news tells you, the world is not warming. it's cooling.

we are headed into what they call a solar minimum where the sunspots are much less than what they are normally which translates to a drastic cooling effect on this planet and every other planet in the solar system.
the sun drives the climate, not us.

what we are seeing now is unseasonable weather, difficult to predict weather and this is causing large crop losses all over the place.

so i started thinking about North Korea and how they are really going to suffer.
for a start, they are right up there in the northern latitudes. the winters will come sooner, be more severe and last longer.
crop losses will be huge.

here is an article from the DailyNK describing the current state of agriculture. written by a North Korean

https://www.dailynk.com/english/north-korea-requires-assistance-to-improve-agricultural-infrastructure/

so if they have trouble with their current system now, they are really going to have trouble in the next few years.
every country including the united states, is starting to feel the effects of this solar minimum and in two or three years, there will be no denying it.
those of us in the developed world are going to see food prices rise and then we'll see food shortages.
for the North Koreans, it could be like going back to the 90's famine all over again but this time with much colder weather.

some of you might be familiar with the chinese ghost cities. there has been lots of speculation regarding these but i'm starting to think they are well aware of what is coming and have built these cities ahead of time in anticipation of some areas of china going offline. meaning uninhabitable or at least not able to grow food or have livestock.
in the video below, David DuByne points this out.
the chinese are also building ghost cities in angola africa along the equatorial region

ghost city in the middle of angola

Kim Jong-Un has probably been told this by his chinese counterpart which could explain the friendly stance with South Korea and United States as well.

here is the  video. something to think about.

Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick

"My hope is that one day North Korea will be open and we will be able to judge for ourselves what really happened there." --Barbara Demick

In Barbara Demick's 2010 book, Nothing to Envy, evidence collected from areas across North Korea, unseen and unheard, caused a fascination to "discern what was behind those blank faces." For Demick, the desensitized conformity of North Koreans was clearly unnatural, leading to extensive research throughout South Korea with former residents of the North. Incidentally, In Demick's own words, "I wanted that place [North Korea], to be far from the well-manicured sights that the North Korean government shows to foreign visitors- even if it meant I would be writing about a place that was off limits." As a result, Demick compiled conversations over a period of 7 years to come together in her provocative novel. Over the following weeks, comprehensive analysis of Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy will focus primarily on personal influences North Korea has had on its citizens and further steps taken to aid in the current circumstances.

young fortune teller executed late last year and others sent to prison..

very sad to hear that a girl in her early 20's was executed for fortune telling.

the article states that the regime is cracking down on outside media and alternative ideologies.

https://www.dailynk.com/english/fortune-teller-executed-by-firing-squad/