It is said that local public sentiment is plummeting due to lack of full support for residents of Jagang Province, where flood damage occurred at the end of July.
According to multiple Daily NK Jagang Province sources on the 5th, flood victims in Seonggan-gun, Jeoncheon-gun, and Janggang-gun in Jagang Province are still unable to return home three months after suffering flood damage at the end of July.
Seonggan-gun, Jeoncheon-gun, and Yangtze-gun not only have deep and rugged mountains, but also have many terrains where waterways coming down from the mountains merge, so there were many places where landslides occurred due to heavy rain last summer. As a result, serious damage occurred, with many homes, as well as munitions factories, being buried or flooded.
As residents were left to live in hanji, the local People’s Committee at the time stepped in to investigate residents who could provide rooms or warehouses to the flood victims who had lost their homes, and even directly connected them with the flood victims. This is the third month that the flood victims have been living in other people’s houses. Sources say it is continuing.
Currently, construction of residential homes is underway in flood-prone areas. In relation to this, Chairman Kim Jong-un visited the flood damage recovery site in Jagang Province for the first time on the 21st of last month and said, “We will decide whether to extend and complete the construction of houses in the disaster area, which was supposed to be completed by early November, until early December.”
According to Chairman Kim’s instructions, the flood victims are expected to move into new homes in early December, but the flood victims are said to be complaining, saying, “Will our living situation improve if we move into a new house with only a frame?”
Moreover, residents who lost all their household goods due to floods are still expressing frustration and desperation.
A source from Jagang Province said, “There are many houses where all 5 and 6 units (home appliances such as wardrobes, bedding cabinets, cupboards, TV sets and refrigerators) were swept away by floods.” He added, “It still took 20 years to prepare 5 and 6 units.” “There are many people who lament that 20 years of their lives are gone,” he said.
In addition, even though kimchi season has begun, the sighs of the flood victims who cannot afford to make kimchi because they are living in someone else’s house are getting deeper. In North Korea, where food is not abundant, kimchi is so important to the people’s dietary life that it is called ‘semi-annual food.’ This is because people are unable to make kimchi at their own homes, even though they help their families make kimchi.
Meanwhile, it was reported that residents’ complaints were rampant as the Jagang Provincial Party Committee carried out a project to raise money for flood recovery costs for three consecutive months from August to October.
According to another Jagang Province source, in early October, an order was issued through the People’s Unit to pay flood recovery costs of 10,000 North Korean won per household.
This source said, “With 10,000 won, I can buy 1.5 kg of rice right away. I don’t have money for even a single grain of rice, so I eat it sparingly, but having to pay 10,000 won is very difficult.”
He explains that although they do not burden the flood victims with recovery costs, residents who have rented their homes to the flood victims are also paying the recovery costs without exception, putting the flood victims in the awkward situation of having to worry about their homeowners.
In addition, local residents are said to be pouring out criticism for the lack of state support compared to North Pyongan Province. It refers to the relative sense of deprivation compared to North Pyongan Province.
The source said, “When heavy water (flood) occurred in Jagang Province, even a rescue plane (helicopter) could not be launched. It is understandable that a rescue plane (helicopter) could not be launched due to the nature of the area with many high-voltage lines due to the concentration of munitions factories, but there were no recovery efforts or material support after the flood. “There is a lot of dissatisfaction with the fact that residents have to solve everything through self-reliance,” he said.
Source: www.dailynk.com
