Daily NK

North Korea returned six male South Korean citizens to the South via Panmunjeom at approximately 4.50PM today. The move comes in accordance with a surprise notice the North issued yesterday via the inter-Korean Red Cross channel.According to the Ministry of Unification, the six are Kim (44), Song (27), Yoon (67), Lee (65), Jong (43), and Hwang (56). While the Ministry did not provide further details regarding identities, dates or routes taken to the North, there is a high likelihood the group includes four people previousl..

In South Korea, October 9th is normally celebrated as the anniversary of the creation of the Korean alphabet in the era of King Sejong. This year, however, some spent the holiday a different way: honoring the third anniversary of the death of Hwang Jang Yop, the highest-ranking North Korean official ever to defect to the South.Around one hundred people from various backgrounds, including defectors, lawmakers, student groups, human rights NGOs and the media, all gathered at Daejeon National Cemetery to pay their respects be..

North Korea has held a meeting of the nation’s company commanders and company political leaders for the first time in 13 years, where Kim reportedly gave an address. Today’s issue of the Rodong Sinmun contained a six-page spread dedicated to the event, omitting the usual international news section and criticism leveled against South Korea. In his opening speech, Kim Jong Eun declared the venue a “place of deep significance,” as Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il led similar meetings in the same spot.The contents of an address by..

North Korea imported 386 high-end Swiss watches this year, it has been revealed. According to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, mechanical and digital watches with a combined value of US$76,000 were purchased by the North in 2013.This figure represents a 50% decrease from 2012.“North Korea purchases a very small number of watches, as the domestic market for watches is small,” Head of the Economy and Statistics Department at the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry Philippe Pegoraro told Radio Free Asia on the 2..

South Korea's top security advisor Kim Jang Soo met with United States National Security Advisor Susan Rice yesterday to discuss the transfer of wartime operational control and the North Korea nuclear issue.Kim’s visit to the United States marks the first time U.S and South Korean top security advisors have met in an official capacity since Park Geun Hye assumed office earlier this year.While both parties are open to dialogue with North Korea, “talks would not occur for the sake of talks,” and it remains essential that “No..

In a shock move, North Korea has notified South Korea of its intention to return six South Korean citizens, at least four of whom may have illegally entered the country more than three years ago, the Ministry of Unification has revealed.A ministerial official told reporters on October 24th, “Via a notice issued in the name of the chair of the Central Committee of the Chosun Red Cross Society, North Korea today gave notice that it will send back six of our detained citizens tomorrow afternoon via Panmunjeom.”“On February 26..

It has been confirmed that in approximately 70 days following the shutdown of the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC) in April this year, North Korea used a further 1.14 million tons of water. South Korea’s public water utility, K-water made the figures public today as part of a regular National Assembly audit of the incumbent administration. Democratic Party lawmaker Park Gi Chun, citing the findings of a K-water report into water use, stated, “In accordance with K-water’s crisis response manual, they shut off the water sup..

The daily publication of North Korea’s ruling Chosun Workers’ Party, Rodong Sinmun reported yesterday on an international seminar on SEZs (Special Economic Zones) held in Pyongyang on the 16th and 17th by the Chosun Economic Development Committee. The piece confirmed that in addition to North Korea’s four existing SEZs, Rason, Hwanggeumpyeong-Wihwa Island, the Kaesong Industrial Complex, and the Mt. Geumgang International Tourist Zone, this year another fourteen SEZs have been created around the country.It also cited a sta..

Members of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee are to be allowed to visit the Kaesong Industrial Complex on October 30th. North Korea sent confirmation of the visit today, eight days after the South issued its original request. A representative of the Ministry of Unification told reporters on the 24th; "The North expressed its acceptance of our application at 9AM today,” adding, “The visit will go ahead on the 30th as previously agreed with the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee."“As the..

Despite the best efforts of the regime, South Korean media content is growing increasingly popular among the youth of North Korea. Now it has emerged that the same cadres tasked with cracking down on such activity have also started to enjoy South Korean movies and dramas.Former resident of Pyongyang Lee Jung Chul spoke at a seminar hosted by the North Korea Strategy Center in Seoul on the 22nd. Keeping with the seminar’s theme of the role of media in transforming a socialist society, he explained, “At every market in Nort..

New statistics reveal that 3,137,550 people were impacted by natural disasters last year in North Korea, of whom 147 died. Based on 2012 population statistics, this implies that 13% of the total North Korean population was detrimentally affected by natural phenomena in some way during the period.The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)’ “World Disasters Report 2013” shows that North Korea ranked 7th out of 49 countries in Asia for disaster victims in 2012.Most notably, North Korea suffere..

Recent reports detailing Kim Jong Eun’s visits to the newly constructed Mirim Riding Club and Munsu Water Park show public facilities that appear to provide no direct benefit to a majority of the people of North Korea, and raise questions about the underlying motivation for such projects. Inevitably, media outlets in the North laud the sites as being “filled with the benevolence of the Marshal," and places “full of the love and care the Marshal has for the people.” Since early this year, Kim Jong Eun has displayed a consis..

After our four day trip to Chosun was over, we boarded a train headed for Dandong. During the last trip we were in a rush to get home so we didn’t have a chance to look around Dandong, so this time we allowed for a day of sightseeing in the city. We also planned spend a day in Sinuiju, Chosun. It cost 780 yuan per person. I first visited Sinuiju five years ago, when I arrived there from Dandong to transfer for a train bound for Pyongyang. At the time there were frequent power cuts, and I had to wait for three hours. Whe..

North Korea has criticized South Korea’s plans to increase its psychological warfare operations from next year, asserting that, “Trying to undermine the morale of the military and the people by such methods is like trying to crack a rock with an egg.”In a Chosun Central News Agency (KCNA) editorial released yesterday entitled “The New Psychological Warfare Racket That Will Hasten Destruction,” it was stated that “the decision to use psychological warfare is no different from openly declaring war against us.” "Instead of ta..