Day: November 9, 2021

Authorities in North Korea have ordered factories and businesses in rural provinces to send workers to the capital Pyongyang to work on an ambitious housing project that has fallen behind schedule, sources in the country told RFA.

Pyongyang, North Korea’s largest city with a population of about 3 million, suffers from a severe housing shortage. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un promised at the ruling Korean Workers’ Party congress in January to build 50,000 houses by the end of 2025, including 10,000 homes in 2021.

Construction began almost immediately after the announcement, with organizers utilizing the military to provide special brigades of laborers called storm troopers.

But the project needs even more labor to stay on schedule, so rural businesses are being forced to send some of their employees to the capital before the end of the year. The workers are reluctant to go out of fear they will be forced to work long hours in freezing temperatures.

“External construction on the 10,000 homes is already complete, but no matter how hard we try to convince them that they will only be working inside the buildings, no one wants to go to the Pyongyang construction site,” an official from a company in Hyesan, a city on the border with China, told RFA’s Korean Service Nov. 4.

“Our superiors have designated the number of workers to be mobilized in each factory according to its size and number of employees. Our company has 120 employees, so we had to send three workers to Pyongyang,” said the source, who requested anonymity to speak freely.

Workers who are mobilized for construction jobs typically spend months on site and can only return home to see their families once during their time away, the source said. Workers sent to Pyongyang, which is a controlled area, are not even afforded a single visit home, the source said.

“The 10,000 houses must be completed within the year, so if you are mobilized for the Pyongyang housing construction, you will have to work hard day and night, so who would want to go?” the source said. 

A factory in Puryong county in the northeastern province of North Hamgyong sent two out of its 70 workers to Pyongyang for the housing project, a factory official told RFA.

“Since no one wanted to volunteer, after long discussions, the employees decided to draw lots to decide who should be mobilized first,” said the second source, who requested anonymity for security reasons.

“Since the Pyongyang residential construction project will continue for the next five years, the employees will take turns being mobilized every two months,” the second source said. 

Authorities punish factory and company officials who do not fill their mobilization quota, according to the second source.

“If we are desperate, we disguise a homeless person as a factory worker and send him to the storm troopers,” the second source said.

Under that arrangement the homeless person will receive raincoats, winter work clothes and underwear, and will be paid 30,000 won (U.S. $6) each month.

“Many residents feel that mobilization is like they are being dragged somewhere to go die, because they will be unable to eat properly in a place far away from home, and must work hard for several months on end.

“The high-ranking officials who have never had to send their children to the storm troopers will never be able to understand the feelings of the people.”

Financial support

Those who are not made to donate their labor to the project must instead financially support it, to the tune of 50,000 won ($10) per household, a resident of Hyesan’s surrounding Ryanggang province told RFA.

“Families who cannot afford to pay the support money must offer 5kg of pine nuts or 20kg of herbal medicines,” said the third source, who declined to be named.

Many citizens are already in survival mode due to the dire economic situation in the country. They resent that they have to pay for houses they will never live in, in a city they may never be allowed to visit, the source said.

The economy, which was under pressure because of international nuclear sanctions before the coronavirus pandemic hit, is now in shambles thanks in part to the suspension of trade between North Korea and China ordered to stop the spread of the deadly virus.

The suspension has led to higher food prices and shortages bad enough to prompt the government to warn its people to prepare for a situation worse than the 1994-1998 famine, which killed millions of North Koreans.

Even the police, who under normal circumstances can use their influence to extract bribes from the people, must pay into the project, an official in North Hamgyong told RFA.

“At the end of October the Ministry of Social Security sent an internal directive to each province to make each police officer send support money of $100 to $300 each,” said the fourth source.

“Officers in the traffic division were made to donate $300 per officer. They think that the way they can prepare such a high amount is to enforce stronger traffic crackdowns and collect more bribes, so the drivers here will have a hard time very soon.”

Mobilization for government projects is standard practice in North Korea. Most citizens are ordered to provide free labor on farms and infrastructure projects every year. Usually, they work on projects in their own communities and will eat some of the food they farm or use the roads they maintain and buildings they construct.

But only North Koreans with connections who are deemed the most loyal are bestowed with the right to live in Pyongyang, where they have access to better food, education and employment opportunities.

The rural workers forced to construct new homes in the capital may never visit Pyongyang again in their lifetimes.

Reported by Chang Gyu Ahn and Myung Chul Lee for RFA’s Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.

A military court in Myanmar on Tuesday sentenced the former National League for Democracy (NLD) chief minister of Kayin state to 75 years in prison for “corruption,” the latest example of a harsh punishment observers say is aimed at undermining party leadership.

Nang Khin Htwe Myint, 67, was found guilty by the Hpa-an Prison Special Court in Kayin state on five separate charges under the Anti-Corruption Law and handed a maximum 15 years in prison for each case, her defense lawyer Aung Thane told RFA’s Myanmar Service. The NLD Central Executive Committee member had been sentenced to two years in jail in August for “state defamation,” bringing her total sentence to 77 years.

Also found guilty of corruption on Tuesday was Than Naing, a former Kayin state minister and one of Nang Khin Htwe Myint’s cabinet members. The 65-year-old, who had also been handed two years in August for state defamation, was sentenced to 90 years in prison on six separate charges under the Anti-Corruption Law.

Speaking to RFA following the court proceedings, Aung Thane said that his client has no intention of appealing her sentence.

“Nang Khin Htwe Myint is in good health. So is Than Naing — although he had a bout of COVID-19 in prison, he is in good health now,” the lawyer said.

“Both of them [reacted calmly to the sentencing] in line with their strong beliefs. They were already expecting a harsh sentence, so they didn’t seem to be in shock.”

According to Aung Thane, one of the charges Nang Khin Htwe Myint faced was related to her failure to return 1.3 million kyats (U.S. $720) from 5 million kyats (U.S. $2,800) in state funds she borrowed when she required medical treatment following a car accident. The other four were filed against both her and Than Naing, who lent state funds to individuals and failed to repay the loan.

Observers said chief ministers under Thein Sein’s civilian-led Union Solidarity and Development Party government, which ruled Myanmar from 2011 to 2016, had been involved in similar cases of misappropriation of funds but were only made to return the money by the succeeding NLD government and not sent to prison.

‘Hatred and vengeance’

Saw Than Htut, Nang Khin Htwe Myint’s brother, told RFA that the junta’s imposition of harsh sentences was unfair.

“There can never be any justice. It’s so obvious they did it with a sense of hatred and vengeance,” he said, adding that his family “knew [the punishment] was coming.”

“My sister is now almost 70 years old. I’m just worried she will face harsh conditions in prison.”

Nang Khin Htwe Myint, a strong supporter of Aung San Suu Kyi, was detained days after the military seized power from the NLD in a Feb. 1 coup.

Nine months after the Feb. 1 coup, security forces have killed 1,250 civilians and arrested at least 7,134, according to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. Many of the deaths and arrests have occurred during crackdowns on anti-junta protests.

The junta claims it unseated the NLD government because the party had engineered its victory in the 2020 election through widespread voter fraud, though international observers rated the vote legitimate. It has yet to present evidence backing up the allegation, and protests against the military regime continue.

Also detained in the aftermath of the coup were de facto NLD chief and former State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, both of whom face a plethora of charges that observers say are politically motivated and could see them sentenced to decades in jail.

Undermining party leadership

Political analyst Than Soe Naing told RFA that the junta is using long prison terms to undermine the leadership of the NLD party.

“Basically, it is a part of the plan to break up and bury the NLD politically by sentencing NLD leaders to long prison terms,” he said.

“Are these [sentences] in accordance with the law? No. The laws passed by the junta [since the coup] are now the laws of Myanmar, so they are doing whatever they want.”

Nang Khin Htwe Myint’s sentence is the longest handed to a chief minister since the military coup.

Than Soe Naing said that the sentencing of Nang Khin Htwe Myint and other top NLD leaders suggests that Aung San Suu Kyi could spend up to 100 years in prison if convicted for the 11 charges she faces.

A total of 45 NLD cabinet members were arrested under Myanmar’s Anti-Corruption Law, as well as Aung San Suu Kyi and several state and regional chief ministers — all within the first seven months of the military takeover. Nyan Win, a top NLD official and Aung San Suu Kyi’s personal lawyer, died in detention on July 20.

Reported by RFA’s Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

Four pieces of ancient Khmer art held for years in the collection of a U.S. museum will go back to Cambodia following news that the items were illegally sold, U.S. officials and a museum spokesman said.

Dating from the 12^th to 18^th centuries, three of the pieces displayed at the Denver Art Museum in Colorado depict religious themes, while the fourth, a bronze bell, dates from the Iron Age, according to a civil complaint filed Monday by the U.S. Attorney’s office of the Southern District of New York.

All will be returned to Cambodia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement Tuesday, adding that the museum, which had kept the objects on display, has “voluntarily relinquished possession of the antiquities” purchased from late art dealer Douglas Latchford, who had procured them in Cambodia under questionable circumstances.

“As alleged, Douglas Latchford papered over the problematic provenance of Cambodian antiquities with falsehoods,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in its statement, adding, “Eradicating the illegal trade in stolen antiquities requires the vigilance of all parties in the art market, especially cultural institutions.”

Theft of the objects was revealed last month by an international investigation by a team of journalists called The Pandora Papers that uncovered tax documents showing how wealthy individuals including Latchford had hidden wealth overseas.

An indictment against Latchford for trafficking in antiquities looted by others from Cambodian temples and archeological sites was dismissed in September 2020 following his death, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

The Denver Art Museum welcomed news of the civil complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, according to a Nov. 8 report by The Denver Post.

“Ensuring proper ownership of antiquities is an obligation the museum takes seriously, and the museum is grateful that these pieces will be returning to their rightful home,” a museum spokesman said, quoted in the Post.

“The works are still in the care of the museum until the next step of the process to transfer them,” the museum said.

Spokespeople for the Cambodian government were not available for comment Tuesday.

Cambodia was known as the Khmer Empire from the 9th century to the 15th century. The powerful Hindu/Buddhist empire at its peak ruled over most of mainland Southeast Asia, leaving behind its majestic capital Angkor, famed for the Angkor Wat temple complex.

Villagers in a commune in north-central Vietnam are pushing back hard against a developer’s plans to build a cemetery and crematorium near their homes, saying they fear pollution and have not been consulted on the project, RFA has learned.

Residents of the Hung Tay commune in Nghe An province’s Hung Nguyen district posted a Facebook video on Monday showing police officers violently dispersing villagers who had gathered to protest at the entrance to the site.

The cemetery project at Dai Hue mountain is located uphill and only 1,200 meters (3,937 feet) from the nearest residential area, and villagers had already put up tents at the cemetery’s entrance to stop construction work from moving ahead, local sources said.

“The distance from the project’s fences to where we live is not great enough and it isn’t safe,” one resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “This will affect our lives, and especially our sources of water and wind,” he said.

Though developers say that area residents have already consented to the project, no papers exist to document their agreement, RFA’s source said. “We never signed anything saying we had been consulted, and without this document, the provincial government should never have approved this project.”

Claims by developers that VND 40 billion (U.S. $1,765) has already been paid in compensation for 32.5 hectares of land handed over by government authorities for the project are also false, the source said.

“In fact, we haven’t received any notification about the land that was acquired, about who will receive compensation for the land, or even how much they will receive,” he said. “Where is that VND 40 billion now, and who is holding it?” he asked.

Commune residents have asked provincial authorities and the project’s developers for answers to these questions, but have so far received no response, he said.

‘Provoked to protest’

A video of Monday’s clash between residents and police circulated widely on social media this week, with many viewers commenting that villagers had been provoked into launching their protests. Speaking to RFA, one resident said their blockade of the worksite was not aimed at opposing government authority, however.

“All we did was to set up some tents to prevent construction and protect the land,” he said. “That’s all this was, there was nothing else.”

“However, the authorities did send some policemen in, and so a few minor clashes with the residents occurred,” he said, adding that no one had been arrested in the clash.

Attempts to reach Hung Tay commune authorities for comment received no response, and RFA was unable to independently verify reports from another source that police had used weapons to disperse the crowd.

According to state-run Nghe An Television, a majority of the province’s residents have agreed to construction of the cemetery and crematorium, though a few individuals may still oppose the plan due to a “lack of understanding” of the project.

While all land is ultimately held by the state, land confiscations have become a flashpoint as residents accuse the government of pushing small landholders aside in favor of lucrative real estate projects, and of paying too little in compensation.

Reported by RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Translated by Anna Vu. Written in English by Richard Finney.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum said Tuesday that it is “gravely concerned” that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is committing genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in northwestern China’s Xinjiang region.

In a 60-page report, titled “To Make Us Slowly Disappear: The Chinese Government’s Assault on the Uyghurs,” confirms an earlier allegation made by the museum that China is committing crimes against humanity in its targeted persecution of Muslims living within its borders.

“We have stated previously and reaffirmed today that crimes against humanity are being committed with impunity by the Chinese government,” said Naomi Kikoler, director of the Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, a research arm within the museum, during a videoconference to accompany the report’s release.

The museum in Washington, D.C., describes itself as the official U.S. memorial to the millions of Jews killed during the Nazi’s reign in Germany during World War II. Part of its publicly and privately funded mission is to identify other crimes against humanity and to work to stop them.

The report analyzes additional information that has come to light concerning the treatment of Uyghurs since the museum’s March 2020 announcement that there was a reasonable basis to believe that the CCP had committed crimes against humanity in its harsh treatment of Uyghurs.

“The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is gravely concerned that the Chinese government may be committing genocide against the Uyghurs,” the report says. “The Chinese government is failing in its legal obligation to prevent this crime. The seriousness of the assault on the Uyghur population demands the immediate response of the international community to protect the victims.”

The report details the Chinese government’s campaign against the Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities. The allegations it points to include forced labor, mass incarceration, the repression of religious and cultural expression, sexual violence against women, forced sterilization and other birth prevention measures, and the transfer of Uyghur children from their families to boarding schools without the consent of their parents.

“There is also clear evidence, much of it coming from leaked Chinese government documents, that the aforementioned actions against the Uyghurs are committed in accordance with government policy,” said the report, which adds to a growing number of witness testimonies, statements and other studies detailing the plight of the Uyghurs.

The U.S. in January said that it determined that the Chinese government was committing genocide and crimes against humanity against the Uyghurs. Parliaments in Canada, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Belgium, and the United Kingdom passed motions that reached the same conclusion or stated genocide was a serious risk in the region.

Additionally, the U.S. Commerce Department placed dozens of Chinese entities implicated in crimes in Xinjiang on its “Entity List,” which prevents American companies from exporting technology goods and services to the parties.

U.S. lawmakers passed the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act in June 2020, requiring the tracking of and reporting of human rights violations against Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities in Xinjiang and the imposition of sanctions on individuals participating in their persecution.

The U.S. Senate also passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act in July 2021, which would ban the import of goods from Xinjiang unless importers could certify that the items were not manufactured with forced labor.

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, co-chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China and co-chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, called China’s actions “a campaign to totally erase from the earth the culture, identity, religion, and the lives of a distinct community of people.”

“This is crimes against humanity,” he said in prerecorded remarks delivered during the videoconference. “The State Department calls it a genocide. Whatever the label, our morality and our law demand that we act.”

The report says that the U.S. and other countries have not done enough to stop the campaign against the Uyghurs. It calls on the Chinese government to allow an investigation by an independent and impartial group into their treatment.

And it recommends that the U.S. State Department take further action, including an effort to broaden a coalition of governments dedicated to stopping the atrocities. That would include releasing the information it relied on to make its determination that the treatment of Uyghurs amounted to an act of genocide.

The U.S. director of national intelligence should work with the State Department to examine whether any of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects use forced labor, the report states.

Other countries should coordinate a sanctions strategy, establish a joint monitoring mechanism to ensure that BRI projects comply with international labor standards, and ensure the protection of Uyghur refugees, the report states.

The Chinese Communist Party is engaged in a systematic campaign to erase the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang,” U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, former co-chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, said in prerecorded remarks played during the videoconference.

“Silence is not an option,” he said. “We must raise our voices, rally governments and corporations alike, and stop this ongoing genocide.”

Underfed inmates at Cambodia’s Prey Sar prison suffer sleepless nights in unhygienic, overcrowded cells, unless they can pay corrupt prison guards to for enough room to lie down, an activist released this week after serving a 14-month stint at the prison told RFA.

Eng Malai, 31, better known as So Metta, is a member of the Khmer Thavrak youth organization.

She and several others were arrested in Sept. 2020 for their involvement in protests over the imprisonment of union leader Rong Chhun, currently serving a two year sentence for his criticism of the government’s handling of a longstanding border dispute with neighboring Vietnam.

So Metta and nine other Rong Chhun supporters were sentenced together last month to 20 months in prison, and all set to be released early in November, with credit for time served.

Upon her release from Prey Sar, located in the capital Phnom Penh, So Metta told RFA’s Khmer Service Monday that the prisoners suffered health problems due to poor sanitation, bad food, insufficient water, and severe overcrowding.

“They served two tiny meals a day that were very low in nutrients. Poor inmates include me have no choice, but to eat it,” she said

“Some people got stomachache and diarrhea, or itching or edema after eating the food. Even so, they still get hungry again right away because the food doesn’t provide any nutrients. It is an even lower quality than dog and pig food,” she said.

Additionally the prison is a hotbed for corruption, where the prisoners with means can pay prison staff to be put in a cell with better conditions.

“Some cells were packed with 170-200 inmates. Space was sold by counting the tiles on the floor, then charging by the tile. Of course the prison officials would deny this,” So Metta said.

“There are countless injustices happening in the prison and I wrote them down in my dairy, but it was confiscated by the prison officials. But, it does not matter because I saved them all in my head,” she said.

She described several instances of mistreatment including inmates contracting COVID-19 and dying shortly after receiving vaccines.

“They got vaccines at the time when the weather was deadly hot and there was a black out and no water in the prison. You know, the majority of the prisoners are poor, they drink water from the faucets and when there is no water, they have no money to buy bottled water to drink or bathe,” she said.   

So Metta said her imprisonment was an example of the government trying to silence Cambodians who stand up for the rest of society.

“It’s not fair to me because they will still press charges against us. They follow us, ban us from travelling abroad or doing anything,” she said.

“I remain determined to maintain the same level of activism as long as my country is still experiencing injustice, people losing their land, and people crying for help,” she said.

Five of the other nine activists were released from Prey Sar last week.

In September, the World Justice Project, a Washington-based independent group that promotes rule of law, ranked Cambodia next to last — ahead only of Venezuela — in its global Rule of Law Index for 2021.

Reported by RFA’s Khmer Service. Translated by Sum Sok Ry. Written in English by Eugene Whong.