UN Report: North Korean Officials Extorting Money From Struggling Population

(The Hill) Chris Mills Rodrigo 05/28/19 08:38 AM North Koreans are being forced to pay officials bribes to survive while the government fails to provide for lifes basic necessities according to a United Nations report released Tuesday. The report details the collapse of North Koreas public distribution system over the last two decades and describes the nations citizens are now forced to seek goods in a dangerous parallel economy. The rights to food health shelter work freedom of movement and liberty are universal and inalienable but in North Korea they depend primarily on the ability of individuals to bribe State officials" UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said. The report was compiled using first-hand testimony of 214 escapees gathered by UN Human Rights staff in South Korea in 2017 and 2018. State-organized jobs and distribution are insufficient to survive according to the report. When citizens try to engage in any rudimentary market activity they reportedly face arrest and detention. For example traveling within the country without a permit can be punishable with jail time. That threat of arrest allows North Korean officials to extort money and other bribes the report says. I felt it unfair that one could bribe ones way out of detention when another suffers much more as a result of being unable to bribe one escapee told the UN. Bribery is effective in North Korea. One cannot lead a life in North Korea if he or she does not bribe his or her way."