On July 30, 2022, the Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported that over 110 high school graduates from North Pyongan Province 'volunteered' to work at socialist construction sites. (Rodong Sinmun, News1)
The North Korean authorities have launched a sweeping campaign to encourage young people to “volunteer” for life in tougher parts of the country. In reality, the Socialist Patriotic Youth League has been targeting young people who have been lax in their organizational duties or caused trouble, pressuring them to volunteer in exchange for pardons.
According to a Daily NK source in South Pyongan province recently, the provincial Socialist Patriotic Youth League committee ordered local city and county branches early this month to recruit youth volunteers for work in mines and other demanding sectors.
However, young people have been using various tactics to avoid this semi-forced mobilization, leaving Socialist Patriotic Youth League committees struggling to meet recruitment targets.
In response, Kaechon’s Socialist Patriotic Youth League branch presented subordinate organizations with a plan to identify troublemakers and pressure them to volunteer for difficult assignments.
The plan targeted individuals who have been negligent in their organizational duties, watched illegal videos, used South Korean expressions, or faced criminal or administrative punishment for activities like drug use or gambling. These individuals would be sent to harsh working environments in exchange for having their misconduct forgiven.
“Since issues like gambling, watching illegal videos, or using South Korean expressions can be arbitrarily defined, many young people volunteer simply to avoid punishment,” the source said.
Kaechon’s Socialist Patriotic Youth League branch sent approximately 80 “volunteers” to mines last year using this same method. By March of this year, they had already added about 20 more young people to their list of mine volunteers by exploiting their history of illegal behavior.
“A young person I know was caught by a party secretary discussing a South Korean TV show with a friend and was subsequently sent to the mines,” the source said.
“They talk extensively on TV and in newspapers about people voluntarily going to tough areas, but it’s actually forced mobilization,” the source added. “This absurd situation reveals the true nature of what they call a beautiful patriotic act by our young people.”
Meanwhile, Socialist Patriotic Youth League organizations find this approach of sending troublemakers to difficult regions particularly effective.
In the past, young people strongly resisted such assignments, knowing they were unlikely to return once sent to mines or other harsh locations—and that their children would likely spend their lives there too. Now, those guilty of various infractions accept these assignments out of fear of worse punishment.
“League managers say that leveraging these young people’s vulnerabilities to gain their ‘consent’ is a much more efficient approach,” the source said. “The managers actually prefer this method, claiming that having more ‘problematic’ young people is good for boosting their recruitment numbers.”
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