Sinuiju residents bear cost of North Korea’s spring beautification drive

Authorities in Sinuiju, North Pyongan province, are forcing people along thoroughfares and railways to fund and carry out a state beautification campaign at their own expense, fueling discontent, Daily NK has learned.

A source in North Pyongan province, who requested anonymity for security reasons, told Daily NK recently that building exteriors are being repainted, flowers are being planted and trees are being pruned in affected areas. Authorities are particularly focused on sprucing up homes that are visible from vehicles and trains.

While the neighborhood beautification campaign is a yearly initiative, demands to clean up areas that are exposed to the outside have intensified recently.

“Families along the railroad face the greatest pressure to renovate because they’re more exposed than those downtown. A fresh coat of paint is the baseline demand — sometimes officials want the windows replaced as well,” the source said.

Members of neighborhood watch units in affected areas are not only mobilized for the work but are also expected to provide necessary supplies such as paint and sand.

Border exposure adds pressure to already strained people

With people already supporting various state-organized construction projects, the added demands of the beautification campaign are stoking broader discontent.

“It’s inefficient to expect the same contributions from everybody instead of adjusting the load according to each family’s financial situation,” some have remarked.

Officials on the ground have shown little patience for such complaints. When citizens raise grievances, heads of neighborhood watch units and local government offices tend to respond with irritation. “If that’s a burden for you, perhaps you ought to live somewhere less conspicuous rather than right by the street,” one official reportedly said.

Some locals have ruefully noted that “when you’re hard up, I guess you have to stay out of the way.”

Some observers believe the beautification drive goes beyond routine spring cleaning and amounts to an effort to improve North Korea’s image for foreign observers. As a border city and a hub of trade with China, Sinuiju is particularly exposed to outside scrutiny, giving the regime strong incentive to manage how the area presents itself to foreigners.

Projects foisted on locals without state support, however, tend to deepen grievances.

“With so many projects going on at once, including spring cleaning and the construction drive, people are under a heavy load. The worst part is that disgruntled people have no choice but to do as they’re told,” the source said.

With neighborhood watch units facing additional work assignments and out-of-pocket costs through the spring cleaning period, internal discontent is expected to keep mounting in the months ahead.

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