CanKor - 7 May 2004

1. DPRK'S HUMANITARIAN CRISIS GOES BEYOND RYONGCHON
World Food Programme, 6 May 2004
While the international community has rushed to the rescue of victims of last
month's deadly train explosion in North Korea, aid programmes to help millions
of other needy people across the country remain critically under-funded, a
senior United Nations official said today.

"The speed and scale of the response to appeals for the wounded and
homeless of Ryongchon are as heart-warming as they are vital," Tony Banbury,
the World Food Programme's director for Asia, told reporters in the South
Korean capital, Seoul. "But we must not forget the broader humanitarian crisis
that continues to deprive so many more of a very basic diet, drinkable water
and decent healthcare."

Donors have committed almost US$30 million for victims of the 22 April blast
near North Korea's border with China that claimed more than 170 lives, injured
1,300 and made nearly 8,000 homeless.

Banbury, who led a WFP mission that delivered the first international assistance
to Ryongchon and 360 seriously wounded casualties at a hospital in the nearby
city of Sinuiju on 25 April, reiterated his agency's pledge to meet the food needs
of all the survivors over the coming months.

"We are providing nutritious, easy-to-eat meals for hospital patients and their
families, full rations to those without a roof over their heads, and will help
rebuild the devastated township through food-for-work programmes. We will do
so until next autumn's harvest, and beyond if need be."

But Banbury noted that international donations for Ryongchon, which has
27,000 inhabitants, had surpassed in less than a fortnight the US$21 million
mobilised by WFP so far this year for a US$171 million emergency operation
that seeks to feed 6.5 million of North Korea's hungriest children, women and
elderly people in 2004.

A fall-off in contributions has forced WFP to halt vital, supplemental rations to
millions of designated recipients for long periods since mid-2002. In February,
the agency all but ran out of cereals, its staple commodity. Recent shipments,
including 38,000 tonnes of maize from the United States, have afforded some
relief.

Yet the number of "core" beneficiaries not receiving WFP grain is set to rise
from one million now to all 3.8 million in October, unless additional pledges are
made soon. Tens of thousands of North Korean nursery and kindergarten
children have had to make do without enriched vegetable oil -- a key promoter
of physical and mental growth -- for the last six months.

The downturn in food donations risks eroding precious gains in nutritional
standards. A survey by the government, UNICEF and WFP, conducted in late
2002, showed that four out of ten North Korean children suffered from chronic
malnutrition, or stunting, compared to six out of ten in a 1998 assessment.
While increased agricultural production in recent years has reduced the
country's cereals gap, and the need for external assistance, its food crisis is
likely to persist owing to the limited scope for higher output.

Urban residents outside the relatively privileged capital, Pyongyang, heavily
reliant on a Public Distribution System (PDS) providing 300 grams of food a day
-- less than half a survival ration -- are worst affected by the domestic shortfall.
Economic adjustments initiated in mid-2002 have aggravated disparities in
access to basic foods between better-off rural populations and those in urban
areas accounting for some two-thirds of the country's 23 million people.

The government's push for efficiency -- and profit -- has deprived long-ailing
factories of official support, forced large-scale lay-offs, cut incomes and inflated
the prices of staples in private markets where the laws of supply and demand
are becoming more assertive.

Interviews by WFP staff indicate that 70 per cent of PDS-dependent households
are unable to cover their daily calorie requirements. Much of the population is
afflicted by critical dietary deficiencies, consuming very little protein, fat and
micronutrients.

WFP's operating conditions in North Korea are a persistent concern, according
to Banbury. "Existing restrictions limit our ability to properly monitor distributions
and measure needs. We've made progress, especially in the last year or so, but
we have some way to go to reach international standards. We will continue to
work with the Pyongyang government on this."

Banbury, visiting Seoul to brief officials on his week-long mission to North Korea
in late April, said the Republic of Korea remained one of the largest suppliers of
aid to the north through WFP. "While the overall volume of assistance through
us has declined significantly, the South Korean government has maintained its
commitment at 100,000 tonnes annually in each of the past three years. We are
deeply grateful for this crucial support."
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2. US OFFERS AID IN WAKE OF RYONGCHON RAIL DISASTER
White House Office of the Press Secretary, 26 April 2004

The White House issued the following statement April 26 describing plans to
offer assistance to North Korea following last week's rail disaster in Ryongchon:
This weekend we heard first-hand reports about the devastation and loss of life
caused by a train accident in North Korea on April 22, 2004. We are saddened
by these reports. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the incident
and with the families that have suffered terrible loss. We have received the
findings of an international assessment team, and will provide $100,000 through
the Red Cross to purchase supplies for those left homeless by the accident. We
are also prepared to provide medical supplies and equipment, as well as a team
of specialists in emergency medicine to work with the North Koreans, if they are
needed. We provide all humanitarian aid in disasters based on need without
regard to political issues. As one of the largest providers of emergency food aid
to North Korea, we have consistently demonstrated our concern for the people
of that country.
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3. AID MAY IMPROVE DPRK-US TIES SAYS UN AMBASSADOR
Chosun Ilbo, 5 May 2004

A high-ranking North Korean official said American aid to help with the
Ryongchon disaster would help improve the US-DPRK relationship. Mark
Minton, the charge d'affaires at the US Embassy in Seoul, had explained on
Sunday that the US had offered aid to the North through New York channels,
but this is the first time a high-ranking North Korean official said US aid has
been accepted. North Korean Deputy Ambassador to the UN Han Song-ryol
confirmed that his country agreed through the New York channel to accept
American assistance, and expressed anticipation that talks on Ryongchon
disaster relief would continue.

About the agreement reached through New York, Han said, "The United States
expressed its intention to provide though the International Red Cross
US$100,000 in funds to purchase necessities for the victims of the Ryongchon
accident and, in case they were necessary, provide medical supplies."

He said, "In accordance with our agreement, the US agreed to provide standard
WTO emergency relief medical kits." It appeared he couldn't release how many
were provided, saying, "There has yet to be an agreement between the DPRK
and the US concerning the media."

When Han was asked whether they discussed an American plan to provide
medical personnel, he answered, "There have been no concrete talks, but it
seems our local personnel and the international personnel already in North
Korea are sufficient. The currently pressing things are medical supplies and
medical equipment."

About the influence the aid will have on the bilateral relationship between the
United States and North Korea, Han said, "In that the basic problem in the
relationship between the US and the DPRK is mistrust and misunderstanding, if
we can build trust through contacts like this, it will help."

Han also suggested he has hope the contacts will continue, saying, "Dealing
with the losses from the Ryongchon disaster is not something we can finish in a
day, and the places that need aid materials are more than just a few, so
contacts in several forms should be possible."

To those who wonder whether North Korea's unhesitant acceptance of
international assistance, including that from the United States, was
unprecedented, Han said, "We could overcome the small-scale accidents that
took place in the past, but I know we decided to accept outside aid this time
because the accident was huge and we took into consideration our economic
situation." He asked in return, "Doesn't the United States, too, accept outside
aid when a major disaster like a tornado occurs?"
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4. RYONGCHON PEOPLE GRATEFUL FOR NATIONWIDE ASSISTANCE
Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), 4 May 2004

With the world's attention being focused on Ryongchon County, North Pyongan
Province, since the explosion at Ryongchon Railway Station on April 22, a large
number of people have shown up in the ravaged area. They are much surprised
to see the sufferers who are full of confidence and optimism, not in despair over
the serious damage.

An old man who has lived there since his birth told KCNA:
"Public buildings and dwelling houses were devastated in a twinkling. A large
number of people lost their houses. They sighed out their grief. Before nightfall,
however, trucks loaded with meals and daily necessities began to arrive here.
Despair was replaced with hope all at once."

Pak In Sop, a department director of the County People's Committee, said:
"Indeed. I saw such a terrible disaster for the first time in my life. I was at a loss
what to do. Seeing trucks loaded with relief goods coming from different parts of
the country with sound cars in their van, I keenly felt the traits and might of the
Korean people who live like a great harmonious family."

Choe Pyong Ryop, headmaster of Ryongchon Primary School, remarked:
"Our school suffered tremendous losses of lives and property from the
explosion. The teachers and pupils lost everything in a moment. Even in the
critical situation, however, they fully displayed the spirit of guarding the leader at
the cost of their lives and demonstrated a high degree of comradeship and the
noble spirit of collectivism amongst themselves. "Thanks to the devoted efforts
and sincere assistance of the province's people who are deeply aware that the
nation's destiny depends on the education of the rising generation, resumed
lessons only three days after the accident."

The people in the damaged area are unanimous in saying that they, who
suffered from such a terrible disaster, have keenly realized that their leader,
party, social system and people are the best in the world. They also say they
are greatly inspired by the humanitarian aid rendered by various countries.
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5. DPRK TRAIN DISASTER HELPS CLEAR THE TRACKS FOR CHANGE
by Jonathan Watts, Guardian Weekly, 29 April 2004

As the dust starts to settle from last week's huge cargo train explosion, North
Korea's political landscape is suddenly looking a little more mutable than most
observers believed possible at the start of this month. Crises always create
opportunities for change, and the disaster that struck the town of Ryongchon on
April 22 is no different, though policy adjustments are likely to be incremental,
uncertain and tried out in secret if they come at all. But there has already been
a noticeable shift. The blast, which killed more than 160 people, has prompted a
display of openness and humility by the usually reclusive and proud North
Korean government, which pleaded for international help. It has also shifted - at
least temporarily - the international debate on how to deal with arguably the
least globalized country in the world. Instead of alarming reports about Kim
Jong-Il's nuclear weapons programme, foreign news networks have been filled
with heart-rending images of burned children and survivors scavenging among
the debris.

This sympathy has provided foreign champions of an engagement policy -
largely sidelined in Washington and Tokyo under the Bush and Koizumi
administrations - with a powerful means of lobbying for aid to relieve the
humanitarian situation in North Korea. The United States has offered support
and Japan, which has not provided any rice for more than two years, is
expected to donate $100,000 of medical assistance.

International aid workers have welcomed an unprecedented cooperation by the
North Korean authorities. A day after the explosion, the foreign ministry gave a
detailed explanation of what happened to the United Nations, the Red Cross
and other agencies. The government sent out a written plea for international
support and provided unlimited access to the bombsite and the hospital. Aid
workers say they can move freely between Pyongyang and Sinuju, whereas
before they had to apply for approval at least a week in advance.

This is a huge step forward for the Hermit Kingdom. During the famines of the
mid-1990s, the government was so suspicious of the outside world and so
desperate to save face that it waited years - during which time hundreds of
thousands, possibly millions, died - before calling for international aid.
The train explosion appears to have brought into focus longer-term trends,
particularly the increased trust between the North Korean government and
international aid agencies (WFP). When the World Food Programme first began
operations in Pyongyang in 1995, its two-man team couldn't move from its hotel
without minders. Now the aid community is over 100-strong. Aid workers can
move around freely in Pyongyang, Nampo and Wonsan and visit most of the
country.

There are still many tight restrictions. Monitoring visits have to be arranged long
in advance. Several counties - thought to have military facilities or prison camps
- are off limits. Mobile phones are not permitted and the authorities monitor
conversations and movements with bugs and minders. These curbs have put
off many potential donors, who ask, "Why should we give freely if they won't let
our aid workers move freely?"

But the latest emergency has opened up opportunities to push for greater
liberties. The WFP is now asking for mobile phones because it lost contact for
24 hours with one of its staff based close to the site of the explosion. Aid
workers will also try to demonstrate that the unrestricted movement they now
enjoy on the road from Pyongyang to Sinuju should be extended to other areas.
It is too early to say with certainty what the long-term implications of the blast
will be, but it has the political potential of a mini-Chernobyl - the nuclear
accident in Russia that was a catalyst for perestroika and glasnost.

Domestically, the media spotlight on the dilapidated hospital system will give
reformist elements a new means of challenging the current "military first"
policies that have worsened economic hardships.

How much public opinion will be affected is hard to determine. The state-run
media is said to have given the accident very little coverage. The public will
have noticed that the government has expressed gratitude to foreign countries
for their emergency assistance. Many people will have seen the brightly marked
aid trucks crossing the border from China - and possibly South Korea. For a
government that used to champion the philosophy of "Juche" or self-reliance,
this is a potentially destabilizing admission of being unable to cope without
outside help.

It comes at a time when pressure to open up has never been greater. On one
side is the US stick, beating Pyongyang over its nuclear programme. On the
other is the South Korean carrot of economic engagement and unprecedented
rewards for new roads, railways and business links across the border. China is
also pushing hard for market reforms.

The North Korean impasse will one day have to end, by reform, collapse or war.
The Ryongchon victims' lives may not be wasted if the disaster allows
humanitarians to regain control over the debate about which future North Korea
should have.
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6. MEDIA DEBATE AID TO DPRK
by Choi Soung-ah, Korea Herald, 3 May 2004

Much of the world is showering goodwill and aid on disaster-stricken North
Korea but some media are criticizing the secretive communist state for its
responses to relief offers. Global aid totaling $6.6 million has already begun
flowing into the North and South Korea has begun shipments of a $25 million
relief package, in addition to $1 million worth of food and additional aid by the
government and NGOs.

But reports on the April 22 train explosion that leveled a wide expanse of the
North's border town Ryongchon have begun focusing increasingly on criticism
of the Stalinist state for its attitude toward the aid proffered by the rest of the
world. Though most journalists in the South have been sympathetic to the
North's situation, some accused the Stalinist state of showing more interest in
receiving aid goods than seeking help for Ryongchon afflicted citizens.

Some believe North Korea has been doing its utmost to maintain education in
the area despite the disaster but critics question where North Korea's priorities
lie, and whether it really cares about the hundreds of critically injured.

Following two shipments of relief aid from the South - one by the government
and the other by a civic organization - a Korean Air Boeing 747-400F flew from
Seoul to Pyongyang on a historic one-hour flight with 70 tons of aid, including
first-aid kits and blankets, for 1,300 injured and thousands left homeless by the
Ryongchon disaster. Attitudes have changed somewhat with North Korea's Red
Cross saying Friday it would allow South Korean trucks and bulldozers to cross
the border to Kaesong, where North Korea would take over the cargo and
equipment.

Shocked by images of children wounded and blinded by the blast, South
Koreans have raised money through telethons, and the government has
promised $26 million in aid -- almost four times the total pledged by the rest of
the world.

After a short debate in South Korea's media, Seoul Thursday agreed to comply
fully with North Korea's request for 50,000 tons of cement, 10,000 tons of food,
10 bulldozers, 10 steam shovels, 500 tons of diesel oil, 500 tons of gasoline,
1,500 sets of school desks and chairs, 50 blackboards, 10,000 tons of food and
50 television sets.

But Friday North Korea's official mouthpiece, KCNA, slammed US and South
Korean media as "wicked" for reports that the Stalinist state had closed the
blast site to foreign reporters, refused to allow patients to be moved to better
hospitals across the border in China and had shown more interest in receiving
material aid than in providing proper treatment for the injured. KCNA dismissed
the reports as "sheer lies" intended to "hamstring the humanitarian efforts of the
international community to help the DPRK in its effort to recover from the
damage caused by the explosion at Ryongchon Railway Station."

KCNA referred to accusations about the North's passive manner to the strong
willingness of South Korea and the international community to assist victims,
insufficient medical personnel in the North, indifference to treatment of the
wounded, and the sealing of off the accident scene to journalists.

"These accusations made by some media of the US and South Korea, instead
of expressing sympathy and sharing pain with its victims over the unexpected
accident, cannot be interpreted otherwise than (as) an act of the wicked," it
said.

Adding that the communist regime was doing its utmost to recover from the
damage, KCNA said "dishonest forces are twisting the truth in a bid to do harm
to the DPRK by spreading sheer lies" and that "this can never be justified as it is
an inhuman act intended to attain a sinister purpose." The news agency also
criticized foreign reports for paying "lip-service" to providing assistance and
pointed out a commentary by the editor-in-chief of the South's monthly Chosun
magazine.

Adding that such acts "deserve worldwide denunciation even in view of
elementary moral ethics," KCNA said, "we will keep following those who are
decrying the humanitarian aid."

North Korea is still predominantly closed to outsiders and its economy is one of
the most tightly controlled in the world. The country is also one of the world's
most militarized, with more than a quarter of its entire gross domestic product
devoted to military purposes, including the suspected development of nuclear
weapons. As a result of government policies, North Korea has chronic food
shortages and famine. Even with huge amounts of international aid, hundreds
of thousands of North Koreans have reportedly starved to death in the last
decade.
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7. RYONGCHON COUNTY EMERGENCY OPERATIONS
International Red Cross (IFRC), 30 April 2004

It has now been slightly over one week since Thursday 22 April's powerful
explosion at Ryongchon railway station located in North Pyongan Province, the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The explosion occurred when
railway wagons, said to be loaded with highly combustible ammonium nitrate,
blew up. The powerful blast that resonated throughout the entire town of
Ryongchon obliterated the station, and devastated the immediately surrounding
area leaving 161 people dead and some 1,300 injured. Among the dead were
76 children whose school was levelled in the blast.

According to DPRK's Flood Damage Rehabilitation Committee (FDRC) some
1,850 homes were destroyed or rendered uninhabitable, while a further 6,360
sustained partial damage. Among the large number of public buildings
damaged were schools, the Ryongchon county hospital, a factory and an
agricultural college. Those families left homeless are still temporarily housed
among three temporary shelters, while some 270 families are relying on
tarpaulins for shelter.

The capacity of the DPRK Red Cross with support from the International
Federation's country delegation to respond quickly to the disaster is proof of the
critical role good disaster preparedness plays in mitigating the effects of a crisis.
This is the second time, the first being floods in 2001, that DPRK Red Cross
and the International Federation were able to provide humanitarian assistance
quickly relying on the national society's disaster preparedness centres.

The overall objective of this preliminary appeal (12/2004) is to address both the
short-term and long-term needs of the people affected by the explosion in
Ryongchon county with a three phase operation.

Phase I: Distribution of relief items from Red Cross Disaster Preparedness
Centres and other available in-country sources.

Families and individuals who were left homeless due to the explosion were
placed in one of three temporary shelter sites which were established following
the blast. The current plan is that these families will be relocated to share
accommodations with other county's residents whose homes are still habitable
by the end of the week.

Approximately 270 families (some 1,100 people), are staying under make shift
shelters made out of tarpaulins. The Federation's logistics delegate visited
some of the families living in the make-shift tents on 26 and 27 April, and
interviewed some of the families. The families are facing some hardship as the
material that was in stock was not designed to function as tents. The shelters
do not protect the families from the ground which means that many of the
shelters are sitting in mud and water as Monday was a rainy day.

According to the Ryongchon Red Cross branch there are plans to get the
families into houses in three to four days. There were also some 30 tents
besides the hospital. Families in these tents are relying on tap water from the
hospital.

All the families left homeless have received enough blankets, water containers
(with water) and food. Those people who were staying under make shift tents
have been obtaining water from the city supply from nearby apartments or the
hospital in addition to water being distributed as part of the relief assistance.

The Federation's water and sanitation delegate conducted an assessment of
the immediate needs for water supply and appropriate sanitation over the
period 28-29 April. After engaging in discussions with the authorities and touring
the sight, which included the county hospital, the findings are that the
immediate needs concerning these areas are not many, and will be addressed
in the rehabilitation phase.

The area that was affected by the blast was connected to the city water supply
serving approximately half the urban area, comprising some 3,000 families or
12,000 - 15,000 people. This water system was rendered useless in the
immediate vicinity of the blast.

In regard to immediate assistance, the International Federation's water and
sanitation delegate offered to install several boreholes close to the affected
area together with either an onion or bladder tank. These would be fed using a
submersible pump and appropriately sized generator until the authorities would
be in a position to provide water.

The authorities agreed to this proposal, as it will most likely be several months
before anything is implemented. If the shallow groundwater has been
contaminated then it is better to act sooner than later to get deep boreholes
installed.

The Federation water and sanitation delegate has instructed the Red Cross
water quality monitor based in Sinuiju to take water samples from hand pumps
and the city water supply. Eight samples, as a result, were taken from which the
results should be available by next week.

The Federation should be ready to mobilize a drilling rig in co-operation with
other agencies. The Federation will work with other agencies working in
Ryongchon to support the water and sanitation needs of the affected area, in
more detail as more information becomes available.

Two trucks carrying relief items arrived in Ryongchon on 27 April. The two
trucks contained 4,000 blankets from Pyongyang and 3,040 water containers
from Pyongyang and Sinuiju.

The second donation consignment of Republic of Korea National Red Cross
(RoK RC) to DPRK RC by chartered air cargo plane arrived in Pyongyang
today. This includes 5,000 emergency family packs and daily necessities.
Many of the windows and some of the walls of the 300 bed Ryongchon county
hospital were broken due to the explosion, preventing the hospital from
operating at its full capacity. After cleaning the hospital, the facility beginning 27
April is once again admitting inpatients.

The hospital began treating outpatients on 27 April. Prior to the reopening of the
hospital patients were treated at a temporary first aid post. The main problems
which are being reported are: contusions, cuts, severe burns, epileptic
symptoms and mental problems, conjunctivitis and rupture, and rupture of ear
membrane. The operating theatre is not ready to be used. Operations are
performed in the nearest industrial hospital four kilometres away, or patients are
referred to Sinuiju provincial hospital.
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