Thousands in the Communist “hermit nation” of North Korea had to be rescued from historic floods recently after intense rain caused a Chinese river to breach its banks, according to North Korea’s state news agencies.
True to form, state news outlets such as the Korean Central News Agency gave no details on how many may have been killed, nor how much damage was done by the floods. The torrent of water hit the northwest part of North Korea particularly hard, necessitating the use of military helicopters and boats from the navy and other government departments to rescue the stranded in Sinujiu City and Uiju town.
Summer flooding is a common occurrence in North Korea that usually causes massive damage to farmland and the buildings on it. The cause appears to be failing and unmaintained infrastructure, particularly the inadequate drainage system. Deforestation has also contributed to the flooding. Flat, unforested land with few trees acts as a sheet or a surface that conducts flowing water across it rather than absorbing it.
It is almost never possible to determine with accuracy what events are truly going on in North Korea, nor how the average North Korean feels about them. North Koreans live under a dictatorship headed by Kim Jong Un, the communist leader who took over after his father, Kim Jong Il, died in 2011. The younger Kim mounted an elaborate public memorial last year to mark 12 years since his father’s death.
North Koreans are propagandized constantly by their government, which lies to them about their prosperity relative to the rest of the world. Yeonmi Park is one of the most famous North Korean defectors. She escaped to the U.S. in 2014 and published a memoir titled “From North Korea to America: Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness.” She tells of a life inside the Communist country that was all about literally worshiping the “dear leader.” Her mother told her never to even whisper a question or criticism because even “birds and mice can hear you.”
It is in this context that outsiders have to evaluate news put out by North Korea. State media KCNA was quick to give credit to Kim Jon Un for his carrying out of the flood rescue. The news makes sure to portray Kim as a confident, competent leader who genuinely cares about the citizens of his country in a paternal way.
There is not likely to be further news, or news that can be trusted, about the aftermath of the recent floods.
