Social Injustice in North Korea

There are some people who say a country is its people. One of the governments that are especially ignorant on this point would be the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (a.k.a. North Korea's government), and that was saying it nicely. People around the world know of the military might and public declarations made by North Korea's government officials, but they sometimes do not know of the state of the local's well being. It has to be said that the well being of the local North Korean is in the state of desperation, starvation, and suffering. Korea is on the brink of a great famine. Actions by the government included refusing food offers from the United States and taking food supplies dropped by aircraft from charity and selling it on the black market or distributing it among the military or the higher political class. There is only 23% of North Korean land that is arable and most of it has been known grow drugs to be sold for the Government. Attempts to create more farming land have led to deforestation, soil erosion, nutrient depletion, and more chances of flooding. "33% of the population is currently undernourished, 23% of children under the age of five are underweight, and a near-total breakdown in the public health system has left an entire generation of children physically and mentally impaired...As of April of 2010, North Korea’s grain shortfall has been estimated at 1.3 million tons, and the World Food Programme has estimated that 6.2 million North Koreans are short of food." (LiNK) If a North Korean wanted to make a complaint the threat of going to a concentration camp stopped him or her. The government in North Korea has consistently ranked last in countries with press freedom since no one is allowed the freedoms to press, assembly, association, or speech. If anyone even thought to think to criticize the government, they were punished severely. Entire families were known to be imprisoned because a single member's "act of disloyalty." No information is spread freely, and international information was especially prohibited. The rare guests to the country were not even allowed to bring their cell phones. Out of desperation, defectors from North Korea attempt to cross the Northern border into China. If they are caught they are shot on sight. People who actually make it to China also need to avoid Chinese officials if they do not want to be caught and deported back to North Korea where they face life imprisonment or execution. North Koreans are being horribly mistreated and not many people even know about it.

http://www.linkglobal.org/learn/nk101.html
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1737780,00.html