When North Korean doctors stood up to the government against overwork



Analysis When North Korean doctors stood up to the government against overwork Medical doctors argued the Cheollima labor campaign would harm public health, but the regime responded with hostility Tatiana Gabroussenko July 28, 2021 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON Eric Lafforgue \| A dentist in Pyongyang in Sept. 2008 The Kim family regime is often accused of working its population to extremes for little pay in the hopes of increasing economic production, and such overwork in North Korea isn’t a recent phenomenon. In the late 1950s, Pyongyang policymakers announced the Cheollima, or thousand-mile horse, mass labor mobilization campaign. Inspired by China’s Great Leap Forward, the campaign aimed to achieve an impossibly high growth rate simply by forcing people to work more, with little regard for long-term impacts on infrastructure, the environment and people’s health. The Kim family regime is often accused of working its population to extremes for little pay in the hopes of increasing economic production, and such overwork in North Korea isn’t a recent phenomenon. In the late 1950s, Pyongyang policymakers announced the Cheollima, or thousand-mile horse, mass labor mobilization campaign. Inspired by China’s Great Leap Forward, the campaign aimed to achieve an impossibly high growth rate simply by forcing people to work more, with little regard for long-term impacts on infrastructure, the environment and people’s health. Try unlimited access Only $1 for four weeks Unlimited access to all of NK News: reporting, investigations, analysis Year-one discount if you continue past $1 trial period The NK News Daily Update, an email newsletter to keep you in the loop Searchable archive of all content, photo galleries, special columns Contact NK News reporters with tips or requests for reporting Get unlimited access to all NK News content, including original reporting, investigations, and analyses by our team of DPRK experts. Subscribe now All major cards accepted. No commitments – you can cancel any time. © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by And how should we address you in correspondence? One more step! Please check your inbox, for an email we just sent you, and click on the confirmation message in it to get subscribed to our Daily News Update. Trending

Analysis

When North Korean doctors stood up to the government against overwork

Medical doctors argued the Cheollima labor campaign would harm public health, but the regime responded with hostility

Tatiana Gabroussenko July 28, 2021

When North Korean doctors stood up to the government against overwork

Eric Lafforgue | A dentist in Pyongyang in Sept. 2008

The Kim family regime is often accused of working its population to extremes for little pay in the hopes of increasing economic production, and such overwork in North Korea isn’t a recent phenomenon.

In the late 1950s, Pyongyang policymakers announced the Cheollima, or thousand-mile horse, mass labor mobilization campaign. Inspired by China’s Great Leap Forward, the campaign aimed to achieve an impossibly high growth rate simply by forcing people to work more, with little regard for long-term impacts on infrastructure, the environment and people’s health.

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