Why Don't You Blame North Korea for the Humanitarian Crisis?

As our delegation is preparing to present a report on “The Human Costs and Gendered Impact of Sanctions on the North Korea” to the United Nations in New York City, this is the question that is on everyone’s mind. Is North Korea not to blame for the current humanitarian crisis in their country?

I am not an expert in Korean politics, history, or even culture. What I am is a humanitarian worker that has lived and worked in North Korea for over a decade. While living in the DPRK, I have made some keen observations that will help answer this question appropriately.

First, I want to examine a holistic view of the humanitarian crisis on the Korean Peninsula. From the North Korean perspective, their priority is national defense. Their mindset is to protect their country at all costs. Since there has been no peace treaty from the Korean War, both South and North Korea live under constant threat of mass casualties if they cannot militarily protect their nations. In fact, up to 20% of North Korea’s population died as a result of carpet bombing during the Korean war, and most of these casualties were civilians! As a result, the DPRK government prioritizes national defense over food security and other programs.

Yes, it is true that North Korea is financially capable of feeding its entire population. A simplistic view would blame North Korea for spending their national budget on nuclear weapons rather than providing food for their people. After all, the Korean War was initiated by the North, and therefore, couldn’t the UN and U.S. negate responsibility for mass civilian casualties in the Korean War?

However, we also have to remember the fact that it was the U.S. and Russia who divided Korea into two nations. Without the Allied Forces separating the country at the end of World War II, Korea would have never been divided, and the Korean War would have never broken out.

Many factors have gone into the humanitarian crisis on the Korean Peninsula. These factors include not only the Korean War but also the collapse of the Soviet Union and communism in other countries, which reduced North Korea’s trading power and resulted in a drastic economic decline in the country. It includes the misallocation and use of agricultural land in the DPRK because of the lack of arable farmland. (Historically, the mountainous North was an industrial center not agricultural land.) The humanitarian crisis today also includes the fact that both U.S. and UN sanctions impede the delivery of medical equipment and much-needed humanitarian assistance into the country. 

Typical countryside landscape in North Korea

As a humanitarian worker, my job is to save lives. Through our non-profit organization known as Ignis Community, I have been fortunate to be a part of saving the lives of children with developmental disabilities in North Korea. Children with cerebral palsy, autism, and other developmental disabilities now have hope for a future through our developing rehabilitation center on the campus of the Pyongyang Medical School Hospital.

In order for this project to be successful, we have had to illicit the cooperation of the U.S., South Korean, and North Korean governments. The U.S. Department of State, Treasury Department, and Commerce Department have given Ignis Community the necessary licenses to continue our life-saving work in North Korea. South Korea’s Department of Unification has supported pediatric rehabilitation centers in three rural Children’s Provincial Hospitals, and the Ministry of Public Health in the DPRK is now working to establish pediatric rehabilitation centers in all ten Children’s Provincial Hospitals as well as ensuring the development of this specialty in all 11 medical schools in the country in cooperation with Ignis Community.

My hope is that Ignis Community’s collaboration with these three governments can be an example of positive humanitarian strides in the DPRK. Humanitarian engagement with any country, regardless of politics, should be fueled by the desire to save lives. The value of human life should always supersede the state of diplomatic relations with any country. Working together we can impact health policy and save the lives of thousands of children with developmental disabilities throughout the nation of North Korea.