North Korean leader warns of defeatism in visit to typhoon-ravaged area

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has lambasted government agencies for “defeatism” as he visited a typhoon-ravaged rural town, state media reported.

In his first public activity after weekend celebrations marking the ruling party’s founding anniversary, Mr Kim inspected recovery works in the north-eastern Komdok area, continuing a series of visits to regions hit by typhoons and flooding this summer.

Outside observers say Mr Kim aims to boost public support, as the disasters could likely aggravate North Korea’s economy, already struggling under US-led sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic.

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) cited Mr Kim as saying that Komdok’s typhoon-related damage was “more severe than he thought”, and praised soldiers working on rehabilitation projects for their devotion.

KCNA said Komdok’s damage was the worst among typhoon-hit areas. It said military units mobilised by Mr Kim had completed over 60% of construction of 2,300 dwellings.

KCNA photos showed Mr Kim, clad in Mao suits, walking on an old railway track accompanied by officials, with buildings under construction seen in the distance.

Other photos showed Mr Kim speaking near small grey houses as officials and military officers take note of his comments.

In the past, when natural disasters hit North Korea, KCNA has often dispatched photos, sometimes doctored, of vivid scenes of damage, in an apparent effort to win foreign aid.

But Mr Kim said in August he will not accept any outside assistance this year to maintain stringent border closures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Mr Kim’s government has argued it has not reported a single virus case, something foreign experts are highly sceptical of.

At Komdok, Mr Kim said that there were still houses built more than 50 years ago and that his government “didn’t know properly the life of the people living in so piteous environments and dwellings”.

According to KCNA, he said: “We have to seriously self-reproach ourselves.”

Mr Kim said the army will be in charge of building new houses and turn the Komdok area into a world-class mining town under a long-term development plan.

He criticised national planning institutions which he said had become “very calculating … caught in defeatism and making a great fuss when the target worthy of the political attention of the country is set”, KCNA reported.

In recent months, Mr Kim has increasingly displayed candour in admitting policy failures and problems in his government, an unusual move in a country where his family is the subject of intense personality cult among its 25 million people.

Some experts say this shows the severity of the economic difficulties Mr Kim is facing.

Mr Kim said in September that the overall anti-disaster condition in coastal areas is “poor” and that sea barriers were “not properly built”.

Earlier, he said his country lacks modern medical facilities, and also acknowledged his economic development plans had not been successful.