Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: North Korea’s communist dictator Kim Jong-un ordered the execution of up to 30 officials, because of their alleged “failure to prevent deaths due to devastating flooding and landslides,” the media reported on Wednesday.
Nearly 1,000 people died in these disasters in Chagang Province in July. Unofficial reports said around 4,000 people died in catastrophic rains and floods.
According to a report by South Korea’s Chosun TV, citing a North Korean official, Kim called for “strict punishment’” to those deemed responsible for the “unacceptable loss” of life caused by the recent flooding.
“It has been determined that 20 to 30 cadres in the flood-stricken area were executed at the same time late last month,” an official under Kim’s regime told the outlet.
Officials were also charged with corruption and dereliction of duty. The executions reportedly took place late in August.
“It has been determined that 20 to 30 cadres in the flood-stricken area were executed at the same time late last month,” an official was quoted as saying.
Although the identities of the executed officials remain undisclosed, the North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kang Bong-hoon, the secretary of the Chagang Province Provincial Party Committee since 2019, was among the leaders removed from their positions by Kim Jong-un.
In July, extreme rainfall triggered landslides and flooding in North Korea, affecting over 4,000 homes and displacing 15,000 residents. Kim Jong Un himself visited the affected areas and stated that it would take several months to rebuild and restore the neighborhoods completely inundated by the floods.
The government also provided shelter in Pyongyang facilities for 15,400 people, including vulnerable groups such as mothers, children, the elderly, and disabled soldiers.
However, Kim dismissed the reports of a higher death toll as “false rumors” and accused South Korea of a deliberate “smear campaign” to damage North Korea’s ‘reputation.’
According to the Korea Times, North Korea’s public executions have surged dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic, from around 10 annually to approximately 100 per annum, representing a tenfold increase.
Earlier also, Kim has reportedly ordered executions over perceived failures. In 2019, Kim Hyok Chol, North Korea’s nuclear envoy to the US, was reportedly executed for failing to secure a summit between Kim and then-US President Donald Trump. However, it was later revealed that Chol was merely in state custody.