Defectors: N. Korea would fall without capitalistic markets
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Hundreds of capitalistic markets, each with thousands of stalls, form the glue that holds North Korea's socialist planned economy together, say defectors who sold medicinal herbs, skinny jeans, TV sets, foreign drama CDs and other goods there to make a living.
The economic boost the markets provide has helped leader Kim Jong Un keep a grip on power and further his nuclear ambitions, leaving the North's harsh political system and alleged human rights abuses largely untouched.
Recent surveys of refugees suggest most ordinary North Koreans resort to market activities for a living as the country's public rationing systems have never been fully restored.
In 2004, however, the AP was given an unusual chance film Pyongyang's crowded yet clean indoor Tongil Market, where neatly uniformed merchants sold goods including bananas, fish, vegetables, women's underwear, shoes and tennis rackets.
When North Korean police find people wearing South Korean clothes or dresses they consider too skimpy or tight, they often take them to back alleys and rip parts of their garments with razors or scissors, according to Cha and Lee.
[...] the 2009 botched currency reform reportedly triggered widespread public complaints that led to the execution of a top Workers' Party official.