De facto private restaurants in North Korea ordered to contribute one ton of rice to the state
The North Korean authorities have recently handed down an order to de facto privately-run restaurants to contribute one ton of rice to the state.
“An order was handed down in early January to some restaurants in major cities to contribute a ton of rice to the government,” said a source in North Pyongan Province. “It’s an outrageous demand and the restaurants are incensed by it.”
The order was exclusively handed down to restaurants that are run by private individuals, though such ventures are really more representative of a public-private partnership.
“The most important thing to restaurants is rice, and they’re complaining that the order has made their operations difficult,” she said.
According to a separate source in South Pyongan Province, one restaurant owner whose establishment caters primarily to laborers reportedly had to borrow rice from those he knew to meet the government’s demand. He managed to save his restaurant from closing down, but is now in debt.
Most restaurants run by private individuals are facing significant difficulties due to the government’s order, according to the sources. ......
[Source: Daily NK]
