Daily NK
Yang Jung A
7/9/2007
A North Korean insider source said on the 5th that the North Korean government sold the fishery licenses of coastal waters at Chulsan, North Pyongan during the crab catching season between May and July for a moderate price.
Chinese marine traders who bought the fishery licenses from North Korea are large marine companies based on Donggang in Lianoning.
The ship-owners and fishermen of North Korea, due to a huge decline in fishes with the Chinese ships’ competitive entry into Chulsan’s offshore waters after receiving the North Korean government’s fishery licenses, are supposed to be going through a hard time.
The source said, “Recently, with the exclusion of the neighboring sea off the coast of Chulsan near the People’s Army’s marine head where the fish farms are located, the fishery licenses to the offshore of the Chulsan-Donggang (China) have been sold to Chinese businessmen. Tens of Chinese fishermen have bought the rights.”
The source said, “The organization in charge who has issued the fishery licenses is not the marine products association, but the No. 64 naval squadron in charge of the this region’s seashore boundary.
Donggang in Liaoning in China located in the mouth of Yalu River, is a small-size city across from Bidan Island.
He said, regarding the price of the fishery licenses, “A small boat is 1,000 Yuan (US$133) per day and a large boat which can accumulate over 100 ton is around 7,000 Yuan (US$ 922) in Chinese currency.”
He added, “The rumors say besides the costs of the licenses, a lot of money has been handed over to North Korea in the negotiations process.”
“Due to monopolizing of the Chinese fishing boats, North Korea’s ships anchored at decks of Donggang are barely seen. North Korean businessmen who have smuggled marine products using small-size boats are having a difficult time because they cannot go out to sea where the current is rough and a lot of gas is required.”
North Korea’s fishermen are saying they have no choice but to go out to the far sea, because they cannot go near the oceanic region operated by Chinese ships.
The source also said, “Chinese ships surreptitiously attacking North Korean ships in their permitted region and beating people have been occurring frequently.”
The Korea Martime Institute, in a report which was announced early this year, said, “The C
hinese government is promoting advancement of North Korea’s operations when the complaints of the country’s fishermen climaxed due to the reduction of ships in the Yungeun Sea and the decline in their income.”
On one hand, besides the oceanic operation rights, the situation is that China’s direct investment in North Korea’s resource development, such as the mining rights being handed over to China, is increasing.
China, instead of investing 70 hundred million Yuan at Musan Mine in 2005, is exercising its 50-year mining licenses to take 10bn tons of iron ore annually.
