Daily NK recently learned that the North Korean Cabinet conducted a thorough investigation of nationwide forestry service branches in September.
A source in North Hamgyong Province told Daily NK recently that provincial forest rangers implicated in wrongdoing during the monthlong probe were dismissed from their posts.
Inspectors found various irregularities when they looked into the management of saplings at tree nurseries.
Most seriously, forest rangers were planting crops such as cabbages, radishes and chili peppers for kimchi making on plots reserved for saplings—essentially treating the nurseries as their own personal gardens.
The probe also found that forest rangers were harvesting pine nuts from immature trees and then either storing them in the ground or selling them to friends and relatives.
“In North Hamgyong province, the worst issues were found in Myongchon county. Provincial officials presented the probe’s findings in a struggle session that included harsh criticism of rule-breaking in the forestry service,” the source said.
Forest rangers were taken to task for their irresponsible and corrupt behavior, with officials angrily declaring that “forestry resources are not private property, but the indisputable property of the state.”
Forest rangers whose improprieties were identified in the probe were fired, and civilians implicated in the schemes are to be investigated by public prosecutors.
After the punishments were announced, forestry service members complained that such probes are held too often and the consequences are too harsh. They say it’s not right to fire rangers for simply planting cabbages or radishes on idle land without any saplings to care for.
Forest rangers also complained that when the government criticized them for selling pine nuts to earn foreign currency, it conveniently ignored the fact that it wasn’t giving them decent rations.
“After this probe, many forest rangers say the job isn’t worth doing anymore,” the source said.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: dailynk.com
