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Today on the Korean Atlas and History: Major North Korean Cities. Chongjin.

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The city of Chongjin is the third largest city in North Korea, after Pyongyang

and Hamheung. The city boasts a population of 627,000, and is sometimes referred

to as the City of Iron. The name Chongjin means “clear river crossing.”

Before the Japanese Annexation of Korea in 1910, Chongjin was a small

fishing village. During the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the Japanese used

Chongjin as a supply base because of its proximity to the front lines in Manchuria.

After the war, the Japanese remained in the city and called the city “Seishin” based

upon their pronunciation of the Chinese words. From 1918, the Imperial Japanese

Army’s 19th Division was headquartered in the area known as 라남, where they

began a new planned city on a rectangular street grid. In 1930, the Japanese

company Nippon Steel built a large steel mill called the Seishin Iron and Steel Works

in Chongjin. In 1940, 라남 was annexed into Chonjin, and Chongjin was elevated to

city status. On August 13th, 1945, only two days before the end of World War II, the

city was overrun by the Soviet Union. The Soviets later gave control of the North to

Kim Il-Sung, and the city has been controlled by North Korea since that time. The

city has remained an important military and industrial center to the North. From
1960-1967, and then again from 1977-1988, the North Korean government directly

administered the city.

During the North Korean famine of the 1990s, Chonjin was one of the worst

affected locations in the country. The death rate in Chongjin may have been as high

as 20%. By 1995, the local frog population was wiped out due to overhunting. Even

today, food availability remains poor. This problem has caused several instances of

civil unrest in Chongjin. On March 4, 2008, a crowd of women merchants protested

in response to tightened market controls because of rising grain prices and

government attempts to prohibit peddling. As a result, the Chongjin local

government began to allow “peddling in the market.” On August 24, 2008, a clash

occurred between foot patrol agents and female merchants, which escalated into a

massive protest rally. The Chongjin local government then issued verbal instructions

relaxing the enforcement activity until the time of the next grain ration.

The city of Chongjin is divided into 7 wards: 청암구역, 포항구역, 부윤구역, 라

남구역, 신암구역, 송평구역, and 수남구역. The city is located near the East Korea Bay

in the Sea of Japan. The So-Song River runs through the city. The city also claims

the So-Nam stream and Mount Ko-Mal.

The city remains one of the North’s important steel and fiber industry centers.

It has a shipyard, a locomotive plant, and a rubber factory. Industrial activities in the

area have been severely handicapped due to lack of resources, yet some major
plants remain in the area, including: the Chongjin Steel Company, the Chemical

Textile Company, the May 10 Coal Mine Machinery Factory, and Kimchaek Iron &

Steel, which was previously Nippon Steel. Chongjin is estimated to have a 24 percent

share of the North’s foreign trade, and is home to a resident Chinese consul who

serves Chinese merchants and businesspersons operating in the north east of the

country. The city also contains Su-Nam Market, an example of market economics in

North Korea.

Yet, with the collapse of the Soviet Union and subsequent shortage of oil to

generate electricity, many factories have shut down. Tun Myat, a senior U.N. official

who visited in 1997, said "Chongjin was like a forest of scrap metal, with huge plants

that seem to go on for miles and miles that have been turned into rust buckets. I've

been all over the world, and I've never seen anything quite like this."

A major prison camp located in the northern part of Chongjin, in the region

of Su-Song-Dong, is 청진 concentration camp, which is also known as a penal labor

colony number 25. 청진 is much like other North Korean concentration camps, but

rather than a vast colony in a remote valley, it is one big building complex, much

like North Korea’s reeducation camps. It is estimated that between 3,000 to 5,000

prisoners are housed there. The camp is used to manufacture popular North Korean

consumer products, including Kal-Mae-Gi bicycles. Ahn Myung-Chul, a North Korean

defector and previous guard from the 회령 concentration camp, called this camp a

top-level political prisoner camp. Therefore, harsh conditions can be assumed.

전거리 concentration camp, also known as Reeducation camp number 12, is

located halfway between Chongjin and 회령. It is situated at the end of a small

valley, 2.5 kilometers southeast from the main valley in 풍산리. It is 350 meters long

and 150 meters wide. It is surrounded by an 8 meter high wall, and branch offices

are surrounded by barbed wire and an electrified fence. In 2005, it was estimated

that around 300 prison guards guard about 2,000 mostly non-political criminals.

Since 2006, the number has risen significantly, as defectors deported from China

were arrested and sent here. Prisoners in the camp should theoretically be

reeducated and released, but the conditions there are quite harsh, and many

prisoners do not survive their term. One inmate said that during his 8 month stay,

around 800 prisoners died from hard labor and lack of food. The prisoners are used

as slaves who work 14 hours a day at a copper ore mine, logging section, furniture

factory, or farming section. They live in crowded, dirty, insect infested rooms, without

heat. There is only one washroom shared among 1000 prisoners. 70 prisoners share

sleeping quarters made for 20. They sleep on the floor, without pillows or blankets.

Prisoners receive 140 grams of rice, three times a day. Often prisoners are

killed or crippled in work accidents due to antiquated machines, as well as sleep

deprived operators. Every day after work, before dinner, the prisoners criticize one
another, and those who have shortcomings receive less food. Prisoners are so

hungry that they eat grass, or corn from cow feces. Conditions are so poor, that in

the summer of 2003, around 190 prisoners died from an infectious disease. Lee June

Ha, an prior inmate, estimates that around 40 people die each month.

Prisoners are subject to regular beatings, torture, and inhuman treatment.

Confinement in a solitary cell 1 square meter in area is a common punishment. An

additional punishment is further restriction of food rations. The camp has been

known to publicly execute inmates, without due process.

Chongjin also houses the Nongpo Detention Center, which was built during

Japanese occupation. It is still in use, but is under new management.

The port in Chongjin is a critical component of international shipping trade in

North Korea. It is the second most economically important port, after Nam-Po port,

on the west coast. It also boasts a seamen’s club, which caters to foreign crews and

serves as a meeting place for North Koreans and foreigners engaged in shipping.

Chongjin is home to 어랑 airport, which has one runway. There is no terminal,

and one bus carries passengers to the runway. There have been plans to extend the

airport to allow it to act as a second international gateway to North Korea since

2003, but as of yet, it has not happened.

 Chongjin is connected to the capital city of Pyongyang as well as the city of

Rason through the Pyon-gra line electric railway. In addition to this, Chongjin is the

only city in North Korea, other than Pyongyang, to operate a tram system. The trams

are all second hand, from Pyong-Yang. The tram line was planned to be 32

kilometers in total length, but only 13 kilometers have been completed due to lack

of funds. The tram runs infrequently due to electrical shortages. Besides trams, buses

operate for two hours a day. Private taxis do not exist. The main, and only road in

Chongjin is a six lane highway called Road Number 1.

There are several state run educational facilities including: the Chongjin

University of Technology, Chongjin Mine University, Chongjin University of Education

No. 1, University of Education No. 2, Hambuk University, Chongjin University of

Medicine, Chongjin University of Light Industry, Chongjin College of Metal

Engineering, and the Chongjin College of Automation Engineering.

Schools for gifted and talented students include Chongjin Number 1 Senior

Middle School, the Chongjin Institute of Foreign Languages, and the Chongjin

Institute of Arts.

Chongjin has an aquatic product research center. It also has some hot springs

and Mt. Chil-Bo. The city has a zoo, yet there are no animals in it. The city’s most
famous product is processed squid. It is home to the local newspaper, the Ham-Buk

daily, and the football team, the Chongjin Chan-Dong-Cha.

From the outside, Chongjin is a dreary and desolate place. If you are

interested in learning more about the city of Chongjin, it has been featured in the

book Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, by Barbara Demick.

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Thank You for listening to this episode of the Korean Atlas and History. Most

of today’s information was taken from the 나무 Wiki and Wikipedia. All of our

episodes can be found and downloaded from koreanatlasandhistory.com. Thank

you for listening and we’ll see you next time.