NK allows NGOs high level of monitoring

By Kim Young-jin

North Korea has allowed South Korean civic workers a high level of access to oversee a recent delivery of flour, the head of a monitoring team said Thursday.

Lee Woon-sik, who earlier this month led the team to Sariwon, a town south of Pyongyang, said they visited a daycare center and other facilities to make sure the flour was being distributed properly to the correct beneficiaries.

The members of the team videotaped their inspection and delivered it to the Ministry of Unification responsible for approving such aid, he said.

The remarks backed up Seoul’s assertion that it acquired unprecedented levels of access before allowing NGOs to deliver flour to the North, the first such assistance in eight months.

It was the first trip to monitor the delivery of flour since November last year, when Seoul imposed a travel ban and cut off aid in response to Pyongyang’s shelling of Yeonpyeong Island.

The Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation plans to deliver a total of 2,500 tons of flour under the stricter system.

Seoul believes the flour must be watched closely as it is easily diverted for military purposes.

The North has agreed to complete detailed reports before and after delivery and allow the groups to make site visits to ensure provision to the intended targets, the ministry says.

Analysts say Seoul may be inclined to continue aid to the North prompted by a slight easing of tensions after the sides held surprise denuclearization talks in Bali last month.

The South has also offered to send government-level aid to the North in response to torrential summer rains that have claimed lives on both sides of the border. It would not include flour or cement as requested and is still pending North Korean acceptance.

The ministry said it will view the taped monitoring trips before making an overall assessment of the system.

The North has been calling for humanitarian aid for months warranted by reports of serious food shortages. In July the European Commission said it had won unprecedented monitoring access before agreeing to mobilize 10 million euros to help feed 650,000 people.