N Korea food shortage 'desperate'

A UN rights expert says the food situation in North Korea is desperate, with aid from the World Food Programme reaching only one-third of the hungry.

A drop in international aid means that only 2m people are being helped.

He also said women in particular were suffering from restrictions on their right to work, and described prison conditions as akin to purgatory.

Mr Muntarbhorn’s report said the situation has been made more desperate with efforts to extend state control by curtailing economic activity.

Women under the age of 49 are not allowed to trade, he said, and some general markets have been closed: this has led to several clashes between female traders and the authorities.

BBC