Now, imagine having to pay bribes to someone just to live day to day.
Well, that's the horrific reality facing many North Korean citizens, according to a newly-released report by the United Nations.
Lee Seung-jae reports.
In an eye-opening report released on Tuesday that further peels back the appalling layers of corruption in the regime,... UN Human Rights chief Michelle Bachelet revealed that North Koreans are forced to pay bribes to officials in order to survive.
"The report we have released is based on 214 first-hand accounts from people who have managed to escape from the DPRK (the Democratic People's Republic of Korea). They describe how their most fundamental rights to food, to water, to health, shelter, work, freedom of movement are violated. And how access to these universal rights depends primarily on their ability to bribe state officials."
Bachelet says officials extort money from everyday citizens who struggle to make ends meet,... even threatening them with detention and persecution,... especially those working in the informal economy.
According to the report,... bribes are usually in the form of cash or cigarettes,... so that citizens don't have to report to state-assigned jobs,... where they receive no salary,... hence allowing them to earn income in rudimentary markets.
The report adds that others bribe border guards to cross into China,.. where women and girls are vulnerable to trafficking into forced marriages or the sex trade.
North Korea denies the findings in the report,... saying it's a politically motivated hit job against the regime.
It instead pins blame on UN sanctions that create a dire humanitarian situation for North Korean citizens.
However, Bachelet said the regime should clamp down on corrupt officials, and allow its people the freedom of movement within the country and abroad.
Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.
