This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now licensed for reprint.
Residents in China reported to Radio Free Asia that a number of the staff members at a well-known North Vietnamese restaurant in the Chinese capital of Dandong are facing sentence after one of them briefly escaped from work.
The main attraction is the young hostesses Pyongyang sends over to work in Dandong, which is located just across the Yalu River from Sinuiju. Not only do they provide tables, they likewise sing and dance to maintain the diners entertained.
However, the majority of their earnings are “loyalty money,” and these women are known to reside in extremely poor conditions, often yet sleeping in tiny rooms inside restaurants.
Although they are located abroad, Pyongyang prefers to have complete control over their movements and regularly forbids them from leaving the cafe.
Earlier this year, one of the people at the Ryugyong cafe went missing for a while, but finally she returned.
A Dandong native who spoke to Radiofrequency Asian on condition of anonymity for safety reasons recalled all the waiters at the restaurant.
He claimed that when I visited the Ryugyong restaurant now during the day, there were no North Korean hostesses it. ” There were only Chinese people”.
He claimed that the Ryugyong is well-known because it has a large portion compared to the various city-specific North Korean restaurants and is elaborately decorated.
” But the most amazing thing that drew people within were the very North Korean women wearing colorful , hanbok , coming out to visit customers at the front doorway”, he said, referring to traditional Asian clothes. In North Korea, it’s called , chosonbok.
The tenant and the missing waiter were able to explain the situation. She quietly escaped the restaurant, which the city described as” caused an uprising,” but she later came back a week after the police had located her.
Imprisoning these people
This all occurred before in the year, but there was a law to keep it as an inner problem, but it was recently revealed officially, he said.
” The company’s leave is against the regulations, but everyone is shocked by the cruel treatment at the hands of the specialists”, he said. These people in their 20s are effectively being imprisoned for a long period of time so they can work for the country in foreign currency.
He claimed that the decision to appoint all restaurant employees was made at the end of next month and that it had” substantially harmed the reputation of the nation” as a result.
Another Dandong residents who reported to RFA said it’s possible that other residents will be punished as well as the waiter who quickly escaped.
He said,” The restaurant waitress and the manager will also receive severe judicial punishment,” citing safety concerns. The agent dispatched as the restaurant’s user, the health consultant in charge of personnel administration, and the escaped employee are in serious trouble.
This is a major change from the previous, when the culprit was punished by the only person responsible.
The following resident claimed that” North Vietnamese restaurant employees live in groups day and night under stringent supervision.”
They can only use the rest day that is only offered once per month, but occasionally, and go to the local market with the restaurant manager to purchase the needed supplies there,” he said.
The only time these stranded workers have the opportunity to take in fresh air is when they look up at the sky.
