위기 극복을 위한 북한 경제정책의 평가와 의미: 2002년 7.1 경제관리개선조치와 2009년 화폐개혁을 중심으로

Abstract

North Korea’s economic hardship has stemmed on shortage of supply generated by its declined production capability. North Korea continues pursuing an economic policy combined with Economy and Defense as the engine of its economic development and growth. However, North Korea could not construct a virtuous circle relation between consumption and expansive reproduction. The chronically economic hardship led up to the duality of North Korea’s economy; the public sector and the private sector. The private positively functions in compensating the lack of production capability of the public. On the other hand, the private could circulate various informations into North Korea threatening its regime sustainability. But absence of the private sector in North Korea possibly causes a worse state of North Korea’s economy and a critical regime crisis as it definitely will decrease the total supply level in North Korea. North Korea declared a new economic policy on July 1st of 2002 (7.1 economic measures), and it unexpectably came into effect of currency reform at the end of 2009. These policies ultimately aimed at fortifying North Korea’s regime sustainablity through searching the optimal state of the combination between the public and the private. Seemingly the policies are to be taken as general economic policies to soothe economic difficulties, but their basic roles are emphasized on the political act intending regime stabilization. North Korea is continuing the very unusual system of dynastic socialism even under economic collapse. In North Korea, the political object; leadership and regime solidarity, is mowing over the economic object; improving economic conditions of the residents, thus North Korea’s crisis from economic hardship implies its crisis of regime sustainability that economic deficiency raises. The 7.1 economic measures and the currency reform are policies to overcome the crisis on regime sustainability, and not aimed at improving economic life standard of North Korean people, but aimed at victimizing it only for strengthening regime sustainability and duration. (not a bottom-up policy, but a top-down policy)