Providing humanitarian aid to North Korea has never been an easy task. Even though international aid agencies have tirelessly worked to abate the chronic food shortages and widespread illness in the North, they cannot escape the suspicion that their aid is being diverted to feed the military and Pyongyang's political elite.
Indeed, evidence trickling out of the closed country suggests that millions continue to starve and the regime is far from implementing concrete economic reforms to remedy the dire situation. Meanwhile, donor countries face the agonizing dilemma of suspending food aid to North Korea -- with the hope of inducing the regime to undertake drastic reforms -- or perpetuating the cycle of dependency. Now, there is a startling revelation that poses a great ethical dilemma: North Korea wants the meat of destroyed cows suspected of carrying the mad cow disease, medically known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
This shocking news was revealed recently in Europe as several EU countries are slaughtering thousands of cows in efforts to eradicate the dreaded disease. North Korean representatives in Berlin have requested the German and Swiss governments donate portions of more than 20,000 destroyed cows in a form of aid. Although the two governments have not made official statements, it is reported that they are seriously considering Pyongyang's request. For all we know, the destroyed cows might not even carry the disease and are safe for human consumption. However, the real issue is the German and Swiss governments' questionable ethics in the name of rendering humanitarian aid. Is it morally justified to give away food that you wouldn't dare touch, to someone who is desperately hungry? How could these "enlightened" Western countries even consider exporting meat that is potentially harmful? The North Koreans may be poor and hungry, but they are human beings entitled to the same dignity and decency as the populations in developed countries. If the Germans and Swiss care about the fate of starving North Koreans, they must do what is right -- reject the Stalinist dictatorship's request.
Another troubling issue in this episode is the North Korean regime's shameless ploy to score political points with its citizens while feeding them potentially contaminated meat. Simply, in the middle of the country's worse food crisis and hopeless economy, food has now become the regime's preferred tool of political control. Donor countries must not play into such a scheme.
As privileged people, what is our responsibility to those in urgent need? Impulses tell us to do all we can to help. However, North Korea's recent "mad" request teaches us an important lesson in the ethics of giving. Even the best of intentions can have negative consequences. To prevent it, certain ethical guidelines must be followed.
Glenn Baek is research associate and project director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC.
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