North Koreans abandoning market stalls drive surge in Hyesan street trading conflicts

Street vendors in Hyesan are clashing over prime selling spots as growing numbers of North Koreans abandon state market stalls they can no longer afford, spilling out into the city’s streets and alleyways.

A source in Ryanggang province told Daily NK that fistfights between street traders have become a common sight in Hyesan. Established vendors claim informal ownership of spots they have used for years, while newcomers refuse to give way. “The people who have been there a long time insist the spot is theirs,” the source said. “The newcomers push back and say no one owns a piece of street, and it ends in physical fights.”

The influx of new street traders stems from the cost of operating a stall inside one of North Korea’s official markets, known as jangmadang. Vendors with assigned stalls inside jangmadang are required to pay daily market fees regardless of how much they sell. With business slow, many have decided to sell or rent out their stalls entirely and move their operations to the street, where there are no fixed daily fees.

Street trading carries its own risks: spots are not guaranteed and the threat of enforcement crackdowns is constant. But for people without the cash to cover stall fees, it has become the only viable option.

Fights break out as competition intensifies

The tension came to a head on May 15 at a wholesale trading area in Hyesan. A vendor who had recently moved from a jangmadang stall to the street had grown frustrated that established traders were behaving as though unassigned public spots belonged to them. The person arrived before dawn to claim a desirable location. When a regular occupant of that spot arrived and demanded the person leave, a fight broke out. Bystanders described the confrontation as serious enough to leave both parties with facial injuries before others pulled them apart. The dispute was eventually resolved when nearby traders persuaded both sides to divide the space and continue selling side by side.

The source said the underlying pressure driving the conflict is stark. “Everyone out there is fighting over whether their family eats or goes hungry,” the source said. “There is no room to think about the other person’s situation.”

Market enforcement units, which patrol trading areas and disperse unlicensed vendors, occasionally intervene in such disputes. The source noted that enforcement has been relatively light recently, but that when crackdowns intensify, street traders face the compounded pressure of holding their spot while simultaneously evading officials. “When enforcement is heavy, it’s like living in a battlefield all day long,” the source said.

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