North Korea's new 5,000 banknotes no longer feature a picture of nation founder and demigod Kim Il-sung. But the new note shows Kim's childhood home in Mangyongdae.
The new bills feature the house prominently on the front and on the back a museum in Pyongyang that displays gifts Kim and his son Jong-il received from foreign leaders.
During a botched currency reform in 2009, Kim Il-sung was also dropped from the 2,000 and 1,000 won bills.
The new bills feature the house prominently on the front and on the back a museum in Pyongyang that displays gifts Kim and his son Jong-il received from foreign leaders.
During a botched currency reform in 2009, Kim Il-sung was also dropped from the 2,000 and 1,000 won bills.
The 5,000 won note is North Korea's largest denomination and nominally worth around US$50, though its actual market value is nearer $1. Workers in the North Korean state economy are paid some W3,000 a month on average, making it vital for most to seek other forms of income.
A North Korean source said when the new notes were officially announced on July 25, they sparked fears of yet another misguided currency reform, triggering a certain amount of chaos as food prices surged temporarily and some people began stockpiling food.
A North Korean source said when the new notes were officially announced on July 25, they sparked fears of yet another misguided currency reform, triggering a certain amount of chaos as food prices surged temporarily and some people began stockpiling food.
North Korea watchers are busy speculating what the removal of Kim Il-sung from the banknotes can mean.
Some say the reason is simply consistency, because the W2,000 and W1,000 notes depict the birthplaces of Kim Jong-il and his mother Kim Jong-suk.
Others point out that the old notes were easy to forge and plenty of fakes were in circulation. One North Korean source said, "Two years ago, a large amount of counterfeit 5,000 won bills from China caused chaos in the North's market."
Others read a more complicated message into the new bill, scenting a gradual erosion of the personality cult that could clear the way for current leader Kim Jong-un to implement timid reforms of the planned economy that his father and grandfather zealously maintained despite dismal failure.
Yoon Young-kwan at Seoul National University said, "Removing his grandfather's image suggest that Kim Jong-un will follow an independent path to develop the North's economy," while due homage is being paid to the former dictators by depicting their birthplaces.
Some say the reason is simply consistency, because the W2,000 and W1,000 notes depict the birthplaces of Kim Jong-il and his mother Kim Jong-suk.
Others point out that the old notes were easy to forge and plenty of fakes were in circulation. One North Korean source said, "Two years ago, a large amount of counterfeit 5,000 won bills from China caused chaos in the North's market."
Others read a more complicated message into the new bill, scenting a gradual erosion of the personality cult that could clear the way for current leader Kim Jong-un to implement timid reforms of the planned economy that his father and grandfather zealously maintained despite dismal failure.
Yoon Young-kwan at Seoul National University said, "Removing his grandfather's image suggest that Kim Jong-un will follow an independent path to develop the North's economy," while due homage is being paid to the former dictators by depicting their birthplaces.
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