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By Chang Se-jeong, Jeong Yong-soo | July 20, 2012 | Korea Joongang Daily

Is new North Korean leader Kim Jong-un starting to cross the river by feeling the stones, as Chinese economic reformer
Deng Xiaoping put it in 1984?

For the past six months, seven working-level North Korean officials have been staying at the Longxi International Hotel,
located in a 72-story skyscraper in Huaxi Village, in China’s Jiangsu Province, a local government official told the JoongAng
Ilbo in a telephone interview. Intriguingly, all seven are women.

They’re allegedly trying to learn the secrets of Huaxi Village, known as China’s richest village but one that is still dedicated
to socialism.



As news from Pyongyang suggests Kim Jong-un is getting a greater grip on North Korea’s military by sacking his former
protector and promoting a lesser known military figure, many analysts have speculated that he may be winding down his
father’s “military-first” policy to start to reform the local economy.

China has exhorted North Korea to take the path of more economic openness and reform for years. Kim’s father, late leader
Kim Jong-il, resolutely ignored its advice and stuck to the “military-first” policy to keep complete control of the hermetic nation.

The North Koreans visiting Huaxi may be a sign of his son’s more open attitude toward economic experimentation and a
greater willingness to follow Deng Xiaoping’s opening of the Chinese economy starting in the late 1970s.

Huaxi Village is one of the richest places in China and a symbol of a model mixing socialism and capitalism. All the residents
are shareholders of the local conglomerate and earn dividends at the end of every year according to its profitability.



“Officials from North Korea’s Foreign Ministry and the North Korean Embassy in Beijing also visited the village,” the resident said.
“I’m not quite sure whether the women workers are from the ruling Workers’ Party, but they are mostly in their 20s.

“They have a great interest in learning about the dramatic growth of the village,” he continued. “They reportedly receive some
kind of wages [from North Korea].”

“We are closely watching the possibility that Kim Jong-un will accept the proposal of China to open and reform its economy,” a
South Korean source said.



Pyongyang’s commission to attract foreign investment issued a press release recently which gave specifics on investment
conditions in the communist regime for foreign investors, clarifying electricity fees and office rental fees, which was an unusual
move.

“The Swiss-educated Kim who experienced life overseas at an early age is demanding change,” Jeong Chang-hyeon, a professor
at Kookmin University, said.