POSTAL AND TELEGRAPH SERVICES, NORTH KOREA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A001700380007-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 17, 2002
• Sequence Number: 7
• Publication Date: July 13, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2002/07/29 : CIA-RDP80-0081OA001700380007-5
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
SECU (CU6RMAT;ON
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Postal and Telegraph Services,
North Korea
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This Document contains information affecting the Na-
tional Defense of the United States, within the mean-
ing of Title 18, Sections 793 and 794, of the U.S. Code, as
amended. Its transmission or revelation of its contents
to or receipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited
by law. The reproduction of this form is prohibited.
REPORT NO.
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF PAGES
REQUIREMENT NO.
REFERENCES
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
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13 July 1953
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1. On 18 March 1953 all North Korean post offices were controlled by the Ministry
of Communications. Regular mail cost 10 won per letter and registered letters
cost 30 won-' Officials of the Social Security Department censored all mail
but carefully resealed the envelopes so that it would not appear they had been
opened. All. mail for foreign countries was sent first to Pyongyang where it
.was censored again before it was forwarded. Mail between Wonsan and Kaesong
was carefully checked and the names of both the addressee and the addressor,
as well as the date of mailing were filed.2 No private telegraph service was
available on 18 March.
Mail delivery time between certain North Korean cities on 18 March was as
follows:
a. Between Wonsan and Pyongyang; seven days for registered mail and l4+
days for regular mail.
b. Between Wonsan and Hamhty;-wee days for registered mail and five
days for regular mail.
c. Between Hamhung and Songjin; five days for registered mail and 10
days for regular mail.
d. Between SongJin and Ch'ongJin four days for registered mail and seven
days for regular mail.
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Between Ch'ongjin and Hoeryong; three days for registered mail and five
days for regular mail.
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e. Between Chlongjin and Najin; three days for registered mail and five days
for regular mail.
g. Between Ch'~ngjin and Musan (N 42-14- E 129-13) (EB-1875); four days for
registered mail and seven days for regular mail.
h. Between Wonsan and Hyesanjin (N 4-1-2l- E 128.1.1) (DA-3283); ten days
for registered mail and:15 days for regular mail.
The mail delivery time between certain. North Korean cities in February was
as follows :
a.: From P'yongyang-to Sin7uiju; 10 to 15 days.
b. From Pyongyang to Hamhung; 10 to 15 days.
c. From P'yongyang to Ch'ongjin, Najin, and Namyang (N 42.-58 E 129-51)
(EC-6957), 15 to 20 days.
d, From Pyongyang to Rwanghae Province; seven to 10 days.
e. From Pyongyang to Wonsan.; seven to 15 days.
f. From Ch'ongjin to Haeju; 20 to 30 days.
g. From Ch'o:ngjin to Sinuiju; 20 to 30 days.
4. On 16 March regular mail postage stamps in North Korean were issued in
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denominations of one won, six won and 10 won. Regular mail between Pyongyang
and Haeju took 25 days for delivery while registered mail, which cost 40 won,
was delivered in two or three days. A special registered stamp cost 100 won.
Packages weighing less than two grams could be sent within North Korea for 100'
won. Mail from North Korea to China cost 200 won.. Letters mailed in the Soviet
Union arrived in Yonbaek-guri, Hwan.ghae Province, approximately seven days after
they were posted. Regular mail and packages were transported and delivered
by trucks, Soviet-made motorcycles and bicycles.
5. On 16 March an ordinary telegram between Pyongyang and Haeju cost three North
Korean won per group of characters and was delivered in approximately five hours.3
A special telegram between Haeju and Sinuiju cost six won per group of characters
and was delivered in 4.8 hours. Special telegrams were used only for official
government business. All telegram were received at the myon (district) post
offices for forwarding to the gun county) and city post offices for trans-
mittal.
6.,,In F, bruary 1953 letters in North Korea were collected by a postman who
traveled through the rural areas once every two or three days. The people
gave the postman the letter along with the necessary cash for the stamps.
Regular mail cost 10 won and registered mail cost 40 won. Registered mail
facilities were seldom used because of the strict censorship placed on that
type of mail. No packages were accepted but there was no weight limit on
letters. Return post cards consisting of a sheet of paper folded into four
sections with the address on the outside were in use. All mail within North
Korea was required to have the Korean characters in onmun, the Korean alpha-
bet, and the name of the sender on the reverse side of the letter. etters
destined for China were required to have the address written in Chinese
characters and letters destined for the Soviet Union were required to have
the address in Cyrillic letters and the word "Russia" written in Chinese
characters. In December 1952 all letters were cut open, read and stamped
"Military Censorship Completed." Prior to December 1952 the chairmen of
village People's Committees censored the letters and notified the myon Social
Security Department of anything suspicious.
Approved For Release 2002/07/29 : CIA-RDP80-0081OA001700380007-5
 Approved For Release 2002/07/29 : CIA-RDP80-0081OA001700380007-5
25X1A 1. .Comment. For previous- information on North Korean postal and
service, some of it contradictory to that in this report, see
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25X1A 2. Comment. It is not clear whether this system was in use throughout
or Korea- or applied only to mail between Wonsan and Kaesong.
2 5X1A 3. I I Comment. Please note that paragraphs 1 and 5 are from different
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Approved For Release 2002/07/29 : CIA-RDP80-0081OA001700380007-5