Do North Koreans gamble?
North Koreans like to pass the time playing cards, often because there's not much else to do
Every week we ask a North Korean your questions, giving you the chance to learn more about the country we know so little about.
This week’s question is:
Do North Koreans like to gamble?
Yes, we do gamble in North Korea – at least some people do. Card games such as Go–Stop (which is played in Korea and Japan) and billiards are the most commonly played games. Personally, I’ve heard of people in my hometown who forfeited their houses or ended up in jail as a consequence of their gambling addiction. But obviously I wasn’t there gambling along with these people, so I can’t tell you how people in North Korea gamble in exact detail. But the rules for how people gamble with cards were the same as when I played cards with them for fun.
Since there isn’t an overflowing number of entertainment facilities or amenities in North Korea, playing cards came in handy
Even when they’re not exactly gambling, both grownups and children like to play cards in North Korea for fun. I can’t be 100 percent certain about other areas of North Korea, but playing cards was the most popular form of entertainment in my hometown. Since there isn’t an overflowing number of entertainment facilities or amenities in North Korea, playing cards came in handy. It was common for North Koreans to play cards with their relatives on holidays and weekends.
(By the way, one thing I’ve noticed after moving to South Korea was that they use different term for card games. South Koreans have adopted the English term “card game” into their language. But we used to call it joo-pay in North Korea.)
There isn’t just one kind of card game in North Korea. There are multiple kinds and ways to play them. But the most popular and widely played card game was sasaki. After the cards are shuffled and distributed among the players, whoever has three hearts begins and the game progresses in a clockwise direction. Each player is given 13 cards at the beginning of the game and whoever gets rid of all 13 first wins.
HIGH STAKES
The rules of North Korean card games aren’t complicated at all. Anyone can learn to play cards very easily in North Korea. But the competition gets fierce once people bet money on the game. People will do their best to win money and not lose it. That’s what makes the game more intense and attractive, after all. For this reason, both men and women loved to play cards in my hometown. On New Year’s, Chuseok and other holiday weekends, grownups play cards during lunch and dinner. The person who wins the most points need not pay while the others pay for food and drinks. The one who finishes second pays the least and the person with the fewest points pays the most.
Then, you may wonder, “How much money do North Koreans bet on their card games?” When people play cards for fun and entertainment at home, it is usually petty money such as 100 won per each point earned. But when you’re talking about gambling – for real – they bet 1,000-10,000 won per point. While in North Korea, I heard that some people blew all of their money gambling. But I haven’t met anyone like that in person.
It is not only adults that play cards. Oftentimes, students also play card games in North Korea. Schools in North Korea employ janitors, too. However, it is thought that one janitor cannot watch over the school by himself all day and all night. Therefore, students take turns in standing guard. As they watch over the security of their school from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. the next day, these students are to stay all night with their teachers. However, mind you, students are not obligated to do this against their will. Only those who volunteer take turns watching over the school. Most students volunteer to do so in order to have a sleepover with their classmates. There they play card games together during this “sleepover.” Since students don’t have enough money to gamble, whichever team loses the game pays for the snack.
Apart from card games, people also relished playing billiards and Go-Stop. I’ve noticed that South Koreans seem to play Go-Stop a lot during family gatherings at New Year’s and Chuseok. However, Go-Stop wasn’t as popular in North Korea. North Koreans didn’t seem to like the rules of Go-Stop. That’s why they played other kinds of card games. In South Korea, people with low income often play billiards. But only rich people play billiards in North Korea.
Rumors have reached the North Korean government that people were gambling at billiards. But so long as I know, they haven’t come up with any tactics or policies to control it. I guess there are some things even the North Korean government can’t control.
The above is the perspective of the author, and may not be representative of all North Korean defectors.
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Editing by Rob York and translation by Elizabeth Jae
Artwork by Catherine Salkeld
