North Korea : 1960s and Now

Until 1972, the economic situation in the Korena peninsula was not quite like the way it is now. Now, South Korea's economic power overwhelmingly triumphs over North Korea in every aspect, that it is virtually incomparable. However, North Korea was economically well ahead of South Korea until 1972.

1972, when South Korea reached 10.6 billion dollars of total GDP, was the tipping point for both nations. North Korea began its decline, and South Korea advanced and prospered endlessly.  

These photos were taken from Chinese media and North Korea's Central News. Photos on the left are from 1972(or somewhere around then), and the ones on the right show recent photos. Let's see how much they have changed/developed in half a century!

More pictures below. 

Source : North Korea Real Talk (주성하기자의 북한RT)

Taken in June of 1972. This is a child care center for working couples. A large indoor facility can be seen, with many kids and large space for them to play in. The picture on the right shows a child care center used for propaganda. Children are monitored and controlled under instructors, and seem to have little freedom. Child care centers outside of Pyongyang are simply under reasonable expectations.

Taken in June of 1972. An automated factory producing shoes. You can see different shoes made and transported on conveyor belts, as well as workers checking the shoes for quality. Picture on the right shows mass-produced rubber shoes with no automated production system. Wrapping is done by hand, and these shoes are known for terrible quality.

Taken in July of 1972. Printed cover papers automatically cover products. The whole process is automated and this was a state-of-art technology at the time. Now, product covering is done by hand. I keep wondering, what the heck did they do with all the machines? Eat them?

Medical equipment in North Korea back then was quite extraordinary at the time. The entire process was automated, and they produced their own medications. Now, without foreign help, they can't even properly treat common flu. You can see workers manually sealing medications in bags.

This picture is quite extraordinary. 1970 and 21st century : they are the same, even the machines. If there's a difference to nitpick, it's that the workers from 1970 seem dressed better than now.

Village clinics. Notice the picture on the bottom right. That is the room where they treat patients, or at least that's what they say. It is actually more of a mock-up to show to foreign visitors. What actual clinics look like these days, who knows... (if they exist at all)

Left : A store in Pyongyang, June of 1972. Middle : Where North Korean citizens buy their goods. It is a street market, which is prohibited by the socialist nation; however, the rations system has failed so badly that the government is taking a blind eye on the situation. The stores you see on the right are only for very high Party officers and/or foreign visitors.