A prominent Chinese writer has provided a rare insider’s account of the Orwellian routine that governs the daily lives of North Korea’s privileged elite in Pyongyang, the capital city.

Writing in the Guofang Shibao (National Defence Journal) last week, Ye Yonglie described a recent official visit to Pyongyang.

Its people gave off a sense of superiority over the rest of North Korea, he wrote. “You are not allowed to live in Pyongyang if you are from a family of bad class or background or if you have slightly different political opinions,” Ye said. “Disabled people are not allowed to live there because they believe that the disabled are bad for the image of the city.”

The only way to tell residential and office blocks apart was that homes had balconies, he added.

The city forbids people to hang out their washing to dry, and even though almost nobody has a washer or dryer, the North Koreans told their Chinese visitors with a straight face that their wives preferred to dry clothes indoors.

Office starting hours are staggered between 7am and 9am to avoid the impression of a rush hour on the excellent public transport system. All employees must report half an hour before the official start of work to pledge allegiance to Kim Jong-il, the “dear leader”, and his late father, the “great leader”, Kim Il-sung.

North Koreans work six days a week, with Saturdays reserved for study of Kim Il-sung’s political theory of Juche, or self-reliance.

There is no advertising and the few taxis charge huge fares beyond the means of most North Koreans – twice as much as a taxi in Shanghai, for instance. All cars are black and allocated to high officials.

Only four colours of clothes are permitted: black, green, blue and white. The government distributes clothing fabric by rank, with an ordinary official receiving enough to tailor one new jacket a year. However, they may buy their own shoes.

“You cannot judge a man’s social status by his clothes, but only by his shoes,” said Ye.

Ye is a trusted Communist party writer and his conclusion indicated the perception of North Korea among Chinese leaders.

“North Korea today is China yesterday,” he wrote.

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