North Korea Aid: Profile of Amy Daniels
In September 1997, the first American civilian aircraft in nearly half a century landed in North Korea. It was chartered by the non-profit AmeriCares, and it brought with it 59,000 pounds of nutritional supplements, antibiotics, vitamins, gastro-intestinal medicine, antidiarrheals and infant formula. For the past eight years, the Connecticut-based organization has sent two shipments of medical supplies to North Korean hospitals and orphanages each year.
Between 2003 and 2005, Amy Daniels worked for AmeriCares as program director for the former Soviet Union and East Asia, including North Korea. During this time, she made four week-long trips to North Korea to monitor aid distribution. Generally, she says, supplies were delivered according to AmeriCares’ suggested distribution chart and were not being diverted for sale in private markets.
Before each trip, AmeriCares applies for travel permission through the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) mission to the United Nations in New York. It must spell out the proposed dates of travel, destinations, and who will make up the delegation. After obtaining an invitation letter, the group flies to Beijing, where they pick up their visas from the DPRK embassy. From there, they board a Koryo Air flight to Pyongyang.
AmeriCares does not maintain permanent field offices in North Korea. Like other NGOs that work there, AmeriCares must partner with the government's Flood Damage Rehabilitation Committee (FDRC) to distribute its aid. Daniels says the FDRC workers speak fluent English, so there isn't a need to bring in Korean translators. Besides, she says, the government doesn't let in Korean speaking aid workers. "It's a matter of maintaining control," she says.
Each day, they take day trips with FDRC partners to visit hospitals and warehouses and meet with institute directors to discuss progress reports. North Korea’s medical needs, such as malnutrition and gastrointestinal problems, are similar to those in other industrial nations, says Daniels.
During her trips, she had a chance to get to know a handful of FDRC workers. "After a while, it becomes easier to talk about families and daily life. But you know what questions not to ask, like ‘What do you think of Kim Jong Il’s leadership?’ You don't want to compromise your work and the role that a non-governmental organization plays."
Daniels says that North Korea definitely stands out among the 50 countries she has visited. "It's very unique in the sense that it is so closed off. There's very little going in and going out, so time kind of stands still."
In 2005, Amy Daniels left AmeriCares to pursue a master's in public health at Johns Hopkins University.