海角大神

In an evident small-scale relaxing of North Korea鈥檚 rigid isolation, young leader Kim Jong Un is allowing new kinds of Western and American pop culture symbols to appear in his country, including Mickey Mouse and NBA stars like former Chicago Bulls forward Dennis Rodman 鈥� figures well known in the West, but not until recently in the North.

The regime of Mr. Kim, who took over the family鈥檚 totalitarian dynasty from his late father two-year ago, is also curbing its harsh intolerance of high-tech gadgets and consumer goods, the possession of which could sometimes mean prison or worse.

Some聽2.4聽million North Koreans now subscribe to mobile phones according to Orascom Telecom Media & Technology Holding of Egypt, which provides cell service here. Since mid-2014, phones loaded with high tech games and romance novels聽have arrived in Pyongyang, the capital. North Koreans can now own聽Google Android聽smart phones with 30聽foreign聽games included, such as Talking Tom and Plant vs. Zombies, even as access to the Internet and 3G is still unavailable.

鈥淚 hit the cat (of Talking Tom) when I am upset,鈥� said聽Mr. Park, a tour guide聽and recent college graduate. Park believes his 4.7 inch 鈥淧yongyang Touch鈥� mobile purchased here is a rebranded Samsung model, and聽that his colleague鈥檚 鈥淎rirang鈥� phone is a rebranded Sony.

Chinese mobile brands, Huawei and ZTE, also are openly available in city markets.

Despite crippling conditions in many places, Kim has expanded the availability of previously forbidden products to a broader swath of the nation鈥檚 elite and their offspring in urban areas 鈥� partly to placate new generations of Koreans and party to offer perks to regime loyalists the Kim needs support from.

Digital cameras, credit cards, and cosmetics 鈥� the basics of Western and Chinese consumer culture -- are now showing up in one of the world鈥檚 most ideologically rigid states, as witnessed in a recent tourist visit. Analysts say aid from and trade with neighboring China is a significant source of wealth and goods.

Previously unavailable foreign products, including German beer, shampoo, toothpaste and Japanese mayonnaise are on the increase. Coffee has become a common drink, and some restaurants even serve espresso from Italian espresso machines.

鈥淎fter years of economic reforms and exchanges with the outside world, the government is no longer able to control its citizens鈥� minds in the old rigid fashion,鈥� said Zhang Yushan, North Korea expert at China鈥檚聽Jilin Academy of Social Sciences. He says North Koreans are demanding more.

To Mr. Park, the guide, a mobile phone and camera are an opportunity to聽taste something of modern life聽and聽they symbolize hope and progress, he says.

For the young generation of the country鈥檚 elite, digital cameras and mobile phones are required accessories and common birthday gifts. Park鈥檚 $100 digital camera is a Chinese made Samsung. He bought that instead of the locally available alternative, a Nikon digital single-lens reflex for $1,000. Japanese brands Casio and Canon are also found on the shelves.

The message if not the reality is that daily life is improving. Along with support from China, there鈥檚 an apparent improvement of light industry, a project that began under Kim鈥檚 father, Dear Leader Kim聽Jong聽Il.

Factories that in 2007 didn鈥檛 have the needed parts to produce聽such basics as聽candy, instant noodles and soda water,聽are now manufacturing more advanced products like frozen dumplings,聽sausages,聽sneakers聽and cosmetics.

The variety of cosmetics have increased significantly, with wrinkle- elimination and聽skin-聽whitening聽creams聽on shelves.

Change is also evident in a debit-card system聽introduced by the government in 2011,聽an essential service in the modern financial world. The聽鈥淣arae鈥澛燾ard is accepted at hotels, restaurants and shops in聽Pyongyang, Wonsan and Kaesong.

Popular broadcast聽entertainment, movies and TV, are another bellwether of change: Official TV聽channels present more foreign programming 鈥� Western cartoons and Chinese movies.Qianfu or Lurk, a Chinese spy TV series, is now popular here. Leading actor Sun Honglei attracts female audiences with the character鈥檚 willingness to help his wife with chores in the show.

"State propaganda emphasizes the need to innovate and to adapt certain foreign ideas and practices,鈥� said聽Geoffrey See, managing director of聽the non-profit聽Choson Exchange,聽which provides economic聽and legal training in the North. (Mr. See notes that official restrictions on information and foreign cultural products聽have also intensified in many cases.)

The relaxation is significant partly since the idea of leisure time was officially disallowed under Kim Jong聽Il, whose famed 鈥渕ilitary-first policy鈥� kept the nation on high alert in anticipation of a potential US or South Korean attack. One hears for the first time of North Koreans taking vacations.

The buddings of consumer culture are seen in Pyongyang and Wonsan in the form of soft-serve聽ice cream machines, and the sale of birthday cakes with聽swirled rose frosting. In early 2000 there was one flavor of popsicle readily available; now there are more than a dozen.

Yet, food and power shortages remain聽in much of the country,聽and聽a gap has widened between the privileged in the city and those living second-class lives in the countryside. Most ordinary North Koreans can鈥檛 afford a camera. Wood-burning steam-powered trucks are still seen running outside Pyongyang. And many people rely on their feet or on hitchhiking for transportation.

How much a new consumer and entertainment oriented direction might upset the stability of the regime, is a subject of speculation.

Georgy Toloraya, a North Korea expert at Russia鈥檚 Russkiy Foundation says many North Koreans have simply abandoned the country鈥檚 all pervasive ideological teachings. 鈥淎 lot of them have simply stopped reading the Rodong Sinmun (the regime鈥檚 propaganda daily)鈥� Mr. Toloraya says.聽