Chinese Tycoon to Head Special DPRK Zone: Paper

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, September 25, 2002

Chinese Tycoon to Head Special DPRK Zone: Paper

One of China's richest businessmen has been selected to lead a new special administrative region in DPRK, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday.

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One of China's richest businessmen has been selected to lead a new special administrative region in DPRK, the South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday.

Yang Bin, 39, told a news conference in DPRK capital Pyongyang on Monday that he would be chief executive of the special financial and commercial zone of Sinuiju, on the border with China, the Post said.

The landmark free trade zone, to be built in the northwestern corner of the country, would have its own legislature, more than half of whom will be foreigners, and its own courts with a European as chief judge, Yang was quoted as saying.

A wall will be erected to divide the capitalist region from the rest of the reclusive country and some 500,000 people living in the area will be forced to move to other parts of DPRK over the next two years.

Yang said 200,000 migrants would be brought in, including young and skilled people from DPRK and China.

DPRK said last week that it wanted to turn the region, now a poor agricultural and industrial area which reportedly lacks even clean water, into an international financial, industrial and tourist center. It appears to be using booming special regions in China as a model.

Yang, a former Chinese navy officer, was educated in the Netherlands and holds Dutch citizenship. He was named by Forbes magazine as the second richest businessman in China last year, with estimated personal wealth of $900 million.

Source: Agencies

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