May 9, 2016

Over 100 foreign journalists gathered in Pyongyang, North Korea to cover the seventh congress of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party – the first since 1980.The North Korean government assigns minders to reporters and keep a close watch on their every move. But still, photos from this historic occasion provide a rare peek into the texture of daily life in the Communist country.

: Workers operate machinery at a silk factory in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: Workers operate machinery at a silk factory in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A carer pushes two children on a bicycle at a day care centre for children of workers at a silk factory in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: Children play at a day care centre for children of workers at a silk factory in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A security camera is seen covered in a floral drape during a media tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory in Pyongyang on May 6, 2016. When one of the world’s most secretive states opens the door to the international media, it keeps a firm grip on the handle. Some 130 journalists flocked to North Korea at the express invitation of the Pyongyang authorities to cover the opening of a rare ruling party congress. They got within 200 meters of the venue, the April 25 Palace, and that was where they were stopped — on the other side of the road, under a steady drizzle that had been falling on the capital all morning. Instead of a rare glimpse of the country’s highest-level political meeting for almost four decades, the media were then offered a tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory. North Korea issues reporting visas sparingly and escorts all journalists to make sure it sets the agenda and gets its point across. (AFP PHOTO / Ed JonesED JONES/AFP/Getty Images)

: Workers sit on a bench during a media tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory in Pyongyang on May 6, 2016. When one of the world’s most secretive states opens the door to the international media, it keeps a firm grip on the handle. Some 130 journalists flocked to North Korea at the express invitation of the Pyongyang authorities to cover the opening of a rare ruling party congress. They got within 200 meters of the venue, the April 25 Palace, and that was where they were stopped — on the other side of the road, under a steady drizzle that had been falling on the capital all morning. Instead of a rare glimpse of the country’s highest-level political meeting for almost four decades, the media were then offered a tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory. North Korea issues reporting visas sparingly and escorts all journalists to make sure it sets the agenda and gets its point across. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A worker stands before machinery during a media tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory in Pyongyang on May 6, 2016. When one of the world’s most secretive states opens the door to the international media, it keeps a firm grip on the handle. Some 130 journalists flocked to North Korea at the express invitation of the Pyongyang authorities to cover the opening of a rare ruling party congress. They got within 200 meters of the venue, the April 25 Palace, and that was where they were stopped — on the other side of the road, under a steady drizzle that had been falling on the capital all morning. Instead of a rare glimpse of the country’s highest-level political meeting for almost four decades, the media were then offered a tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory. North Korea issues reporting visas sparingly and escorts all journalists to make sure it sets the agenda and gets its point across. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images)

: A worker stands before machinery during a media tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory in Pyongyang on May 6, 2016. When one of the world’s most secretive states opens the door to the international media, it keeps a firm grip on the handle. Some 130 journalists flocked to North Korea at the express invitation of the Pyongyang authorities to cover the opening of a rare ruling party congress. They got within 200 meters of the venue, the April 25 Palace, and that was where they were stopped — on the other side of the road, under a steady drizzle that had been falling on the capital all morning. Instead of a rare glimpse of the country’s highest-level political meeting for almost four decades, the media were then offered a tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory. North Korea issues reporting visas sparingly and escorts all journalists to make sure it sets the agenda and gets its point across. (AFP PHOTO / Ed JonesED JONES/AFP/Getty Images)

: A worker sorts through silk at a silk factory in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A worker sort documents during a media tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory in Pyongyang on May 6, 2016. When one of the world’s most secretive states opens the door to the international media, it keeps a firm grip on the handle. Some 130 journalists flocked to North Korea at the express invitation of the Pyongyang authorities to cover the opening of a rare ruling party congress. They got within 200 meters of the venue, the April 25 Palace, and that was where they were stopped — on the other side of the road, under a steady drizzle that had been falling on the capital all morning. Instead of a rare glimpse of the country’s highest-level political meeting for almost four decades, the media were then offered a tour of the March 26 Electric Cable Factory. North Korea issues reporting visas sparingly and escorts all journalists to make sure it sets the agenda and gets its point across. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: North Korean workers are silhouetted at the Pyongyang 326 Electric Wire Factory, seen during a press tour on Friday, May 6, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea on Friday opened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, a major political event intended to showcase the country’s stability and unity under young leader Kim Jong Un despite international criticism and tough new sanctions over the North’s recent nuclear test and a slew of missile launches. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: North Korean guides read newspapers showing coverage of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un delivering a speech at the 7th Workers Party Congress, in the lobby of the Yanggakdo hotel in Pyongyang on May 8, 2016. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un told a rare ruling party congress that his country was a “responsible” nuclear weapons state, with a no first-use policy and a commitment to non-proliferation, state media reported on May 8. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A snack vewndor waits for customers during a media tour of the birthplace of late founder of North Korea Kim Il-Sung, known as ‘Mangyongdae’, near Pyongyang on May 7, 2016. North Korea’s first ruling party congress since 1980 moved into a second day, after leader Kim Jong-Un opened with a defiant defence of his nuclear weapons programme and amid fresh signs Pyongyang is readying a fifth nuclear test. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: A general view shows the April 25 Palace, the venue of the 7th Workers Party Congress, in Pyongyang on May 9, 2016. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un was on May 9 given a new title — chairman of the Workers’ Party — at a rare top-level meeting of the ruling party. (AFP PHOTO / Antoine Demaison)

: This photo taken on May 7, 2016 and released on May 8 by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows the second-day of the 7th Workers Party Congress at the ‘April 25 Palace’ in Pyongyang. (AFP PHOTO / KCNA / KCNAKCNA/AFP/Getty Images)

: This picture taken and released by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 3, 2016 shows participants for the Seventh Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) arriving in Pyongyang. After four years of top-level reshuffles, purges and executions, Kim Jong-Un will formally cement his unassailable status as North Korea’s supreme leader at a landmark ruling party congress this week. (AFP PHOTO/KCNA VIA KNS)

: A nurse tends to new-born infants in a ward at the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital during a government-organised media tour in Pyongyang on May 7, 2016. North Korea organised an unusual media tour of a gleaming modern hospital, apparently seeking to highlight its leaders’ love for the people during a major ruling party gathering. The Pyongyang Maternity Hospital owes everything to the party and to the Kim dynasty which has ruled the country since its creation, according to officials who escorted foreign reporters around the showpiece institution. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: Patients walk thorugh a hallway past a portrait of late North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung (L) and Kim Jong-Il (R) at the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital during a government-organised media tour in Pyongyang on May 7, 2016. North Korea organised an unusual media tour of a gleaming modern hospital, apparently seeking to highlight its leaders’ love for the people during a major ruling party gathering. The Pyongyang Maternity Hospital owes everything to the party and to the Kim dynasty which has ruled the country since its creation, according to officials who escorted foreign reporters around the showpiece institution. (AFP PHOTO / Ed Jones)

: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrives for the party congress at the April 25 House of Culture in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, May 9, 2016. North Korea’s ruling-party congress on Monday announced a new title for Kim, party chairman, in a move that highlights how the authoritarian country’s first congress in 36 years is aimed at bolstering the young leader. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: Party representatives sit in the hall of the April 25 House of Culture during the party congress in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, May 9, 2016. North Korea’s ruling-party congress on Monday announced a new title for Kim Jong Un, party chairman, in a move that highlights how the authoritarian country’s first congress in 36 years is aimed at bolstering the young leader. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: BBC’s journalist Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, center, walks past journalists as he arrives at the airport in Beijing, China, Monday, May 9, 2016. North Korea on Monday expelled the BBC correspondent, who was not among journalists covering the congress. He had covered an earlier trip of Nobel laureates and had been scheduled to leave Friday. Instead, he was stopped at the airport, detained and questioned. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrives for the party congress while party representatives applaud in the foreground in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, May 9, 2016. North Korea has brought in more than 100 journalists from around the world to make sure that the 7th Congress of its ruling Workers’ Party gets global attention. Four days into the event, they allowed a small number of foreign journalists into the conventional hall where the congress was taking place. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: The interior of the convention hall where the party congress takes place is seen on Monday, May 9, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea has brought in more than 100 journalists from around the world to make sure that the 7th Congress of its ruling Workers’ Party gets global attention. Four days into the event, they allowed a small number of foreign journalists into the conventional hall where the congress was taking place. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: A North Korean reads the country’s leader Kim Jong Un’s speech published in the local newspaper on Sunday, May 8, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said during a critical ruling party congress that his country will not use its nuclear weapons first unless its sovereignty is invaded, state media reported. (AP Photo/Kim Kwang Hyon)

: North Koreans clap as they listen to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speak at the party congress during a television broadcast on a public screen near the Pyongyang train station on Sunday, May 8, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said during a critical ruling party congress that his country will not use its nuclear weapons first unless its sovereignty is invaded, state media reported. (AP Photo/Kim Kwang Hyon)

: A waitress clears a table while a broadcast of the second day of the 7th Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea is shown on local television on Saturday, May 7, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea’s ruling party is preparing to bestow its top title on leader Kim Jong Un, another clear sign that the third heir to North Korea’s dynasty of Kims is firmly in control despite his country’s deepening international isolation over one of his key ambitions, to keep developing more and better nuclear weapons. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: A North Korean man rides in a subway car on Saturday, May 7, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea’s ruling party is preparing to bestow its top title on leader Kim Jong Un, another clear sign that the third heir to North Korea’s dynasty of Kims is firmly in control despite his country’s deepening international isolation over one of his key ambitions, to keep developing more and better nuclear weapons. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: North Korean commuters ride in a subway car on Saturday, May 7, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea’s ruling party is preparing to bestow its top title on leader Kim Jong Un, another clear sign that the third heir to North Korea’s dynasty of Kims is firmly in control despite his country’s deepening international isolation over one of his key ambitions, to keep developing more and better nuclear weapons. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: North Korean men wait with their bicycles to cross a street decorated with flags of their ruling Workers’ Party Saturday, May 7, 2016 in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed his country’s recent nuclear test to uproarious applause as he convened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, an event intended to showcase the North’s stability and unity in the face of tough international sanctions and deepening isolation. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: A pin of the late North Korea leaders Kim Il Sung, left, and Kim Jong Il is displayed on North Korean man’s suit Saturday, May 7, 2016 in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed his country’s recent nuclear test to uproarious applause as he convened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, an event intended to showcase the North’s stability and unity in the face of tough international sanctions and deepening isolation. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: North Koreans, adults and youths, ride on an electric trolley bus Saturday, May 7, 2016 in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed his country’s recent nuclear test to uproarious applause as he convened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, an event intended to showcase the North’s stability and unity in the face of tough international sanctions and deepening isolation. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: A woman stands in her balcony of an apartment building on Friday, May 6, 2016, in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea on Friday opened the first full congress of its ruling party since 1980, a major political event intended to showcase the country’s stability and unity under young leader Kim Jong Un despite international criticism and tough new sanctions over the North’s recent nuclear test and a slew of missile launches. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: Party representatives sit in the hall of the April 25 House of Culture during the party congress in Pyongyang, North Korea, Monday, May 9, 2016. North Korea has brought in more than 100 journalists from around the world to make sure that the 7th Congress of its ruling Workers’ Party gets global attention. Four days into the event, they allowed a small number of foreign journalists into the conventional hall where the congress was taking place. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: In this Saturday, May 7, 2016, photo, beer servers Kim Yon Hui, 29, left, and Yang Pok Yong, 42, right wait to serve customers at the Taedonggang Beer shop in Pyongyang, North Korea. Ahead of the ongoing congress of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, the nation was called upon to do massive overtime to boost production and show their devotion to leader Kim Jong Un in a 70-day “loyalty campaign.” And that’s in addition to the hour after hour of rehearsals for huge rallies when their ruling party wraps up its first congress in decades. So how does a tired North Korean unwind? Beer. Beer. And more beer. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: In this Saturday, May 7, 2016, photo, North Korean men drink beer at the Taedonggang Beer shop in Pyongyang, North Korea. Ahead of the ongoing congress of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, the nation was called upon to do massive overtime to boost production and show their devotion to leader Kim Jong Un in a 70-day “loyalty campaign.” And that’s in addition to the hour after hour of rehearsals for huge rallies when their ruling party wraps up its first congress in decades. So how does a tired North Korean unwind? Beer. Beer. And more beer. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

: In this Saturday, May 7, 2016, photo, Pak Sun Won, 66, left, a retired physician drinks a glass of draft beer at the Taedonggang Beer shop with his friends in Pyongyang, North Korea. Ahead of the ongoing congress of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, the nation was called upon to do massive overtime to boost production and show their devotion to leader Kim Jong Un in a 70-day “loyalty campaign.” And that’s in addition to the hour after hour of rehearsals for huge rallies when their ruling party wraps up its first congress in decades. So how does a tired North Korean unwind? Beer. Beer. And more beer. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)

According to AP, ahead of the ongoing congress of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party, the nation was called upon to do massive overtime to boost production and show their devotion to leader Kim Jong Un in a 70-day “loyalty campaign.” And that’s in addition to the hour after hour of rehearsals for huge rallies when their ruling party wraps up its first congress in decades. (So how does a tired North Korean unwind? Beer. Beer. And more beer.)

However, as the LA Times reports, once the congress began Friday, journalists were kept out of the venue — and instead bused to a wire-making factory to get a taste of the latest in North Korean manufacturing. According to Julie Makinen, “Guides said the Pyongyang 326 Electric Cable Factory produced copper and aluminum wires and had 1,000 employees, though only perhaps 100 appeared to be on duty as the throng of reporters toured the spotless facility.

Much of the technology appeared to be extremely dated, and though employees boasted that all of the machines were North Korean made, some were clearly produced abroad, by companies such as Nokia. Officials touted the benefits for the workers, including a perfectly manicured soccer field in front of the factory, and a recreation center that included a spa, barbershop, ping-pong hall, restaurants and mini-mart. A motto out front read: “Go forward to the final victory following the great leader Kim Jong Un!”

Inside North Korea

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