North Korea-themed items selling on E-Bay

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2003�E-Bay is listing for auction hundreds of items related to North Korea and its reclusive leader, Kim Jong-Il, on its Web site, and sellers report steady interest from prospective buyers, RFA�s Korean service reports. Items for sale include Kim Jong-Il t-shirts and watches, the North Korean flag, and North Korean stamps commemorating the 1981 wedding of Britain's Prince Charles to then Lady Diana Spencer.

"I designed Kim�s hairstyle" on t-shirts depicting the North Korean leader, Stuart Rod of Las Vegas, Nevada, said in an interview. Rod has sold "a few" of the shirts at $10 U.S. apiece since he began marketing them in May. He decided to create the shirts after discussing North Korea�s declared nuclear program with friends.

Ron Collins of Clearwater, Florida also cited steady demand for North Korean flags, mainly among Korean War veterans.

"Millions of customers visit E-Bay, and if you sell an item here, you always have someone who�s willing to buy it," Collins said, adding that demand for South Korean flags was still higher than demand for flags from the North.

To listen to the original Korean broadcast of this story, click here .

RFA broadcasts news and information to Asian listeners who lack regular access to full and balanced reporting in their domestic media. Through its broadcasts and call-in programs, RFA aims to fill a critical gap in the lives of people across Asia. Created by Congress in 1994 and incorporated in 1996, RFA currently broadcasts in Burmese, Cantonese, Khmer, Korean, Lao, Mandarin, the Wu dialect, Vietnamese, Tibetan (Uke, Amdo, and Kham), and Uyghur. It adheres to the highest standards of journalism and aims to exemplify accuracy, balance, and fairness in its editorial content. #####