While the world has tried and failed to save the people of North Korea, it might just be animal activists that break the barrier.

But probably not.

You see, other than the dreary life citizens of the “democracy” lead, another tourist attraction is a 19-year-old smoking chimpanzee named Azalea.

The zoo insists, however, that she doesn’t inhale.

Pyongyang Zoo was reopened in July and has been pulling in thousands of visitors every day with a range of attractions, from elephants, giraffes, penguins and monkeys to a high-tech natural history museum.

There’s even a dog pavilion which has everything from German shepherds to Shih Tzus. What even is that?

Longtime AP photographer Wong Maye-E made her way to Kim Jong-un’s playground to shoot the zoo and, struck by the relationship between the chimp and its trainer, she reported on what she saw, thanks to TIME:

She would perform little tricks like touch her nose, bow and raise her arms to greet visitors. He [the trainer] would also break into a little tune for her and she would circle round as if she was dancing.

Then later on, he asked a member of the audience for a cigarette and a lighter. He threw the cigarette into the exhibit and after she went to pick it up, he made her gesture with two hands out as he threw a lighter to her. She then lit her cigarette, and then threw the lighter back towards the keeper who was standing among the visitors still.

It seemed to be a routine and part of the entertainment factor. It was part of her ‘song and dance’ number.

Here’s the scene:

Of course this has PETA up arms, with its president Ingrid Newkirk releasing a statement to TIME, condoning the act of entertainment:

How cruel to willfully addict a chimpanzee to tobacco for human amusement.

Gradually, zoos are learning that spectacles like chimpanzee tea parties, elephant rides and photo ops with tiger cubs are inappropriate and exploitive, with the big question now being, why are we keeping wild animals behind bars at all?

Would it be better if it were an e-cig rather? Kidding.

But we are talking about North Korea here.

[source:time]