Radio Free Asia (RFA) says that fewer and fewer North Koreans are participating in a celebratory march to Jongilbong, a peak named after North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. The march is considered an important part of the celebrations to mark Kim’s birthday.

The Washington-funded broadcaster quoted a North Korean source as saying that the number of participants in the march began decreasing three years ago amid the serious food shortage facing the communist country.

According to RFA, the number dropped to three-thousand last year and fewer than one-thousand this year.

Another source said that the number of volunteers for the march was insufficient this year so soldiers from units in Gangwon Province were mobilized for the event.

The source added that residents of Samjiyeon County, Yanggang Province, were also mobilized for a congratulatory gun salute for Kim’s birthday.