North Korean Junket: A review

This post may be more about questions than a review. Before I posted the video North Korean Junket, I did not see the entire thing, but figured it would interesting to post because it had some footage I have never seen before (or so I assumed). A few hours later when I had some time to watch the entire thing, I noticed Curtis Melvin was in it. A little further into the video, saw one of the very first North Korean video clips I ever ran into on YouTube on what I call “Yankee go home”. That was kind of entertaining, but mainly because I did not know the entire scope of the circumstances in the video. Not until this video and reading the North Korean Junket blog did I have the foggiest idea of what happened on that 2004 trip.

I have to say I felt pretty dumb.

I took another gander at NKEconWatch’s DPRK trip of 2004 to get a better understanding of that trip, although little of the Andrew Morse incident was talked about. That does not really matter. The purpose of the video was to get a better understanding of what North Korea was like. North Korean Junket gave a glimpse of that whether North Korea and/or the Korean Friendship Association intended to or not. The Andrew Morse incident did give some insight on just how firm the iron grip of Kim Jong Il is. All information is heavily censored, and people going to visit North Korea have to follow protocol. Furthermore, if one is smart, it is best to censor yourself. What appears to be ironic is while North Korea wants others to give an honest assessment of the DPRK (as rare as it is), they seem surprised and angry when another opinion (even sugar-coated) is given. Anything other than the official line is a lie and must be stopped. That was my overall impression of the video and the actions conducted by the Korean Friendship Association and the regime.

Overall, it is pretty rare for journalists to go to North Korea especially journalists from the United States. They are under special scrutiny even if they claim otherwise as suggested in that documentary. It appears to me Andrew Morse truly went to North Korea with the intent to give another view of North Korea, but as well know that is an impossibility with minders in tow censoring every step you take. Stepping over the line means serious problems as this video showed. According to a reply by the documentary’s director:

[...] There’s not that much of the story that didn’t make it to the video other than the former communications secretary resigned and got in a scuffle with Big Al at the end of the trip.

Who was the former communication’s secretary and Big Al?

[...] At one point Andrew asked to be taken to the Swiss embassy but he told me not to film him doing so before I could hit the record button. He apologized later though.

That suggests things were not going very swimmingly. Obviously, things were not as serious as it could have possibly been because Curtis got to go on another trip and Andrew Morse seems to still be a journalist (I do not watch ABC News, so I did not know anything about the guy until seeing this video and reading a bit about the backdrop). However, according to the blog post, the KFA has stopped people bringing in cameras (although Alejandro Cao de Benos obviously loves hamming it up for the camera):

Since the International March for Korea’s Peace and Reunification in 2004, the KFA has still been organizing trips to North Korea. But they don’t let just anyone take video like they did with me anymore. To that extent I’m grateful to the KFA for letting me use my videocamera. I’m also thankful for their crudity, because crudity makes compelling video.

That is no surprise. In my opinion, it is the good old censorship action at work, and that will not change anytime soon. I have to say while it took quite a bit of guts to attempt to get another viewpoint of North Korea, the hard questions asked were delivered in softball fashion. That is understandable considering they were on DPRK soil, and again, any mis-steps could be unpredictable. On the other hand, during the Philharmonic visit, reporters also had minders in tow and openly talked about the problems inside the secret state. When I saw that, I was very, very surprised they let that go. I cannot answer as to why it flew, but I am going to guess the Philharmonic paid a handsome amount to Kim Jong Il. Everything has a price, especially favor in North Korea.

So there was the KFA spinning away and spouting the official line, and in the end, the special was not aired on TV because Alejandro Cao de Benos was an asshole. That does not matter, because as Friends of Kim, the purpose is to be soldiers for the Juche cause asshole or not.

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Some books I ordered

I went on Amazon and bought some books today. These will be the first books I bought about North Korea, and I cannot wait to read them. There are several more I want to get, but the subtotal was getting pretty expensive. As for the Red Horizons book, it should be here anytime, but I have to wait longer because of the “super saver” shipping. Ah well.

Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid, and Reform

By Marcus Noland and Stephan Haggard

The Aquariums of Pyongyang: Ten Years in the North Korean Gulag

By Chol Hwan Kang

Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader: North Korea and the Kim Dynasty

By Bradley K. Martin

If you folks have any other good suggestions for later, please let me know.

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Podcast: Some news from North Korea and elsewhere

What is covered today:

1. 7 boxes of documents describing North Korea’s nuclear activity dating back to 1986

2. The food problem

3. United States election primary

4. Burma’s junta regime, referendum and aid issues

DPRK Studies

Enjoy the podcast

 
icon for podpress  DPRK Forum Podcast May 10, 2008 [11:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (18)

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Reposted: Korean War in Color (update and bump)

ROK Drop originally posted this a while back, and found it again for those of you who missed it. It is a fantastic documentary and is should not be missed. Enjoy!

Sad news: The videos in which this documentary was stored is no longer in operation. I am very sad it had to go, but it is. I am so sorry it is not around anymore because it was truly an awesome resource.

:(

While Stage 6 is long gone, on my travels found it again. Enjoy:

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Reposted: Comparison of the Kims vs. the Ceausescus Part 1

I removed the clips and just talked about them in this podcast. As said in there, I will make this in several parts because a 40 min+ podcast is much too long and I apologize for that. At any rate, here is the fixed podcast for you. I hope you enjoy it.

 
icon for podpress  Standard Podcast [15:11m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (20)

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North Korean Junket : I think I see NKEconWatch in there

Yes, I think I see Curtis from NKEconWatch in this video because he is as well as some others. I saw the smaller clips on YouTube with Alejandro Cao de Benos de Les y Pérez yelling “Yankee go home!” I think I posted that a while back. This looks like the full video. Here is the description of the video:

[...]

In 2004 I went to North Korea to make a video. I had little idea about how the trip would turn out, other than it was organized by a group called the Korean Friendship Association. It’s leader, Alejandro Cao de Benos, is a megaphone for the North Korean government.

The KFA wants to show Westerners its verion of reality in North Korea which is little more than a Potemkin Village. Alejandro would probably say that I have been brainwashed by CNN for describing North Korea as a Potemkin Village, or for calling North Korea North Korea, instead of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (or DPRK).

Andrew was in North Korea to do a feature for ABC’s ‘Nightline’. His story never made it to air because his hotel room was broken into and his tapes were stolen. That is, his North Korean experience was authentic. I’m just glad I was around to capture some of it on video.

[...]

I have been falling behind on the posting of videos and other articles messing around with the podcasts, but things should be running smoothly very soon. In the meantime, enjoy this video.

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Speaking of Romania…

While I have been on the subject of Romania, news of a dissident named Monica Lovinescu who risked her life and was almost killed during Nicolae’s rule died April 21, 2008 at the age of 85 (International Herald Tribune). The entire article is a very good read, so make sure to read the whole thing.

A commentary of Monica Lovinescu on Radio Free Europe.

I never heard of her until a few days ago, but her story is very gripping and how the voices of freedom are directly threatened by a repressive regime. She was not alone. According to the video posted a few moments ago, that tells tales of North Korean defectors and human rights advocates risking life getting information to North Koreans. It is almost a certainty other dissidents from other countries had the same fears or even died from speaking out inside and outside. Monica Lovinescu, despite the attempt on her life and being in a come got back on her feet and continued to pierce the iron curtain inside Nicolae Ceausescu’s state. According to International Herald Tribune:

Romanian philosopher Gabriel Liiceanu has said he was told by a senior intelligence officer that her broadcasts angered Ceausescu so much that in 1977 he told Romania’s secret service: “Let’s shut her up! Let’s break her into pieces! Let’s break her teeth, jaw and break her hands so she can never write or speak again.”

Later that year, Lovinescu was severely beaten in front of her home in Paris, leaving her in a coma with head injuries. Ion Pacepa, who served as deputy head of foreign intelligence under Ceausescu before defecting in 1978, has said the beating was carried out by two men acting on Ceausescu’s orders. Lovinescu later recovered and returned to broadcasting for Radio Free Europe.

Ceausescu was overthrown and executed in 1989, and Lovinescu continued her work with Radio Free Europe until 1992.

Emphasis mine. What does this have to do with North Korea? Much like old communist Romania, it was those who risked life for the sake of freedom for others who changed everything. Much like CNN’s documentary, they discuss those sending information in, and those sending information out. With the war of the words, telling people inside things can get better if they work together for a common good can bring even the most hard-line of dictators down. People like Monica Lovinescu were instrumental in that fight even if it takes a really long time for results to appear. Eventually, people got the courage to stand up and make real change. This led to the only violent end to a leader during the breakup of the communist rule in Eastern Europe.

Communist Romania’s end gives me great hope that it does not necessarily need outside intervention to finally bring an end to Kim Jong Il’s crumbling state. It is my belief with enough poverty, repression, starvation and abuse people will not take it anymore. When the army finally turned the guns on the dictator, it was all over. While nobody knows when and how North Korea will end, the end is inevitable. As I said before, the cracks are showing, and it is only a matter of time before it all comes crashing down.

As said before, I think a lot can be learned from the former regimes that are now long gone, and not just Romania. If we look to other uprisings and change (no, not Barack Obama style, thank you) maybe it can inspire those inside toiling under the iron grip of a repressive ruler with the help of strong voices that truly care for them. North Korea may be the biggest challenge yet, but with enough work, determination, love and perseverance, people can look forward to a better life away from Juche.

What will it take? People disagree on the methodology employed to make change whether it is forceful change, engagement, pressure, sanctions or whatever, one thing is certain. Normal people help bring that change. Even after the North Korean state is gone, it will take a long time and a lot of work to eventually bring reunification. We may well be in the beginnings of that, and perhaps the truth will come to light.

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CNN: Notes from North Korea (Update)

Make sure to check out CNN’s special investigative report on North Korea:

CNN chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour travels to North Korea as the New York Philharmonic Orchestra makes a historic visit to one of the world’s most closed societies. She examines the tense standoff with the U.S. over nuclear weapons and provides a rare look inside a notorious, top-secret nuclear facility. Watch Saturday and Sunday, 8 & 11 p.m. ET.

CNN’s other special investigations report Inside North Korea was excellent, so if this one is as good as the last one, it is going to be a must see. In the spirit of that, here is the video of that special if you have not seen it already.

Update: See the CNN article and the Notes from North Korea in depth page.

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Podcast: News and reactions from the other podcasts

This is the last of the daily podcasts, and this podcast will give some overview on the reactions from the dry run and the attempt at the more in-depth “broadcast”. I will also talk about some news items while I am at it. I will maybe publish a new podcast perhaps once a week and will consider a set schedule. That may not happen with my unpredictable life, but I will try my best.

At any rate some of the highlights of today’s podcast:

1. The feedback from the other podcasts

2. Some news from North Korea, the cyclone in Myanmar and the volcano in Chile

4. Some notable blog entries to check out

Sources to check out: Yonyap (Food aid to North Korea)

New York Times (Cyclone)

BBC (Volcano)

Notable blog entries: DPRK Studies - The Uranium debate

NKEconWatch: Cricket in North Korea and the upcoming Google Earth resource May 31st!

One Free Korea: New North Korean camp Google Earth resource

Enjoy the podcast!

 
icon for podpress  DPRK Forum Podcast May 6, 2008 [12:51m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (40)

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The myth-making of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il: A comparison (Important Update)

IMPORTANT UPDATE: This podcast has to be removed  and redone without the  clips for consideration of the original copyright owner.  I apologize for the issues. I will upload another as soon as I can.

In today’s podcast, I will attempt to compare the myth making of the former Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu to the myth building of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. I will have some clips from the Romanian documentary, Ceausescu: Behind the Myth and a clip from Welcome to North Korea.

The podcast will cover these main points:

1. The minor background of Ceausescu’s Romania and his rise to power.

2. The Ceausescu couple’s myth making and the reality.

3. The myth making of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and a defector’s tale of the Propaganda and Agitation Department.

4. How they compare.

The points may interweave each other, but that is the main idea behind this. Before you begin to listen to the podcast, please bear in mind Romania and North Korea are different, but Ceausescu did visit China and North Korea to get ideas and did try to implement them. The personality cult of both of them are different as well, but the motivations are the same; they wanted absolute power and used the propaganda machine to keep that power. Just like Romania, the myth cannot last forever.

EDIT: After the extensive editing of this podcast, I do not know the next time I will try something this long again. Wow, it took me 6 hours to do! Live and learn I suppose. Also, I hope all the clips fit together correctly.

EDIT 2: Now I learned the importance of an outline. Listening to myself, I sounded very redundant. I apologize for that.

The Path to Succession: Kim Il Sung to Kim Jong Il

Soviets Groomed Kim Il Sung for Leadership

Nicolae Ceausescu page

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First DPRK Forum Podcast

I bought a cheap Wal-Mart microphone and downloaded some DPRK tunes to set the mood. I got the audio software and did some dry runs with it. This is a dry run, and if this goes well, I may do more. If it does not receive well, this idea will be scrapped. I look forward to your input, critique and ideas.

 
icon for podpress  DPRK Forum Podcast May 4, 2008 [13:55m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (35)

Podcast here

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Cooling towers, declarations, and more mayhem

North Korea appears to have agreed to destroy the cooling tower at Yongbyon within 24 hours of being removed from the U.S. list of states that sponsor terrorism Accoring to the Washington Post:

[...]

North Korean officials had privately indicated previously they would destroy the tower as part of the disablement of Yongbyon. During talks last week with a top U.S. State Department official, Sung Kim, North Korea reaffirmed it would act quickly after Pyongyang is removed from the terrorism list.

During the talks, North Korean officials also tentatively agreed to release to U.S. officials thousands of pages of documents, dating back to 1990, concerning the daily production records of the facility. The records are intended to help U.S. experts determine how much plutonium was produced at the facility and thus verify North Korean claims.

The destruction of the tower as stated in the article would be one hell of a show, but as Richardson pointed out in his post at DPRK Studies, there are some problems with the so-called deal struck:

That is very nice, but I am more concerned with what North Korea is still not offering up; 1) what’s actually called for in the deal - a full and complete nuclear declaration; 2) unfettered access (including material samples) to all known and suspected nuclear facilities; 3) information and materials to ascertain the true status of North Korea’s uranium program, including the equipment known to have been sent from Pakistan, and the fate of some thousands of aluminum tubes purchased by North Korea.

I have to agree there are serious problems and raises questions. All of those points made made by Richardson implies the devil is in the details and according to the article, and nobody outside the negotiating table knows the details because

The diplomats spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack declined to comment “on ongoing negotiations,” he said.

Another interesting detail:

[...] though experts say its destruction would be mostly symbolic.

[...] Several months ago, North Korean technicians broke through the concrete bottom of the tower, making it unusable, but hot water could still be dumped directly in a nearby river if North Korea were unconcerned about possible ecological damage. Other aspects of the disabling of the facility are more significant; U.S. officials say they think that North Korea would need to order months of repairs if it wanted to restart it.

Apparently, if North Korea really wanted to restart it, I guess they could use the river to send hot water out and maybe pump cold water back in much like the reported nuclear facility in Syria (the evidence seems pretty convincing to me, but it is under heavy scrutiny), but to get it back up and running (from what I understand) could take a while to do along with placing the other items set aside wrapped in plastic and the like. I am not a nuclear plant expert, but from the pictures I posted quite a while back, it seems it is well taken apart (although not destroyed). Now, this is just Yongbyon. This is old technology, is in very bad repair, and this to me seems like a smokescreen. As Richardson implied, what about everything else?

Again, this is going to be based on a “trust me” basis to believe Kim Jong Il will be a good boy and cooperate. So far, he has not held his end of the deals and continually drags his feet while the rest of the crew at the negotiating table look like the fool. In my opinion, North Korea is very good at grabbing the carrot and running back in the cave. This part of the article bothers me:

Under a tentative deal struck between Washington and Pyongyang, North Korea will be removed from the terrorism list and from a second sanction — the Trading With the Enemy Act — once it produces a declaration of its nuclear activities. U.S. officials have especially been focused on the plutonium segment of the declaration, telling Pyongyang that it need only “acknowledge” U.S. evidence and concerns about two other issues: its nuclear dealings with Syria and a suspected uranium-enrichment program.

Then what? North Korea could concede and say “Yeah, we got all of the things you describe” but will all the materials remain there? This seems to imply if North Korea does acknowledge the things Washington (and others) want will have to trust Kim not to use them again. I simply do not understand the thought process here. Also as Richardson said in his points, nobody will need to go out there and physically verify everything that is suspected to be another program? Also, the deal obviously does not include biological or chemical weapons described by a Camp 22 guard who defected and described these items getting tested on prisoners. It all seems like a farce to me. Also, what worries me is once North Korea is removed from the sponsors of terror list and Trading With the Enemy Act, does that mean North Korea is free to trade without oversight? Something is really wrong here.

As said before, the Syrian connection is under heavy questioning:

US intelligence officials also accuse North Korea of giving clandestine help to Syria for the construction of a supposed nuclear plant destroyed last September by an Israeli air strike.

But Mr Kelly questioned some of those claims. “There does seem to have been some degree of nuclear co-operation with the Syrians, which is going to raise a lot of questions,” he said.

“But the story they’re building a reactor like Yongbyon — nobody would want a reactor like Yongbyon. This is 1968 technology, not well put together.”

He added that without a reprocessing plant to enrich nuclear fuel, it was unlikely Syria could develop an atomic weapon.

So what is the real story in Syria if it was not used for research or other peaceful means? If it is thrown out there for the sake of blocking taking North Korea off these lists, what else is going on? Again, something is not right.

Also see One Free Korea.

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Questions to readers: Inter-Korean propaganda museum

New York Times has an interesting article regarding a museum with a collection of propaganda during the Korean War to 2000. Some things in this article were not known to me, so I guess it may be worth to look up some this stuff. I know Richardson has a better handle on propaganda, so he may have a little more insight on this. At any rate:

CHONGSON, South Korea — In early April, when North Korea called President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea an “impostor,” a “traitor” and an “American running dog,” the verbal barbs sounded all too familiar to Jin Yong-seon. He has a museum filled with them.

Link mine. The barbs are still traded, but it seems not on the same level as before as I would later learn in the little research I did. I am sure there is a lot more, so I will dig some more.

Continue reading ‘Questions to readers: Inter-Korean propaganda museum’

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Communist Nation update 3

UPDATE: Jake had a very good point: “live blogging” the past is not easy to do, and that reality came to pass when I discovered it would be a lot easier just to post it on the forums instead. So I simply deleted the blog and placed the forums there instead. As I stated before, I am not expecting any traffic there at all, and I am simply not going to worry about it any longer.

UPDATE: What a mess. Not only did I lose the posts for the forums, but I lost the few posts for the new blog. When attempting to move it to the new domain, the database took a huge crap. So as a result, I had to start all over again. I am not happy at all, but what may be somewhat good about it (somewhat) is I got the skins to match. That does not matter anyway. The sites are up and running and should be OK from here on out. The domain is there, the new blog is there and the forums are back up and running.

I really, really apologize for the lack of posts here, and I also apologize for the loss of data and users on the other blog and forums. Again, I will try my best to regain your confidence to register and post again. There has been some news on North Korea and I have missed it.

So the next day or so will cover trying to configure all the software, and in the meantime, this site works just fine and would like to tank jeku for the wonderful hosting. He has been most gracious.

Original post: A few days ago, I posted regarding the Communist Nation blog, and there are a few things readers need to know.

Fist of all, I have been having trouble moving the data over, so I am going to repost the posts from the other subdirectory. Next, is regarding the forums. I tried moving the forums, and in that process killed the database. I should have double-checked and made backups. Thank goodness I did not kill DPRK Forum’s database. Came darn close though. Anyway, I am in the process of re-doing everything, trying to restore what I can, and getting this back up and running as soon as possible. For those of you who were signed up on the forums, I am very, very sorry you lost your login information and I understand if you do not want to bother with it again.

With that said, Communist Nation is now on a domain: http://communist-nation.com. I am still in the process of changing things over and getting it running right. In the meantime, I will get back to posting the goods on North Korea as uninformed as it is, and will continue to learn with and from all of you. Thank you so much for your continued patience, understanding and patronage at DPRK Forum.

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KPA officer defection: not something you hear about everyday (update)

Update: See One Free Korea and ROK Drop

Here is something you do not see everyday (Yonhap):

SEOUL, April 28 (Yonhap) — A North Korean soldier has defected to South Korea through the inter-Korean border, marking the first defection by a military officer via the heavily-fortified border in 10 years, an official at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Monday.

The North Korean, identified only by his surname Ri, crossed the border shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday and told South Korean guards that he was seeking asylum, the official said, asking not to be identified.

The 28-year-old second lieutenant has been handed over to a joint investigation team of the National Intelligence Service, the Military Security Command and the police, according to the official.

He had serious cajones to cross the DMZ. While this is not the first time for crossings, it is very risky and pretty rare. I have heard of other defections across the DMZ, this is the first time I have seen it in the new news. According to the same Yonhap article the last defection was around 1998, but an enlisted crossed lat year? I never saw anything about that, so I will have to look that up:

The North Korean is the first commissioned officer to defect to South Korea through the border since 1998 when a first lieutenant crossed the border, according to JCS officials. An enlisted member of the North’s Korean People’s Army crossed the border last year.

Do crossings along the DMZ only count for officers? I am not very clear on that, but all the same, it is still pretty interesting. Furthermore, I am also wondering where he crossed and what prompted him to cross. While I can guess he was tired of the regime, the details would be very interesting. I will keep my eyes peeled on more information. The minefield, the electric fence and the border guards would mean this man must of been itching to cross obviously.

If other readers have more information about this defection, please let me know.

Update - One Free Korea did a little more digging around and found some links to some DailyNK sources to help explain the defection which is likely linked to the serious food problem. Food prices all around the world have skyrocketed and is causing civil unrest according to the UN, and if free and relatively free nations are facing a crisis of a magnitude worthy of a mention on front page news, just imagine the difficulties for the DPRK who suffer serious shortages, little international trade and diplomatic ties to begin with.

Now as I posted here many times before, the KPA, elites and policy elites in North Korea keep the regime going, and if the state cannot provide food even for them, how can they continue to keep the normal population in check? Common sense tells me it is very difficult to do so. As the food situation seems to worsen (I do not know why the food problem is worldwide), North Korea on a cash and carry only basis surely cannot import food and aid has slowed to a small trickle. A+B=C; People will be malnourished and will look for food elsewhere.

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