Archive for the 'Cult Of Personality' Category

The Path to Collapse: A closer look into Juche and the cult of personality Part 2

Published
by
Jack
on September 8, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, Economy, History, Juche Idea, Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il, North Korea, Policy Elites, Politics and Speculation
. 0 Comments

Kim Il SungIn the last part of this series, we looked into the basics of the Juche idea, how it started, how factions were rooted out, the rise of Kimilsugism and how it differed from the Stalin regime. Much of the content was not mine, but mostly questions and my own interpretations of what was already published on the Internet. As I said before, I am just learning this stuff, and I may have to go back and revise some things as I learn it.

Today, we look further into the Juche Idea and how it works for the policy elites, normal North Korean people and presentation both inside and outside the reclusive country. From what I have read so far, they all seem different. So we shall dig in the Policy Elites paper a little more too.

As always: Please be aware this is an ongoing research project, and information contained in this post may have glaring factual or missing information that I may not be aware of. If anybody has any insight that will make me better understand it, please say so in the comments and I will love to take your views into consideration and learn something. That is the whole goal of this blog.

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The Path to Collapse: A closer look into Juche and the cult of personality

Published
by
Jack
on September 5, 2007
in Communism, Cult Of Personality, History, Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and North Korea
. 1 Comment

Kim Il SungOne of the political systems that is pretty strange to outsiders is Juche. I never heard of this offshoot of mainstream communism that I have read about before (Marxism/Leninism/Maoism/etc.), so I decided to take a closer look at this philosophy and political ideology.

Followers of North Korea may know this system inside and out, but for the sake of readers who do not know a whole lot about Juche may want to learn with me. No, I do not agree with Juche or other forms of extreme political ideals (I am very moderate a little left leaning), but is still interesting to learn more about them to see the train of thought that made (and makes) it a way of life for millions. So today, we will take a closer look into Juche, where it came from, why it exists today and the massive irony that accompanies it. This may also take several posts spanning some time as I learn it, so bear with me. As always:

Please be aware this is an ongoing research project, and information contained in this post may have glaring factual or missing information that I may not be aware of. If anybody has any insight that will make me better understand it, please say so in the comments and I will love to take your views into consideration and learn something. That is the whole goal of this blog.

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North Korea in pictures: Pyongyang and more

Published
by
Jack
on September 1, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, History, North Korea and Pictures
. 0 Comments

The DailyNK has some interesting pictures of historical Pyongyang from 1945-1960:

Since it is against copyrights of the DailyNK to show the picture here (you can see the link for the pictures), I did some research of the pictures to get more information on them.

Picture 1: Mark at the Inception of the People’s Army – The “Taegeuk” [Korean Yin-Yang] mark is noticeable on the symbolic mark of the People’s Army. The Taegeuk shape was excluded from the North Korean flag that was used from July 1948 from the symbolic mark of the People’s Army but in the first mark, the Taegeuk shape was inserted in the center of the Great star.

Picture 2: Kim Il Sung (front row, right side) who is moving the funeral coffin of the People’s Army Chief of Staff, Kang Geon and Park Hun Young (back row, right side)

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The Path to Succession: The Path to Collapse Part 2

Published
by
Jack
on August 31, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, Defectors, Diplomacy, Economy, History, Humanitarian Topic, News, North Korea, Nukes, Other Regimes, Policy Elites, Politics, Speculation, The region and United States
. 0 Comments

Coat of arms

Sorry for the delay in the posting. I’ll remember not to make fixed dates on postings.

In the last part of the series, I looked at the “When North Korea Falls” article. I read some reactions to the article I did not read before (See comments in the last article of the series), and gave some extra insight into this complex and highly speculative series. In this part of the series, we look further into what else could happen in a former North Korea and the challenges it could face in the country and in the region. Only this time, I would like to make this more on a further tangent into the speculative. I find this stuff very interesting, and will probably go elsewhere too as I research this thing.

But first, I will look into the argument made in the comments:

That’s the money shot. The problem is that a lot of people would die in a short time (months, a couple of years) and governments would feel responsible. As it stands, probably even more have been dying over a much longer period of time. Six in one, half dozen in the other.

That presents a very good argument, and as said in the last part of the series, reunification is going to be a painful process no matter how it is done, and the way things are handled now are too Utopian. As always with this, I present the following disclaimer:

Please be aware this is an ongoing research project, and information contained in this post may have glaring factual or missing information that I may not be aware of. If anybody has any insight that will make me better understand it, please say so in the comments and I will love to take your views into consideration and learn something. That is the whole goal of this blog.

Continue reading ‘The Path to Succession: The Path to Collapse Part 2′

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The Path to Succession: The Path to Collapse (update)

Published
by
Jack
on August 29, 2007
in Communism, Cult Of Personality, Defectors, Diplomacy, Economy, History, Humanitarian Topic, Korean War, News, North Korea, Nukes, Other Regimes, Policy Elites, Politics, Speculation, The region and United States
. 7 Comments

Coat of armsAnother very good possibility in the North Korea saga is the eventual collapse of the regime instead of the continuation of the Kim dynasty. This possibility has been speculated for the last fifteen years or so, and with all the huge events that took place that could have very well have led to collapse, the regime survived. For over 65 years, North Korea has held firm control over everything, and appears to still be in control. However, in my mind, it is not a question of if the DPRK will collapse, it is a matter of when. Today, I explore the possible scenarios on how North Korea could dissolve and what the possible outcomes could be. There are many theories and very few options. However, in my opinion, the regime will fade regardless of when the region is ready, and like many other things in life, it comes when it is least expected and the least convenient. If Eastern Europe and Russia are any indicators of how North Korea will fall apart, then it could very well be unexpected yet expected fate. On the other hand, Korea is way different from the way other Communist regimes were (and are) run.

Please be aware this is an ongoing research project, and information contained in this post may have glaring factual or missing information that I may not be aware of. If anybody has any insight that will make me better understand it, please say so in the comments and I will love to take your views into consideration and learn something. That is the whole goal of this blog.

Continue reading ‘The Path to Succession: The Path to Collapse (update)’

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Propaganda Time!

Published
by
Jack
on August 27, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, Video and wtf
. 2 Comments

What better than to add to the happiness of your day than watching the smiling moon faces of the leaders doing everything but walk on water? Oh wait, are there stories like that?

No matter. Enjoy the show…

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The Path To Succession: Information Infiltration

Published
by
Jack
on August 27, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, Defectors, Economy, Humanitarian Topic, North Korea and Policy Elites
. 1 Comment

DefectorThe cracks in the regime have been widening for some time, and the age of information cannot be suppressed even in the ultra-reclusive policies of North Korea. In days past, the suppression of information was very successful. There are a lot of variables in the succession question, and this could very well be one of them. Today, I explore the infiltration of information, the media and defectors and how it may undermine the legitimacy of the Kim family cult.

As Richardson pointed out in the comments in the last posting, North Korea was not always as bad as it is today. It was a slow downturn over the years and accelerated in the 1990’s when famines and mismanagement took its toll. The collapse of the Soviet Union did not help matters either. During the early days, North Korea had several sets of plans that rapidly built North Korea, and suggested North Korea was better off than the South. In 2002, more sets of reforms took place and in my opinion, were largely unsuccessful (The food, medical, supply, trade and other sectors are still a mess). To get a better understanding of the famines and reforms in 2002, please take a look at Marcus Noland’s book. It talks about it in very vivid detail. Furthermore, you also would want to check out One Free Korea’s postings on Marcus Noland and Stephen Haggard’s book “Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid and Reform” to gain a better picture.

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The Path to Succession: More Unconfirmed Rumors (Update)

Published
by
Jack
on August 26, 2007
in Communism, Cult Of Personality, News, North Korea, Policy Elites, Politics, Speculation and United States
. 0 Comments

Kim Jong NamKim Jong Nam, thought of as out of the race is rumored to be back in the race according to unconfirmed reports by the Associated Press:

SEOUL, South Korea: The eldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has returned home after spending years abroad in a move that could be linked to the ruler’s plans to choose an heir, a man close to Kim’s son said Monday.

Kim Jong Nam, 36, traveled from China to Pyongyang in late June, and his return “has decisive relations to the power transfer,” the man told The Associated Press by telephone from the United States. He asked not to be named, citing the sensitivity of the issue.

South Korea’s top spy agency, the National Intelligence Service, declined to confirm the son’s return.

Kim Jong Il has not yet publicly named an heir, prompting speculation abroad about who might eventually take the reclusive country’s helm — and whether Kim will designate one of his sons as the next leader, continuing the world’s only communist dynasty.

So the rumors fly again, and there is still no official word. Time will tell if he is really nerxt in line, any plans or different plans altogether. I will watch the propaganda machine and see if there are any Kim Jong nam portraits hanging around or Kim Jong Il finally announces something in the Juche Congress.

Looks like Kim Jong Nam is working in the Organization and Guidance Department of the Workers Party Of Korea:

SEOUL (AFP) - The eldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il is back in the succession race after returning from exile overseas and taking an influential post with the ruling communist party, a report said Monday.

Kim Jong-Nam, 36, began work at the party’s organisation and guidance department after his return around June, said South Korea’s largest-circulation daily Chosun Ilbo, quoting an intelligence source.

The department is “the key agency” that controls all of the party, the military and the government, according to Chosun.

The National Intelligence Service, Seoul’s main spy agency, refused to comfirm the news report.

Of course. Kim Jong Nam was asked the question too, and of course denied it as well:

When asked about the possibility of his succession to North Korea’s leadership, he said that he had nothing to say on the matter.

Developing…

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The Path to Succession: Can the Dynasty Survive?

Published
by
Jack
on August 26, 2007
in Cult Of Personality, History, North Korea, Policy Elites, Politics and Speculation
. 5 Comments

Bored KPA(Note: Sorry this took longer than expected. The research on this subject is ongoing)

Probably one of the least things known in North Korea is how the inner government works. Sure, a lot of the books, papers and scholarly articles may give some very intelligent insight but nobody really knows other than the Dear Leader himself and what he chooses to tell his cronies and the outside world (which is next to nothing for that matter). So why should we worry about a possible succession if one does not know much at all about it? For me personally, it is to see how it will even be done and/or how it would survive the next handover. In the last post, I tried to decipher the first handover, and that was mind numbingly complex. Further, the process was slow and it was not until 1998 Kim Jong Il grabbed the Chairman of the National Defense Commission spot. And of course, the title of president was done away with because Kim Il Sung will probably be front and center to any succession and the all pervasive personality cult, so he would remain president and encased somewhere in a mausoleum.

Now that the last posting barely looked at the complexity of the succession to the first dynasty in the history of communism, perhaps we should look at why the dynasty took place, and why such a huge cult of personality exists. Yes, I also understand to write about the Kim family cult of personality would take an entire book, just like Juche idea is many volumes. However, perhaps one can gain a better understanding about how part of the successful leadership recipe of North Korea requires such a cult of personality. Absolute power requires absolute conformity, and what better to get that absolute conformity without the exploitation of long held cultural traditions?

I mean, why not? It has been done for the last 65+ years since the inception of the Korean Worker’s Party, and I have to say it has been pretty darn successful (not economically or freedom-wise). Despite the apparent dynastic handover problems to Kim Jong Il, he seems to be well established in power, and despite the rumors of possible inner political struggle and rumors of government collapse (and other things of that nature), Kim’s main goal is to keep grip on power no matter what, and that includes tyranny, torture, gulags, starvation, blackmail and lies. Then if Kim Jong Il are all these horrible things, then why do the people seem to buy into it? Why do they stick around and continue to pile praises on these leaders? That is hard to say, but one can take a guess, so I might as well try it too. Perhaps this can be the key to who might be next in line, but it could also pose some serious problems because of the same traditions. Could bending of the already bent Confucian traditions mess things up? Is Kim Jong Il running out of time to name a successor? Yes, he may be grooming the next leader, but it seems to me the adoring masses need to be groomed too. I have not seen any official grooming of the masses from KCNA, monuments or other items so central to DPRK life.

This posting asks the question: Can the dynasty survive after Kim Jong Il?

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Documentary Suggestions

Published
by
Jack
on August 25, 2007
in Communism, Cult Of Personality, Economy, History, Korean War, North Korea, Policy Elites, Politics, Suggestions, Travel and Video
. 2 Comments

If any of you folks have not seen any documentaries on North Korea, they are a good start to get a basic understanding about the hermit kingdom. I am sure most North Korea watchers have seen these, but for those that do not know much about it (like me), it is worth watching.

They are not too expensive, and some look like to still be available for purchase.

Inside North Korea:

Join National Geographic’s Lisa Ling as she captures a rare look inside North Korea - something few Americans have ever been able to do. Posing as an undercover medical coordinator and closely guarded throughout her trip, Lisa moves inside the most isolated nation in the world, encountering a society completely dominated by government and dictatorship. Glimpse life inside North Korea as you’ve never seen before with personal accounts and powerful footage. Witness first-hand efforts by humanitarians and the challenges they face from the rogue regime.

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