1. What Is North Korea?

Known formally as The Democratic Peoples' Republic Of Korea (phew!) it is

situated on a peninsula touching South Korea, China, and Russia. North Korea
has a population of 25 million. At first look you would see that this is not an
ordinary country. Since the Korean War over a half-century ago North Korea has
been a Communist country that has largely isolated itself from the outside
world. Everything is censored and many things are run solely by the
government, from the newspapers
to the banks. The Centralized
Economy (see glossary) controls
all production in the country. Not
only is it practically 100% Atheist,
but it is one of the least diverse
countries in the world: citizens
rarely go out, and no one wants to
Nationalgeographic.com

Who turned the lights out? North Korea at night is

not very bright, compared to neighboring South
Korea and China.

go in.

One of the five remaining
Communist countries of the world,

North Korea is infamous for many things, including its prison camps and
propaganda. It reportedly denies food supplies to certain groups- it is still
suffering from the effects of a major food shortage in the 1990s, after the
population doubled in forty years. It also lacks foreign aid from many countries
because of its bad status in the UN and many other human and civil rights
groups. North Korea, alas, still survives. But this is just the good news.

2. The Propaganda Problem

North Korea constantly uses propaganda to convince the general North Korean
public of many things: that other countries (such as the United States of
America) are horrible, that North Korea is the greatest country of all, and just
about anything as long as it makes North Korea look good. This propaganda is
then published in the news, written on websites, and talked about on television.

Many

propaganda videos, articles and such are presented in a seemingly odd

manner, but for someone who lives in North Korea and has been exposed to
this since birth and nothing else, it is a part of life thinking propaganda is
correct.

Even entertainment is harnessed as a tool. Propaganda films show up in movie
theaters and epic propaganda poems are written by high-ranking
propagandists. According to International Business Times, propaganda tourism
videos for people outside of North Korea are circulating too! Some debate they
are simply like any other tourism video, but others believe that it is a purposeful
perfect look at North Korea.

Propaganda is a powerful tool that relies on many things to be successful, and
North Korea has many of those things down. That way, it does a good job of
masking its many human rights issues.

The Escapee

A high- ranking citizen of North Korea, Jang Jin- Sung had no reason to leave.
Being one of the highest ranking propagandists in the country, with a specialty

in epic poetry, he lived in the lap of luxury. One of the luxuries he had was to
have the rare opportunity to read the history
books about North Korea, no propaganda
included. The more he read, the more he got
engrossed. After finding out the truth, he
decided to flee.

www.willoughby.nsw.gov.au619
455Search by image

Jang Jin Sung (living under a

pseudonym)

On a cold day in 2004, Jang Jin- Sung fled

across a frozen river to the Chinese
mainland. He now spends his days no longer
as a propagandist but now uses his poetic

talent to unmask the truth about North Korea.

Military Might

Look at pictures of North Korea, and a staple feature of many of the

photographs is a large army, synchronized walking. As the International
Business Times states, one of the main leading factors of propaganda is the
image of a powerful army.

"But any country going against the worlds most powerful nation is automatically
deemed an enemy of the Empire and subject to such labels as axis-of-evil and a
serious affront to human rights."

-"AMERICA IS THE WORLDS WORST CIVIL RIGHTS VIOLATOR" Yes, you heard it
right, they called America an empire.

Not only is a good army a good image, but a good leader is, too. That is why,
along with army might, North Korea
has statues and posters of past and
present leaders everywhere. With a
good image of itself and a bad image
of everyone else, North Korea is an
effective propaganda machine.

exoforces.net

North Korea has a huge army, for tactical and

propagandic purposes.

If you want to see more propaganda

for yourself, look up the website
uriminzokkiri.com in English. It is a

constantly updated website propaganda news bulletin curated by the North

Korean government.

3. Human Rights Issues

North Koreas' human rights violations resemble those of the Nazis, says the
United Nations. A recent 400 page report made by the UN exposes the various
crimes against humanity North Korea has committed. Gathered from over 240
confidential witnesses (keeping themselves secret so their families will not be
persecuted back in North Korea), it
states simply:

"The gravity, scale and nature of these
violations reveal a state that does not
have any parallel in the contemporary
world." Says the report.
telegraph.co.uk

Sony? Who said anything about Sony?

One thing you find surprising about

North Korea is that it actually does have a constitution. Not that it follows itmany of the laws written in it are commonly broken by the government. Laws in
North Korea are also quite vague- one law states that the death penalty is
applicable to any crime that is very serious. Not that it actually defines what
very serious means.

Various Violations

Imagine if you never could speak your own opinion. Or if you could be punished
if the government found that there was evidence that you were a member of an
opposing group. These ideas may seem alien to us, but they are quite
commonplace in North Korea.

North Korea does not allow freedom of opinion, religion, expression, and
various other things. They abduct citizens of South Korea and Japan, among
other places. If you are found with a DVD or Flash Drive that is not allowed, you
will be punished. Prison guards torture inmates to get bribes, confessions and
obedience.

Thanks to all of these things and various others, North Korea has, arguably, one
of the worst ever UN records.

On people being suddenly taken from their homes in North Korea to prison
camps, the UN report states: Their families are not informed of their fate or
their whereabouts. Persons accused of political crimes therefore become
victims of enforced disappearance. Making the suspect disappear is a deliberate
feature of a system that serves to instill fear in the population.

Soon, American citizens may be joining the rest of the world by paying heavy
price for the sins of its leaders.
-AMERICA IS THE WORLDS WORST CIVIL RIGHTS VIOLATOR see chapter two

Strict Censorship

Even though there is so much information that North Korea is committing many
human rights crimes, it still firmly denies wrongdoing. In the recent hacking of
Sony Pictures, North Korea refuses to admit and threatens the United States if it
does not back down.

North Korea also refuses to join the ILO, or the International Labor
Organization- forced labor is commonplace there.

Even though North Korea denies citizens the right to have organized opposition,
freedom of religion, civil society organizations, free trade unions, and
independent media, North Korea still may not be unstoppable.

4. Stopping the Giant

North Korea may be powerful but we cannot deem it unstoppable. The United
Nations and many other organizations are working to unmask North Koreas
many secrets. Practically every country except for a few are enemies of North
Korea- and soon, if the UN succeeds, Kim Jong Un, the current leader of North
Korea, may face trial in the International Criminal Court.

Even allies are beginning to turn against North Korea. After the tests North
Korea has done on nuclear weapons, long-time ally China (they have been
known to deport North Korea escapees back) had a negative response against
the tests.

But even though North Korea has all of the bad hype, everything may not be all
horrible.

I found North Korea to be totally beguiling. As Ive found with all my travels, the
world is populated with people living their lives Pyongyang {the main city of
North Korea} is no exception. Says Rob Whitworth, a travel video maker who
visited Pyongyang. North Korea will probably always be a place of controversy,
secrecy, and unknowing. North Korea will always be a land of questions.

5. Glossary and Resources

Centralized Economy
An economy where decisions are made by the government.

Atheist
Having no religion whatsoever.

Propaganda
Mainly biased information used to promote a particular point of view.

Propagandists
A person who promotes a particular biased point of view, basically an
administrator of propaganda.

Resources and Further Reading

North Korea (Encyclopedia Brittanica), Author Unknown, Reference

North Korea Human Rights Abuses Resemble Those Of The Nazis (The
Guardian), Peter Walker, Newspaper Article

THE US IS THE WORLDS WORST HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATOR
(uriminzokkiri.com), Joachim Hagopian, Article
A propaganda North Korean website, Uriminzokkiri is a place you should go if
you want to see firsthand the North Korean view of the world.

Heres How North Korea Created A Propaganda Empire (Business Insider), The
Economist, Article

North Korea Spreads Propaganda Message With Tourism Video Aimed at
Western Internet (International Business Insider), Jeff Stone, Article
Search Up Enter Pyongyang to get a time lapse take on Pyongyang that some
consider propaganda but many also consider pretty cool.