Place of Birth. Education. Kim Jong-un is the third, youngest, son of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il. Grandson of the founder of the DPRK Kim Il Sung. Born in Pyongyang, the exact year of birth is unknown - perhaps 1982, 1983 or 1984. The discrepancies in the date of birth are explained by the leader’s desire to look older.
Information about Kim Jong-un's personal life and movements is kept secret, so information about the dictator often comes from South Korean intelligence sources.
According to South Korean intelligence, Kim Jong-un in 1993-1998. Under the pseudonym Chol Pak, he studied at an international school in Bern, Switzerland. Officially he was listed as the son of the driver of the DPRK embassy in Switzerland. At the age of 15 he left school without passing his exams. There is also a version that in 1999-2000. Kim Jong-un attended school in Lieberfeld-Steingelzl, a suburb of Bern, also under the pseudonym Pak-un.
Since 2002, he studied individually at the Kim Il Sung University and the Kim Il Sung Military University in the DPRK.
Career. In 2006, reports appeared in the press that badges with portraits of Kim Jong-un were distributed to senior workers of the Workers' Party of Korea, which gave rise to speculation that Kim Jong-un would be his father's successor as leader of the DPRK.
In January 2009, Kim Jong Il issued a personal directive to the leaders of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), where he named Kim Jong Un his successor. In April 2009, the South Korean Yonhap News Agency reported that Kim had become a member of the DPRK National Defense Council.
September 27, 2010 - promoted to the rank of army general. The next day, during the congress of the Workers' Party of Korea, Kim Jong-un was appointed vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea.
In December 2011, a few days after his father's death, Kim Jong-un was declared the "great successor" of Kim Jong-il. This was followed by the official appointment as the supreme commander of the country's armed forces and confirmation as chairman of the central committee of the Workers' Party of North Korea.
April 15, 2012 - During a military parade dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance.
According to media reports, it was initially assumed that Kim Jong-un would share the rule of the country with his uncle Jang Song-taek, who during Kim Jong-il’s life was the second person in the state. However, in December 2013, Jang Song Taek was executed on charges of treason.
Executions in North Korea are one of the usual tools of Kim Jong-un's rule. In 2012, a decree was issued on how to deal with the enemies of the Korean people - the newly-minted leader of the DPRK ordered that all attackers be drowned in the sea.
In 2013, the former lover of Kim Jong-un and 11 other members of the pop group were shot on charges of indecent assault. Other musicians associated with them were forced to attend the execution and then sent to concentration camps.
In 2014, 50 members of the North Korean government were executed for watching South Korean TV series.
In 2015, musicians of the DPRK national orchestra were shot on charges of espionage for disclosing information about the life of the dictator’s family. In August, information appeared that Kim Jong-un ordered the execution of the country's Vice Prime Minister Choe En Gon, who expressed disagreement with the afforestation policy.
Since 2016, he has been Chairman of the State Council of the DPRK, re-elected in April 2019.
Family. In July 2012, North Korean state television reported that Kim Jong-un was married. His wife is a graduate of Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang, Li Sol Ju. Kim Jong-un, according to media reports, has two children: the first child was born in 2010 or 2011, the second in 2012.
Hobby. Kim Jong-un, like his father, loves pop culture and follows NBA basketball matches. He is not in good health - in 2009 it was reported that he was overweight (90 kg with a height of 175 cm), diabetes and hypertension.
Leader of the DPRK
First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and first Chairman of the DPRK Defense Committee since 2012, Commander-in-Chief of the Korean People's Army since 2011, Chairman of the Party's Central Military Commission. Son and successor of Kim Jong Il as leader of the DPRK.
It is known that Kim Jong-un, under the name Un Pak, graduated from the International School of Berne and was fond of basketball, especially the competitions of the North American National Basketball Association. The press wrote that in Bern, Kim Jong-un rarely appeared at school, mostly studying at home, and had problems with academic performance even though, due to his poor knowledge of the German language, he studied in a class where children were two years old younger than him. Kim Jong-un dined in restaurants accompanied by the DPRK Ambassador to Switzerland Ri Chol, who was called responsible for managing Kim Jong-il's secret treasury.
Until he was 20 years old, Kim Jong-un returned to the DPRK, after which his life was kept secret: the press did not have a single photograph of him (only his sketch was known) and did not publish reliable information that he held any positions in government of the country. Some sources stated that he is distinguished by intelligence and therefore is the favorite son of Kim Jong Il.
In the second half of 2008, there were rumors in the press about a serious illness or even death of Kim Jong Il, in particular, it was reported that he had suffered a stroke. These rumors raised the question of a possible heir to the North Korean leader. Previously, the press published information that Kim Jong Il considered Kim Jong Cher too weak to be his heir, and his eldest son, Kim Jong Nam, was called too corrupted by the casino and Western culture. As for Kim Jong-un, experts usually neglected his candidacy due to his young age. Meanwhile, information has been preserved that Ko Yong Hee, in order to make her son the heir to the leader of the DPRK, ordered officials to call him “the king of the morning star.”
On January 15, 2009, the South Korean Yonhap news agency reported that, fearing for his health, Kim Jong Il had appointed Kim Jong Un as his successor. According to analysts, this appointment came as a surprise even to the leaders of the Workers' Party of Korea. Chang Sung-taek, the husband of Kim Jong Il's sister, who, according to South Korean experts, actually led the DPRK during Kim Jong Il's illness, was supposed to act as an adviser to Kim Jong-un. It is noteworthy that in an article published on the same day, the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, citing its sources, named the future nominal leader of the country as Kim Jong Nam.
In February 2009, Yonhap released a report that Kim Jong-un was registered as a candidate for elections to the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK. The media noted that in this way North Korea officially began the procedure for appointing a successor to Kim Jong Il. Immediately after the March 2009 elections, the press did not find any of Kim Jong-il's sons, including Kim Jong-un, on the lists elected to the Supreme People's Assembly, but in June 2010 the South Korean press reported that Kim Jong-un was all -was elected under the pseudonym Kim Jong.
At the beginning of June 2009, Yonhap, citing the National Intelligence Service of South Korea, reported that Kim Jong Il officially introduced Kim Jong Un to the leadership of the DPRK and the diplomatic corps as his successor. Later that month, the press reported that Kim Jong-un had been appointed head of the State Security Service by his father. In addition, the Chunan Ilbo newspaper reported that Kim Jong-un received the title "Distinguished Comrade" (Brilliant Comrade).
In September 2010, the first large meeting of the Workers' Party of Korea since 1980 was announced - a party conference at which, according to journalists, the appointment of a successor to Kich Jong-il was to be announced. Although many sources still claimed that Kim Jong-un would become him, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, at a meeting with former US President Jimmy Carter in Beijing in September 2010, said that Kim Jong-il himself called rumors about the transfer of power to his son " false rumors from the West." During the party conference, North Korean television reported that Kim Jong-un received the rank of general, took a seat on the central committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and became vice-chairman of the party's central military commission.
On December 19, 2011, the world media reported, with reference to North Korean state television, about the death of Kim Jong Il, who died on December 17 “from mental and physical fatigue.” Kim Jong-un headed a commission of 232 people to organize his father's funeral. Kim Jong Il's funeral took place in Pyongyang on December 28; the hearse with his coffin was accompanied by Kim Jong-un, who, after the death of his father, as North Korean media wrote, became the commander-in-chief of the Korean People's Army and the “Supreme Leader” of the state. However, in the foreign press it was assumed that the main role in the leadership of the country would be played not by him, but by Chan Song Thaek, the husband of Kim Jong Il’s sister, , , , , .
At the party conference of the Workers' Party of Korea held in April 2012, Kim Jong-un received the position of first secretary of the party. This position was created specifically for him, and Kim Jong Il was named “eternal general secretary.” As news agencies noted, thereby Kim Jong-un finally established himself as the new leader of the party and the DPRK. At the same party conference, he headed the central military commission of the Workers' Party of Korea and was appointed the first chairman of the DPRK Defense Committee. In July 2012, Kim Jong-un was awarded the highest military rank of Marshal in the DPRK.
According to press reports, Kim Jong-un is overweight (90 kilograms with a height of 175 centimeters), as well as diabetes and high blood pressure. According to those who have seen him live, he is very reminiscent of his father in appearance. Kenji Fujimoto, a Japanese chef who briefly cooked in Pyongyang for Kim Jong Il, claimed that Kim Jong Un liked to eat live fish sushi and wore a T-shirt with a picture of Mel Gibson, Kim Jong Il's favorite actor , and together with his father participated in “pleasure parties”, at which naked ballerinas danced in front of them to American music.
In July 2012, state television announced the name of Kim Jong-un's wife - Ri Sol-ju; Western media identified her with the singer of the same name. Kim Jong-un has a child who was born in the fall of 2010 or winter of 2010-2011. According to some reports, Kim Jong Il insisted that Kim Jong-un have a child.
Used materials
North Korea leader Kim Jong-un married to Ri Sol-ju. - BBC News, 25.07.2012
Joohee Cho, Akiko Fujita. North Korean Dictator Kim Jong Un Gets Married. - ABC News, 25.07.2012
Kim Jong-Un named "Marshal" of NKorea. - Agence France-Presse, 22.07.2012
N.Korean leader Kim Jong-un takes top army rank. - Reuters, 18.07.2012
Kim Jong Un Announcement: North Korea Promotes Leader To Military's Top Rank. - The Associated Press, 17.07.2012
Kim Jong Un Elected First Chairman of NDC of DPRK (Urgent). - Korean Central News Agency, 13.04.2012
Kim Jong-un Named 1st Secretary of the Workers Party. - The Chosun Ilbo, 12.04.2012
Kim Jong Un appointed as chairman of WPK's Central Military Commission. - Xinhua, 12.04.2012
As Rocket Launching Nears, North Korea Continues Shift to New "Supreme Leader". - The New York Times, 12.04.2012
N.Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un fared poorly in Swiss school: report. - Agence France-Presse, 02.04.2012
North Korea calls Kim Jong Un "supreme leader". - The Associated Press, 29.12.2011
North Korean state television is broadcasting live the tears and hysteria of the country's residents watching the funeral of their leader. - NTV, 28.12.2011
Funeral of Kim Jong Il: a parade of 100 thousand troops and nationwide hysteria. - News, 28.12.2011
Sung-won Shim, Kiyoshi Takenaka. North Korean power-behind-throne emerges as neighbors meet. - Reuters, 25.12.2011
North Korea: Kim Jong-un hailed "supreme commander". - BBC News, 24.12.2011
Le dirigeant nord-coreen Kim Jong-Il est mort, son fils Kim Jong-Un lui succede. - Agence France-Presse, 19.12.2011
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dead, son hailed as heir. - Reuters, 19.12.2011
North Korean Leader Kim Jong-il Dies. - Korea IT Times, 19.12.2011
The first inter-Korean summit during Kim Jong-un's reign in the DPRK began on Friday morning at the Panmunjom border crossing, located in the demilitarized zone on the military demarcation line between the two countries. South Korean President Moon Jae-in was the first to arrive at the meeting place, then the North Korean leader approached the border, Yonhap reports.
The meeting began with a handshake that lasted about 30 seconds. After this, Kim Jong-un invited Moon Jae-in to visit the territory of the DPRK. Hand in hand, they crossed the border and did not stay long in North Korea. Then they crossed into South Korean territory. The leaders of the DPRK have not visited this country since the end of the 1950-53 war.
The summit was the third in the history of the DPRK and South Korea. Prior to this, the then current South Korean presidents, Kim Dae Jung in 2000 and Roh Moon Hyun in 2007, met with the previous North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. Both meetings took place on the territory of the DPRK - in Pyongyang.
Kim Jong-un promised not to wake up Seoul with missile salvos
The culmination of the negotiations was Kim Jong-un's promise not to disturb the South Korean leader's morning sleep with missile salvos, Reuters reports. North Korean leader hears Moon Jae-in 'always wakes up early' due to Pyongyang's ballistic missile tests , retold the context of Kim Jong-un’s political humor by the press secretary of the South Korean president, Yoon Young-chan. Kim Jong-un announced his refusal to test ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons a week before his meeting with the South Korean president.
“Today we are at the starting line where a new history of peace, prosperity and inter-Korean relations is written,” the North Korean leader said before the start of the talks. Moon Jae-in expressed hope for a frank conversation, the result of which, in his opinion, could be “a great gift to Koreans and people around the world who want to live in peace.”
The morning round of negotiations at the Peace Palace lasted about 1 hour and 40 minutes. A representative of the South Korean president said that the talk was about denuclearization and peace on the Korean peninsula. Following the summit, a joint declaration is expected to be signed, the content of which is still being worked on.
The unification will begin with the roads
One of the topics of the negotiations was the potential unification of the Korean Peninsula. This issue was raised by the sister of the North Korean leader Kim Yo Jong, a spokesman for the South Korean president said.
During the negotiations, they also discussed the inter-Korean railway project. Discussing a possible visit of the South Korean leader to the DPRK, Kim Jong-un complained that North Korean roads are not in the best condition, transmits Associated Press. To this, the President of South Korea noted that if the countries improve relations and unite their transport systems, ordinary residents of the DPRK will also be able to enjoy traveling on high-speed trains.
During the summit, the leaders of South and North Korea will plant a pine tree along the demarcation line. Soil and river water from both countries will be used for planting. The tree should become a symbol of peace and prosperity.
North Korea is heaven on Earth, according to its leaders, and absolute hell, according to the citizens of this country who, by some miracle, managed to leave it. The interest of the world community in this country was fueled by the scandalous film “The Interview”, the plot of which was based on a fictional story about the assassination attempt on the leader of the DPRK Kim Jong-un. We have collected facts in our review, on the basis of which it becomes clear what is happening behind the “North Korean Iron Curtain”.
Labor concentration camps
There are currently about 16 huge labor camps in North Korea, comparable to gulags. They are located, as a rule, in mountainous areas. It is estimated that about 200 thousand prisoners are kept behind the barbed wire of these camps, through which electric current is also passed. Defectors, traitors and ex-politicians who do not belong to the DPRK government end up in North Korean gulags.
Punishment by inheritance
North Korean laws provide for punishment over "three generations": if someone commits a crime, not only will he pay, but also his children and grandchildren. They will all be punished accordingly. This usually results in people spending their entire lives in camps.
One of the worst crimes a North Korean citizen can commit is attempting to leave the country. Disagreement with the government is considered treason. And a person who decides to take an interest in how people live in other countries signs his own death warrant.
Insurance Fraud
The North Korean economy is in decline. The country practically does not interact with foreign markets, so there is no export as such. Currently, the population of North Korea is about 25 million people, and the average GDP per capita is about $500 (for comparison, in the Russian Federation in 2013 it was about $15,000). The country is struggling to feed its citizens and in this quest even resorts to economic crimes.
Thus, in 2009, the DPRK government was accused of global insurance fraud. The North Korean government took out huge insurance policies on property and equipment and then claimed that the property was destroyed. In 2005, several of the world's largest insurance companies, including Lloyd's of London, sued North Korea over an alleged helicopter crash and a $58 million policy payout.
Arms trade
In addition to insurance fraud, the United Nations has also accused North Korea of illegally selling weapons and nuclear technology to countries in Africa and the Middle East. So, in 2012, the UN detained a North Korean cargo heading to Syria - 450 cylinders of graphite intended for use in ballistic missiles. In 2009, shipments to Iran and the Republic of Congo were intercepted: one contained 35 tons of missile components, the other contained Soviet-era tanks
The UN imposed sanctions banning North Korea from supplying or selling missile technology, but the North Korean government has said the sanctions are illegal and the country can do whatever it wants. It is known that the bulk of the money goes into Kim Jong-un’s wallet, but not into food for his people.
Electricity shortage
The capital of North Korea, Pyongyang, is a kind of utopian city for the elite. Armed guards patrol the city's borders to keep the country's lower classes out of the city. Most Pyongyang residents live in luxury (at least according to the standards of this country). However, even for three million upper-class citizens, electricity is only turned on for an hour or two a day. Sometimes, especially in winter, electricity is cut off completely as millions of people try to fight the cold. Most houses outside Pyongyang are not even connected to the electricity grid. This is clearly visible in night photographs from space: China and South Korea are filled with lights, while North Korea is a solid dark spot.
Three caste system
In 1957, as Kim Il Sung struggled to maintain control over North Korea, he launched a global investigation into the "trustworthiness" of the country's population. The end result of this investigation was a completely changed social system, dividing the country's citizens into three classes: "enemies", "wavers" and "base".
This division was not based on the person's personality, but on his family history. Families loyal to the government were included in the "core" class and were given better opportunities in life. They are now usually politicians and people closely associated with the government.
People in the middle stratum are the “wavering” or neutral class. The government does not support them in any way, but does not oppress them either. With a happy coincidence of circumstances, they can become the “foundation”.
The “enemies” class included those people whose ancestors included those who had committed such terrible crimes against the state as Christianity and land ownership. According to Kim Il Sung, they are the main threat to the country. These people are deprived of the opportunity to receive an education, they cannot live even near Pyongyang and, as a rule, become beggars.
Fertilizers from human feces
North Korea is a mountainous country with cold winters and short, monsoon summers. About 80% of the country's territory is located on mountain slopes, so most of the land is infertile. North Korea has always relied on foreign aid to obtain fertilizer. Until the early 1990s, the DPRK helped the USSR with fertilizers, and until 2008, 500,000 tons of fertilizers per year came from South Korea. When imported fertilizers ran out, North Korean farmers were forced to turn to a new source - human waste. A state program has even been adopted, within the framework of which enterprises are given a quota for the delivery of feces - about 2000 tons per year. Today there are even stores selling human feces as fertilizer.
South Korean Citizenship
Many North Korean citizens are fleeing to neighboring countries. China's official policy is to deport them back across the border. At home, such refugees are either destroyed or sent to forced labor camps for many decades.
Unlike China, South Korea has a near-absolute clemency policy: all North Korean defectors (who are not criminals) are immediately granted citizenship, job training, and psychological counseling for those who need it. Refugees are offered an allowance of $800 per month, and employers who hire them can expect a bonus of $1,800.
All North Koreans need to do is provide proof of citizenship. But even in their absence, the authorities, as a rule, turn a blind eye to this. After all, refugees from the camps do not have any documents in principle.
Since 1953, there have been more than 24,500 North Korean defectors registered in South Korea. Since 2002, South Korea has received an average of 1,000 refugees each year. The Chinese government believes that up to 200,000 North Koreans are hiding illegally in the mountains and countryside of the Middle Kingdom. Many people who flee North Korea to China die during the long trek.
Cannibalism
Between 1994 and 1998, North Korea experienced extensive flooding and much of its agricultural land fell into disrepair. The growing debt to the USSR excluded food imports. As a result, entire cities began to die out. During this time, about 3.5 million people died of hunger - more than 10% of the country's population. Any food supplies were confiscated by the military in accordance with the songun ("army first") policy. North Koreans started eating their pets, then crickets and tree bark, and finally children.
It was at that time that the saying became popular: “Don’t buy meat if you don’t know where it comes from.” According to the stories of defectors, in those years people looked for street children at train stations, put them to sleep and butchered them at home. There is at least one official report of a person who engaged in cannibalism.
Prisons and torture
Very few people escaped from the forced labor camps of the DPRK and survived and were able to talk about what happened there. Shin Dong-Hyuk is a man who escaped from the terrible "Camp 14", which is considered the most brutal labor camp in the country because the worst political criminals are kept there. His story is told in the book "Escape from Camp 14".
Shin was born in the camp because his uncle deserted the army and fled to South Korea. When he was 14 years old, he tried to escape with his mother and brother. They were caught and taken to an underground prison, where they were brutally tortured. According to Shin Dong-Hyuk, he was hung from the ceiling by his legs to obtain testimony against his mother. When this did not work, he was hung by his arms and legs with his back down and slowly lowered over a vat filled with hot coals until the skin on his back was completely burned. In between interrogations, he was thrown into a tiny concrete cell. Hundreds of people have been tortured in North Korean prisons.
And further…
In December 2011, after the end of mourning for Kim Jong Il, comradely trials of people who cried badly began in the country. As North Korean government media reported, the trials were carried out by labor collectives, and those found guilty faced up to six months in labor camps.
To dispel the gloomy picture a little, let us recall what the whole world considered to be true.
"Early marriages are not encouraged - you must give fresh energy to society"
North Korea is one of the most mysterious countries in the world. If for some this is the embodiment of a “socialist paradise,” then for others the DPRK is a kind of beggar and Mordor threatening everyone around. But what is this country really like? And what is North Korean leader Kim Jong-un guided by when he conducts nuclear missile tests, on the one hand, and takes steps towards Seoul and Washington, on the other? Russian writer Sergei PLEKHANOV shares his impressions of what he saw on North Korean soil.
Kim Jong-un recently made his first state visit to China and is already preparing for a meeting with Trump.
From the observation deck of the 150-meter monument to the Juche Idea, Pyongyang looks like a modern, well-kept city. And this is not an optical illusion, as happens in many megacities that can be viewed from some high point. It happens that when you go down to the foot of a mountain or a television tower, you see a lot of unsightly things - garbage, dilapidated buildings, broken roads. Pyongyang does not disappoint - it looks almost sterile and from human height.
What a capital! In the few hundred kilometers that I had to travel across the country, I did not see so much as a crumpled piece of paper. Cleanliness and order are the very first impression of a country about which you will find almost nothing positive in the world media.
Fit, slender people walk purposefully along the roadsides and sidewalks. There are cyclists everywhere. Until recently, they say, a woman on a bicycle was perceived as a challenge to public morality. The change that has occurred is the result of the liberal trends of Kim Jong-un's reign. And not the most noticeable thing. What is much more important is that the country has achieved self-sufficiency in food, that there are markets in cities and villages where peasants can sell surplus produce from their land plots. The production of clothing and shoes is also mainly local; in addition to international jackets and trousers, suits and ties, the time-tested jacket buttoned under the chin and the bright-colored bell dress retain their positions in the Korean wardrobe. Whatever style a citizen of socialist Korea prefers, he is always smart and neat. During my week in the DPRK, I didn’t notice a single person dressed sloppily, nor did I see any provocative, flashy slogans on T-shirts; everything was neat and modest.
Often you come across lines of soldiers - all with impeccable bearing, strictly keeping their distance. They walk without weapons, but the formation is as if on a parade ground. There are also women's units - and they move harmoniously. It can be seen that long service - the minimum term here is 3 years - develops ideal posture and confidence in movements, generally characteristic of North Koreans.
The landscape matches the people - already as you approach Pyongyang you notice an organizing principle in the configuration of fields and terraced slopes. And then, in the first kilometers on the way to the capital, you notice the perfect rows of sheaves of rice left to dry.
At the foot of the monument to the Juche idea is a sculptural group reminiscent of “Worker and Collective Farm Woman,” still perceived as one of the main art metaphors of the Soviet era. But the Korean symbol of social unity also includes a representative of the intelligentsia raising a brush in his raised hand to write hieroglyphs. The inclusion of this social stratum among the main driving forces of the revolutionary transformation of society is one of the innovations of Kim Il Sung, who became the leader of Korea after the liberation of the country by the Red Army. This can be considered evidence of the independence of the young leader of the local communists that had already manifested itself. After all, in the Soviet Union, which patronized the nascent statehood in the north of the peninsula, they still professed the reinforced concrete dogma of the dictatorship of the proletariat.
In the Museum of the History of the TPK you can see publications dating back to the late 40s, on which, along with a hammer and sickle, a pen with a feather is depicted. But soon it was replaced with a traditional writing instrument - a brush. An inconspicuous, but characteristic sign of the movement from cosmopolitan leftism to revolutionary nationalism. Which within a few years became an obvious ideological dominant, receiving the name Juche ideas (that is, independence, refusal to imitate foreign models).
At first, the Soviet and Chinese comrades still saw the “younger brothers” as orthodox Marxists. But the connection with the ideas of the bearded founders of the doctrine turned out to be short-lived - neither they nor their followers in Russia and China became icons for Koreans. A little-known fact: there have never been monuments to foreign “teachers” here - not a single Stalin, not a single Lenin. Only two leaders - Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il.
On the facades of institutions and schools there are canonical photographic portraits of father and son: a great leader and a respected leader. The exact same images are on the badges worn on the left side of the chest. But it is characteristic that these badges cannot be purchased; they are awarded to those who are considered worthy of such an honor. There are no countless busts and busts, postcards and posters, as there were in Soviet times; There were all kinds of images on sale - from the young Volodya Ulyanov to the attorney at law beginning to go bald, from Ilyich, showing the right path with his hand, to him with kind wrinkles around his eyes. In Korea, such profanation is avoided; here, the veneration of the “great people of Mount Paektusan” (the center of the anti-Japanese struggle was located there), for all its magnitude, has a strict canon. This is a state cult inherent in the civilizational matrix of the Far East. Here you come into contact with a huge tradition, rooted in distant centuries and even millennia. This has nothing to do with Marxism. In the veneration of the leaders of the DPRK, I see a clear connection with the tradition of venerating ancestors. After all, lifetime worship, similar to what was common in neighboring empires, was not practiced here. Nor does it apply to current leader Kim Jong-un. There is no need to confuse the deification of a leader and the perception of him as the highest bearer of national dignity.
Monuments to Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang have become a kind of place of pilgrimage.
You will not find portraits of Kim Jong-un anywhere. Why? He is modest, Korean officials explain. The contrast with the honors paid to his grandfather and father in the grand Palace of the Sun memorial is enormous. Although it is worth noting that the hierarchical principle is also strictly observed in relation to leaders. Kim Il Sung is the first and only eternal president. Kim Jong Il no longer applied for this post; he headed the Workers' Party and the Defense Committee of the DPRK. Kim Jong-un's official positions are essentially the same as those of his father, although now the party leader is called chairman, not secretary general. And his military rank is the same - marshal. Posthumously, his father became generalissimo. And my grandfather was a generalissimo during his lifetime.
However, the contrast in governing style between Kim the Second and Kim the Third was felt almost immediately both in the country and abroad. The young leader accelerated the system of state power in an effort to make it more adequate to the challenges that the DPRK faced.
Is it possible to talk about a revision or a significant change in ideological milestones? The Juche system of ideas took its final form under Kim Jong Il. It was developed under his leadership, first in line with Marxism, although it claimed to enrich it creatively. Kim Jong Il’s book “On the Juche Ideas” (1989), published during the fading period of the “eternally living teaching” (in the West - Eurocommunism, in the East - a complex of historical inferiority), delicately pointed out its obsolescence.
As if completing the ideological evolution, in 2015 the last portraits of Marx and Lenin that still adorned the main square of Pyongyang were removed. A clear confirmation of the fact that Kim Jong-un is looking forward, not back. The 7th Congress of the ruling party he held adopted a new charter, which was published only partially, but based on the fragments that have become known, it gives reason to assume that the WPK said goodbye to Marxism.
In this case, what is called throwing out the baby with the bathwater does not happen, although some events and circumstances of the past receive a new interpretation over time. Perhaps lessons have been learned here from our perestroika. But, most likely, the caution and prudence characteristic of the political culture of the countries of the Far East is taking its toll.
In the museum of the history of the party (where the headquarters of the WPK was once located), the meeting hall with all its entourage of the late 40s - including portraits of Marx, Engels and Stalin - was left intact. Much of the Soviet experience has been creatively adopted and remains a living heritage. This applies to such basic principles as the priority development of heavy industry, and this also applies to cultural policy. Nowhere in the world are so many Soviet films shown on television as in North Korea. Almost every day you can see something from the Soviet classics. The 1977 film “Front Behind the Front Line” became a teaching aid for Russian language lessons on television.
Modern Korean films continue the epic traditions of Soviet culture. At the same time, there is a noticeable departure from normative-dogmatic aesthetics. This is probably also the result of the obvious softening noted by those who have had the opportunity to observe public life over the past few years. Thus, an increased desire of citizens for communication has become noticeable; they gather in courtyards, talk, play chess and local games, while previously they sat in their apartments after coming from work. A very significant change is the rapid spread of cellular communications, with phones mainly of domestic production.
Nevertheless, there is no need to talk about relaxation; the degree of organization and mobilization readiness remains very high. You can feel this not only from the posters displayed in special showcases: hands tearing a sheet of paper with a UN Security Council resolution on sanctions against the DPRK; missiles on tractors; rockets soaring into the sky. The main thing is the composure and concentration of people, pottering around in the fields until dark, standing decorously in queues at public transport stops. Here there is still a six-day work week, here a person’s personal life is not a completely private matter. Thus, early marriages are not encouraged, the usual age for marriage is 25–28 years, and marriages are 2–3 years older. Before you start building a family nest, you must devote your best years, give fresh strength to your country and society. And this applies not only to military service, but also to realizing oneself in a certain profession.
The main tool of social organization today is ideology. Honoring the leaders and following their covenants is its main content. Although the pantheon of revered forerunners has been limited over time to only the figures of two national leaders, the inherent faith in Marxism in the science of social management remains unshakable. Perhaps, the amazing achievements of a small country poor in natural resources can naturally be explained by the understanding of “man as the master, ruler and transformer of nature and society” that has become entrenched among the masses. Although the whole world is trying to find secret sources of basic knowledge and technology somewhere outside the DPRK. I don’t want to admit that an exceptionally effective system of social management has been created and is functioning in the country. Instead of a serious analysis of this phenomenon, the media is filled with anecdotal stories.
But what if we ignore stereotypes and try to see the situation in Korea and around it through the eyes of a person who lives here and, apart from decades of blockade and military confrontation, remembers nothing? He perceives the world and his life tasks as extreme everyday life, which requires concentration and effort. I am not afraid to say that this is akin to the Wagnerian perception of reality as an arena of a brutal struggle between good and evil. But this apocalyptic vision is balanced by the Eastern mentality, which ensures the calm and methodical fulfillment of its destiny.
The veneration of leaders naturally stems from such a worldview. Who, if not them, is an example of a “transformer of nature and society”? It is characteristic that all the images and sculptures of them that were seen amaze with the meticulous, photographic fidelity to the details of their appearance and clothing. Nothing symbolic, iconic, that is, of the type that we remember from countless images of Ilyich, who over the years became an increasingly powerful fellow with a bull’s neck, weighed down by excess testosterone. This strict realism of Korean monumental propaganda does not allow one to perceive leaders as some kind of spirits hovering above reality.
If Kim Il Sung is a classic statesman of the eastern type, reminiscent of Brezhnev and the leaders of European socialist countries, then his successor looks much more democratic in his constant jacket. He looks like an employee of a scientific institute. Despite his completely non-belligerent appearance, Kim Jong Il is a sophisticated political strategist and the father of the modern nuclear and missile program. It was he who, having assumed supreme power after the death of Kim Il Sung, outlined a new course for the country, which found itself without reliable rear lines due to the collapse of the USSR and the transition of the PRC to capitalism. He owns the concept of “songun” - military-oriented policy. The task was set to ensure the country's invulnerability in the face of incessant pressure from the United States and its satellites. Achieving this goal involved solving complex scientific and technical problems.
“Long live Kim Jong Il - the sun of Songun Korea!” - one of the slogans found in prominent places in the capital and along roadsides. The party leader and chairman of the State Defense Committee, who died at the end of 2011, did not see the completion of the program that he had led for almost 20 years. But work on it did not stop, and this year was decisive - several tests of nuclear charges were carried out, one of them thermonuclear; According to official data, the launched intercontinental missiles Hwasong-14 and Hwasong-15 reached altitudes of 3.5 and 4.5 thousand kilometers, which indicates the ability to deliver an ICBM warhead to any point in the United States. This caused hysteria in the world media, as if the Hwasongs were already at the starting position with the “fuse lit.” And almost no references are heard to Kim Jong-un’s statement that the DPRK has only defensive plans. In Washington, they assumed the pose of a victim of imminent aggression: six months left, two months left. Which seemed to make Trump’s statement from the UN rostrum about the possible total destruction of the DPRK quite appropriate.
After this escapade by the American president, the DPRK press reported that 4.7 million had volunteered for the armed forces, of which 1.22 million were women. But no matter how large the North Korean army is, its technical equipment is inferior to its potential opponents. No modern aviation, no air defense, and without them, even tank armadas become just strings of steel coffins. Only a nuclear missile shield can level the odds on the battlefield. After all, this is exactly the path that the Soviet Union chose at one time to achieve strategic parity with the United States, which possessed a countless number of bombers, attack aircraft and many aircraft carriers. No matter what the media broadcasts, the task of overthrowing a hostile or even less than independent regime has always been and remains on the agenda of any American administration. The States have used their Tomahawks against different countries more than 2 thousand times! And they want North Korea to curtail its nuclear missile program!
Many countries openly and others secretly support North Korea. In the museum of gifts to Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, you can see valuable souvenirs from countries that have long-standing ties with the DPRK, such as China, Russia, and Syria. A silver falcon, recently presented by Prince Turki from Saudi Arabia, is on display here, and nearby is a model of an Arabian sailing ship brought by the Kuwaiti prince. Signs of attention from apparently pro-American regimes are not only evidence of respect for an independent course, but may well signal the existence of certain common interests.
In light of such facts, speculation about the external roots of the nuclear missile program seems completely far-fetched, aiming to belittle the DPRK’s ability to independently solve a strategic problem. A recently built residential complex for scientists in the center of the capital may serve as an indirect confirmation of the effectiveness of the “man with a tassel”, who played a leading role in creating North Korea’s defense shield. Running parallel to the bank of the deep Taedong River, Mire (Future) Street, where the flower of science settled, is lined with beautiful high-rise buildings. The ruling party motivates the intelligentsia not only with slogans and appeals, although they do not forget moral incentives. Both the previous heads of state and the current one understand the requests of the “man with a tassel” due to their own belonging to this part of the Korean nation. Kim Il Sung composed plays and librettos for operas. Kim Jong Il also created several operas and wrote music for them. He was a passionate fan of cinema and was involved in its development a lot.
The Supreme Leader (Kim Jong Un's official title), like his father, graduated from a university in Pyongyang and has a degree in physics. It is probably no coincidence that it was under him that the nuclear program developed especially successfully - of the six tests carried out by the DPRK, four occurred during the years of his rule. The strategic goal of the nuclear missile program in the political dimension is to become one of the countries that are genuine subjects of international relations participating in determining the world agenda.
But it is not only the character of his reign, but also the personal style of Kim Jong-un that attracts everyone's attention. His playground haircut, popular among American basketball players, and his “vintage” attire caught the imagination of radical youth, who saw real cool in this bold combination. I think this is thoughtful conservatism; Kim Jong-un understands that he is seen as an expression of the identity of the country and people. Was he able to sense the demand for authenticity that had matured in the bustling world of capitalism?..
When you stop along the road among vast fields strewn with sheaves, you acutely feel the touch of the eternal, imperishable, with which this land lives. Horned oxen slowly roll a loaded cart. Long-legged birds wander through the stubble, looking for fallen grains. Groups of people move towards the village in the gathering dusk. One after another, the windows in the peasant houses are illuminated, immediately filling the world with comfort. You always feel this taste of something real, lost by the world, which is quickly moving towards complete standardization, in North Korea. With its immortal leaders reclining in the sarcophagi of the Palace of the Sun. With its villages quietly plunging into the night. With her million warriors going to bed “without taking off their boots.” For at any moment they are ready to become an iron palisade on the path of invasion from outside.
The man with the brush will fall asleep later than everyone else.