Personal Statement: North Korea

North Korea is a Totalitarian country that often uses many different fear tactics to control their citizens. “ Her brother who was arrested in China in 1994 for attempting to “defect” from the DPRK... As an example to others against committing similar “anti-state” offenses, he was tied to the back of a truck which took him to their hometown, Musan.”(North Korean control #3 doc A) Someone's brother was arrested in China for trying to defect from North Korea, and as an example, he was dragged around by a truck to show people not to try and escape. This shows that North Korea wanted to impose fear on their citizens, so they wouldn’t try to leave. “The woman she knew was lined up alongside eight other prisoners... her crime was having watched South

Even more so once I realized that I can’t do anything to help them. Their own government doesn't care, and won’t accept aid from America or South Korea. The government spends millions and millions of dollars to develop ICBMs, when they could be purchasing food, or building housing, or creating grocery stores with actual food items in them. I couldn't stand the Pyongyang Department Store No. 1. This is like having carrot on a stick. Why on Earth would the government flash what the country could be like in front of the people all the time, and have none of it available to purchase? Finally, I felt affirmation. This confirmed my thought about North Korea. My mother went on a mission trip to Cuba last summer, and she brought back photos of what Havana, Cuba looked like. Aside from the palm trees, it looked like a 1960s Russian apartment block. The inner cities of North Korea looked the same way. Gray, square buildings, no advertisements, the only color was that of propaganda. The buildings are bland, boring, and have very little to offer the space as far as aesthetics go. Even with this confirmation, my view of North Korea was slightly altered.

North Korea is one of the last family-run dictatorships in the world. They have been determined to become a “Powerful and prosperous” nation (Kiener). North Korea is so set on being extremely powerful and building nuclear weapons but has not been able to feed their people for years. Missile testing has become more and more common from North Korea in the last year and has been striking fear into all nations around them. North Korea has launched missiles over Japan and most recently Hawaii; they have also conducted six underground nuclear weapon tests. Not only has North Korea become a threat to South Korea but also to the rest of the world. People all over the world are asking how can we protect ourselves and what actions will be made to stop North Korea from creating havoc throughout the world.

I wanted to help him. I felt such a surge of sudden anger toward his mother for neglecting his cries. Her lack of compassion as a parent devastated me and it reminded me too much of my own mother. I just wanted to help him. I wanted him to know that someone else was listening— that someone else cared.”

The announcement of Kim-Il Sung’s death in 1994 put the whole country at grief. Everyone in the country gathered by the statues of Kim-Il Sung to pay their respects. It was this ceremony at which many citizens realized the faults of the leader and soon after began noticing the issues of the regime and leadership. As an act of rebellion, people would watch forbidden Korean shows and read Western novels. Soon, many experiences a shift in how they viewed the outside world and North Korea. However many believers grieved the death of Kim-Il Sung as much as the death of their relatives. Most North Koreans couldn’t believe that the invincible, God like leader has died. More extreme nationalists willingly starved to death becuase living without the leader was unthinkable.

Living in North Korea is hard for kids who go to school since they don’t have school buses in some villages and kids have to always walk to school. In places like Russia and North Korea one doesn’t get the chance to restart, but in the U.S people do get the chance to restart. In America there is equality and when you fail one gets the option to restart.

Kim Jong-un is the present leader of North Korea who took the full power of the country being still young, but for his father he was the most prepared of his descendance. He took over in a country in poverty, with a high military preparation and especially well-developed nuclear weapon technology. At the same time, Kim Jong-un has made history in his territory and is seen as a leader that is willing to improve the population’s needs, including the economic.

Although Kim Jong Il’s government signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, reports had surfaced that they continued with the nuclear program. In 2003, North Korea withdrew from the treaty and openly resumed its nuclear research. As stated earlier, North Korea continues to shroud itself in secrecy in order to keep its strengths a secret from their so called ‘enemies’. The government upholds the aforementioned restrictions to keep their secrets from leaking out, and to keep the citizens ignorant to the outside world. Authorities have been known to deal out cruel and inhuman punishments to those who are found to have broken the ‘rules’. A North Korean escapee, Park Yeonmi, recounts from her childhood that her best friend’s mother was sentenced to be executed, Her crime was having watched South Korean films and lending the DVDs to friends. Her punishment in this most paranoid of dictatorships, was death by firing squad. The misfortune didn’t stop for Yeonmi however, as her father was arrested years later and was taken to a ‘re-education’ camp and given a 17-year sentence. She recalls his state during a visit, ‘He was beaten. Guards placed sticks between his fingers and crunched them together. He was made to sit in excruciating stress positions for interminable periods. Prisoners were

North Korea, also known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has the fourth largest Army in the world. They have an estimated 1.2 million troops with a population of over 24 million people in 2011. Their leader is the most powerful dictator in the world, Kim Jong Un. Kim Jong Un took power back in December 2011 after his father suffered a heart attack and died. Nevertheless, Kim Jong Il’s legacy has

I know freedom to you probably doesn’t mean much, since we’re in America and freedom is (most of the time) equivalent to waking up in the morning, but in North Korea it’s not even a thought in the head of most people. Like most people I would enjoy seeing the North Korean regime taken out of power. The only good thing that they might be doing is controlling their people.

Kim Jong-Il has been the “Supreme Commander” of North Korea since 1997. His leadership style was shaped through a strict military background. His beliefs in himself are somewhat vain to most, but the people of North Korea will literally

As the next ruler of Korea, Crown Prince Yi San, you must follow my footsteps in continuously trying to become the next sage king. Our country is depending on you to be the one to put their needs first. You must not think of yourself; you must think what is best for the people, even if that puts you and your family in great heartache. I have made many sacrifices of my own that may have harmed our family but benefitted other greatly.

It is important to understand the history of the Korean War and the leadership of the country to understand how little has changed in the leadership and growth within North Korea since the Korean War, there have been only two Presidents since Kim Jong IL, his son and grandson. Their main goal, after the consolidation of total power has been to build their military strength and somehow become a nuclear power. In 1962 the North Korean leadership committee launched what was called “all fortressization” which called for defending the country by any means (Clemens). They then reached out to the Soviet Union and then to China

She had just delivered a baby boy, but her life’s blood rushed from her body in violent gushes, soaking the mattress beneath her. There was no stopping her death; she had little time.

Hyeonseo Lee gave a presentation on TED Talk entitled, “My Escape from North Korea”, summarizing about her life in North Korea. She was born and raised there and sing patriotic songs. All the history books told her that North Korea was the best country in the world. As she got older, a famine struck North Korea in the mid-1990’s. Although, she never experienced starvation, she witnessed the events first hand. This was the pushing point for Hyeonseo, who decided to leave North Korea. Due to China and North Korea’s stringent border policies and the Chinese government immigration policy, the life of a North Korean refugee is challenging and extremely risky. They risk being deported back to the very country that they escaped from. There are reports and stories about the violation of human rights and labor camps in North Korea. She would live in China for ten years before moving to South Korea. Hyeonseo was forced to help her family escape from North Korea. The regime caught Hyeonseo for sending money to her family. Lee’s family to be relocated by the order of the North Korean government. She needed to smuggle them through China to a South Korean embassy in Laos. Unfortunately, Hyeonseo Lee’s story won’t be the last we hear about the abysmal conditions in North Korea. There are, potentially millions more, stories detailing the humanitarian disaster in the country and we must take steps to prepare for the eventual collapse of the country.