Writing Worth Reading
Writing Worth Reading
Shin In Geun is probably the only person to have been born in, and escape from, a North Korean camp for political prisoners. His account of the cruelty and viciousness of life inside Camp 14 is harrowing almost beyond belief
"I wrote poems for the regime under a pen name, pretending I was a grass-roots poet from the South. I wrote epic poems glorifying Kim Jong-il, which were published in the main newspaper in the North." And then I had to flee
Read and weep. "Let us make the whistle of the field train sounded by the great Comrade Kim Jong Il on the forefront of the revolution reverberate throughout the country as the drum of victory in the great upsurge!"
Change of leadership a "perfect moment" for new international dialogue. "The US and South Korea have various plans for dealing with the humanitarian consequences of North Korean collapse. Why not share them with the Chinese?"
Powerful stories from those who fled N Korea to escape the tyranny of Kim Jong-il. And the horrors they faced, if repatriated. "There are certain things I saw them do to women that I can’t even talk about because it's too shameful"
Will Kim Jong Un usher in reform? Unlikely. Economic, political upheaval would end regime. Change still inevitable: "No country with a hyper-centralized, Stalinist economy has remained efficient for longer than two or three decades"
"An object of parody in American culture. He wore elevator shoes, oversize sunglasses and a bouffant hairdo—a Hollywood stereotype of the wacky post-cold war dictator." But he out-bluffed two US presidents at nuclear poker
It's a secret. Or it would be, if the government hadn't kindly published two sets of census data, one national and one local. The national one shows about 700,000 people who aren't captured locally. About right for an army
Conversation with N Korea analyst Mark Fitzpatrick. "I used to think that North Korea might be willing to barter away its nuclear weapons program for economic assistance and a better relationship with the United States." Not anymore
American of Korean descent visits South Korea, engages with activists fighting for human rights in North Korea. Her trip leads to deeper understanding of complexities, historical background, and reality of political situation
AP photographer gets glimpse of a closed society; 37 of his photographs shown here. Opens with a beautifully composed shot of grim-looking Pyongyang buildings. Multi-lane highway outside the capital is empty of vehicles
For many North Korean defectors the path to freedom runs to Thailand, 3,000 miles from the hermit kingdom. Chinese checkpoints, spies, and informants lie in wait along the way. Aiding defectors, an underground Christian network
