North Korea Concerns and Focuses: Kim Jong Il Juche Philosophy Censorship and Information Control Government Structure and Elitism Developing Nuclear Program

History

Levels of Concern Individual: Kim Jong Il and his successor State: Juche policy, Militarism, Succession and Government, and Censorship Systemic: Developing Nuclear Program

Kim Jong Il

Kim Jong Un

Juche

Image of the electric power grid by night in North and South Korea. As you can see, Pyongyang is the only dot lit in North Korea, as the rest of the country’s grid is shut off by night to conserve limited supplies of energy.

“Since 1995, the U.S. has provided over $1 billion in foreign assistance to the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea (DPRK, also known as North Korea), about 60% of which has taken the form of food aid, and about 40% in the form of energy assistance channeled through the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO).” – 2002 CRS Report

Censorship and Information Control, Issue 1 No internet except for Kim Jong Il and some elites beneath him Most of the population has never watched a television or heard a radio that hadn’t been modified to receive only North Korean broadcasts The only source of information is the Korean Central News Agency, which dedicates a majority of its time to pro-leader propaganda and reassuring everyone the North Korea is more prosperous than South Korea.

Militarism and Government

The Nuclear Program, Issue 2

1994 Agreed Framework I. Both sides will cooperate to replace the DPRK’s graphite- moderated reactors and related facilities with light-water reactor (LWR) power plants. II. The two sides will move toward full normalization of political and economic relations. III. Both sides will work together for peace and security on a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. IV. Both sides will work together to strengthen the international nuclear non proliferation regime.  From AGREED FRAMEWORK BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF KOREA  Geneva, October 21, 1994

Six Party Talks

Recommended Policy, and why You should care

Issues Censorship: First, North Korea is a threat worth addressing. The recommendation of information warfare has precedence and the potential to be effective in protecting our interests (Realist) A basic human right, the freedom of speech and expression, is being suppressed in this country. What kind of democratic hegemon wouldn’t want to peacefully open the peoples’ eyes?(Liberal) The sharing of information and ideas is the only way to get grassroots change up and running. Information warfare is constructivist warfare. Nuclear Program It is in our best interest to ensure that a totalitarian regime bent on military development that preaches a constant rhetoric of “down with the corrupt West” not have nuclear weapons.(Realist) Nuclear weapons in North Korea represent a choke point to diplomatic solutions and the expansion of capitalism. Assuming no drastic political change is eminent, the first step to successfully force feeding our democratic ideals is the removal of the Nuclear card from the North Korean table. (Liberal) I don’t like the idea of nukes in North Korea and you shouldn’t too (Constructivist, joke). For our two nations to successfully exchange ideas, we need Korean plutonium out of the picture.