Posted on 02/08/2003 1:58:49 PM PST by jodorowsky
I've been researching North Korea quite a bit lately and I thought I'd share some of my favourites with freepers. Here are three very interesting articles about the hermit kingdom.
First, a travelogue:
I headed for the lavatory to relieve myself of what had been Pyongyang Beer an hour ago (and I noted that the sign for the toilet said WC, with no Korean characters) when I came across a couple of people from our group talking to a black man, the first I had seen in Korea. Soon I was talking to him, too. He was from Uganda, a firm supporter of the Juche Idea."Tony Blair is a Tory just pretending to be a socialist," I half-recall him saying. "You want socialism, you come here. Kim Il Sung was right, it’s all about independence. Africa has a lot to learn from him." Uh, right.
A webpage about Pyongyang's mysterious subway system:
The works of art at Puhung Station represent the appearance of the country which is prospering day by day and the happiness of the working people who enjoy the equitable and worthwhile creative life to their hearts' content thanks to the popular policy of the Workers' Party of Korea and the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.An article about North Korean domestic propaganda:
The Official Propaganda in the DPRK: Ideas and Methods
Pyongyang does not follow the old Soviet example of jamming foreign radio stations. The North Korean authorities have found a cheaper, and more reliable solution: they have simply banned the domestic sale and use of the free-tuning radio receivers. The small lamp receivers which can be bought in North Korean shops (of course, one has to have special permission to buy even this piece of vintage technology) are fixed on the wave-length of the official broadcasting station. Certainly, a person with some technical knowledge can easily make the necessary changes and transform such a receiver into a real radio set. To prevent this from happening, the police undertake periodic random inspections of all registered receivers.
Nazi Germany had a similar receiver called the "Volksradio". It was intended to receive Nazi propaganda broadcasts only, and had a label stating "Receiving unofficial transmissions is strictly forbidden and subject to strong penalties."
British television owners are required to pay an annual fee to receive broadcasts.
The authorities drive around in a van than can detect receivers which have not paid the tax.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.