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Author: Jongwoo Han
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739179217
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 429
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Book Description
Why does North Korea want to possess nuclear capabilities? In order to find the answer to this question, we must have an accurate understanding of the history and structure of the North Korean regime. So far, we have only formed conjectures and predictions regarding North Korea based on our own perspectives; we now need to deal with and consider North Korea “as is” to reach viable solutions to the issues North Korea presents. This volume contains analyses of the most salient, critical issues pertinent to understanding the North Korean regime, penned by representative Korean scholars of North Korea. As such, the book examines the historical formation of North Korea, the identities of those power elite, and the relative stability (or instability, as the case may be) of the new regime under Kim Jong-un. Also an important aspect to consider is the possibility of socio-economic change in North Korea. Though North Korea has remained relatively static vis-à-vis its political and military systems, it is in the process of becoming rapidly marketized, having continued various attempts to modify its economic policy. In the social realm, said economic shift has elicited the polarization of the disparate classes and the expansion of individualism. Such social transformations, obscured by the easily visible political reality of North Korea, can provide solid grounds for determining the future of the North Korea regime. Moreover, it is imperative that we accurately understand the motivation behind North Korea’s intention to develop nuclear weapons—namely, the expansion of deterrence. We must recognize the reasons for the North Korean hostility toward the United States from the very beginning of the DPRK formation and the North Korean fixation on nuclear weapons development. Further, we need to understand the nature of relations between China and North Korea—relations on which the international community has focused since North Korea began its nuclear testing—as well as the history and structure of relations between North and South Korea. Only when we accurately understand North Korea can we reach solutions to the North Korean nuclear issue. The studies in this volume by Korean scholars will reveal the veiled background of the visible phenomena and thereby help the readers to correctly understand the North Korean behaviors hitherto misunderstood (or even those that were impossible to understand).
Author: Jongwoo Han
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781498521093
Category : China
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
For South Korean scholars, North Korea is a subject of research pregnant with the meaning of survival of the Korean Peninsula. Based on such a unique position, authors in this book raise and address questions such as how long stability will be maintained in the Kim Jong-un regime, who the power elites behind the system are, and if the North Korean economy is still a Communist planned economy.
Author: Sonia Ryang
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739132075
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 173
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Book Description
We are told, time and again, that North Koreans are loyal to their leader, that they would do anything, even die for him, and that they are fiercely proud and nationalistic. But to an equal extent, we are told that they are oppressed, suffering, and ready to rise against the evil dictator. What do we know beyond or between these opposing assumptions? We are not well equipped with the conceptual tools that could lead us beyond the current securitization of our discourses on North Korea, while undercurrents of regarding North Koreans as less human continue in these discourses. This volume attempts to multiply the angles from which we can look at North Korea by reassessing the international environment in which it is placed, the process of production of its culture, and the historical paths it has followed. Due to the new approach the volume takes, reading these pages will be an eye-opening experience not only for experts, but also for lay readers and anyone interested in peace keeping in Korea, Northeast Asia, and beyond.
Author: Institute for Unification Education, Ministry of Unification (South Korea)
Publisher: 길잡이미디어
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 422
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Book Description
The Institute for Unification Education, which constitutes the Ministry of Unification of the Republic of Korea, has published annual editions of Understanding North Korea since 1972, as an endeavor to promote greater understanding of North Korea for South Korean readers. Understanding North Korea depicts the reality faced by the Northern regime in areas of politics, diplomacy, military, economy, society, culture, and many more. The May 2012 publication has been translated into English, with the aim to help the international community better understand the northern half of the Korean peninsula. English translations of the referred editions will be published on an biennial basis. We hope that this book enables readers around the world to better grasp the reality of North Korea. The regime in North Korea exhibits three characteristics: it is a totalitarian dictatorship governed by the sole leadership of the suryǒng , who stands above the Workers’Party of Korea (WPK) and the state; the regime, as one of the world’s most highly centralized and planned economies, has advocated self-reliance and the monopoly of all means of production by the state and cooperative organizations; and the state uses the concept of Grand Socialist Family which requires absolute obedience of people to the suryǒng , who is considered the father of a family. These traits engendered a peculiar form of social structure unprecedented in any other socialist country. As it had to do under Kim Jong-il, North Korea under Kim Jong-un must engage in some degree of reform and opening to improve its economy and ensure the regime’s survival. Such a path, however, also brings with it the risk of regime collapse. The regime thus faces the difficult task of maintaining stability while at the same time reforming and opening up. CONTENTS I. How should we view North Korea? Section 1. Nature of the Northern Regime 11 Section 2. North Korea’s Dilemma 18 Ⅱ. Political System and Governing Principles Section 1. History of the North Korean Regime and Establishment of its Political System 25 1. Soviet Occupation and Establishment of the North Korean Regime 25 2. Establishment of North Korea’s Political System and its Characteristics 28 Section 2. Formation of Governing Ideology and its Changing Nature 36 1. Juche Ideology 37 2. Songun Ideology 42 3. Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism 46 Section 3. Power Structure and Form of Government 49 1. Power structure 49 2. Workers’Party of Korea 55 3. Central Institutions 71 Section 4. Hereditary Succession of Power and the Kim Jong-un Regime 80 1. History of Hereditary Power Succession 80 2. Establishment and Stabilization of the Kim Jong-un Regime 86 Ⅲ. External Policies and Relations Section 1. Goals and Directions of Foreign Policies 97 1. Basic Ideas and Goals of Foreign Policy 97 2. Policy Directions 99 3. North Korea’s Foreign Policy-making Structure 102 Section 2. Changes in Foreign Policy 105 1. Foreign Policy during the Cold War Era 105 2. Foreign Policy after the Cold War Era 111 Section 3. Foreign Relations 117 1. US-North Korea Relations 117 2. China-North Korea Relations 127 3. Japan-North Korea Relations 132 4. Russia-North Korea Relations 137 5. Relations with the EU and Other Nations 141 Ⅳ. Military Strategy and Capacity Section 1. Characteristics and Functions 153 1. Establishment of the KPA 153 2. Nature and Status 155 3. Functions and Characteristics 156 Section 2. Military Policy and Strategy 160 1. Basic Objective 160 2. Military Strategy 163 Section 3. Structure and Institutions 168 1. Military Structure 168 2. Military Institutions 173 Section 4. Military Capacity 179 1. Standing Forces and Equipment 179 2. Reserve Forces 185 3. Development of Nuclear and Other Strategic Weapons 187 Section 5. Military Relations and Provocations against the South 194 1. External Military Relationship 194 2. North Korea’s Provocations against the South 199 Ⅴ. Economic Structure and Policy Section 1. Characteristics of Economic System and Basic Economic Policy 217 1. Basic Characteristics of Economic System 217 2. Basic Economic Policy 225 3. Establishment and Implementation of Economic Plans 234 Section 2. Economic Status by Sector 238 1. Macroeconomic Status and Tasks 238 2. Economic Status and Tasks by Sector 244 Section 3. Changes in Economic Policy and Outlook for Reform and Opening 259 1. Utilization and Control of Markets 259 2. Limited Opening 268 3. Prospects and Tasks for Reform and Opening 274 Ⅵ. Education and Culture Section 1. Education System and School Life 281 1. Education Policy and School System 281 2. Educational Curriculum and Methods 299 3. School Life 308 Section 2. Literary Art Policy and Current Status 314 1. Literary Art Policy 314 2. Current Status of Literature and Art 321 Section 3. The Media and its Functions 334 1. Newspapers 335 2. Broadcasting 340 VII Society and Life Section 1. Class Structure 349 1. Social Classes 349 2. Social Mobility and Class Structure 353 Section 2. Value System and Everyday Life 356 1. North Korean Citizens’Values 356 2. Daily Life and Life Cycle 362 3. Organizational Life 366 4. Clothing, Food, and Housing 373 5. Leisure and Holidays 380 Section 3. Religion in North Korea 386 1. View on Religion 386 2. Actual Conditions of Religious Beliefs 388 Section 4. Deviations and Social Control 391 1. Social Deviation and Crime committed by North Koreans 391 2. Social Control 398 Section 5. Human Rights in North Korea 404 1. Violation of Civic and Political Rights 405 2. Violation of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights 410 3. Response to Criticism on Human Rights 413
Author: C. Kenneth Quinones
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 9781592571697
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 452
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Book Description
In this accessible guide, readers will find unmatched expert analysis of the volatile situation in North Korea, along with answers to frequently asked questions. Covered topics include: ¬ North Korea's geography, people, industry, political systems, and government ¬ The history of the country, from myths to kingdoms, including Japan's colonial rule and its effects ¬ The dictator, Kim Jong Il, and his father, Kim Il Sung ¬ The possibility of reunification with South Korea ¬ Options for international involvement
Author: Andrei Lankov
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199390037
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 350
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Book Description
In The Real North Korea, Lankov substitutes cold, clear analysis for the overheated rhetoric surrounding this opaque police state. Based on vast expertise, this book reveals how average North Koreans live, how their leaders rule, and how both survive
Author: Jongwoo Han
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739179217
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 429
Get Book
Book Description
Why does North Korea want to possess nuclear capabilities? In order to find the answer to this question, we must have an accurate understanding of the history and structure of the North Korean regime. So far, we have only formed conjectures and predictions regarding North Korea based on our own perspectives; we now need to deal with and consider North Korea “as is” to reach viable solutions to the issues North Korea presents. This volume contains analyses of the most salient, critical issues pertinent to understanding the North Korean regime, penned by representative Korean scholars of North Korea. As such, the book examines the historical formation of North Korea, the identities of those power elite, and the relative stability (or instability, as the case may be) of the new regime under Kim Jong-un. Also an important aspect to consider is the possibility of socio-economic change in North Korea. Though North Korea has remained relatively static vis-à-vis its political and military systems, it is in the process of becoming rapidly marketized, having continued various attempts to modify its economic policy. In the social realm, said economic shift has elicited the polarization of the disparate classes and the expansion of individualism. Such social transformations, obscured by the easily visible political reality of North Korea, can provide solid grounds for determining the future of the North Korea regime. Moreover, it is imperative that we accurately understand the motivation behind North Korea’s intention to develop nuclear weapons—namely, the expansion of deterrence. We must recognize the reasons for the North Korean hostility toward the United States from the very beginning of the DPRK formation and the North Korean fixation on nuclear weapons development. Further, we need to understand the nature of relations between China and North Korea—relations on which the international community has focused since North Korea began its nuclear testing—as well as the history and structure of relations between North and South Korea. Only when we accurately understand North Korea can we reach solutions to the North Korean nuclear issue. The studies in this volume by Korean scholars will reveal the veiled background of the visible phenomena and thereby help the readers to correctly understand the North Korean behaviors hitherto misunderstood (or even those that were impossible to understand).
Author: Robert Carlin
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1666906786
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 351
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Book Description
This ambitious book is constructed to provide the reader with unusually broad and deep insight into North Korea, illustrating how the Kim Jong-un regime calculates, balances, and addresses the various key policy challenges it faces. This will be accomplished through the extensive experience of the authors—Korean, European, and American—in North Korea and with North Koreans. There is no substitute for such direct experience in order to address the numerous myths and misconceptions that have grown up and persisted over the years about how the North functions, and how it perceives the world. Moreover, the usual focus on a single issue—for example, just nuclear or just economic matters—fails to provide a sense of how important the inter-relationship of these separate parts is in understanding the whole. The experience brought to bear in the book and the breadth of coverage provides badly needed, critical insights about North Korea at time when policy in Seoul and Washington toward the North is at a crucial hinge point.
Author: Ra Jong-yil
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438473745
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 218
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Book Description
First published in Korean in 2016, Inside North Korea's Theocracy offers a fascinating and rare look at the lives of several of the regime's key leaders. Its primary focus is Jang Song-thaek, a talented and reform-minded member of the political ruling class who was executed in 2013. Jang was the son-in-law of North Korean founder, Kim Il-sung; brother-in-law of its second leader, Kim Jong-il; and uncle to its current leader, Kim Jong-un. The author traces Jang's life from his youth as a brilliant student in Pyongyang to his eventual marriage to Kim Kyong-hui and his rising power as a businessman to, ultimately, his untimely death. In addition to biographical sketches of Jang, his wife, and brother-in-law, Ra Jong-yil provides first-hand impressions of life in North Korea and illuminates the inner workings of its government.
Author: Balázs Szalontai
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 9780804753227
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 388
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Book Description
Concentrating on the years 1953-64, this history describes how North Korea became more despotic even as other Communist countries underwent de-Stalinization. The authors principal new source is the Hungarian diplomatic archives, which contain extensive reporting on Kim Il Sung and North Korea, thoroughly informed by research on the period in the Soviet and Eastern European archives and by recently published scholarship. Much of the story surrounds Kim Il Sung: his Korean nationalism and eagerness for Korean autarky; his efforts to balance the need for foreign aid and his hope for an independent foreign policy; and what seems to be his good sense of timing in doing in internal rivals without attracting Soviet retaliation. Through a series of comparisons not only with the USSR but also with Albania, Romania, Yugoslavia, China, and Vietnam, the author highlights unique features of North Korean communism during the period. Szalontai covers ongoing effects of Japanese colonization, the experiences of diverse Korean factions during World War II, and the weakness of the Communist Party in South Korea.
Author: Kyung-Ae Park
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1442218126
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 329
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Book Description
Following the death of Kim Jong Il, North Korea has entered a period of profound transformation laden with uncertainty. This authoritative book brings together the world's leading North Korea experts to analyze both the challenges and prospects the country is facing. Drawing on the contributors' expertise across a range of disciplines, the book examines North Korea's political, economic, social, and foreign policy concerns. Considering the implications for Pyongyang's transition, it focuses especially on the transformation of ideology, the Worker's Party of Korea, the military, effects of the Arab Spring, the emerging merchant class, cultural infiltration from the South, Western aid, and global economic integration. The contributors also assess the impact of North Korea's new policies on China, South Korea, the United States, and the rest of the world. Comprehensive and deeply knowledgeable, their analysis is especially crucial given the power consolidation efforts of the new leadership underway in Pyongyang and the implications for both domestic and international politics. Contributions by: Nicholas Anderson, Charles Armstrong, Bradley Babson, Victor Cha, Bruce Cumings, Nicholas Eberstadt, Ken Gause, David Kang, Andrei Lankov, Woo Young Lee, Liu Ming, Haksoon Paik, Kyung-Ae Park, Terence Roehrig, Jungmin Seo, and Scott Snyder.
