Kim highlights power plant construction…Ignores people’s suffering
Kim Jong-un last week opened a new power plant, praising the patriotic “self-reliance” of the people, seemingly oblivious to the actual burdens placed on them...
How our childhood gifts from the benevolent leader actually came from the sweat of our parents
When I was growing up, the most special days of the year were the Day of the Sun on April 15 and the Day of...
Kim Jong-un visits Supreme Court, prosecutors, and security agencies, emphasizing their role as vanguard of regime defense
Kim Jong-un visited key pillars of the regime on the same day this month in what analysts say indicates a continued strengthening of the tools...
The declining value of Party membership for women
Do women in North Korea go to the military? I am often asked this in South Korea. Yes, they do, I tell people. They are...
Russian military chief visits Pyongyang to discuss ideological management of North Korean troops
A series of meetings last week in Pyongyang between Russian and North Korean officials responsible for political-ideological affairs indicates an intensified focus on ideological loyalty...
In an era of greater control, North Korea is quietly fracturing
In recent years the regime in North Korea has steadily intensified its enforcement of the “socialist lifestyle,” tightening control over nearly every aspect of daily...
Memorial for fallen troops in Russia war erected in Pyongyang
One year after dispatching troops to support Russia in the war with Ukraine, North Korea is constructing a memorial in Pyongyang to honor the dead. ...
Economic development is just another burden for the people
The North Korean regime is currently pushing economic development under the banner of a “20×10 Local Development Strategy.” This plan aims to build industrial factories...
Why are mothers the first to go hungry?
Who is the first to go hungry in a North Korean household? It is always the mother. Women are both victims of the regime and...
The new generation, a quiet awakening amid control
North Korea’s young generation is changing. Though still under strict surveillance, questions about the regime and a yearning for a different world are quietly growing...
Reunification has disappeared, leaving only hostility
When I lived in North Korea, our rivals in the South were depicted as “the same people, a counterpart we must one day reunite with.” ...
North Korea tells UN General Assembly it will not give up its nukes
At the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 29, North Korea delivered one of its most uncompromising messages of recent years...
A world I never knew was revealed by a USB
As everyone knows, information in North Korea is completely blocked. No internet, no foreign broadcasts, no international news. All TV and radio are state-controlled. The...
North Korea’s taxis are more than just a ride
As everyone knows, information in North Korea is completely blocked. No internet, no foreign broadcasts, no international news. All TV and radio are state-controlled. The...
The rise and fall of the jangmadang street markets
In any discussion about the economy in North Korea, you can’t ignore the pivotal role of the jangmadang, the informal markets that have become the...
What is something women could never imagine in North Korea?
I want to talk about a special kind of freedom, something truly unimaginable in North Korea. I’d like to talk about driving. When I first...
Traveling on North Korea’s long-distance buses
I’m often asked whether there are city buses and intercity buses in North Korea. Yes, there are. But they’re not the kind of buses you...
Kim Jong-un’s special train: bulletproof carriages and luxury facilities
When Kim Jong-un traveled to China recently, he went via a special train. Or, to be more precise, a moving hotel. The moment I saw...