Fidelbrand
19th January 2005, 11:34
Video shows dissent in North Korea, group claims
The Associated Press
Link:
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/18/news/korea.html
A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group obtained the tape through an intermediary in China in early December. He said that his information on the North Korean group was limited, but that "outside forces" were helping dissidents expand their operations from provinces near the borders with China and Russia - traditional antigovernment hotbeds - deeper into the country and even to the capital, Pyongyang.
.
The filming was done with "equipment provided by outsiders," Do said, without elaborating.
.
The tape comes after the U.S. Congress in October enacted the North Korean Human Rights Act, which allows Washington spend as much as $24 million a year to promote human rights in North Korea. Pyongyang recently condemned what it said was U.S. "psychological warfare," accusing Washington of plotting to topple the government by flooding the country with tiny radios that can receive outside broadcasts.
.
Experts differ widely on whether Kim Jong Il faces a serious challenge to the grip on power he inherited from his late father, President Kim Il Sung.
.
South Korea's president, Roh Moo Hyun, has said that he sees little chance that North Korea will collapse.
.
The Chinese ambassador in Seoul, Li Bin, was quoted last week by the South's JoongAng newspaper as saying, "To think that North Korea will collapse is far-fetched speculation."
.SEOUL A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group obtained the tape through an intermediary in China in early December. He said that his information on the North Korean group was limited, but that "outside forces" were helping dissidents expand their operations from provinces near the borders with China and Russia - traditional antigovernment hotbeds - deeper into the country and even to the capital, Pyongyang.
.
The filming was done with "equipment provided by outsiders," Do said, without elaborating.
.
The tape comes after the U.S. Congress in October enacted the North Korean Human Rights Act, which allows Washington spend as much as $24 million a year to promote human rights in North Korea. Pyongyang recently condemned what it said was U.S. "psychological warfare," accusing Washington of plotting to topple the government by flooding the country with tiny radios that can receive outside broadcasts.
.
Experts differ widely on whether Kim Jong Il faces a serious challenge to the grip on power he inherited from his late father, President Kim Il Sung.
.
South Korea's president, Roh Moo Hyun, has said that he sees little chance that North Korea will collapse.
.
The Chinese ambassador in Seoul, Li Bin, was quoted last week by the South's JoongAng newspaper as saying, "To think that North Korea will collapse is far-fetched speculation."
.SEOUL A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group
-----
So, is this bourgeois media 's playtick again? Or is it a genuine uprise from the people themselves?
Discuss.
The Associated Press
Link:
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/18/news/korea.html
A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group obtained the tape through an intermediary in China in early December. He said that his information on the North Korean group was limited, but that "outside forces" were helping dissidents expand their operations from provinces near the borders with China and Russia - traditional antigovernment hotbeds - deeper into the country and even to the capital, Pyongyang.
.
The filming was done with "equipment provided by outsiders," Do said, without elaborating.
.
The tape comes after the U.S. Congress in October enacted the North Korean Human Rights Act, which allows Washington spend as much as $24 million a year to promote human rights in North Korea. Pyongyang recently condemned what it said was U.S. "psychological warfare," accusing Washington of plotting to topple the government by flooding the country with tiny radios that can receive outside broadcasts.
.
Experts differ widely on whether Kim Jong Il faces a serious challenge to the grip on power he inherited from his late father, President Kim Il Sung.
.
South Korea's president, Roh Moo Hyun, has said that he sees little chance that North Korea will collapse.
.
The Chinese ambassador in Seoul, Li Bin, was quoted last week by the South's JoongAng newspaper as saying, "To think that North Korea will collapse is far-fetched speculation."
.SEOUL A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group obtained the tape through an intermediary in China in early December. He said that his information on the North Korean group was limited, but that "outside forces" were helping dissidents expand their operations from provinces near the borders with China and Russia - traditional antigovernment hotbeds - deeper into the country and even to the capital, Pyongyang.
.
The filming was done with "equipment provided by outsiders," Do said, without elaborating.
.
The tape comes after the U.S. Congress in October enacted the North Korean Human Rights Act, which allows Washington spend as much as $24 million a year to promote human rights in North Korea. Pyongyang recently condemned what it said was U.S. "psychological warfare," accusing Washington of plotting to topple the government by flooding the country with tiny radios that can receive outside broadcasts.
.
Experts differ widely on whether Kim Jong Il faces a serious challenge to the grip on power he inherited from his late father, President Kim Il Sung.
.
South Korea's president, Roh Moo Hyun, has said that he sees little chance that North Korea will collapse.
.
The Chinese ambassador in Seoul, Li Bin, was quoted last week by the South's JoongAng newspaper as saying, "To think that North Korea will collapse is far-fetched speculation."
.SEOUL A South Korean human rights group revealed on Tuesday what it claimed to be the first video images of dissident activity in North Korea.
.
The scenes are from a shaking digital video camera that scans a rundown factory wall and zooms in on what many outsiders would consider impossible in North Korea. But the handwritten red-on-white poster is clear: "Down with Kim Jong Il! People, let's all rise up and drive out the dictatorship!"
.
The tape, 35 minutes long, was made in November by one of 10 underground antigovernment organizations in North Korea to let the outside world know of its campaign against the brutal dictatorship, the South Korean group said.
.
"Why is Kim Jong Il so intent on blocking reform and openness?" a leader of one North Korean group, Youth Solidarity for Freedom, said in a spoken statement recorded on the videotape.
.
"People, let's stage both violent and nonviolent struggles. It's a legitimate struggle if you refuse to go to work when your factory does not provide food and living allowances."
.
The statement urged North Koreans to wake up from the "personality cult that has made us fools." If verified, the video would be the first concrete evidence of political unrest in the isolated North. There have been occasional reports of armed rebellion, food riots and anti-government leaflets, but they have not been independently confirmed.
.
The video was recorded near the Chinese border in the town of Hoeryong, according to defectors from there who saw the tape.
.
There was speculation that video image of two antigovernment posters - hung on an abandoned factory wall and a bridge - might have been staged. But the South Korean group asserted that it was real.
.
"We stand by its authenticity," said Do Hee Yoon, head of the Civil Coalition for Human Rights of the Kidnapped and Defectors from North Korea. "This shows that the people who made the videotape were daring and organized enough to do this kind of highly risky work."
.
Such an act is punishable by death in the North, he said. Do said his group
-----
So, is this bourgeois media 's playtick again? Or is it a genuine uprise from the people themselves?
Discuss.