At age 9, Kang Chol Hwan was sent with most of his family to a political prison camp in North Korea for an unspecified "crime" by his grandfather. He was released after 10 years and later fled, eventually reaching South Korea. Kang is the co-author of "The Aquariums of Pyongyang" and took part in NKnet's Spring 2012 speaker series. * Read a write-up of this lecture at http://en.nknet.org/events-programs/nkhr-supporters/week-2-kang-chol-hwan-politics-north-korea/ * Visit NKnet's website to learn more about North Korean human rights: http://en.nknet.org/ ___Video Timeline___ 1:02 Kang's background and current work 2:57 Chinese pressure on North Korea to reform 5:02 Kang's hometown and defection story 7:45 Hwang Jang Yop's defection in 1997 and subsequent revelations regarding the regime 14:16 North Korea in the late 1990s North Korea was a complete "disaster." There was famine and lack of order. Many defectors state that if these conditions continued, then North Korea would have collapsed. 21:58 Kim Jong Il, the Sunshine Policy, and the "Mosquito Net" policy The "Mosquito Net" policy was initiated by North Korea to filter out capitalist ideas from the South and enable North Korea to accept only money, cash and other forms of aid. 26:09 Pro-North elements in South Korea Kang encountered Hanchongryun while at university in South Korea in the 1990s. 30:00 Anti-Americanism in South Korea 35:00 North Korean spy tactics North Koreans would use blackmail and other forms of coercion to make South Koreans and foreigners send aid to North Korea. 38:45 North Korea and South Korean aid North Korea did not have to reform to survive because of all the aid that South Korea sent. North Korea was developing its nuclear program through South Korean money. 45:21 North Korea and the Lee Myung Bak government North Korean government decided not to negotiate with Lee Myung Bak's government until a another progressive government took power. 48:09 ROKS Cheonan Sinking 54:03 Kim Jong Il travels to China 55:40 Kim Jong Il and Libya Gadhafi visited Pyongyang and learned from Kim Jong Il's personal security strategies. 58:05 Kang's doubts about the Kim Jong Un regime Kim Jong Un's young age, combined with the fact that many of his generals are much older and more experienced, made people skeptical of his ability to administer North Korea. 1:00:39 North Korea's most recent missile test One of North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile tests exploded in mid-air. The project was extremely expensive, and the money could have been used to feed millions of starving people. The people see this missile test as a wasteful act of the regime. 1:03:20 The future of the regime and the South Korean election 1:04:14 QUESTION: Do you think the Sunshine Policy was part of a plan to keep the two Koreas separate? The Sunshine Policy was unnecessary. It strengthened the North Korean regime, causing people to suffer under the regime for a longer period of time. In South Korea, it split the population into two political different ideological factions. 1:05:50 QUESTION: How did pro-North students in South Korea react when confronted with stories about North Korean political prison camps? 1:08:56 QUESTION: If the regime were to fall, would China turn its back on North Korea or turn it into a province? 1:13:52 QUESTION: Is the current power transition happening smoothly, or behind the scenes is it less smooth? The transition of power is different in Kim Jong Un's case. Kim Jong Il fought for power while his son Kim Jong Un inherited it. 1:21:09 QUESTION: Considering the lack of trust between North Korea and Western nations, how do you see North Korea being brought back to the negotiating table? 1:25:13 QUESTION: Do you believe that North Korea's lack of sincerity is due to the Clinton administration's failure to keep their word in regards to the 1994 Agreed Framework? North Korea was never sincere to begin with in regards to their nuclear program. The Clinton administration failed to keep its word but that was not the cause of North Korea's lack of sincerity. 1:29:25 QUESTION: What can South Koreans do to prepare for unification? What can they do to learn more about North Korea? A lot of people in South Korea are ignorant about the conditions in the North. In North Korea, however, a lot of people are exposed to South Korean culture through DVDs that portray South Korean life. 1:34:55 QUESTION: Does China have a contingency plan in case of a North Korean collapse? If North Korea does collapse, would it be feasible for China to fill the power vacuum? What would happen if China reached the 38th parallel? Chinese military intervention or takeover is not likely because China is still focusing on its own development. 1:38:25 QUESTION: After you escaped North Korea, what was the hardest thing to learn or relearn? The difficulties that I had to adapt to were the cultural gap and the abundance of English in South Korea.

• published: 25 Jul 2013
• views: 2238