Impossible Until It Is Inevitable

If anyone knows who said, “revolution is impossible until it is inevitable,” tell me. I vaguely recall that it was a one of the bloody-minded litter of Bolshevists, but I’m tired of googling for it. In any event, it’s true. Even after all the astonishing events of Europe in 1989, even after we had to catch our breath when the Berlin Wall, none of us expected that seismic shift as a crowd in Bucharest, Romania suddenly broke its silence and began to jeer and curse at Nicolae Ceaucescu. Romania had been the most oppressed country in the Warsaw Pact. Everyone expected Ceaucescu to hold on. Months later, we were astonished again when the Albanians overthrew their government. Maoist, Stalinist Albania was too harsh for the Warsaw Pact. It was the only European country whose police state rivalled that in North Korea. Time after time, the impossible became inevitable because the people had lost their faith and their fear, and because the West helped them find ways to express that.

It is unknowable to what extent North Korea is experiencing the same loss of faith and fear, but if this report from NKGulag is accurate, the magic is gone:

The sustenance of Kim Jong Il regime even after the death of three million hungry people at the end of 1990’s is because of its absolute idolization and isolation from the outside world. In addition to this, the irreversible supplies from South Korea had revitalized the regime that was almost to a collapse. However, the North Korea’s status is rapidly changing since 2004. The distribution system, which was used to control the people, broke down, and capitalism is becoming widely adopted by the system. The cause is the regime that could not handle responsibility of its people’s basic living conditions.

Kim Jong Il regime’s power to control its people is becoming lose from the very bottom. One of the party members says that the idolization strategy is not working anymore. Especially, more people now listen to the radio broadcast in longing for the outside world. There is a huge information rush about the foreign video tapes, and it is to an uncontrollable level.

North Korea had proposed an economic reform project in July 1, 2003, but with lack of support from outside had led it to a failure. It had rather increased the gap between rich and poor by bringing benefits to powered people in certain social classes. Complaints to the high social ranking people from the rest are increasing rapidly.

The changing consciousness of North Korean people towards Kim Jong Il regime has become extreme. Before the food crisis, criticizing about Kim Jong Il regime was unthinkable. However, during the food crisis, flow of information from outside world had influenced people’s thoughts and attitudes about the regime. People even criticize Kim Jong Il at home or when gathered for a drink with close friends. They say without hesitation in their casual conversation: “because of Kim Jong Il, people are dying of hunger and the economy is breaking apart,” “idolization is for Kim Jong Il’s dictatorship only,” “nothing from the government is trust worthy,” “the only way for North Korea to survive is Kim Jong Il’s death.” This shows how people have become unrespectable to their regime, and this also shows the serious break down of the system by the very bottom level of society.

According to the inside report, such mind change is spreading in the region by the Chinese boarder, mainly in Musan, Hoeryong, and Hyesan regions. This is because there is greater chance for people to be exposed to the outside world by frequent visit with relatives, Korean-Chinese, and smugglers.

It’s always hard to know exactly how people feel when they’re isolated and terrorized, but this report has some objective confirmation. Why, after all, would 300,000 loyal and happy citizens leave their families, homes, and possessions, and risk their lives to live as fugitives in China? That number represents about 1.5 of the North Korean population. If the North Koreans are discontented, then, the question is how to give the North Koreans the tools to resist and the confidence to take them up.