Last week, a new Frontline documentary called Secret State of North Korea premiered on Netflix. The film exposes the concealed world of the North Korean people, relying on undercover footage from inside the country as well as interviews with defectors who are working to undermine the regime’s dominance. One of the most beautiful and surprising elements of this documentary is the willingness of many North Koreans to risk their lives by revealing the outrageous untruths of government propaganda while also exposing the people to popular culture from the outside world.
You should see the documentary as soon as your next Netflix binge allows, but in the mean time here are some takeaways I was impressed by:
5 Things North Koreans are doing to get under the government’s skin:
1. Secretly filming and exporting footage the government doesn’t want people to see
We know that the images of prosperity and wellbeing that North Korea circulates throughout the country and the world are a load of BS. But we are rarely able to see the extent of the suffering that takes place on the inside. The documentary features heartbreaking images of young orphan children freezing and starving on the street juxtaposed with ridiculous government footage of chubby kids on a merry-go-round. And then there’s the scene that looks like it’s taken right out of The Interview. In a department store that is regularly broadcast throughout the country as a symbol of pride and prosperity, the undercover filmer is told flatly that absolutely nothing there is for sale.
2. Watching foreign tv shows and films
Covert information is not only leaving the country, it’s coming in. Anyone caught, or even suspected of, possessing foreign content is punished severely. Which in this case means thrown in a prison camp or even tortured. The regime has even been known to send security forces door to door searching for illicit materials. And yet the demand for foreign films and television keeps growing as technology slowly makes its way into the country. According to the documentary, smugglers have been successfully penetrating the borders with bags full of laptops, radios, DVDs, and USB sticks loaded with media that citizens can purchase illegally at local markets. The curiosity for the outside world is a bold show of defiance, exposing fault lines in Kim Jong Un’s regime. Throughout the documentary, this trend is seen as the most powerful tool for change and the kindling for a social revolution. Who knows, it could be Skyfall and Japanese soap operas that start the fire.
3. Making it rain cash
Despite the fact that America is the birthplace of the devil - or something along those lines - US currency is accepted in North Korea. Defectors in China regularly gather to fill balloons with cash that they then send over the border. The US dollars that rain down on the impoverished countryside are enough to feed an entire family for two days, and is a reminder of the prosperity that exists outside North Korea.
4. Broadcasting a defectors’ talk show into North Korea
Young defectors who have fled to South Korea have come together to produce On My Way to Meet You, a television show that is part current affairs and part beauty pageant (because why not?). It’s illegal to watch in North Korea, but defectors hope that when family and friends see them living so happily in Seoul, it will force them to reflect on conditions within their own country and potentially inspire them to flee as well.
5. Not taking it anymore!
Slowly, but increasingly, North Koreans have been protesting rules they think are unfair, for example a ban on women wearing pants was recently lifted, at least in part because of public unhappiness. Viewers of the documentary will be shocked to see a woman literally pushing back against police trying to bully her for wearing pants or for running an illegal bussing operation. You gotta give it to these women, they definitely have guts and they’re not blindly drinking the kool aid anymore.
The seeds for revolution are being planted in North Korea. But it’s going to take a lot more than a few DVDs to get things really moving in the near future. This is because widespread protest is is almost impossible to organize without getting caught. There’s no organizing mechanisms for dissent. On top of the estimated 50,000 domestic government agents and informers looking for spies and dissidents, there is no access to sites like Twitter or Facebook to organize mass rallies à la the Arab Spring. “If a government is willing to kill as many people as necessary to stay in power,” says Andrei Lankov, a Russian expert on North Korea, “it usually stays in power for a very long time.”
North Korea’s ruling Kim family has been in power for a long time. The changes outlined in this documentary may seem small, but they are significant. Is it possible that these brave defectors and activists are the force that will widen the cracks in North Korea’s regime and bring it crumbling down? Only time will tell, but while we’re waiting to see how it goes go check out this documentary! At very least, we can all take inspiration from these brave individuals bringing positive change to the world. They are defying a ruling regime, what have you done today?
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Alison Shea