20100527

Life under the Great Leader


A BBC team from the Newsnight programme were recently invited to North Korea for the celebrations marking the birthday of Kim Il-sung, the founder of the country. Throughout the stay they were accompanied by some government minders. Here are the Dos and Don'ts regarding their activities in the country:

Dos
  • Film model farms, model villages, model schools, model homes...
  • Film statues of Kim Il-sung t and portraits of Kim Jong-il


  • Don'ts
  • Leave the hotel without the government minders
  • Use mobile phones - they are confiscated
  • Use the Internet - there is no access
  • Film anything off the official programme
  • Speak to anyone unscripted

  • And how about the Korean people? Look at the following lists:

    What they have access to
  • TV broadcasts of the two leaders and pictures celebrating the country's army, model farms, model villages


  • What they don't have access to
  • Any other kinds of news item or documentary about their country and the rest of the world
  • The Internet


  • What they know
  • Kim Il-sung is the Great Leader, Kim Jong-il is the Dear Leader, and Stalin and Mao Zedong are the other admirable leaders


  • What they don't know
  • Who Nelson Mandela is
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