I can't believe I missed this. My local newspaper yesterday had a more than
six hour long internet meeting with a (the?) top North-Korean representative to the EU-area, Jean-Baptiste Kim, who represents the DPRK Departments of Education and Tourism, as well as the Communist Party, in that same area. He also heads
The Voice of Korea, the official DPRK mouthpiece in the outside world.
Quoting the newspaper,
Bergens Tidende (translated):
Jean-Baptiste Kim is originally from South Korea, but started working for the arch enemy in the North after meeting a North-Korean official in Paris. "In the beginning I was scared of him, but after a while we started trusting each other. I became more and more involved, and I presently work full time for the DPRK government," he says.
This has lead to Kim being unwanted in his homeland, and he has lost contact with his family. Says Kim, "They think I've gone mad. I can never return to South Korea."
The six hour session, which included very informative, correct and polite responses as well as shouting back at some critics, ended only when Kim sent an sms to the BT: ""I need to quit discussion. It is endless. Too many. Thank you." I was also surprised at how amazingly frank many of the answers were.
Again, can't believe I missed this opportunity, but just reading the responses is extremely interesting. Check out the photo as well. This whole conflict has so many weird elements, it never ceases to amaze me.
Some answers:
It is all up to you to belive or not to believe. But you will know when a war breaks out between DPRK and USA. I dare to say that our nukes will hit both US west coast and east coast. We are not Iraqi,,,,,,,,.We don't joke about ourselves and we prepared to be nuke armed for last 55 years
[...]
We have never attacked others for last 5,000 years. But USA did for last some hundred years (ha ha). This is the reason why we are nuke armed to defend ourselves, not to attack others.
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We are continuously improving living conditions but limted in capacity because every commercial trade, industrial development, economical investment is all blocked by USA, the big brother of the world.
[...]
In the western view of point or capitalist view of point, material life is the only life. When there is other side on coins that you will often see spiritual life in Asia. Your material life is not the only hapiness of the life. We do have our own hapiness in the country and we do enjoy our life in lackness of supply because we know that we are doing our best to make things better. We have had a revolution 50 years ago and evolution is currently taking place since 2000. There will be once more revolutional even which is the re-unification of North and South Korea. I don't just care what kind of material life you do have in Norway. It is your problem. On the other and, We do have our spiritual life in our land and is our problem.
[...]
You dont know what was really going on between DPRK and USA. We already made that kind of statements more than hundred times since 1950 but USA did not respect. Please say fiorst to USA, forget nukes to threat us, then we will forget nukes to threat USA. We are working for peace, for example to establish re-unification programs between North and South Koreas since 2000, and this re-unification program was proposed in 1965 by Kim Il Sung and South Korea aceepted 35 years later !!!!!! We know that nukes are [not] the solution but we need it as long as USA threat us with thier own nukes heading to the DPRK and it was like that since 1955. Do you know Korean history ? You need to study first then we talk.
[...]
[Q:] I would like to visit North Korea
If i go and visit your country. Please give me a tip what to see and do.
[A:] Svar: You can see polution free natures, wild natures, amazing mountains and rivers, so much freidnly and kind local people, good Korean BBQ, 5,000 years history, Buddhism, socilist monuments, communist revolutions, military tense at borders, you can sail, you can climbe, you can have fun with girls and guys, you can learn a different culture, you can learn a different view of point, you can discover a diffenrent world.
[...]
[Q:] Are the NK people allowed to protest?
Do North Korea have a free press? Can people dissagree against the nucklear program or go in the streets with banners and paroles against your goverment?
[A:] To be honest, my answer is NO. We have only 20 million populations and are all soldiers there in different services and levels. It is small but very collective country. Have you ever seen soldiers protest in any country ?
[...]
[Q:] Is sex allowed before marriage in NK? Can you marry someone in NK and take them to another country ?
[A]: Having SEX is your private life in North Korea. Who cares when you have sex with somebody ? It is the same in north Korea as long as you do not have sex at public places. Nobody interferes into your private life in common sense. You can marry whoever you want and it is your private life again. You can take them out of country when the concerned ministry allows you.
[...]
[Q:]I Norway, the house scene is back in the spotlight after several years in the shady underground. What kind of music do the young North Koreans listen to today? And what do you think about the Seoul `88 Olympics anthem "Hand In Hand"?
[A:] We listen those British, French, Russian, South Korea, North Korean songs. Celine Dion, Elton John, Eric Clapton, U2, etc,,, are all popular among people. Hand is Hand is not known in DPRK because in 1988, we did not allow to hear foreign songs.
[...]
[Q:]Hello. Is Heavy Metal ( a harder form of music ) allowed in North Korea? Would it be possible for a norwegian metal-band to visit PyongYang and play a concert there? Any rules one should know about? [Do] North-Korean teenagers like metal? Is anti-religious music concidered illegal in N-K? Hope you will answer my questions! Stay Metal!
[A:] British, French, Russian, South Korean, even US songs are very popular in DPRK. But are still less popular comparing to our own traditional songs which is very normal. You an visit DPRK and have a concenrt there as long as the songs do not harm our cultures, traditions, security, and history. I can arrange if you want.
[...]
[Q:]Hello MR. Kim How do you think it would be possible to bring North-Korea out off the international isolation the country is in now? And how is it possible to cool the tension created in the last years on the Korean peninsula?
[A:] We are not isolated. We are forced to be isolated by USA. USA blocked all our commercial trades, industrial developments, economical exchanges, travelling to Europe and America, etc,,,,,, WE ARE JUST FORCED TO BE ISOLATED !!! Can't you see the difference ?? We want to communicate, we want to share, we want to exchange, we want to visit, we want to go and see, we want to sell and buy BUT WE CAN NOT BECAUSE WE ARE BLOCKED BY USA !!!!!!
[...]
[Q:]Why is NK so closed for the world? Why can't people use mobile phones?
[A:] There are about 2,700 South Korean spies working in DPRK and there are about 57 US statellites observing the country, there are USA spying remote robots sailing on DPRK seas about 2,754 times per month, there are about 128 US nukes in South Korea heading to the north, there are about 89 US permanent military bases in South Korea heading to the north, there are about 178 US nuke tactic air fighters aiming the north, there are about 23 US strategic nuke bombers heading to the north, there are about 12 US nuke military training at North Korea seas, are you talikng about mobile phone now which can be used to spying our country ???????
There are so many interesting observations to make here. If total paranoia is a drug, then North Korea is tripping.. Of course, it's probably never been more well-founded.