A letter from Simon Park in Korea
March 2012 - North Korea Report #8
Visits to Monuments and Historical Sites
During our short stay we visited many historical sites and recent monuments built since 1950s. All the sites are designed to emphasize the main theme of the Kim regime, which I will share with you all at the end of this note. Anyone arriving in Pyongyang cannot avoid the sights of ubiquitous towers, gates and plazas in grand scale. Every monument is to demonstrate the superiority of their society and the infallible wisdom of the leaders, namely Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. Allow me to share a few with you.
A mandatory stop for every visitor to Pyongyang is the Juche Tower. This tower is built to commemorate the work of Kim Il Sung and to remember him eternally. This white granite tower is 150 meters tall and topped with a 20-meter high torch, and the guides take pains to point out that this is the tallest stone tower in the world. The tower is flanked with statues and fountains as well as the Daedong River. One of the statues is the ruling Labor Party (Rodong-dang) symbol. Unlike the communist party symbols of China and Soviet blocs, the North Korean symbol has a calligraphy brush standing in between the hammer and sickle. The guide pointed out that Kim Il Sung did not consider the intelligentsia as enemies of the people but were those to lead the construction of a strong motherland. They point to the Great People’s Library across the Daedong River as proof of the respect for knowledge the Great Leader had. They add that Kim Il Sung rejected many site recommendations for the library and instructed that the library must be located in the heart of great buildings commemorating the revolution, which shows how much the Great Leader valued knowledge, they add. The Arch of Triumph to commemorate Kim Il Sung’s triumphant return in 1945 was officially dedicated at the April 1982 celebration of his 70th birthday. The guides never forget to mention that this gate is taller than the one in Paris.
We traveled a good distance one day to Nampo on the west coast and at the estuary of the Daedong River. There we visited the five-mile-long dyke with several locks, each capable of handling ships of 2,000 tons to 50,000 tons. They pointed out that this civil engineering feat was completed in 1985 and they built it in only five years. Just another proof that a great leadership with eager followers can accomplish great things for the motherland!!
We visited several historical sites, mostly tombs of kings of ancient dynasties. The tombs we visited are those of Dangun (a mythical figure who founded the ancient Korean kingdom), King Dongmyung (founder of Koguryoh), Wang-gun (first king of Koryuh) and King Gongmin (the last king of Koryuh).
Dangun’s tomb was particularly interesting to us since we learned during our school days that Dangun was born between a bear and a women and this superhuman being founded the ancient kingdom (Ko-chosun). North Koreans claim, however, that an archeological dig and subsequent testing proved that Dangun was born 5,011 years ago (as of 1993), and Kim Il Sung ordered his tomb rebuilt in a scale befitting his historical importance. Thus they built this massive white granite edifice in only eight months, on a hill 30 miles to the northwest of the city center.
Then 16 miles to the northeast of Pyongyang we find the tomb of King Dongmyung, who started the Kokuryeo sometime after the demise of Ko-chosun. NK claims that Kokuryeo is the rightful successor to Ko-chosun, and this site was rebuilt in 1993.
History tells us that the Shilla kingdom from the south unified the Korean peninsula but is ignored by the NK authorities. We are told the legitimate heir to Kokuryeo is the kingdom of Koryeo, founded by Wangun around 900 AD. His tomb was moved to Kaesung and was rebuilt in 1995.
Koryeo established its capital in the city of Kaeseong further to the south and was toppled by the coup instigated by Lee Sung-gye about 600 years ago. Then several hundred years of chaos and invasions by foreign forces devastated the country until, as the story goes, Kim Il Sung ended the Japanese occupation in 1945.
You may have noticed that many of these sites were restored or rebuilt during the 1990s while the country was suffering from economic failures and South Korea was making remarkable progress in the world markets. I suspect that the regime felt a need to shore up their claim to leadership, not only for NK but also for the entire Korean peninsula, especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s and they could not rely on the Soviet support. I do not have any scholarly proof of this, just my suspicion.
They built up historical sites around Pyongyang as the authentic lineage of Korean people, which also connects to the "Kim dynasty." That is one reason why each of the sites contains some signage crediting Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il for bringing the site to proper recognition and physical improvements. For those of you without knowledge or interest in Korean history it may be of little interest, but it helped us to understand why the North Korean people hold the Kims as not only their political but also their spiritual leaders, appointed for them by heavenly authority.
We came away with a feeling that the entire North Korean society is like a religious sect completely sold on the manufactured story of their leader being the promised messiah. They are unable and perhaps unwilling to examine the story line regardless of harsh realities; they have no other alternative to believing that the next in line would be the true one—that is Kim Jong Un for now.
Simon Park
The 2012 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 196
Blog
Write to Simon Park
Write to Haejung Park
Give to Simon and Haejung Park's sending and support
