It’s time for
“Direct Analysis” where we take a look at a hot topic in the news. The North Korean
authorities say that they are going to send a cheering squad to the Incheon
Asian Games this September. It will have been nine years since North Korea last
sent a cheering squad to the south, the most recent being 2005. Today we are
going to examine every angle of North Korea’s cheering squad with reporter Kim
Min Soo.
– Yesterday, the North
Korean authorities launched around 100 projectiles, heightening tensions all
around. However, they are continuing to prepare for participation in the
Incheon Asian Games, is that right?
Kim Min Soo: Yes.
Recently, the North Korean authorities launched short-range missiles and
projectiles on a number of occasions, provoking the South once again. However,
they have not yet said that they will not participate in the Incheon Asian
Games. South Korea, while preparing for further provocations, is
treating humanitarian assistance and such as entirely
separate. In fact, if it weren’t for the provocation from the North, there
would be no question of whether North Korea was going to participate in the Asian Games or not.
– North Korea agreed
yesterday that North and South Korea will hold working-level contact on July 17th at Panmunjom. Will the matter of scale be decided there as well?
Kim Min Soo: Yes. [At
previous talks] on July 10th, North Korea expressed the wish
to send 70 men and 80 women, a total of 150 people, to participate in a total
of 14 events including swimming, soccer, and archery. Kim Young Soo, chairman
of the organizing committee for the Incheon Asian Games, has said that North
Korea unofficially wants to send more than 150 people, however. This will be
the topic of discussion on the 17th, when working-level contact
between North and South are established. We also expect that the scale of the
cheering squad, means of transportation, lodging, and how the expenses are to
be managed will also be discussed.
– Right now, Koreans
are really interested in what some are calling the “Cheering Squad of Beauties.” There are
rumors that the selection process for the cheering squad is already
in progress. How big is the scale this time?
Kim Min Soo: Yes,
well, the North Korean authorities revealed their intention to send the squad
on July 7th. According to an inside source, the selection process is
going on in Pyongyang as we speak. I think we can estimate the size of the
cheering squad this time by looking back on the last few times. North Korea
sent 288 people to the 2002 Busan Asian Games, 303 people to the 2003 Daegu
Summer World University Games, and 124 people to the 2005 Asian Athletics
Championship. North Korea’s Chosun Central Broadcast reported, “A large cheering
squad will be sent”. It’s safe to assume then, that a big cheering squad will come.
– North Korea’s
cheering squad has become a hot topic in South Korea because of their beauty.
How are they selected?
Kim Min Soo: The
selection for the cheering squad sent in 2002 to the Busan Asian Games was
organized by the executive management of the Organization and Guidance
Department under the Central Committee. The Kim Il Sung Socialist Youth League,
also under the Central Committee, handled recruitment. Candidates had to be
from Pyongyang, and were selected from a pool of women in their twenties from
various art institutions including Geumseong Hakwon and Pyongyang University of Music and Dance.
Being selected for the
cheering squad is no simple feat. Round one of the selection involves a physical
examination. The candidate’s height must be more than 160 cm, and her face and
body are examined. Even if she passes this round, her family relations must be
sound in order for her to be picked. North Korea’s security agency examines
each candidate’s family. If she has any former criminal, exiled fugitive, or
defector in her immediate or extended family, she will be disqualified.
– Goodness, those
are some stringent conditions. Is coming to Korea as part of a cheering squad a
popular idea amongst the twenty-something ladies of North Korea?
Kim Min Soo: Very
popular. Going abroad is considered a privilege in North Korea, and it’s quite
difficult to do. Even the competition to become a server at a Chinese or other overseas
restaurant is fierce. Legally, going to South Korea is very difficult indeed.
The North Korean people are curious about how people of their race are living
in the South, and recently, with the popularity of South Korean media, the
desire to go to Korea has intensified.
Because of this, they
say that being selected for the cheering squad is as difficult as plucking
stars from the sky. They say that even if a candidate’s beauty is up to
standard and there are no criminals in her family, if she does not have
connections in the executive management of the Organization and Guidance
Department, there is no guarantee that she will be selected. And even then,
it’s difficult. Parents with plenty of money, power, and connections, who know
all the right people to bribe, are doing all they can to get their children
selected.
– After the
selection process, do they receive any particular training? I’ve heard that
when separated families are reunited, North Korea instructs its citizens on how
to behave. Is there anything like that for the cheering squad?
Kim Min Soo: According
to the North Korean authorities’ propaganda, South Korea is the enemy. Because
of this, they are instructed to be careful of everything, from the most trivial
movement to each word they say. In the past, selected members of the cheering
squad went through two months of training in the Changgwangsan Hotel in Pyongyang,
involving instruction on how they should act and speak in South Korea, and the
duties they must uphold. There will be a similar training period this time
as well. Also, when they go back to North Korea, they are not allowed to reveal
anything they’ve seen or heard in South Korea. There will be efforts to ensure
that there is no ideological unrest upon the cheering squad’s return.
– The North Korean
cheerleaders always seem to have the same clothes and props. Does each
cheerleader prepare all of this themselves?
Kim Min Soo: The
cheering squad’s underwear, uniform, and bags, are specially produced. The
shoes and sneakers are ordered from and produced at a shoe factory in the
Pyongcheon district of Pyeongyang. They are provided to the cheerleaders 15
days before leaving for the games.
– I heard that
even if you do get picked to be part of the cheering squad, unfortunate things
can still happen. Wasn’t there a cheerleader from a past squad who was punished
for something?
Kim Min Soo: Yes.
First of all, when you go back to North Korea from South Korea, you cannot say
anything about what you’ve seen or heard. This is a strict rule because news of
South Korea could incite certain aspirations, you know. But, honestly, women in
their twenties love to talk. That’s why there was news of an ex-cheerleader
being sent to a re-education camp. It was because she talked about her
experiences in South Korea.
I see. These days,
many Chinese tourists can easily visit South Korea. I hope that one day soon,
North Koreans will be able to freely visit the South as well. Thank you for
sharing your words with us today, Kim Min Soo.
