[imText1]The president of the Center for Free Enterprise, a liberal think tank, Kim Chung Ho transformed himself into a rapper for the day on Saturday to criticize Kim Jong Il and his sympathizers in South Korea.
Kim delivered his message through song on an outdoor stage in front of the headquarters of Korean Exchange Bank in Myeongdong, coming together with hip hop group The Street Poets to form “Dr. Kim and the Poets” and criticize the North Korean regime in a concert entitled “The Gnome Kim Jong Il’s Birthday Parteee.”
He performed stirring renditions of “Sons Just Like their Fathers” and “More Grasshoppers than Ants”, despite occasionally stumbling over lyrics and losing track of the beat.
The lyrics contain references to Chosun Workers’ Party’s extortion from South Korea to purchase nuclear weapons, as well as its own people.
A good example of the lyrics, of which something is slightly lost in translation, is, “When American threatens the North, there is nothing to worry about. Sunshine Policy, Moonlight Policy. Money was given to them to buy their friendship, but they bought nuclear bombs. Do pathetic leftist forces carry a torch for the North, or are they just puppets?”
Kim also took the opportunity to criticize the pro-North Korean groups which claim that North Korea’s threats are the result of the current government’s firm stance toward its northern neighbor.
The concert was part of a program including a Sohaegum recital from defector Park Seong Jin and a performance by the ‘Haram-ggun’ dance troupe, among other displays.
In the past, Kim has participated in candlelight vigils to honor those who died in the Yeonpyeong Island attack and the sinking of the Cheonan, and recently has been active on Facebook trying to drum up awareness of human rights issues in North Korea.
In a short address following the performance, Kim reminded watchers, “Just as the Republic of Korea belongs to its people, so the DPRK is the property of its citizenry.”
