North Korea's Secret Stories

North Korea’s Secret Stories is a series written by Daily NK journalist Kim Jeong Hun that explores underreported areas of North Korean society, highlighting stories that the North Korean government does not want the world to know.

university, school, education, probe

Kim Il Sung University graduates ordered into doctoral programs

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un issued an order for the top students in next year’s cohort of graduates from Kim Il Sung University...
defense university

Why did N. Korea relocate its National Defense University?

This article is part of a series written by Daily NK journalist Kim Jeong Hyun entitled "North Korea's Secret Stories."  In the early 2000s, students...
lecture, whistleblower, russia, overseas labor, overseas workers

Refused asylum to S. Korea, N. Korean defector dies on the streets of Russia

As the world lived in fear of COVID-19 in the year 2020, a North Korean (identified here as "A") managed to escape from a...

Three soldiers caught mimicking S. Korean dance moves sent to political prison camp

Three soldiers with a unit under the Korean People's Army Air and Anti Air Force Command were arrested during a tour of Mount Paekdu...

The secret underground tunnel for gifts at the International Friendship Exhibition

The year was 1994. North Korea had begun its “Arduous March” following the collapse of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc. Kim Jong Il, who was...
architecture

MPARI: North Korea’s elite architectural design institute

This article is part of a series written by Daily NK journalist Kim Jeong Hun entitled “North Korea’s Secret Stories.”  In an era where even...
power water

National defense university students given new winter uniforms

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un recently issued an internal mandate to resupply the Kim Jong Un National Defense University with high quality winter...
infections, narcotics

The realities of N. Korea’s “free medical system” laid bare

This article is part of a series written by Daily NK journalist Kim Jeong Hun entitled “North Korea’s Secret Stories.”  It was the evening of...
trade, north korea, dprk, china

Former N. Korean defector hunter reflects on her experiences

In September 2018, a woman in her late 30s lay on her side in a safe house of the North Hamgyong Province state security...

Do you know the punishment for smuggling a Bible into North Korea?

This article is part of a series written by Daily NK journalist Kim Jeong Hun entitled “North Korea’s Secret Stories.”  In the summer of 2021,...

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