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In the writing Hwang Jang Yop (commissioner of the North Korean Democratization Alliance), which he contributed to the Free North Korea Broadcasting specially for the 60th birthday of the Korean liberation, emphasized that North Korean democratization must be achieved by our own selves.
The following is the full text of his writing.
Upon the 60th birthday of our nation’s liberation, the alliance of North Korean defectors pray for the happiness of South and North Koreans and Koreans abroad. It is vividly remembered how we shouted for the independence of Korea like yesterday but sixty years passed by and now we are celebrating “Hwan-gap.” (special term for sixtieth birthday)
(1) It is the utmost shame of our people to not have achieved the national unification until the 60th birthday of national liberation.
Sixty years passed since the liberation but we have still no achieved the historical duty of Minjok (one brethren, homogeneous people, nationals of one blood) unification. Our proud people have achieved the “miracle of Han River” out of the ruins of the war and established prosperous and democratic Republic of Korea. However, our people have not been able to end the tragedy of the Minjok division. We are unable to function as a complete Minjok. We are sorry to our ancestors and ashamed to face the next generations.
(2) Minjok’s division, suffering and misery
Althougth North and South were liberated on the same at the same time, their difference is like comparing heaven and hell. If North Korea is a living hell dominated by poverty, hunger, and human rights violations, South Korea is a democratic and happy paradise on earth. This is a living evidence of the history that shows the fundamental difference between a dictatorship and democracy.
The Northern brethren have become fossils of inhumane life for having suffered hunger and no-rights for so long that they cannot even realize that the Suryeong dictatorship is the reason for their sufferings. In contrast, since the South Korean people started to enjoy too much happiness in a rapid speed, they do not realize that those are privileges of democracy but only think them as what they were born with.
As a result, not in the living hell under dictatorship but in South Korea, is a paradise on earth in which democratic bliss is blooming, where voice for pro-North Korea and anti-American resonates. Although it is an unimaginable reality, it is true. This casts a ominous shadow on the future of our Minjok who welcomes the 60th birthday of the national liberation. Have we forgotten the disdain and contemptuous treatment our Minjok received under the Japanese colonization already? Have we completely forgotten the burning hell caused by the merciless use of force for the class strife during the Korean War?
The suffering and pain the Northern brethren lives through today under the dictatorship is an historically unprecedented tragedy. When have millions of people died of hunger? During the Japanese colonial period? No. During the rule of Kim Il Sung? NO.
Kim Il Sung was a Stalinist dictator. Kim Il Sung added feudalist patriarchic totalitarianism to Stalinism and Kim Jong Il created Suryeong absolutism out of that. It is Kim Jong Il who completely destroyed the North Korean economy and opposes to the North Korean liberalization and reformation by all means. The death of millions between 1995 and 1998 is entirely and directly Kim Jong Il’s fault.
Kim Jong Il’s Suryeong absolutism is also an absolute Suryeong egotism. How could such a absolute egotist who does not care about millions dying under his control seriously think about destiny of the Minjok and the lives of the brethren in South Korea? How could we call an absolute egotist who only think about his absolute control and in result have destroyed the entire North Korean economy and forced people into misery, the leader representing the people of North Korea?
How should we understand the people who chose to visit such a person and promise him reconciliation and Minjok unification plan, hand him over a immense fortune in foreign cash, and call him a the great fighter for peace and democracy and a hero?
The kind of destitution North Korean brethren now goes through is beyond what we have suffered under the Japanese rule, and the 23 million North Koreans are more than the 20 million Koreans living under the Japanese colonial period. If we are to call those people who have cooperated with Japanese as pro-Japanese group and traitors of the Minjok, then how should we call those turning back from the destitution of the North Korean people but instead cooperating with the Kim Jong Il dictatorship and providing a tremendous amount of aid?
Weeping once could erase separation by death, but separation between living people causes a longing pain. We are celebrating the sixtieth birthday of our nation’s living separation. All of us must have Minjok conscience and be upfront in the struggle for North Korean democratization to revive the life of our Minjok that have lived the same destiny for thousands of years.
(3) Master of our Minjok’s destiny is ourselves
There are still people who rely on others, not committing themselves but consider their surroundings as nothing to do with them but only provide lip service.
Why was it that we became colonized by another country? It was due to the leaders’ “worship of the powerful” and decision to rely on powerful nations rather than believing in the nation and strengthening the nationals.
Why was is that we could not prevent the separation of our Minjok? It was because we were unable to achieve national liberation by ourselves.
Only the people who have strength and boldness to cultivate their own destiny by themselves have the right to be the master of their destination. It is not too late. We have to strengthen our might and rely on our own power.
Republic is our most precious and greatest democratic achievement. Democracy is our Minjok’s life and empowerment of democracy in Republic of Korea is the definite warrant for all the victory of our Minjok. Without protecting and strengthening South Korea’s democracy, we cannot even think about the Korean unification. Today in which we are facing dangerous challenges to the democracy of Korea, the only right path our Minjok can take it putting all our efforts to protect and strengthening the democracy in the Republic of Korea.
Republic of Korea is the most precious and the greatest achievement of our Minjok.
What are the important factors to strengthen Republic of Korea in a democracy way?
① It is to provide a clear goal for economic development and focus the people’s interest and efforts to the economic development.
Economic development is the basic factor for the national development and popular happiness. There must be a clear goal set to increase GNP per capita from $10,000 to 20,000 and 30,000, and focus people’s efforts to develop businesses that will take the nation to the level of developed nations. Politicians must be evaluated not by how well they “self admire” themselves, but how much they contributed to the national economic development by an objective means to evaluate politics.
② By strengthening nationalistic democracy ideology education, we must guide the entire population especially the new generations to possess a firm belief in the justice and truth about the democracy ideology.
This will prevent the evil ideological intervention of the Suryeong dictator group and is the requirement to continuously develop the superiority of the democratic regime in South Korea.
③ Strengthen Legal Orders and the Rule of Law
The fundamental superiority of a democratic society is to maintain the nation and the society in a just and fair manner according to law democratically established. The dictatorship in the North is planning to weaken the rule of law in South Korea in order to secure room to freely conduct their tricks to bring collapse of the South Korean society, while some of the politicians, in order to realize their counter-principle political objectives, are wearing a mask of democracy but pursuing intrigues to deceive the people and weaken the rule of law.
④ It is to strengthen the ROK-US alliance, that is based on democracy, in every possible, and to strengthen the ROK-US-Japan cooperative relationship.
”Minjok Cooperation” argued by the North Korean dictatorship one of the pillars to invade South Korea by breaking the ROK-US-Japan alliance.
⑤ It is to carry out a consistent North Korean democratization policy based on democratic principles (equality and principles) and methods.
In the policies towards North Korea, to argue that there is something better than democratic principles is nothing more than a trick to deceive the people.
We, the North Korean defectors must stand on the side to advocate and strengthen democracy of Republic of Korea. The North Korean defectors must unite to rescue the brethren in the North, thus oppose to the dictatorship and devote to democratize North Korea. The North Korean defectors must unite with the protectors of democracy in South Korea and abroad and strengthen the alliance with the international democracy organizations.
Just like Japan that had asserted invincibility, the collapse of the North Korean dictatorship deifying the Suryeong and democratization of North Korea is fateful.
