Daily NK sources have reported that Kim Il Sung University, North Korea’s most elite university, is holding “special education courses” for soon-to-be graduates of its “gifted program.”
“The shutdown of schools has already been announced, but lectures for students in the school’s gifted program who will graduate soon are still taking classes,” a North Korean source told Daily NK on Feb. 28. The source noted that all regular classes at Kim Il Sung University and other elite schools have been cancelled, suggesting that the gifted students are enjoying privileges not shared by other students.
North Korea announced that all schools in the country would be closed for a month from Feb. 20.
NO TIME TO STOP
Kim Il Sung University officials are reportedly telling the gifted students that they have to make time for study considering that they are the key to the country’s prosperity.
The officials also pointed out to the students that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has “high expectations” for them, sources told Daily NK.
“The university has put the soon-to-be graduates in the gifted program under the tutelage of famous professors at the school,” one source said. “The hope is that the gifted students all move onto doctorate programs.”
Daily NK reported in December 2019 that Kim Jong Un had handed down an unprecedented order for graduates of Kim Il Sung University to enroll in doctorate programs. The order has been seen as part of the government’s efforts to cultivate the country’s best students into future leaders.
ISOLATION AND DISCRIMINATION
Students in the school’s gifted program are reportedly being thoroughly isolated from those confined to their dormitories. The authorities have essentially quarantined students from areas outside of Pyongyang in their dormitories.
Students from outside of Pyongyang have complained about this situation and are reportedly asking why they are being discriminated against. The school has also forced them to participate in the disinfection of school facilities, which has fanned the flames of ill-feeling toward school authorities.
Three Kim Il Sung University students have reportedly been sent back to their hometowns due to the fears over COVID-19.
“They were sent home because they had preexisting issues with their lungs. They weren’t, at least according to school authorities, suspected of being infected with COVID-19,” the source added.
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