korean unification studies

Kenneth Quinones, former US State Department North Korea specialist, has a very interesting piece comparing the ‘freeze’ on North Korean nuclear facilities that the Clinton administration sought and the ‘disablement’ on North Korean nuclear facilities that the Bush administration is seeking. Here is a taste:

In November 1994, I accompanied the first U.S. delegation to visit the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center. As soon as the Agreed Framework had been signed on October 21, 1994, I was directed, as the North Korea Affairs officer, to arrange for a group of American officials and scientists to visit North Korea at the earliest possible time…Once the two sides had agreed upon a general outline of the procedures for the “freeze”, I was put in charge of implementing the agreement. This required that I live and work, together with a small number of American technicians, at the Yongbyon nuclear facility for six months in 1995: January, June, July, August, September and October. This experience enables me to compare the Bush Administration’s “disablement” with the Clinton Administration’s “freeze” of nuclear activities at North Korea’s Yongbyon nuclear facility, located approximately 100 kilometers north of Pyongyang.

The Bush Administration’s efforts during the past seven years thus far have accomplished no more than the Clinton Administration’s eighteen months of negotiations accomplished. The difference is that at the end of the eighteen months, the Clinton Administration had a comprehensive agreement with North Korea to end its nuclear program. The Bush Administration, while to be commended for having finally given up its futile coercive tactics and all or nothing goal, is still striving to forge a negotiated end to North Korea’s nuclear programs.

The article is part of the IFES Policy Forum series and is well worth a read!!!

The draw for the 2010 FIFA World Cup preliminary competition was held in Durban over the weekend. And in an announcement that drew gasps from the crowd, both North and South Korea were drawn to compete against each other in Asia’s Group 3, with Jordan and Turkmenistan. Watching how this plays out could be extremely interesting: Only one of the two Koreas will now be able to proceed to the World Cup finals….  And it has given me pause to think about the role that sport has historically played in inter-Korean relations.

It is often claimed that sport is one of those few areas of human activity that can, and should, transcend politics. In 1988 the North’s boycott of the Seoul Olympics followed lengthy negotiations between the South, the North and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over the North’s desire to co-host the games, which was eventually refused. Unwilling to co-host the limited number of events offered to them by the South and the IOC, the North reverted to Cold War tactics, abandoning its plans to attend the Games. Politics trumps sport.

Gabriel Jonsson, in Towards Korean Reconciliation: Socio-cultural Exchanges and Cooperation provides a comprehensive chronology of notable dates in which politics has not trumped sport.  Has politics enabled sport in these cases? Or have these events taken place despite politics?  Some of these dates, as detailed by Jonsson, include:

• 1958 - North Korea proposes joint Korean team for 1960 Olympics
• 1989 - First inter-Korean football matches played in Pyongyang (October 11), and Seoul (October 23). Jonsoon describes this as the “first real sign of progress” in inter-Korean relations.
• 1991 - (April-May) A unified Korean team participates in the 41st World Table Tennis Championships in Japan, (May) Permission granted for unified Korean youth soccer team. Televised try-out sessions held in Seoul and Pyongyang, (June) A joint Korean team participates in the 6th World Junior Soccer Championships in Portugal
• 1993 - (October) North and South Korea participate in the “Seventh General Meeting of the East Asian Athletic Council” in Pyongyang
• 1994 - (June) Both Koreas participate in the “The Association of East Asian Athletic Meeting in Taiwan.
• 1999 - (August) First North-South workers’ football matches played in Pyongyang, (September) Televised “Unification Basketball Games” played in Pyongyang, (December) “Unification Basketball Games” played in Seoul
• 2000 - (July) North and South Korea play table-tennis in Pyongyang, (September – October) South and North Korea march together under the Unification Flag at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sydney Olympic Games, (October) The sacred fire for South Korea’s National Athletic Games put on at Mt. Keumkang.
• 2002 - (June) The inauguration ceremony and matches from the Soccer World Cup are televised on North Korean TV, (September) “Unification Soccer” Games in Seoul, (Sep – Oct) North Korea participates in Asian Games held in Busan. North and South Korea march together at opening and closing ceremonies.
• 2003 - (February) Both Koreas march together at the Asian Winter Games held in Japan, (October) “Unification Basketball Games” held in North Korea televised on SBS.
• 2004 - (August) Athens Olympics: Both Koreas march together.
• 2006 - (November) North Korea supports South Korea’s bid for 2014 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

This match will be an extremely interesting game to watch. Personally, I hope that any game between the two countries is a closely fought one! What do you think? Is this event consequential for inter-Korean relations? Or not? Interestingly, this is not the first time something like this has happened. In the 2006 Asian Games at Doha, South Korea beat North Korea for a semi-final place. You can see highlights from this game below:

OK… Away from the serious stuff for a while. I once heard that Kim Jong Il was once heard to say that he thought another dynastic succession would make the DPRK the laughing stock of the world… well… it’s too late to stop that now…

Before I go into all of my Japanese tabloid theories on the successor to Kim Jong-Il, I’ll let you guys read it yourself. From Reuters:

TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has named his second eldest son to a major post, making him the top candidate to eventually take over as head of the reclusive state, a Japanese newspaper reported on Saturday.

Kim appointed Kim Jong-chol as deputy chief of a leadership division in the ruling Workers’ Party, the Mainichi Shimbun said, quoting sources close to the North Korean government.

The appointment made him the most likely to succeed his father, the Mainichi said, given that Kim Jong-il once held the same post and his two other sons had no key responsibilities. Jong-chol is believed to be 26.

Kim’s succession is one of the most closely guarded secrets in the world’s only communist dynasty and is a constant subject of speculation for the outside world.

The Mainichi quoted one source as saying Jong-chol was likely to be officially named successor when he reaches 32, the same age as Kim Jong-il was when he publicly emerged as heir to his late father, state founder Kim Il-sung.

Now, I love Japanese tabloids and know that they do actually have some decent sources - at least better than US papers. They are almost obsessed by leadership succession in North Korea and often have quite juicy reports on Kim Jong-Il’s children (or other Korean-looking, arrogant, overweight individuals) partying in Germany, Switzerland and Macau.

Most Japanese tabloid sources favor Kim Jong-Chol as the successor. He’s 26 years old, loves Eric Clapton (watch out for kidnappers Eric), and has lived most of his life in Geneva. Personally, I think this could be problematic. But watch out for some more juicy reports coming out in the near future - after all, this is North Korean prediction season.

I reckon this extract from a Reuters report on the re-establishment of rail links says a lot about what drives South Korean unification policy:

Cargo trains will cross the heavily fortified border dividing North and South Korea every day from next month, restoring a link severed for more than half a century, South Korea’s Unification Ministry said on Thursday.

Seoul has been pushing to re-open the rail link cut by the 1950-1953 Korean War so it could shuttle goods to an industrial park it operates just inside the North where its manufacturing companies have access to cheap labor and land…

South Korea’s next goal is to run its freight and passenger trains through North Korea and into China and Russia and onto Europe.

What used to be a struggle to unify and liberate in Park Chung-Hee’s time is now about access to cheap labor and land.

South Korea abstained from a vote to adopt a draft resolution at the United Nations General Assembly Third Committee, which condemned human rights abuses in North Korea.

A draft resolution entitled Situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (document n0760137.pdf) would have the Assembly express its very serious concern at continuing reports of systematic, widespread and grave violations of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights in this country, including:  torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the situation of refugees and asylum-seekers; severe restrictions on the freedom of thought, conscience, religion, opinion and expression, peaceful assembly and association; limitations imposed on the free movement of every person within the country, as well as on travel abroad; and violations of economic, social and cultural rights that have led to severe malnutrition, widespread health problems and other hardships.  Very serious concern at unresolved questions relating to the abduction of foreigners in the form of enforced disappearance would be reiterated.  The Assembly would express deep concern at the precarious humanitarian situation in this country.  The Government would be strongly urged to fully respect all human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to cooperate with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Attached below is the details of the vote and statements both for and against the draft resolution, from the UN website: [Read more →]