Ask a North Korean: were North Koreans genuinely grieving when Kim Il Sung died?
"It felt like the world was coming to an end"
In-hua Kim January 30, 2020
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Hello there! Welcome all to Ask a North Korean, the feature where you, the NK News readers, ask your questions about all things North Korea and have them answered by our very own North Korean writers.
Today’s question is about whether North Koreans were genuinely as devastated as they appeared to be upon hearing the news of the death of Kim Il Sung.
Outside observers often find it difficult to believe that the crowds of wailing North Koreans shown on state TV weren’t pressured by the authorities to show such dramatic displays of grief.
However, as In-hua Kim — a defector now living in South Korea and a critic of the present-day regime — explains below, the vast majority of North Koreans sincerely respected the Great Leader and truly were distraught when he passed away.
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North Korea’s first leader Kim Il Sung was worshipped during his lifetime and continues to be worshipped today | Photo: Rodong Sinmun
The day was July 8, 1994.
My husband was serving at the advisors’ training school of the 10th area command of the now-disbanded sixth corps in Chundong-dong, Hyesan city. It was his rest day, so I was staying at my parents’ place near the army base to greet him.
I also took the opportunity to visit one of my sisters who was living across the river. Thanks to her husband, who had worked as a forest worker in the Soviet Union, she had a color television in her home. Most people back then only had black-and-white TVs.
Wanting to check out the flashy color TV, I pushed the power button. What I saw was Kim Il Sung’s portrait, a black frame on each side, and a wailing voice announcing his death.
Jumping to my feet, I ran over to my mother’s place. “Mom!” I yelled, “The Great Leader had passed away!”
She held me as I sobbed. She was startled as well. “What are you talking about?!” she asked me in disbelief.
“Turn on the TV, it’s on the news.”
She switched on the TV, hands shaking. The announcer was still delivering the same news, but in a hoarse voice from crying too much.
“How in the world could this happen…” my mother said. She began wailing as well.
A Democratic People’s Republic of Korea without Kim Il Sung was unthinkable
It felt like the world was coming to an end.
Instead of meeting my husband that day, I headed to the Pochonbo Memorial Monument with my younger sister and daughter to pay our respects and returned home. Everyone was genuinely mourning and offering their condolences to one another.
My husband had to work a special shift on that day, and was unable to return home until after the end of the mourning period.
Other military family members and I went from one hill to another gathering flowers to use at the condolatory events. I was doing this tirelessly during this time.
We picked each flower with great care and made a huge bouquet and placed it before his statue. Everyone was desperately praying for his return.
To us, he was a peerless patriot and the Sun of the people who regained a lost nation from Japan, who defeated the U.S. in the Fatherland Liberation War (what North Koreans call the Korean War), and who raised that poor country to become the richest in the world.
A Democratic People’s Republic of Korea without Kim Il Sung was unthinkable, and so without him the Korean people felt that they no longer had any purpose in life. The whole nation was literally filled with wailing until the end of the mourning ceremony.
A woman in Bakchon county was so immersed while picking flowers for the deceased Leader that she got bitten by a snake and died. There were even those who died from heart attack due to the shock of the Leader’s death.
North Koreans were devastated by the news of the death of Kim Il Sung (left), but no so much by the news of the death of Kim Jong Il (right) | Photo: NK News
Kim Jong Il succeeded his father as leader of North Korea. Weary and difficult times began under his reign.
Longing for Kim Il Sung, people cautiously vented their grievances, but in the face of the famine and mass starvation, people began blaming Kim Jong Il outright.
The number of defectors increased in the process. Poverty and starvation that began with the death of Kim Il Sung continued until Kim Jong Il’s death in 2011.
Amid such hardships, people breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the news of the Dear Leader’s death. They still attended the mourning ceremonies though, but this time faking their tears.
Seeing such a stark contrast between the two deaths, the organizers of these ceremonies were probably nervous. Factory unit leaders were summoned and ordered to instruct the people to participate faithfully and weep aloud.
Afterward though, people murmured in hushed voices, “What’s so sad about him dying when all he did was starve people and make missiles? I’m glad he’s gone!”
Being heard saying such things in public would guarantee a place in front of a firing squad though, so no one spoke up in public.
The crackdown was more severe than before. Those found at a drinking party during Kim Il Sung’s mourning period were expelled from the Party and dismissed from their positions.
This time, those caught drinking were shot to death, and those who did not fully attend the mourning were expelled from the Party and relegated to farmwork.
To make matters worse, Kim Jong Il died in late December, the coldest time of year, so observing all these rituals was painful for everyone.
My youngest daughter and other children were called up to guard a painting of the deceased leaders all night. It was a measure pre-emptively taken against any attempts of anti-state terrorism and vandalism on the paintings and statues of the Kims.
It was probably also a manifestation of Kim Jong Un’s uneasiness during this time.
Everyone was relieved when all these events came to an end. However, such relief disappeared with the announcement of a forthcoming investigation. A large-scale overhaul was to take place in each factory, school and household to investigate who attended how many condolatory events and donated how much for the two leaders’ deaths.
Although many years later I’m now living in comfort in South Korea, I can still hear the wailing of the villagers.
Translated by Jihye Park
Edited by James Fretwell
DEFECTOR ISSUES
HISTORY
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