Quotes of the Day:
“No fight for civil liberties ever stays won.”
- Roger Baldwin
“Madness is the result not of uncertainty but certainty.”
- Friedrich Nietzsche
“Republics, one after another . . . have perished from a want of intelligence and virtue in the masses of the people. . . .”
- Horace Mann
1. Deputy Secretary Sherman’s Meeting with Republic of Korea First Vice Foreign Minister Choi
2. Senior S. Korean, U.S. diplomats discuss N. Korea, end-of-war declaration: ministry
3. End-of-war declaration can be 'catalyst' for N. Korea talks: minister
4. FM Chung calls for cooperation among S. Korea, China, Japan to overcome 'differences'
5. N. Korea slams U.S. military drill as a 'nuclear war exercise'
6. North Korea warns of 'catastrophic' COVID-19 crisis as other countries ease restrictions
7. U.S. State Dept. doesn't mention end-of-war declaration
8. Korean Peninsula issue neglected in titans' showdown
9. U.S. can work with China on North Korea, says White House adviser
10. Military aircraft will be grounded in South Korea as students take college-entrance exam
11. N. Korea on the hunt for two men who escaped while being transported to forced labor camp
12. North Korea Pushing U.S. to Tolerate Missile Tests and Nuclear Program, Says Panel
13. Several local governments in S. Korea are building AIs using CCTV data without subjects' consent
14. Seoul's end-of-war declaration push raises questions over UNC future
15. South Korea loosened covid rules after massive vaccine uptake. Now cases and hospitalizations are surging.
16. Smuggled copies of Squid Game spread inside North Korea
17. USFK begins COVID-19 inoculation program for affiliated children
1. Deputy Secretary Sherman’s Meeting with Republic of Korea First Vice Foreign Minister Choi
It is important to note there is no mention of the discussion of the end of war declaration proposal. This statement may be intended to show that the ROK/US alliance is more than a security alliance focused only on north Korea (While I agree with that idea I also must make the cautionary comment that we must be careful never to minimize or become complacent about the continued existential threat from the north). It is interesting that Burma was specifically mentioned.
Deputy Secretary Sherman’s Meeting with Republic of Korea First Vice Foreign Minister Choi - United States Department of State
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November 16, 2021
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The below is attributable to Spokesperson Ned Price:
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy R. Sherman met with Republic of Korea (ROK) First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong Kun today in Washington. Deputy Secretary Sherman and First Vice Foreign Minister Choi reaffirmed the U.S.-ROK Alliance as the linchpin of peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. The Deputy Secretary welcomed the ROK’s regional and global leadership and stressed the U.S. commitment to working with allies and partners to defend the rules-based international order, as well as unwavering U.S. support for all those working toward the peaceful restoration of Burma’s path to democracy. The two also discussed the DPRK and our shared commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. The Deputy Secretary and the First Vice Foreign Minister underscored U.S.-Japan-ROK cooperation is essential to tackling the global challenges of the 21st Century, including combating COVID-19 and the climate crisis and ensuring resilient supply chains and post-pandemic economic recovery.
2. Senior S. Korean, U.S. diplomats discuss N. Korea, end-of-war declaration: ministry
The MOFA statement mentions the Korean peace process but no specific statement on the end of war declaration.
(2nd LD) Senior S. Korean, U.S. diplomats discuss N. Korea, end-of-war declaration: ministry | Yonhap News Agency
(ATTN: UPDATES with consultations on Iran, Myyamar issues in paras 9-11)
By Choi Soo-hyang and Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL/WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's vice foreign minister held talks with his U.S. counterpart and discussed ways to bring North Korea back to dialogue, including the possible declaration of a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War, Seoul's foreign ministry said Wednesday.
During the 60-minute talks in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday (local time), South Korea's First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman also discussed the alliance and other issues of common interest, including COVID-19 vaccines and the global supply chain crisis, according to the ministry.
"The vice ministers assessed seamless communications and coordination under way at all levels on ways to make progress in the Korea peace process, including the end-of-war declaration, and agreed to continue consultations on practical measures to bring North Korea to the dialogue table," the ministry said in a press release. It gave no other details on the consultation on the sensitive issue of Seoul's push for the declaration in a bid to help revitalize the Korea peace process.
The U.S. State Department released a separate statement on the results of the meeting, in which it made no direct mention of the proposed end-of-war declaration despite the reaffirmation of "shared commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula."
The liberal Moon Jae-in administration of South Korea says such a declaration, if issued, will help restart denuclearization negotiations with North Korea, which have stalled since 2019. It is running out of time, with the election to pick Moon's successor slated for March next year.
Concerns have persisted that the allies may have divergent views, or even a rift, on the matter.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan earlier said publicly that the two sides may differ "on the precise sequence or timing or conditions for different steps" for the declaration.
On Thursday, South Korea's top diplomat Chung Eui-yong said the allies' coordination over the declaration was in its final stages. Choi also said upon arriving in Washington on Sunday that he expects "good results" from discussions with the U.S. in the not too distant future.
At Tuesday's meeting, Choi and Sherman also discussed Iran issues, the foreign ministry said, apparently referring to the Iranian assets frozen in South Korea under U.S. sanctions, and the vice minister vowed continued support for Washington's nuclear talks with the Middle Eastern country.
Sherman welcomed South Korea's "regional and global leadership" and reaffirmed the U.S. will continue working with allies and partners "to defend the rules-based international order" as well as Washington's support for "all those working toward the peaceful restoration" of Myanmar's path to democracy, according to department spokesman Ned Price.
"Deputy Secretary Sherman and First Vice Foreign Minister Choi reaffirmed the U.S.-ROK Alliance as the linchpin of peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond," he said in a press release, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
The bilateral meeting between Choi and Sherman, the third of its kind this year, came one day before the U.S. and South Korean diplomats were set to be joined by their Japanese counterpart, Takeo Mori, for trilateral talks.
"The Deputy Secretary and the First Vice Foreign Minister underscored U.S.-Japan-ROK cooperation is essential to tackling the global challenges of the 21st Century, including combating COVID-19 and the climate crisis, and ensuring resilient supply chains and post-pandemic economic recovery," Price said in his statement.
The state department said the three will hold a joint press event following their meeting in Washington on Wednesday.
bdk@yna.co.kr
scaaet@yna.co.kr
(END)
3. End-of-war declaration can be 'catalyst' for N. Korea talks: minister
The Minister of Unification provides the rationale for an end of war declaration. Unfortunately it is based on an erroneous assumption about the nature, objectives, and strategy of the Kim family regime. Kim Jong-un does not want peace on the Korean peninsula on terms that are in any way favorable to the ROK or the ROK/IS alliance or the international community.
End-of-war declaration can be 'catalyst' for N. Korea talks: minister | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's minister in charge of inter-Korean relations stressed Wednesday that declaring a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War, suggested by Seoul, can serve as a "catalyst" to resume talks with North Korea by sending a positive message to Pyongyang in terms of its pursuit of security assurances.
"Our government believes that the push for the end-of-war declaration is a driving force for tangible peace on the peninsula and at the same time a wise solution that will serve as a catalyst for dialogue involving South and North Korea and the United States," Unification Minister Lee In-young said during a congratulatory speech at the 17th Hankyoreh-Busan International Symposium held in the southeastern port city.
"I think (the declaration) could send a positive message in terms of security guarantees to the North," he added.
The minister said issuing the political declaration will not require great costs and could serve as a "gateway" and a "meaningful milestone" in efforts to achieve lasting peace on the peninsula.
He highlighted the importance of creating "common ground" to restart dialogue, adding that uncertainties surrounding the current security situation have somewhat eased.
"North Korea has fired short-range missiles, but chances are high that so-called strategic provocations such as nuclear tests and long-range missiles will not be seen for the time being," he said.
yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
(END)
4. FM Chung calls for cooperation among S. Korea, China, Japan to overcome 'differences'
Are any of those differences able to be "overcome?"
FM Chung calls for cooperation among S. Korea, China, Japan to overcome 'differences' | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong called Wednesday for steadfast trilateral cooperation among Seoul, Beijing and Tokyo to overcome "differences," amid lingering tensions among the countries over historical, territorial and geopolitical issues.
Chung made the remarks during a meeting with senior officials of the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat (TCS), a Seoul-based organization launched in 2011 to promote cooperation among South Korea, China and Japan.
"The three countries are neighbors close to one another, and there could be differences on specific issues," Chung told the officials, including TCS Secretary-General OU Boqian.
"Given that they share similar cultural backgrounds, the countries will be able to overcome differences through steadfast cooperation and move forward toward co-prosperity," the minister added.
Chung also stressed that the post-pandemic period will call for greater cooperation among nations, while voicing hope that next year's Winter Olympics in Beijing would serve as an opportunity for the three countries to enhance cooperation.
The TCS secretary general called for Seoul's continued support for the secretariat's efforts to become a "symbol of institutionalized cooperation in Northeast Asia."
Wednesday's meeting comes amid continued rows between Seoul and Tokyo over trade and historical issues, while Seoul is striving to map out a strategy to steer clear of geopolitical tensions caused by an intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
5. N. Korea slams U.S. military drill as a 'nuclear war exercise'
I hope there will not be naive calls to cancel these types of very important exercises based on north Korean rhetoric. I know certain factions will make the argument that this illustrates (and justifies) north Korean fears and its calls for an end to the US hostile policy. Certain factions believe that these types of exercise are roadblocks to denuclearization. We should remember that it is the north that has the true hostile policy because it seeks to dominate the entire Korean peninsula and it has postured its forces and ic ontines to develop capabilities and execute various acts of political warfare to achieve its goals through ether subversion and coercion and if necessary the use of force. The so-called hostile policy of the aROK/US alliance is one of defense against the existential threat from the north.
N. Korea slams U.S. military drill as a 'nuclear war exercise' | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- North Korea on Wednesday slammed the United States for its ongoing nuclear command training exercise, calling it a nuclear war drill targeting the entire world.
Global Thunder, led by the U.S. Strategic Command, is an annual command military exercise that provides training opportunities, with a specific focus on nuclear readiness. The exercise, which kicked off on Nov. 1, involves a number of countries, including South Korea.
In a commentary posted on its website, the North's foreign ministry said Global Thunder is "clearly an exercise for nuclear war against the entire world."
Pyongyang also called Washington a "nuclear war criminal nation" and stated that it was the only country in the world to have used atomic warheads against humanity. It also urged the U.S. to stop engaging what it called "reckless behavior" of pushing countries into an arena of nuclear confrontation.
The North also suggested that the annual drill posed a risk of a nuclear war breakout, casting a rhetorical question of whether anyone could guarantee that Global Thunder will not lead to a war.
khj@yna.co.kr
(END)
6. North Korea warns of 'catastrophic' COVID-19 crisis as other countries ease restrictions
I think this is an indicator that the regime is afraid, very afraid.
Unfortunately it also provides justification for the regime's continued draconian population and resources control measures in an attempt to defend against the spread of COVID. But it provides the real benefit to the regime of being able to exert greater control over the population. We must never forget that a fundamental concept for regime survival is to deny the Korean people in the north human rights. VIVID has provided the regime with the perfect excuse to deny human rights even more than it has traditionally done.
North Korea warns of 'catastrophic' COVID-19 crisis as other countries ease restrictions
In this file photo, released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 31, a quarantine official disinfects a school in Pyongyang. YonhapNorth Korea has expressed concerns over the spread of the coronavirus and a "catastrophic public health crisis," after countries across the globe eased a set of antivirus rules as part of efforts to gradually get back to pre-pandemic normalcy.
The North's official radio broadcaster Korean Central Broadcasting Station reported Tuesday the virus situation is at a serious stage, citing "premature" decisions to lift social distancing measures against COVID-19.
"Countries that have eased most of their antivirus restrictions with expectations on vaccine inoculation are especially getting into a catastrophic public health crisis," the report said.
North Korea has been urging its people to stay on high alert against the virus outbreak as Pyongyang prepares to reopen its land border with China, which has remained closed for nearly two years to stave off the virus. The recent resurgence in virus cases could delay the North's plan to open its land routes.
The reclusive regime has claimed to be coronavirus-free and has so far reported no coronavirus cases to the World Health Organization.
"The reality warns that the world is far from getting over the danger of the pandemic and that even just a moment of complacency in antivirus efforts could lead to more catastrophic consequences," the report said.
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases also spiked to surpass the 3,000 mark Wednesday, just shy of an all-time high, less than three weeks after it shifted to the "living with COVID-19" policy. (Yonhap)
7. U.S. State Dept. doesn't mention end-of-war declaration
At the trilateral press conference today at 2pm I wonder how many questions will be asked about the end of war declaration proposal?
Excerpt:
These were the third bilateral vice foreign ministerial talks held this year. On Wednesday, Choi and Sherman were scheduled to hold a trilateral meeting with their Japanese counterpart Takeo Mori and were expected to hold a joint press briefing afterwards.
Wednesday
November 17, 2021
U.S. State Dept. doesn't mention end-of-war declaration
South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun, left, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman pose for a commemorative photo ahead of bilateral talks at the State Deparment in Washington Tuesday. [FOREIGN MINISTRY]
Seoul and Washington may not see eye-to-eye on an end-of-war declaration, with no mention of the issue in a U.S. State Department statement after talks between high-level diplomats Tuesday.
South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman held an hour-long meeting in Washington amid Seoul's push for a declaration to formally end the 1950-53 Korean War as a means of getting Pyongyang to return to dialogue.
The two diplomats "assessed the seamless communication and coordination under way at every level on ways to make progress in the Korea Peninsula peace process, including an end-of-war declaration," according to South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement after the talks. They also "agreed to continue consultations on practical measures to bring North Korea to the dialogue table."
But in its statement after the talks, the U.S. State Department made no mention of the proposed end-of-war declaration. It only mentioned that the two envoys discussed Pyongyang and reaffirmed their "shared commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula."
The Moon Jae-in administration has in recent weeks renewed its push for a formal end to the Korean War, which ended in June 1953 with an armistice agreement rather than a peace treaty.
However, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Oct. 26 that Seoul and Washington may differ "on the precise sequence or timing or conditions for different steps" for an end-of-war declaration.
Arriving in Washington Sunday, Choi said there had been some progress in end-of-war discussions and anticipated "good results" soon.
During a speech at a forum held at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank in Washington Monday, Choi proposed an end-of-war declaration to "devise a structure from which no one can easily walk away" and to "commence the process of making irreversible progress in denuclearization and turning the abnormally long armistice into a peace regime."
He said an end-of-war declaration "would mark a meaningful entry point for [the] two Koreas and the U.S. to shape this new order."
The Foreign Ministry didn't elaborate on whether Choi and Sherman discussed such ideas.
Ned Price, the State Department spokesman, said in the statement on the bilateral talks that Sherman welcomed South Korea's "regional and global leadership and stressed the U.S. commitment to working with allies and partners to defend the rules-based international order."
Price said the two sides underscored that cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan is essential to facing the global challenges of the 21st century, including combating Covid-19 and the climate crisis, and "ensuring resilient supply chains and post-pandemic economic recovery."
He added that they reaffirmed the bilateral alliance "as the linchpin of peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific and beyond."
Seoul's Foreign Ministry likewise said that Choi and Sherman discussed the Korea-U.S. alliance and other issues of common interest, including Covid-19 vaccines, climate change and the global supply chain crisis.
The ministry said the two sides "discussed the current issues between Korea and Iran" and that Choi emphasized continued diplomatic support for the Iran nuclear negotiations, while Sherman noted Seoul's contributions and role and agreed to continue close communication.
Seoul has been seeking various ways to release Iranian assets frozen in the country under U.S. sanctions through cooperation with Washington after the Donald Trump administration in 2018 withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (Jcpoa), under which Iran agreed to curb its nuclear weapons program in exchange for a lifting of sanctions.
These were the third bilateral vice foreign ministerial talks held this year. On Wednesday, Choi and Sherman were scheduled to hold a trilateral meeting with their Japanese counterpart Takeo Mori and were expected to hold a joint press briefing afterwards.
BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]
8. Korean Peninsula issue neglected in titans' showdown
Of course this is the view from South Korea. We also do not know the details of the 3 and 1/2 hour meeting. But regardless I think CHina and the US have discussed north Korea in a lot of detail in other forums and there is probably not much worth rehashing as both sides know the positions in detail.
Korean Peninsula issue neglected in titans' showdown
U.S. President Joe Biden meets virtually with Chinese President Xi Jinping from the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., Monday (local time). AP-Yonhap
US-Sino cooperation on North Korea's denuclearization unlikely: experts
By Kang Seung-woo
The highly-touted virtual summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping revealed that issues regarding the Korean Peninsula, specifically the denuclearization of North Korea, were not a priority between the two superpowers that have a large influence on the matter.
Biden and Xi held the remote talks for three-and-a-half hours, which mainly featured the topics of trade, Chinese aggression toward Taiwan and human rights, leaving diplomatic observers to surmise that the North Korean issue has been put on the back burner for the time being.
The White House's post-summit statement mentioned North Korea only briefly, noting the two leaders "also exchanged views on key regional challenges, including DPRK, Afghanistan, and Iran." DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.
"Given that there were a heap of pending bilateral issues between the United States and China, the two leaders may have touched on the North Korean matter in principle. That is why the White House simply mentioned that they discussed it," said Shin Beom-chul, director of the Center for Diplomacy and Security at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy.
Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, echoed Shin's view.
"Biden is currently facing many domestic issues he needs to address, and the North Korean problem is something that is irresolvable, so he is not likely to expend political capital on denuclearizing North Korea. For China's part, it needs to embrace North Korea amid the intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry. In that respect, the North Korean nuclear issue may have been touched on lightly, if it was not on the agenda," Park said.
Denuclearization talks between Washington and Pyongyang have been stalled since February 2019 when their last summit ended without a deal. As part of efforts to resurrect the dialogue, the U.S. has urged China to use its influence on the North.
However, pundits are skeptical about any possible cooperation between the two countries on the North Korean nuclear challenge.
"If trade between North Korea and China was flourishing, Beijing could have influence on Pyongyang, but currently, the North has nothing to lose from Beijing," said Kim Yeoul-soo, chief of the Security Strategy Office at the Korea Institute for Military Affairs.
"What the U.S. wants is China urging North Korea to return to nuclear talks and to accept an end-of-war declaration, but Pyongyang wants the U.S. to offer more concessions before declaring an official end to the Korean War regardless of progress on its denuclearization."
According to Kim, the concessions mean removing the U.S. "hostile policy" such as cancelling combined South Korea and U.S. military exercises and the deployment of U.S. strategic weapons, and finally withdrawing the U.S. Forces Korea ― demands that Washington cannot accept.
"In that sense, China's role in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue is limited," he added.
Park also said the mainstream belief in Washington that China can exert influence on North Korea is wrong.
"North Korea is a country pursuing its own independent nuclear path, so if China tries to have influence on the country, it could reject it, leaving China with few options on the nuclear issue," he said.
Shin said there will be no U.S.-Sino cooperation on North Korea unless Pyongyang stages a large-scale provocation.
"As North Korea has refrained from conducting a strategic provocation, the nuclear issue is not likely to be a priority for either country," he added.
9. U.S. can work with China on North Korea, says White House adviser
We can as long as China gets its way. China is unlikely to help us solve our security issues on the Korean peninsula.
Wednesday
November 17, 2021
U.S. can work with China on North Korea, says White House adviser
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan speaks on the outcome of the U.S.-China virtual summit in a webinar hosted by the Brookings Institution think tank Tuesday. [BROOKINGS INSTITUTION]
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Tuesday that North Korea is “one immediate challenge” that the United States and China should work together on, following a summit between the two countries’ leaders.
In a webinar hosted by the Brookings Institution think tank explaining the outcome of U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s virtual summit Monday, Sullivan said the leaders “exchanged views on key regional challenges including North Korea, Iran and Afghanistan.”
He described North Korea and Iran as “immediate challenges where the United States and China have worked together historically and are now facing important moments.”
Referring to the North’s recent missile launches, Sullivan said, “We have seen a series of tests by North Korea. The United States has indicated that we are prepared to engage good faith and diplomacy if North Korea is prepared to do the same, so coordination around that issue is also very important.”
Washington has consistently signaled that Beijing could play a larger role in sanctions implementation and encouraging Pyongyang to return to denuclearization negotiations, which have been at a standstill since 2019, especially with the North Korean economy’s heavy dependency on China.
The three-and-a-half hour summit did not lead to any major breakthroughs but was an opportunity for Biden and Xi to try to ease tensions and establish some common ground amid intensifying Sino-U.S. competition.
Sullivan said Biden spoke to Xi “about the need for the United States and China as the two largest economies in the world, as two countries with capacities and responsibilities, to coordinate in order to address issues of global importance where our interests align,” including health security and climate change.
Biden has been “previewing with key Indo-Pacific partners a new regional economic framework that will set new norms and standards in the digital space that will strengthen our supply chains, increase our infrastructure investments and facilitate trade,” Sullivan said.
He continued that the U.S. president has strengthened its alliances with the Republic of Korea and Japan “so that they are as strong as they have been in the history of those two alliances.”
Sullivan added that Biden also stressed the United States is going to work with its allies and partners, and those that share its democratic values, “not against China, but for an affirmative vision of an international system that remains free, open and fair.”
He continued, “We will compete with the full range of our strengths, and we are going to stand up for our values.”
South Korea has often been put in an awkward position amid the stiffening Sino-U.S. rivalry while facing possible economic fallout.
“We have a good working relationship with the government in Beijing,” said South Korean First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choi Jong-kun at a forum in Washington co-hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Korea Foundation Monday. “They’re our strategic partners.”
He noted that South Korea’s trade volume “is larger than our trade volume with the United States and Japan put together,” and that the beneficiaries are the South Korean people and conglomerates. But Korea also is "worried" about supply chain resilience and overdependence on China.
Referring to Seoul’s vision to establish a peace structure on the Korean Peninsula, Choi said, “We cannot do it without, obviously, support and backup and consent and consultation from our friends in Washington; but, realistically speaking, we also need partnership from Beijing.”
Sullivan’s remarks come amid reports Tuesday that the Biden administration may diplomatically boycott the Beijing Olympics next February and not send a U.S. delegation to the Winter Games in protest of human rights abuses.
Seoul has viewed the Beijing Olympics as a possible venue for some breakthrough in engagement with Pyongyang, similar to the PyeongChang Winter Games in 2018.
BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]
10. Military aircraft will be grounded in South Korea as students take college-entrance exam
In South Korea, education is a national priority. Unfortunately, so much rides on this exam. This test decides the future of teenagers.
Military aircraft will be grounded in South Korea as students take college-entrance exam
F-16 Fighting Falcons await final end-of-runway inspections at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, Sept. 21, 2021. (Mya Crosby/U.S. Air Force)
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea — All aircraft operated by the U.S. and South Korean militaries will be grounded Thursday on the Korean Peninsula as high school seniors take a highly competitive college entrance exam.
The College Scholastic Ability Test, or suneung, is administered to high school students in South Korea every third Thursday in November. The test was pushed back last year to December due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Aircraft from the South Korean air force, navy and army will be grounded to reduce noise levels during the exam, a Ministry of Defense official speaking on the customary condition of anonymity told Stars and Stripes by phone on Tuesday.
U.S. military aviation will also be silenced, public affairs officers told Stars and Stripes.
Army helicopters will be grounded throughout the day and firing ranges on military bases will be temporarily shut down, Eighth Army spokesman Lt. Col. Neil Penttila said by phone Wednesday. Medevac aircraft will be standing by in the event of an emergency.
The 8th Fighter Wing out of Kunsan Air Base will pause training during the exam and the 51st Fighter Wing has no scheduled flights on exam day, 7th Air Force spokeswoman Lt. Col. Kelley Jeter said in an email Tuesday.
Commercial aircraft will also be grounded between 1:05 p.m. and 1:40 p.m., an Incheon International Airport customer service representative speaking on the customary condition of anonymity said by phone Wednesday.
Park Gun Su, 18, a senior from Hwaseong, said he began intensely preparing for the exam last year, which was much later than most of his peers.
“I studied differently from everyone else and started a little bit late,” Park told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday. He said he has taken practice tests every quarter since last year.
Park is not worried about the upcoming exam, he said, but “as the exam day nears, with no airplanes flying overhead, it feels more serious.”
South Korean society places a heavy emphasis on preparing for the exam, which is widely viewed as the deciding factor for college admission and job prospects. Students who fail to achieve their desired score may retake the exam after they graduate from high school.
According to the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation’s website, the exam’s six subjects include mathematics, English, Korean history and language and a foreign language. The sixth category, an investigation section, includes vocational topics like basic drafting, commercial economy and an understanding of oceanography.
Exam participants are required to be at testing sites by 8:10 a.m. and are expected to finish at around 5 p.m. Several 20- to 50-minute breaks are allowed between sessions.
David Choi
11. N. Korea on the hunt for two men who escaped while being transported to forced labor camp
survival evasion, resistance, and Escape - usually better to escape before you get to prison.
"...unified commands on non-socialist and anti-socialist behavior?"
The source said the government responded to reports of the incident by ordering that court officers and “unified commands on non-socialist and anti-socialist behavior” nationwide to “frankly inform” all prisoners currently in pre-trial lockup of the incident and catch the pair “without fail” to show others “what judgement awaits those who scoff at the nation’s laws.”
Public safety, security and police officials in North Hamgyong Province have launched 24-hour operations to arrest the pair. They are engaging in an all-out effort to catch the duo, sharing their height, clothing, photographs and other important information with the border patrol, the so-called “Storm Corps” and even inminban (people’s unit) members.
In particular, North Korean authorities have reportedly threatened that if anyone like the pair approaches the border, they will be “unconditionally” fired on to prevent them from illegally crossing into China. If they do cross the border, those manning the checkpoints will face heavy “legal” punishments for violating emergency quarantine laws with their carelessness.
The source added that the government said it would give promotions and commendations to people who contribute to a “successful handling of the situation.”
N. Korea on the hunt for two men who escaped while being transported to forced labor camp - Daily NK
In March, they were arrested for engaging in “non-socialist behavior” after using illegal foreign-made mobile phones
By Jong So Yong - 2021.11.17 4:13pm
North Korean authorities have put out a wanted notice for two young men in their late 20s who escaped while they were being transported to a forced labor camp after being convicted for using illegal foreign-made mobile phones.
A source in North Hamgyong Province told Daily NK on Thursday that the two young men were being sent to Hamhung Forced Labor Camp after undergoing preliminary hearings and a trial in Hoeryong for using illegal mobile phones. On the train, however, they knocked out their guard by hitting him in the head and escaped. The source said the authorities have gone on high alert in several areas along the border and put out a wanted notice.
The two youths made their living smuggling prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. They reportedly worked briefly as “brokers” moving money across the border.
In March, they were arrested for engaging in “non-socialist behavior” after using illegal foreign-made mobile phones. After several months of preliminary hearings and a trial, they received sentences of 13 years of forced labor. They complained to court officers that their sentences were excessive.
They continued to complain even while they were being transported to the labor camp, protesting to their guard that “they weren’t involved in human trafficking or drug smuggling” and that they received heavy sentences “just for doing a bit of smuggling with Chinese phones at the border.”
Household near the Chinese border in North Hamgyong Province. Image (June 2019): Daily NK
In particular, comparing their situation with high-earning money “brokers”, they said they “couldn’t make a good living” and expressed extreme displeasure with how the authorities “take bribes to release people who commit many crimes while making a lot of money but come down hard on guys like us.”
In the end, with the train stopped at Gilju Station for maintenance, the pair told their guard that they needed to step out to go to the bathroom. Coming back to the train, they bashed the guard in the head, took the keys out of his pocket, undid their handcuffs and escaped out a train window.
The source said the government responded to reports of the incident by ordering that court officers and “unified commands on non-socialist and anti-socialist behavior” nationwide to “frankly inform” all prisoners currently in pre-trial lockup of the incident and catch the pair “without fail” to show others “what judgement awaits those who scoff at the nation’s laws.”
Public safety, security and police officials in North Hamgyong Province have launched 24-hour operations to arrest the pair. They are engaging in an all-out effort to catch the duo, sharing their height, clothing, photographs and other important information with the border patrol, the so-called “Storm Corps” and even inminban (people’s unit) members.
In particular, North Korean authorities have reportedly threatened that if anyone like the pair approaches the border, they will be “unconditionally” fired on to prevent them from illegally crossing into China. If they do cross the border, those manning the checkpoints will face heavy “legal” punishments for violating emergency quarantine laws with their carelessness.
The source added that the government said it would give promotions and commendations to people who contribute to a “successful handling of the situation.”
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
12. North Korea Pushing U.S. to Tolerate Missile Tests and Nuclear Program, Says Panel
Unfortunately President Moon and former President Trump have already made this possible when they set the "red line" at no nuclear and ICBM tests. They created a huge "gray zone" in which the Kim family regime can operate.
North Korea Pushing U.S. to Tolerate Missile Tests and Nuclear Program, Says Panel - USNI News
A North Korean Hwasong-14 missile test in 2017. KCNA Photo
North Korea’s goal in dealing with the U.S. is to have Washington tolerate Pyongyang possessing nuclear weapons, a leading expert on international security said Monday.
Washington is “at a worse spot” now in trying to negotiate the denuclearization of the peninsula, she said. Pyongyang “is trying to diversify its weapons” – with an arsenal of land-based, mobile, submarine-launched and cruise missiles with different ranges and payloads.
At the same time, Kim is pushing for “significant sanctions relief” from the sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council and the U.S. on North Korea for developing its nuclear weapons program. Terry added the North Korean leader is far more interested in sanctions relief than joining the U.S., China and South Korea in a formal declaration ending the Korean War.
In short, panelists discussing the possibility of denuclearizing the peninsula saw the stalemate continuing, as the South Koreans head to the polls in March to elect a new president to succeed President Moon Jae-in. Moon favored negotiations with Pyongyang and has pressed for a declaration ending the war.
Richard Johnson, deputy assistant secretary of defense for countering weapons of mass destruction, said the Biden administration understands past negotiations over North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs have gone nowhere, but it remains “open to exploring” diplomatic channels with Kim.
“We’re prepared to take calibrated steps” to reach that goal, but “we have to have a negotiating partner.”
So far, North Korea has shown little interest in resuming negotiations.
Johnson said that in the administration’s review of Korean policy, it reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to Seoul and Tokyo to come to their defense under security treaties with both if attacked.
Speaking at a later panel, Kim Il-young, an associate professor at Hanyang University, said “the weakest link” in that trilateral security arrangement is the historically sour relations between South Korea and Japan. While there are political opportunities in both countries, with a new government in Japan and one coming in South Korea in May, tensions remain high.
In 2019, a dispute over trade led to a temporary end to the agreement covering three-way sharing of intelligence between the U.S., South Korea and Japan.
“The U.S. has historically applied the pressure to reduce the tensions” between its two allies, but this influence appears to be waning, she added.
Andrew Wong, former deputy special representative for North Korea at the State Department, said closer cooperation among the three “should make complete sense” because the threat is the same from North Korea. They also share economic interests in the Indo-Pacific and all are democracies.
For its own security and economic interest, Seoul “should be looking more seriously” at closer cooperation with Tokyo and Washington, Andrew Yeo, director of Asian studies at Catholic University added.
He and other panelists said Seoul was hesitant to get drawn into new security arrangements to counter China, its largest trading partner and close neighbor. “We have these different agendas” when it comes to Beijing, Yeo said.
“South Korea should be cautious” about becoming involved in the Quad for a number of reasons – from possible Chinese economic retaliation, as it has done to Australia, to tensions with Japan, Kim said.
Other panelists noted Japan might not look favorably on South Korea participating in a “Quad Plus.”
Wong added that the Quad itself as a security counter to Beijing could disappear if India no longer feels threatened by China. “Will India be interested for a long time” if that happened?
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13. Several local governments in S. Korea are building AIs using CCTV data without subjects' consent
Privacy issues in South Korea. I am sure Kim Jong-un would love to consult on improving surveillance techniques.
Several local governments in S. Korea are building AIs using CCTV data without subjects' consent
Posted on : Nov.16,2021 16:16 KST Modified on : Nov.16,2021 16:16 KST
This comes amid revelations that the Ministry of Justice handed over millions of photos obtained in the immigration screening process to private sector AI developers
Workers in a control office in one municipal government’s CCTV operation room. Photo unrelated to the content of the article. (Hankyoreh archive photo)
As controversy rages over the Ministry of Justice using photographs of travelers’ faces obtained during immigration procedures to build an artificial intelligence identification and tracking system without data subjects’ consent, it has been confirmed that similar projects are underway in several local governments around Korea.These projects operate under the pretext of using AI trained with publicly obtained data for public purposes such as policing and disease control. This has led to concerns over the potential abuse or misuse of personal information that the release of sensitive biometric data to the private sector entails, as well as infringement on privacy stemming from real-time remote surveillance systems.There is also the hidden risk that private development firms who have been given access to public data could misappropriate such data.Municipalities flock to make use of artificial intelligence facial recognitionAn investigation by the Hankyoreh on Monday found that the city of Bucheon in Gyeonggi Province plans to implement a “smart epidemiological investigation system” using CCTV cameras within the city starting in January 2022. When a confirmed case of a disease such as COVID-19 appears, the AI algorithm will analyze footage gathered by the CCTV control center and track the person’s movements, instances of close contact, and whether they were wearing a mask. Up to 10,000 cameras installed for crime prevention will be used for this project.Bucheon has more CCTV cameras than other municipalities, which increases the amount of data collected. In a report released at the beginning of this year, Bucheon stated, “As of June 2020, Bucheon has 123 CCTV cameras per 1 square kilometer, which satisfies the conditions for carrying out [this project] to an extent that no other Korean city can follow.”A city official told the Hankyoreh that “a [private] company that specializes in building data sets has recently completed the filming of training videos and is now developing an algorithm.”Similar projects are underway in other regions as well.For instance, the city of Ansan in Gyeonggi Province plans to launch a pilot program next year for a system that detects child abuse in real-time by using CCTV in daycare centers within the district. If the CCTV captures scenes of abuse or signals such as expressions of negative emotions by children, the algorithm will detect this and send a notification to both City Hall and the director of the daycare center.“We will begin developing the system early next year after holding an orientation session for parents, directors and teachers from city daycare centers by the end of the year,” Ansan stated in a press release last month. “After running a pilot next year, we plan to expand the project to all daycare centers in Ansan from the second half of 2023 (July – December).”Police in Jeju are pursuing a pilot project that involves using AI CCTV for personal protection. In this project, CCTV cameras capable of facial recognition and intruder detection are installed close to the homes of persons subject to protection. If a certain person is found loitering in the area, the system automatically sends a photograph to the protected person and the police’s 112 situation room. The Korean National Police Agency plans to expand this system nationwide starting next year.Concerns growing over Big Brother-style surveillance societyThese projects are based on disclosing public data to private companies, primarily because the effectiveness of AI algorithms depends on how close the data used to train them matches the real world. It is both expensive and time-consuming to obtain private data with the permission of individual data subjects.The problem, however, is that a large number of unspecified personal information can be unknowingly handed over to the private sector. In February, Bucheon wrote in a project proposal request: “Various AI algorithms are being developed, but in many cases data to study these algorithms are lacking so it’s unsuitable for use in practice.”The city continued, saying, “[We are planning] to build a dataset [for training the AI] to advance the AI algorithm based on actual CCTV footage data.”This would mean handing over this sensitive data to private companies without first obtaining permission from the people appearing in the CCTV footage. Until the end of this year, however, the algorithm will only be developed with footage that has been produced, while actual CCTV footage will be used starting next year.According to Bucheon’s city government, using CCTV footage to train AI algorithms shouldn’t be seen as a problem since the images obtained through CCTV are used only after a process of de-identification of individuals. An official from Bucheon told the Hankyoreh: “Although an unspecified number of people [appear in the footage], when the footage is analyzed, the faces of individuals will be blurred.”However, whether it’s possible to disguise or hide biometric information such as faces is controversial even within the government. The Personal Information Protection Commission and the Ministry of Health and Welfare published guidelines on the use of medical health data last September. Their guidelines mentioned that they had deferred judgment as to whether biometric data can be processed anonymously, adding that “[Biometric data] can only be used with the data subject’s consent.”There are also fears about the possibility of remote monitoring. This is because CCTVs equipped with a remote identification function could be used to surveil and track the private lives of individuals. Chang Yeo-Kyung, executive director of the Institute of Digital Rights, said, “There is no guarantee that a system designed to track an unspecified number of individuals will not be diverted for private surveillance purposes.”The city of Bucheon aims to use the dataset built through this project not only for disease control measures but also for “the overall development of AI technology,” according to its business plan.“We will establish and open up AI datasets based on real data, upgrade AI learning algorithms, and create and expand a foundation for the continuous advancement of AI data analysis systems,” it wrote.In other words, there is an alternative purpose beyond the establishment of a disease control and prevention network.By Cheon Ho-sung, staff reporterPlease direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]
14. Seoul's end-of-war declaration push raises questions over UNC future
This has long been a major objective of north Korea. We should keep in mind that not only does dismantling the UN Command have an impact on maintaining the Armistice, it will have an impact on the defense of South korea. Although the UN Command will NOT lead the defense or be a higher HQ for the ROK/US Combined Forces Command, it plays a key supporting role both with the s 7 UN designated bases in Japan that serve as key intermediate staging bases for the flow of forces and logistics support. It also serves as the integrator of coalition forces that will be chopped to the ROK/US CFC for specific missions.
The regime's objective of dismantling the UNC is to support its ability to fight a war to dominate the Korean peninsula. It also supports the intermediate objective of driving a edge bin the alliance.
(News Focus) Seoul's end-of-war declaration push raises questions over UNC future | Yonhap News Agency
By Song Sang-ho
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's steady pursuit of declaring a formal end to the Korean War is again raising complex questions over the future of the U.N. Command (UNC), a U.S.-led entity formed during the 1950-53 conflict as part of efforts to restore peace, analysts said Wednesday.
The proposed declaration may help bring about a semblance of sustainable peace -- long an elusive goal, but it could end up weakening the rationale for the command's existence, they noted.
The UNC returned to the spotlight last month, as North Korean Ambassador to the U.N. Kim Song renewed calls for its abolition, accusing it of only serving America's political and military interests.
His accusations came as the command has been seen reinforcing its headquarters by seeking more contributions from member countries, having previously double-hatted staff focus exclusively on their UNC roles and through other measures.
"The UNC was born to repel North Korean invaders during the Korean War," Park Won-gon, a North Korean studies professor at Ewha Womans University, said. "Should an end to the war be declared, North Korea may no longer be viewed as a belligerent threat -- a scenario that could shake the foundation of the UNC."
Under a 1950 U.N. mandate to address the North's "breach of peace," the command was launched as an overarching warfighting institution consisting of more than 20 countries dedicated to defending the South. The war ended in a truce rather than a peace treaty.
Later, the UNC's role was reduced to enforcing the armistice and other related missions after it handed over its operational control over South Korean troops to the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command in 1978.
The Moon Jae-in administration has been hammering away at the end-of-war declaration as an entry point to set in motion a broad initiative for denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
It has recently been stepping up consultations with the U.S. regarding a text of the declaration, though uncertainty remains over whether the North would accede to it, particularly when it has only months left before the end of its five-year term in May.
"By putting an end to the Korean War, our government intends to commence the process of making irreversible progress in denuclearization and turning the abnormally long armistice into a peace regime," Seoul's First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun said during a forum in Washington on Monday.
The North Korean envoy's demand for the UNC removal was emblematic of Pyongyang's long-held stance that the command is a U.S.-controlled entity to promote America's interests as opposed to a collective security mechanism.
"The U.S. insistence on the continued existence of the U.N. Command is aimed at legitimizing and perpetuating its occupation of South Korea and meeting its political and military goals in the Asia-pacific region," Kim said during a U.N. General Assembly session in New York on Oct. 27.
His remarks added to concerns Pyongyang could seize on the end-of-war declaration to make the case that the UNC has no reason and place to stand, with relevant countries looking for a permanent peace regime to replace the armistice.
Seoul's foreign ministry sought to quell such worries.
"The declaration is a political, symbolic measure to build confidence (with the North)," Choi Young-sam, the ministry spokesperson, told a regular press briefing earlier this month. "This doesn't mean a legal, structural change in the current armistice regime, including the UNC's standing."
Amid the talk of the declaration's ramifications on the UNC, the command has apparently been seeking to bolster its presence.
On the occasion of its 70th founding anniversary in July last year, the UNC launched its official website in yet another sign it has been pushing to beef up its overall activities.
The opening of the website followed years of the command's "revitalization" campaign marked notably by its assignment of a non-American officer to its once U.S.-dominated deputy chief post.
The campaign has spawned a flurry of speculation, with some analysts assuming the U.S. might intend to use the command to enhance its military influence over the peninsula as Seoul pushes to retake wartime operational control from Washington.
Others raised speculation Washington could take advantage of the long-standing multinational military command to preserve the U.S.-led regional security order being challenged by an assertive China.
Last year, then UNC Commander Robert Abrams brushed aside such speculation, saying his command is "not a warfighting headquarters."
"There is no plan. There's no secret plan for the UNC to somehow be a warfighting or operational headquarters in the future," he said.
Observers, however, took the remarks with a grain of salt, predicting the UNC could possibly morph into a key battle organ in the event of a contingency on the peninsula, with its rear bases in Japan designed to provide vital logistics support for wartime operations.
Analysts also raised the possibility even if the Korean War is declared over, the UNC could stay here as a multinational force to ensure peace on the peninsula, possibly under a new name dissociated from the U.N.
Amid varying assumptions, Lee Ki-beom, a professor at Yonsei University Law School, pointed out the need for Seoul to participate in the UNC to have its voice heard more.
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
15. South Korea loosened covid rules after massive vaccine uptake. Now cases and hospitalizations are surging.
Lessons for us?
South Korea is executing "unmasking procedures" for the world? ( those who have been through chemical weapons defense training will understand the reference to removing the protective mask by junior members of the command to determine if there is still a chemical danger. Have the atropine ready to go).
South Korea loosened covid rules after massive vaccine uptake. Now cases and hospitalizations are surging.
Less than three weeks after South Korea relaxed pandemic restrictions under a new living-with-covid policy, the country is experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases.
On Wednesday the country reported a record 522 coronavirus patients hospitalized with moderate to serious symptoms requiring intensive care, intubation or oxygen to help with breathing. It tallied 3,187 new infections the same day, the second-highest daily figure since the start of the pandemic.
South Korea’s government began relaxing pandemic restrictions on Nov. 1, deeming that a sufficient portion of the population had been vaccinated. South Korea has fully immunized close to 80 percent of its 52 million people, despite a later start than many other wealthy countries. Fewer than 10 countries have higher vaccination rates, Washington Post figures show.
Last month, South Korea started vaccinating children ages 12 to 17 and providing booster shots for the elderly and people working at medical facilities. No vaccine has been approved for Korean children younger than 12.
In its first phase of loosened restrictions, South Korea is letting bars, restaurants, and cafes stay open for longer hours. (Previously, most had to close by 10 p.m.) Private groups of up to 12 can gather outside the Seoul metropolitan area (and 10 in the Seoul area) up from four. Professional sporting events can now allow fans into stadiums (Game 3 of the Korean Series, the local equivalent of the World Series, is on Wednesday evening).
The rising caseload has stirred concern among health officials. The country will stop relaxing measures further if coronavirus case numbers continue to go up, Jeong Eun-kyeong, the country’s top disease control official, said during a parliamentary hearing last week.
Korean officials have previously said that the country’s health-care system could manage 500 coronavirus patients with serious symptoms at any given time without experiencing major strains. Wednesday marked the first time that South Korea surpassed the 500-patient threshold.
Deaths have also been climbing. On Nov. 1, the seven-day average for daily coronavirus fatalities was 12.3, according to Our World in Data. That figure has now risen to about 20.
Kim Woo-joo, an infectious-disease expert at Korea University, said the recent surges reflected waning immunity against the coronavirus among those who had been vaccinated several months ago. “This is why we need booster shots," he said in a phone interview.
Health officials told reporters on Wednesday that the spread of the delta variant had driven increases in breakthrough infections at nursing homes and long-term care facilities, where most of the residents were senior citizens who had received their initial vaccination doses earlier in the year.
“We are seeing more serious cases and deaths among the elderly,” said Choi Eunhwa, the head of a government panel that oversees vaccine policy.
An Israeli study published in the New England Journal of Medicine last month showed that six months after receiving the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, peoples’ immune response to the coronavirus “substantially decreased,” especially among men, those aged 65 or older, and those with immunosuppressed conditions.
More than half of the vaccine doses administered in South Korea were shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, though the country has also given out doses of the Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, and AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine.
Though daily deaths are rising, South Korea’s covid fatality rate is low — and has fallen from 2.4 percent in May 2020 to less than 0.8 percent now, according to Our World in Data. This, experts say, is partly due to its high vaccination rate.
“This does show that vaccines work,” said Kim, the Korea University infectious-disease doctor. “But this isn’t a cause for celebration. The whole point of vaccines is preventing deaths. The number of deaths is rising.”
“If we want to live with covid like the common cold, the case fatality rate has to fall to less than 0.1 percent,” he said.
16. Smuggled copies of Squid Game spread inside North Korea
Unfortunately many of the Korean people living in the north experience the squid game for real. Certainly those in the gulags do.
Smuggled copies of Squid Game spread inside North Korea
Netflix’s greatest hit resonates with North Koreans who feel every day is a life and death struggle.
Netflix's popular Korean-language TV hit “Squid Game” has made it to reclusive North Korea, as smuggled copies of the violent drama are spreading despite the best efforts of authorities to keep out foreign media, sources in the country told RFA.
The show’s dystopian world -- in which marginalized people are pitted against one another in traditional children's games for huge cash prizes and losing players are put to death. -- resonates with North Koreans in risky occupations and insecure positions, the sources said.
“Squid Game has been able to enter the country on memory storage devices such as USB flash drives and SD cards, which are smuggled in by ship, and then make their way inland,” a resident of the city of Pyongsong, north of the capital Pyongyang, told RFA’s Korean Service.
The premise of the show has resonated with the rich people of Pyongyang, the source said.
“They say that the content is similar to the lives of Pyongyang officials who fight in the foreign currency market as if it is a fight for life and death,” the said the man, who had watched the show at his money-changer brother’s house in Pyongyang.
“They think the show’s plot kind of parallels their own reality, where they know they could be executed at any time if the government decides to make an example out of them for making too much money, but they all continue to make as much money as possible,” said the source.
“It not only resonates with the rich people, but also with Pyongyang’s youth, because they are drawn to the unusually violent scenes. Also, one of the characters is a North Korean escapee and they can relate to her,” the source said.
“They secretly watch the show under their blankets at night on their portable media players.”
A resident of North Pyongan province, bordering China, told RFA that the show has caught on with the smugglers who move goods in from China at great risk in the face of the draconian border closures and restrictions on movement that North Korea has imposed to curb the spread of coronavirus.
“Smugglers in particular are immersed in the show because they feel as though they are in a similar situation. They risk their lives to smuggle things in from China despite enhanced border security during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the second source, who requested anonymity for security reasons.
North Korea made its normally porous border with China hard to cross, adding up troops, declaring a one km kill zone along the border, and laying landmines to prevent its people from escaping, all under the premise of stopping the spread of COVID-19.
Smuggling has, however, continued, and the government has publicly executed smugglers and their accomplices during the pandemic.
Watching Squid Game may be a deadly risk in itself. The government last year passed a new law on the “Elimination of Reactionary Thought and Culture,” which carries a maximum penalty of death for watching, keeping, or distributing capitalist media, especially from South Korea and the U.S.
“Law enforcement is not playing around with the new law, and they are fiercely trying to root out every instance of capitalist culture,” the second source said.
“But times are tough due to the pandemic, so even the police are struggling to make ends meet. Putting a few bucks in their pocket will make them go away if you get caught watching South Korean media. So that means more and more people here will watch Squid Game moving forward.”
North Korean authorities have gone to great lengths to cut off South Korean influence and punish those who consume South Korean culture.
RFA reported in May 2020 that authorities were checking students’ text messages for South Korean spellings and slang.
In June of that year, authorities began punishing people caught using a specific sarcastic phrase that appeared in a South Korean drama because it was seen as disrespectful to the country’s leader Kim Jong Un.
In February 2021, RFA reported that police were cracking down on vehicle window tinting, which North Koreans were using to hide their surreptitious viewing of South Korean videos, labeling the practice as part of the “yellow wind of capitalism.”
An August 2019 Washington Post report documented how certain aspects of South Korean media are considered dangerous by North Korean authorities because they encourage people to escape. K-pop and American pop music has had an instrumental role in undermining North Korean propaganda, it said.
It also cited a survey of 200 North Korean escapees living in South Korea, in which 90 percent said they consumed foreign media while living in the North, with 75 percent saying they knew of someone who was punished for it.
More than 70 percent said they believed that accessing foreign media became more dangerous since Kim Jong Un took power in 2011, said the survey by South Korea’s Unification Media Group.
Squid Game is Netflix’s most watched show ever, ranked first in 94 countries and viewed in 142 million homes worldwide after only a month, according to the company’s third quarter earnings report.
The show is even more popular than those figures indicate.
RFA reported in mid-October that Squid Game was pirated on around 60 streaming sites in China, according to South Korea's ambassador to China, who asked Beijing to take action over illegal viewing.
Translated by Dukin Han for RFA’s Korean Service. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
17. USFK begins COVID-19 inoculation program for affiliated children
USFK begins COVID-19 inoculation program for affiliated children | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) on Wednesday started inoculating children in its affiliated community with a pediatric Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at three of its bases, its officials said.
The vaccination program for children aged 5 to 11 started at the medical facilities in Camp Humphreys and Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, and Camp Walker in Daegu, 300 km southeast of the capital, the USFK said.
The vaccination came after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the Pfizer vaccine for the age group on Oct. 29. An initial pediatric dose is one-third of the adult dose and administered with smaller needles specifically designed for children.
The USFK said that while the vaccination is not mandatory, it strongly encourages "all eligible individuals to get vaccinated to help protect themselves, their family and our community."
sshluck@yna.co.kr
(END)
V/R
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Phone: 202-573-8647
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.
