North Korea in 100 Facts

Ruth Ann Monti teases out the facts about this dictatorship to provide an illuminating insight into a society that might just as well be in outer space for most in the West. Modern North Korea is based on an ideology Kim Il Sung developed and named Juche. According to North Korea’s official website, Juche means that “the masters of the revolution and construction are the masses of the people and that they are also the motive force of the revolution and construction.” But what this means in practice is that everything is designed to venerate Kim Il Sung and his heirs; even school math problems (“if x = Kim’s anti-Japanese fighters and y = the number of Japanese killed,” etc.). Virtually all music, stories, and artwork reflect Kim’s life and teachings. High school students complete an 81-hour course on Kim Jong Un. Only a select few men are allowed to shave part of their hair a la Kim. The 100 facts don't all make grim reading: in 1912 North Korean archaeologists discovered a unicorn lair!