A/HRC/25/CRP.1
to number up to 2 million subscribers,108 as well as the prevalence of new vehicles on the
formerly quiet streets. They marvel at the opening of new restaurants which appear to be
well-frequented. Some observers have been noting what could be modernizing trends in the
DPRK from Kim Jong-un appearing publicly with his wife in contrast to his father and
grandfather, the brief appearance of an unlicensed Mickey Mouse dancing with an
unlicensed Winnie the Pooh at a state-sponsored musical performance, and the commercial
launching of the country’s own home-grown tablet computer. Kim Jong-un himself has also
been promoting sports in the DPRK by making public appearances at various athletic
events.
156. At the same time, there has been a clampdown on the country’s borders since Kim
Jong-un’s succession to power. The number of North Koreans who have reached the ROK
fell significantly in 2012 and 2013.109 The Commission has received reports of the use of
blackmail and coercion against those who have left the country, including threats to family
members in the DPRK to entice them to return to the DPRK. Certainly, a number of
Koreans who have returned to the DRPK from the ROK have appeared on state television
to express their apparent remorse for leaving and voicing criticism of life in the South.110
Other control measures that have been reported include Kim Jong-un placing new limits on
privately-funded education abroad by elite families.111
157. The sudden execution of Jang Song-thaek, Kim Jong-un’s uncle, in December 2013,
appears to be part of Kim Jong-un’s consolidation process. Jang Song-thaek had been
considered the “control tower”112, due to his role as a guide to the new leader, and was
widely considered to be second-in-command within the DPRK power structure. He was the
husband of the sister of Kim Jong-il and daughter of Kim Il-sung. Her condition was
uncertain at the time this report was finished.
F.
External dynamics and the human rights situation
158. While an examination of the foregoing internal dynamics provides one explanation
for the evolution of the DPRK and its human rights situation, it is also useful to examine
the external environment to understand the particular influences that have shaped the
character of the state. The end of World War II brought to the forefront aspirations of many
colonized peoples for national independence, including the Koreans. At the same time, the
new world order gave rise to rivalry between the United States and its allies and the Soviet
108
109
110
111
112
According to 38 North, US-Korea Institute at SAIS, Johns Hopkins University, the 3G service,
Koryolink, launched in December 2008 by CHEO Technology JV Company, a joint venture between
the Egyptian telecommunications firm Orascom and the government-owned Korea Post and
Telecommunications Corporation, reached one million subscribers by February 2012. That rate was
then doubled in 15 months, reaching an ostensible two million subscribers in May 2013. As 2011,
Koryolink’s network had 453 base stations covering Pyongyang, 14 main cities and 86 smaller cities.
See Kim Yon-ho, “A Closer Look at the ‘Explosion of Cell Phone Subscribers’ in North Korea”, 26
November 2013.
See section IV.C.
Alastair Gale, “North Korea Clamps Down on Defections”, Wall Street Journal, 27 August 2013.
According to an expert interviewed by the Commission, one of the perks enjoyed by the elite in the
DPRK has been the education of children abroad. This privilege has expanded beyond the small
number of selected cadres to those business people who are able to pay for this access. As the number
of North Korean children abroad has increased, this situation has become more complex leading to
concerns about control. ECC002.
Ken E. Gause, “North Korean Leadership Dynamics and Decision-making under Kim Jong-un: A
First Year Assessment”, CNA Strategic Studies, September 2013.
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