by Julian Ryall for The Scotsman
Hat tip: Brothers Judd EFL
ORDINARY people in North Korea are ready to revolt against dictator Kim Jong Il, according to three fishermen who risked their lives to flee the country three decades after being abducted by its agents. . . . Lee Jae Keyn, whose trawler was seized by a gunboat in April 1970 and who was forced to spend the next 30 years in the north, said: "The top ranks of the military believe very strongly in Kim and will protect the regime, but the ordinary people are saying things about him behind his back. They’re very dissatisfied with the regime and, if the leadership believes its grip on power is beginning to slip and starts to turn on the people, they will definitely rise up and attack the military at the local level. There are 1.2 million people in the North Korean armed forces who will fight for Kim Jong Il, but the people won’t."
The problem for the people is the same as in any police state: everyone may desire in their heart of hearts to overthrow the government, but talking openly about it risks a trip to the gulag. That’s why spontaneous rebellions against police states are so rare.
. . . Lee believes the only way that reform will be possible in the north is for the United States to become more involved, possibly militarily, and suggested that the easiest way for change to be brought about in the near future would be for Kim Jong Il to be assassinated.
Works for me. A B-2 or two, and a few thousand-pounder JDAMs. Sleep well, Kim Jong Il. |