A Capitalist in North Korea by
In 2002, the Swiss power company ABB appointed Felix Abt its country director for North Korea. The Swiss Entrepreneur lived and worked in North Korea for seven years, one of the few foreign businessmen there. After the experience, Abt felt compelled to write A Capitalist in North Korea to describe the multifaceted society he encountered.
North Korea, at the time, was heavily sanctioned by the UN, which made it extremely difficult to do business. Yet, he discovered that it was a place where plastic surgery and South Korean TV dramas were wildly popular and where he rarely needed to walk more than a block to grab a quick hamburger. He was closely monitored, and once faced accusations of spying, yet he learned that young North Koreans are hopeful—signing up for business courses in anticipation of a brighter, more open, future. In A Capitalist in North Korea, Abt shares these and many other unusual facts and insights about one of the world's most secretive nations.
The Hidden People of North Korea by
The illusion of unity : despite appearances, North Koreans are not all of one mind, united around their leader -- The life of the leader : given the opportunity, dictators dictate -- The economic system : command socialism does not work -- The economy of everyday life : most people find a way to make a living -- The information environment : propaganda is everywhere, but other news is creeping in -- Hidden thoughts : reality and ideology are in conflict -- The law, political class, and human rights : the law is made to protect the leader, and only he enjoys full human rights -- Defectors : sometimes running away is the best option -- The end comes slowly : for all its problems, the Kim regime appears to be stable.
North Korea Confidential by
North Korea is one of the most troubled societies on earth. The country's 24 million people live under a violent dictatorship led by a single family, which relentlessly pursues the development of nuclear arms, which periodically incites risky military clashes with the larger, richer, liberal South, and which forces each and every person to play a role in the "theater state" even as it pays little more than lip service to the wellbeing of the overwhelming majority.
With this deeply anachronistic system eventually failed in the 1990s, it triggered a famine that decimated the countryside and obliterated the lives of many hundreds of thousands of people. However, it also changed life forever for those who survived.
North Korea Society and Culture Complete Report by
Need to know it all? Our all-inclusive culture report for North Korea will get up to speed on all aspects of culture in North Korea, including lifecycle, religion, women, superstitions & folklore, sports, holidays & festivals, and etiquette.
Nothing to Envy by
Follows the lives of six North Koreans over fifteen years, a chaotic period that saw the rise to power of Kim Jong Il and the devastation of a famine that killed one-fifth of the population, illustrating what it means to live under the most repressive totalitarian regime today.
The Aquariums of Pyongyang by
North Korea is today one of the last bastions of hard-line Communism. Its leaders have kept a tight grasp on their one-party regime, quashing any nascent opposition movements and sending all suspected dissidents to its brutal concentration camps for "re-education." Kang Chol-hwan is the first survivor of one of these camps to escape and tell his story to the world, documenting the extreme conditions in these gulags and providing a personal insight into life in North Korea. Part horror story, part historical document, part memoir, part political tract, this record of one man's suffering gives eyewitness proof to an ongoing sorrowful chapter of modern history.
Crossing National Borders by
International migration and other types of cross-border movement of people are becoming an important part of international relations in Northeast Asia. In this pioneering study, experts on China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia and Russia examine the political, economic, social and cultural dimensions of the interaction between border-crossing individuals and host communities, highlighting the challenges that face national and local leaders in each country and suggesting needed changes in national and international policies. The book introduces a wealth of empirical material and insight to both international migration studies and Northeast Asian area studies.
